Luján Presses Nominee for Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs on Commitment to Fund and Complete the Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), a member of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, questioned Mr. William Kirkland during a nomination hearing to be Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs within the Department of the Interior. Specifically, Senator Luján pressed Mr. Kirkland on his commitment to support the Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project, which the Trump administration fails to adequately fund.
An excerpt of the exchange is available here and below:
Senator Luján: Mr. Kirkland, do you know how many Navajo brothers and sisters are waiting to have water delivered from the Navajo-Gallup Water project?
Mr. Kirkland: I can’t give you that.
Senator Luján: I’ll give it to you. 250,000. Mr. Kirkland, do you know how many recognized Indian water rights settlements are in New Mexico?
Mr. Kirkland: I’m sure you have that number for me, I look forward to hearing it.
Senator Luján: I’ll share that with you. Mr. Kirkland, do you know how much funding is needed for the FY26 budget to keep the Navajo-Gallup Water project on track?
Mr. Kirkland: I look forward to hearing.
Senator Luján: $175 million. Do you know if this fails, it will be the first Indian water rights settlement to fail in America’s history?
Mr. Kirkland: No sir, I was not aware of that.
Senator Luján: It would be. Mr. Kirkland, do you know how much the President’s budget, President Donald Trump, allocated for the Navajo-Gallup Water project?
Mr. Kirkland: Not offhand, no sir.
Senator Luján: Zero dollars. Is that okay?
Background:
Senator Luján has long supported efforts to fund and complete the Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project. Senator Luján secured $137 million for the project through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law toward the total authorized project cost.
In August 2024, Senator Luján and the N.M. Delegation welcomed a $267 million Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project contract to design and build the San Juan Lateral Water Treatment Plant in northwest New Mexico. The plant is the largest and most important feature of the Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project.
In January 2025, Senator Luján announced $120 million for Fiscal Year 2025 for the Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project using funding from the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation’s Reclamation Water Settlements Fund. The original version of the Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project Amendments Act was passed out of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee in November 2023. However, new legislation is required to authorize additional time and resources to complete the project and for its long-term, sustainable operations and maintenance.
For more information about the Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project, click here.
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