{"data":{"id":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-82-82-1401","jurisdiction":"us-ok","citation":"Okla. Stat. tit. 82, § 82-1401","heading":"Approval of compact - Text","body":"The following Interstate Compact is hereby approved and\n\nratified.\n\nARKANSAS RIVER BASIN COMPACT KANSAS-OKLAHOMA, 1970\n\nThe State of Kansas and the State of Oklahoma, acting through\n\ntheir duly-authorized Compact representatives, Robert L. Smith and\n\nWarden L. Noe, for the State of Kansas, and Geo. R. Benz and Frank\n\nRaab, for the State of Oklahoma, after negotations participated in\n\nby Trigg Twichell, appointed by the President as the representative\n\nof the United States of America, and in accordance with the consent\n\nto such negotiations granted by an Act of Congress of the United\n\nStates of America, approved August 11, 1955 (Public Law 340, 84th\n\nCongress, 1st Session), have agreed as follows respecting the waters\n\nof the Arkansas River and its tributaries:\n\nARTICLE I\n\nThe major purposes of this Compact are:\n\nA. To promote interstate comity between the States of Kansas\n\nand Oklahoma;\n\nB. To divide and apportion equitably between the States of\n\nKansas and Oklahoma the waters of the Arkansas River Basin and to\n\npromote the orderly development thereof;\n\nC. To provide an agency for administering the water\n\napportionment agreed to herein;\n\nD. To encourage the maintenance of an active pollution-\n\nabatement program in each of the two states and to seek the further\n\nreduction of both natural and man-made pollution in the waters of\n\nthe Arkansas River Basin.\n\nARTICLE II\n\nAs used in this Compact:\n\nA. The term \"state\" shall mean either state signatory hereto\n\nand shall be construed to include any person or persons, entity or\n\nagency of either state who, by reason of official responsibility or\n\nby designation of the Governor of that state, is acting as an\n\nofficial representative of that state;\n\nB. The term \"Kansas-Oklahoma Arkansas River Commission\" or the\n\nterm \"Commission\" means the agency created by this Compact for the\n\nadministration thereof;\n\nC. The term \"Arkansas River\" means that portion of the Arkansas\n\nRiver from a point immediately below the confluence of the Arkansas\n\nand Little Arkansas Rivers in the vicinity of Wichita, Kansas, to a\n\npoint immediately below the confluence of the Arkansas River with\n\nthe Grand-Neosho River near Muskogee, Oklahoma;\n\nD. The term \"Arkansas River Basin\" means all of the drainage\n\nbasin of the Arkansas River as delimited above, including all\n\ntributaries which empty into it between the upstream and downstream\n\nlimits;\n\nE. The term \"waters of the Arkansas River and its tributaries\"\n\nmeans the waters originating in the Arkansas River Basin;\n\nF. The term \"conservation storage capacity\" means that portion\n\nof the active storage capacity of reservoirs, including multipurpose\n\nreservoirs, with a conservation storage capacity in excess of one\n\nhundred 100 acre-feet, available for the storage of water for\n\nsubsequent use, but it excludes any portion of the storage capacity\n\nallocated to flood and sediment control and inactive storage\n\ncapacity allocated to other uses;\n\nG. The term \"new conservation storage capacity\" means\n\nconservation storage capacity for which construction is initiated\n\nafter July 1, 1963, and storage capacity not presently allocated for\n\nconservation storage which is converted to conservation storage\n\ncapacity after July 1, 1963, in excess of the quantities of declared\n\nconservation storage capacity as set forth in the storage table\n\nattached to and made a part of the minutes of the Twenty-fourth\n\nmeeting of the Compact Committee dated September 1, 1964, and as\n\nfiled and identified to this Compact in the offices of the\n\nSecretaries of State of the respective states:\n\nH. The term \"pollution\" means contamination or other\n\nalterations of the physical, chemical, biological or radiological\n\nproperties of water or the discharge of any liquid, gaseous, or\n\nsolid substances into any waters which creates or is likely to\n\nresult in a nuisance, or which renders or is likely to render the\nthis Compact in the offices of the\n\nSecretaries of State of the respective states:\n\nH. The term \"pollution\" means contamination or other\n\nalterations of the physical, chemical, biological or radiological\n\nproperties of water or the discharge of any liquid, gaseous, or\n\nsolid substances into any waters which creates or is likely to\n\nresult in a nuisance, or which renders or is likely to render the\n\nwaters into which it is discharged harmful, detrimental or injurious\n\nto public health, safety, or welfare or which is harmful,\n\ndetrimental or injurious to beneficial uses of the water.