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Sens. Cruz, Cornyn File Amendment Creating New Framework to Ensure Mexican Compliance with Water Treaty Obligations

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and John Cornyn (R-Texas), introduced an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) creating a new framework to ensure that Mexico complies with for meeting its obligations under the 1944 Treaty on Utilization of Waters of the Colorado, Tijuana, and Rio Grande Rivers.

Mexico is obligated under the 1944 treaty to deliver 350,000 acre-feet of water per years averaged over a five year cycle but has not reliably made annual deliveries, leading to devastating shortfalls including in Texas and across the Southwest. The amendment filed by Sens. Cruz and Cornyn requires the Secretary of State to annually report to Congress whether Mexico has delivered to the U.S. 350,000 acre-feet of water in the previous year. If the report is not submitted or if the Department of State finds that Mexico has not delivered 350,000 acre feet of water, the bill requires the president to impose one of the following measures and authorizes the imposition of all of them:

  • prohibiting USAID aid to Mexico’s private sector,
  • prohibiting U.S. Trade and Development Agency funds for grantees in Mexico, and
  • capping foreign assistance to Mexico at 85 percent of appropriated levels (i.e., a 15 percent mandatory cut), exempting only anti-opioid/synthetic drug programs.

About the amendment, Sen. Cruz said, “Texas farmers and cities are suffering because Mexico has consistently failed to uphold its end of the bargain and provide Texans with the water they count on in the framework of the 1944 Water Treaty. This amendment strengthens the Treaty by introducing measures the Secretary of State must and can take to ensure Mexico provides predictable and reliable deliveries. This new framework is essential to ensuring such deliveries, and I call on the Senate to expeditiously advance this amendment.”

Sen. Cornyn said, “For years, Senator Cruz, the Texas Congressional delegation and I have been urging the State Department to diplomatically engage with Mexico to ensure they fulfill their obligations under the 1944 Water Treaty. This bill complements another effort we have in the Appropriations Committee by taking our work to the next level and imposing punitive action against our southern neighbor, whose continued delays and inaction are hurting the livelihoods of farmers, ranchers, and producers throughout South Texas.”

Background:

  • One of the primary ways that the U.S. seeks to ensure predictable and reliable water supply to the Rio Grande Valley is through the Treaty on Utilization of Waters of the Colorado and Tijuana Rivers and of the Rio Grande (“the Treaty”), signed between the U.S. and Mexico in 1944.
  • The Treaty is administered by the International Boundary and Water Commission (IBWC).
  • Mexico routinely fails to meet its five-year obligations, preventing American farmers from access to predictable and reliable water. According to the U.S. Section of the IBWC, Mexico currently owes the U.S. nearly 750,000 acre-feet of water. U.S. diplomats and officials in the U.S. section of the IBWC have been pushing Mexico to fulfill its commitments and agree to rules that regularize deliveries. They have been unsuccessful thus far, while water shortages across the Southwest are becoming acute.

Sen. Cruz has spearheaded the fight to hold Mexico accountable and encourage compliance with the 1944 water agreement:

  • In May 2024, Sen. Cruz filed legislation to enhance support for U.S. diplomats and officials seeking to secure Mexican compliance with the 1944 Treaty by directing the Secretary of State to fully support the IBWC’s efforts and use the voice, vote, diplomatic capital, and resources necessary to bring Mexico into compliance.
  • In February 2024, Sens. Cruz and Cornyn responded to news that the Rio Grande Valley Sugar Growers, Inc.’s sugarcane mill would close amid acute water shortages.
  • In October 2023, Sen. Cruz secured a vote in the Senate for his amendment requiring the Secretary of State to utilize the full range of American diplomacy to secure Mexican compliance with its treaty obligations. The amendment secured majority bipartisan support but failed to get the 60 votes needed to defeat a filibuster.
  • In September 2023, Sen. Cruz authored and introduced a resolution cosponsored by Sen. Cornyn highlighting that Texas farmers are experiencing acute water shortages and supporting diplomacy to ensure that Mexico fulfills its treaty obligations to provide annual deliveries of water.

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