HR 5935: Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians Water Rights Settlement Act

HR 5935 in plain English: This bill would settle water rights claims by the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians by establishing several federally funded accounts totaling $500,000,000 to support water development, groundwater augmentation, water management, and ongoing operation and maintenance costs for the tribe.

Stated purpose

This bill aims to reach a final legal settlement of water rights claims held by the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians in California, and to authorize and fund an agreement among the Tribe, the Coachella Valley Water District, and the Desert Water Agency to resolve those claims.

Key points

• Establishes an Agua Caliente Development Projects Account funded at $300,000,000
• Creates an Agua Caliente Groundwater Augmentation Account funded at $100,000,000
• Sets up a Water Management Account and an Operation, Maintenance and Replacement Costs Account at $50,000,000 each
• Allows $50,000,000 of development project funds to be used for initial development projects

Arguments supporters make

• Settling these long-running water rights lawsuits through negotiation rather than continued litigation saves time and money for all parties and gives the Tribe a clear, enforceable right to water it is legally owed.
• Providing the Tribe with a reliable, legally recognized water supply supports the economic stability of the Reservation and fulfills longstanding federal trust obligations to tribal nations.
• A negotiated settlement with all parties agreeing — the Tribe, water districts, and federal government — is more likely to produce a durable, workable outcome than a court-imposed result.

Arguments opponents make

• Federal funding authorized to implement the settlement represents a cost to taxpayers, and critics may question whether the settlement terms are the most fiscally responsible use of public funds.
• Formally recognizing a large tribal water right in the Coachella Valley could limit water availability or increase costs for other regional water users and local communities that depend on the same groundwater basin.
• Some may argue that transferring federal land into tribal trust or selling it to water districts bypasses normal public land processes and reduces accountability for how those lands are managed going forward.

Tradeoffs

Resolving the Tribe's water rights and ending costly litigation requires committing federal funds and formally allocating water from a shared regional groundwater basin, which may reduce flexibility for other users of that same supply. The settlement provides legal certainty for the Tribe but involves permanent decisions about land ownership and water entitlements that cannot easily be reversed.

Current status in Congress: In committee.

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