\n\nARTICLE III\n\nThe physical and other conditions peculiar to the Arkansas River\n\nBasin constitute the basis for this Compact, and neither of the\n\nstates hereby, nor the Congress of the United States by its consent\n\nhereto, concedes that this Compact establishes any general principle\n\nwith respect to any other interstate stream.\n\nARTICLE IV\n\nA. For the purpose of apportionment of water between the two\n\nstates, the Arkansas River Basin is hereby divided into major\n\ntopographic subbasins as follows:\n\n(1) the Grand-Neosho River Subbasin;\n\n(2) the Verdigris River Subbasin;\n\n(3) the Salt Fork River Subbasin;\n\n(4) the Cimarron River Subbasin; and\n\n(5) the mainstem Arkansas River Subbasin which shall consist of\n\nthe Arkansas River Basin, excepting the Grand-Neosho River,\n\nVerdigris River, Salt Fork River, and Cimarron River subbasins.\n\nB. The two states recognize that portions of other states not\n\nsignatory to this Compact lie within the drainage area of the\n\nArkansas River Basin as herein defined. The water apportionments\n\nprovided for in this Compact are not intended to affect nor do they\n\naffect the rights of such other states in and to the use of the\n\nwaters of the basin.\n\nARTICLE V\n\nThe State of Kansas shall have free and unrestricted use of the\n\nwaters of the Arkansas River Basin within Kansas subject to the\n\nprovisions of this Compact and to the limitations set forth below:\n\nA. New conservation storage capactiy in the Grand-Neosho River\n\nSubbasin within the State of Kansas shall not exceed six hundred\n\nfifty thousand (650,000) acre-feet plus an additional capacity equal\n\nto the new conservation storage in said drainage basin in Oklahoma\n\nexcepting storage on Spavinaw Creek;\n\nB. New conservation storage capacity in the Verdigris River\n\nsubbasin within the State of Kansas shall not exceed three hundred\n\nthousand (300,000) acre-feet plus an additional capacity equal to\n\nthe new conservation storage in said drainage basin in Oklahoma,\n\nexcepting navigation capacity allocated in Oologah Reservoir;\n\nC. New conservation storage capacity in the mainstem Arkansas\n\nRiver Subbasin within the State of Kansas shall not exceed six\n\nhundred thousand (600,000) acre-feet plus and additional capacity\n\nequal to the new conservation storage in said drainage basin in\n\nOklahoma;\n\nD. New conservation storage capacity in the Salt Fork River\n\nSubbasin within the State of Kansas shall not exceed three hundred\n\nthousand (300,000) acre-feet plus an additional capacity equal to\n\nthe new conservation storage in said drainage basin in Oklahoma;\n\nE. New conservation storage capacity in the Cimarron River\n\nSubbasin within the State of Kansas shall not exceed five thousand\n\n(5,000) acre-feet, provided that new conservation storage capacity\n\nin excess of that amount may be constructed if specific project\n\nplans have first been submitted to and have received the approval of\n\nthe Commission.\n\nARTICLE VI\n\nThe State of Oklahoma shall have free and unrestricted use of\n\nthe waters of the Arkansas River Basin within Oklahoma subject to\n\nthe provisions of this Compact and to the limitations set forth\n\nbelow:\n\nNew conservation storage capactiy in the Cimarron River Subbasin\n\nwithin the State of Oklahoma shall not exceed five thousand (5,000)\nand have received the approval of\n\nthe Commission.\n\nARTICLE VI\n\nThe State of Oklahoma shall have free and unrestricted use of\n\nthe waters of the Arkansas River Basin within Oklahoma subject to\n\nthe provisions of this Compact and to the limitations set forth\n\nbelow:\n\nNew conservation storage capactiy in the Cimarron River Subbasin\n\nwithin the State of Oklahoma shall not exceed five thousand (5,000)\n\nacre-feet provided that new conservation storage capacity in excess\n\nof that amount may be constructed if specific project plans have\n\nfirst been submitted to and have received the approval of the\n\nCommission.\n\nARTICLE VII\n\nA. The Commission shall determine the conditions under which\n\none state may construct and operate for its needs new conservation\n\nstorage capacity in the other state. The construction or\n\nutilization of new conservation storage capacity by one state in the\n\nother State shall entitle the state whose storage potential is\n\nreduced by such construction to construct an equal amount of new\n\nconservation storage in a subbasin agreeable to the Commission.\n\nB. New conservation storage capacity constructed by the United\n\nStates or any of its agencies, instrumentalities or wards, or by a\n\nstate, political subdivision thereof, or any person or persons shall\n\nbe charged against the state in which the use is made.\n\nC. Each state has the unrestricted right to replace within the\n\nsame subbasin any conservation storage capacity made unusable by any\n\ncause.\n\nD. In the event reallocation of storage capacity in the\n\nArkansas River Basin in Oklahoma should result in the reduction of\n\nthat state's new conservation storage capacity, such reallocation\n\nshall not reduce the total new conservation storage capacities\n\navailable to Kansas under Article V; provided that a subsequent\n\nreinstatement of such storage capacity shall not be charged as an\n\nincrease in Oklahoma's new conservation storage capacity.\n\nARTICLE VIII\n\nA. In the event of importation of water to a major subbasin of\n\nthe Arkansas River Basin from another river basin, or from another\n\nmajor subbasin within the same state, the state making the\n\nimportation shall have exclusive use of such imported waters.\n\nB. In the event of exporation of water from a major subbasin\n\nfor use in another major subbasin or for use outside the Arkansas\n\nRiver Basin within the same state, the limitations of Articles V and\n\nVI on new conservation capacity shall apply against the subbasin\n\nfrom which the exportation is made in the amount of the storage\n\ncapacity actually used for that purpose within the exporting\n\nsubbasin, or in the event of direct diversion of water without\n\nstorage on the basis of five (5) acre-feet of conservation storage\n\ncapacity for each acre- foot of water on the average so diverted\n\nannually.\n\nC. Any reservoir storage capacity which is required for the\n\ncontrol and utilization of imported waters shall not be accounted as\n\nnew conservation storage.\n\nD. Should a transbasin diversion of water of the Arkansas River\n\nBasin be made in one state for the use and benefit of the other\n\nstate or both states, the Commission shall determine a proper\n\naccounting of new conservation storage capacities in each state in\n\naccordance with the above principles and with the project uses to be\n\nmade in that state.\n\nARTICLE IX\n\nThe States of Kansas and Oklahoma mutually agree to:\n\nA. The principle of individual state effort to abate man-made\n\npollution within each state's respective borders, and the continuing\n\nsupport of both states in an active pollution-abatement program;\n\nB. The cooperation of the appropriate state agencies in Kansas\n\nand Oklahoma to investigate and abate sources of alleged interstate\n\npollution within the Arkansas River Basin whenever such matters are\n\ncalled to their attention by the Commission;\n\nC. Enter into joint programs for the identification and control\ns, and the continuing\n\nsupport of both states in an active pollution-abatement program;\n\nB. The cooperation of the appropriate state agencies in Kansas\n\nand Oklahoma to investigate and abate sources of alleged interstate\n\npollution within the Arkansas River Basin whenever such matters are\n\ncalled to their attention by the Commission;\n\nC. Enter into joint programs for the identification and control\n\nof sources of natural pollution within the Arkansas River Basin\n\nwhich the Commission finds are of interstate significance;\n\nD. The principle that neither state may require the other to\n\nprovide water for the purpose of water-quality control as a\n\nsubstitute for adequate waste treatment;\n\nE. Utilize the provisions of the Federal Water Pollution\n\nControl Act in the resolution of any pollution problems which cannot\n\nbe resolved within the provisions of this Compact.\n\nARTICLE X\n\nA. There is hereby created an interstate administrative agency\n\nto be known as the \"Kansas-Oklahoma Arkansas River Commission\". The\n\nCommission shall be composed of three Commissioners representing\n\neach of the States of Kansas and Oklahoma who shall be appointed by\n\nthe Governors of the respective states and, if designated by the\n\nPresident, one Commissioner representing the United States. The\n\nPresident is hereby requested to designate a Commissioner and an\n\nalternate representing the United States. The Federal Commissioner,\n\nif one be designated, shall be the presiding officer of the\n\nCommission, but shall not have the right to vote in any of the\n\ndeliberations of the Commission.\n\nB. One Kansas Commissioner shall be the state official who now\n\nor hereafter shall be responsible for administering water law in the\n\nstate; the other two Commissioners shall reside in the Arkansas\n\nRiver basin in Kansas and shall be appointed to four-year staggered\n\nterms.\n\nC. One Oklahoma Commissioner shall be the state official who\n\nnow or hereafter shall be responsible for administering water law in\n\nthe state; the other two Commissioners shall reside in the Arkansas\n\nRiver Basin in Oklahoma and shall be appointed to four-year\n\nstaggered terms.\n\nD. A majority of the Commissioners of each state and the\n\nCommissioner or his alternate representing the United States, if so\n\ndesignated, must be present to constitute a quorum. In taking any\n\nCommission action, each signatory state shall have a single vote\n\nrepresenting the majority opinion of the Commissioners of that\n\nstate.\n\nE. The salaries and personal expenses of each Commissioner\n\nshall be paid by the government which he represents. All other\n\nexpenses which are incurred by the Commission incident to the\n\nadministration of this Compact shall be borne equally by the two\n\nstates and shall be paid by the Commission out of the \"Kansas-\n\nOklahoma Arkansas River Commission Fund\". Such fund shall be\n\ninitiated and maintained by equal payments of each state into the\n\nfund. Disbursements shall be made from said fund in such manner as\n\nmay be authorized by the Commission. Such funds shall not be subject\n\nto the audit and accounting procedures of the states; however, all\n\nreceipts and disbursements of funds handled by the Commission shall\n\nbe audited by a qualified independent public accountant at regular\n\nintervals, and the report of such audit shall be included in and\n\nbecome a part of the annual report of the Commission.\n\nARTICLE XI\n\nA. The Commission shall have the power to:\n\n(1) Employ such engineering, legal, clerical and other personnel\n\nas in its judgment may be necessary for the performance of its\n\nfunctions under the Compact;\n\n(2) Enter into contracts with appropriate state or federal\n\nagencies for the collection, correlation, and presentation of\n\nfactual data, for the maintenance of records, and for the\n\npreparation of reports;\n\n(3) Establish and maintain an office for the conduct of its\n\naffairs;\n\n(4) Adopt rules and regulations governing its operations;\nessary for the performance of its\n\nfunctions under the Compact;\n\n(2) Enter into contracts with appropriate state or federal\n\nagencies for the collection, correlation, and presentation of\n\nfactual data, for the maintenance of records, and for the\n\npreparation of reports;\n\n(3) Establish and maintain an office for the conduct of its\n\naffairs;\n\n(4) Adopt rules and regulations governing its operations;\n\n(5) Cooperate with federal agencies in developing principles,\n\nconsistent with the provisions of this Compact and with federal\n\npolicy, for the storage and release of water from all-federal\n\ncapacities of federal reservoirs, both existing and future within\n\nthe Arkansas River Basin, for the purpose of assuring their\n\noperation in the best interests of the states and the United States;\n\n(6) Permit either state, with the consent of the proper operating\n\nagency, to impound water, for such periods of time deemed necessary\n\nor desirable by the Commission, in available reservoir storage\n\ncapacity which is not designated as conservation or new conservation\n\nstorage capacity for subsequent release and use for any purpose\n\napproved by the Commission;\n\n(7) Hold bearings and take testimony and receive evidence at\n\nsuch times and places as it deems necessary;\n\n(8) Secure from the head of any department or agency of the\n\nfederal or state government such information, suggestions, estimates\n\nand statistics as it may need or believe to be useful for carrying\n\nout its functions and as may be available to or procurable by the\n\ndepartment or agency to which the request is addressed;\n\n(9) Print or otherwise reproduce and distribute all of its\n\nproceedings and reports.\n\nB. The Commission shall:\n\n(1) Cause to be established, maintained and operated such\n\nstream, reservoir, or other gaging stations as may be necessary for\n\nthe proper administration of the Compact;\n\n(2) Collect, analyze and report on data as to stream flows,\n\nwater quality, conservation storage, and such other information as\n\nis necessary for the proper administration of the Compact;\n\n(3) Perform all other functions required of it by the Compact\n\nand do all things necessary, proper or convenient in the performance\n\nof its duties thereunder;\n\n(4) Prepare and submit an annual report to the Governor of each\n\nsignatory state and to the President of the United States covering\n\nthe activities of the Commission for the preceding fiscal year,\n\ntogether with an accounting of all funds received and expended by it\n\nin the conduct of its work;\n\n(5) Prepare and submit to the Governor of each of the States of\n\nKansas and Oklahoma an annual budget covering the anticipated\n\nexpenses of the Commission for the following fiscal year;\n\n(6) Make available to the Governor or any state agency of either\n\nstate or to any authorized representative of the United States, upon\n\nrequest, any information within its possession.\n\nARTICLE XII\n\nA. Recognizing the present limited uses of the available water\n\nsupplies of the Arkansas River Basin in the two states and the\n\nuncertainties of their ultimate water needs, the States of Kansas\n\nand Oklahoma deem it imprudent and inadvisable to attempt at this\n\ntime to make final allocations of the new conservation storage\n\ncapacity which may ultimately be required in either state, and, by\n\nthe limitations on storage capacity imposed herein, have not\n\nattempted to do so. Accordingly, after the expiration of 25 years\n\nfollowing the effective date of this Compact, the Commission may\n\nreview any provisions of the Compact for the purpose of amending or\n\nsupplementing the same, and shall meet for the consideration of such\n\nreview on the request of the Commissioners of either state;\n\nprovided, that the provisions hereof shall remain in full force and\n\neffect until changed or amended by unanimous action of the states\nfollowing the effective date of this Compact, the Commission may\n\nreview any provisions of the Compact for the purpose of amending or\n\nsupplementing the same, and shall meet for the consideration of such\n\nreview on the request of the Commissioners of either state;\n\nprovided, that the provisions hereof shall remain in full force and\n\neffect until changed or amended by unanimous action of the states\n\nacting through their Commissioners and until such changes are\n\nratified by the legislatures of the respective States and consented\n\nto by the Congress in the same manner as this Compact is required to\n\nbe ratified to become effective.\n\nB. This Compact may be terminated at any time by the\n\nappropriate action of the legislatures of both signatory states.\n\nC. In the event of amendment or termination of the Compact, all\n\nrights established under the Compact shall continue unimpaired.\n\nARTICLE XIII\n\nNothing in this Compact shall be deemed:\n\nA. To impair or affect the powers, rights or obligations of the\n\nUnited States, or those claiming under its authority, in, over and\n\nto the waters of the Arkansas River Basin;\n\nB. To interfere with or impair the right or power of either\n\nsignatory state to regulate within its boundaries the appropriation,\n\nuse and control of waters within that state not inconsistent with\n\nits obligations under this Compact.\n\nARTICLE XIV\n\nIf any part or application of this Compact should be declared\n\ninvalid by a court of competent jurisdiction, all other provisions\n\nand applications of this Compact shall remain in full force and\n\neffect.\n\nARTICLE XV\n\nThis Compact shall become binding and obligatory when it shall\n\nhave been ratified by the legislatures of each state and consented\n\nto by the Congress of the United States, and when the Congressional\n\nAct consenting to this Compact includes the consent of Congress to\n\nname and join the United States as a party in any litigation in the\n\nUnited States Supreme Court, if the United States is an\n\nindispensable party, and if the litigation arises out of this\n\nCompact or its application, and if a signatory State is a party\n\nthereto. Notice of ratification by the legislature of each state\n\nshall be given by the Governor of that state to the Governor of the\n\nother state and to the President of the United States and the\n\nPresident is hereby requested to give notice to the Governor of each\n\nstate of consent by the Congress of the United States.\n\nIn Witness Whereof, the authorized representatives have executed\n\nthree counterparts hereof each of which shall be and constitute an\n\noriginal, one of which shall be deposited in the Archives of the\n\nDepartment of State of the United States, and one of which shall be\n\nforwarded to the Governor of each state.\n\nDONE at the City of Wichita, State of Kansas, this 31st day of\n\nMarch, A.D., 1965.\n\nApproved:\n\n/s/ TRIGG TWICHELL\n\nTrigg Twichell\n\nRepresentative of the\n\nUnited States of America\n\nAttest:\n\n/s/ I. D. YOST\n\nI. D. Yost, Secretary\n\nApproved June 2, 1965.\n\nFor Kansas:\n\n/s/ ROBERT L. SMITH\n\nRobert L. Smith,\n\nCommittee Member\n\n/s/ WARDEN L. NOE\n\nWarden L. Noe,\n\nCommittee Member\n\nFor Oklahoma:\n\n/s/ GEO. R. BENZ\n\nGeo. R. Benz,\n\nCommittee Member\n\n/s/ FRANK RAAB\n\nFrank Raab,\n\nCommittee Member","path":["OK Code","Title 82"],"source_url":"https://www.oklegislature.gov/OK_Statutes/CompleteTitles/os82.pdf","current_through":"2026-08-14","vintage":"open-us-law v2026.08, retrieved 2026-09-14","retrieved_at":"2026-09-14T18:32:36Z","sha256":"33c94b719ca3b53e82798cd2bdb2e7ffb93267dab887603d3dfa52dca9c96889","source_id":"us-ok","stale":false,"prev":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-82-82-1324.9","next":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-82-82-1421"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}