By Jessica Domel
Multimedia Reporter

A group of Texas lawmakers have introduced legislation they say will add teeth to the 1944 Water Treaty and compensate Rio Grande farmers impacted by a lack of reliable water deliveries from Mexico.

“Since the 1944 Water Treaty has shown to be ineffective in having consequences on the Mexican government when they fail to deliver water, we are looking for outlets to be able to hold the Mexican government accountable when they violate the 1944 Water Treaty,” U.S. Rep. Monica De La Cruz (R-TX) said. “The objective of the Water for Farmers Act is to collect tariffs that will fund a new South Texas Agriculture Compensation Trust. Those funds would be distributed to South Texas farmers and producers when they suffer a loss due to the lack of water deliveries from the Mexican government.”

The Water Assurance and Treaty Enforcement for Rio Grande Farmers Act (WATER for Farmers Act) was introduced May 29 by De La Cruz and Reps. Randy Weber (R-TX) and Michael Cloud (R-TX).

“This idea, it really stemmed from a tweet President Trump made imposing or proposing that if Mexico did not comply with the 1944 Water Treaty, we should impose tariffs,” De La Cruz said. “We took that idea from the president, and we put legislation behind it so that we could have actual written legislation, no matter who is in the White House, that would impose consequences.”

The legislation was introduced in the Senate May 14 by Sen. John Cornyn.

“While this may seem like an extraordinary measure, Mexico has had ample time to make things right,” Cornyn said.

What items the tariffs would be levied on will be decided in the legislative process.

“That allows input from the different industries through the Congressmen to be able to form where those tariffs would come from, but again, what we’re trying to do is show the Mexican government that we’re willing to stand up against them, stand up for our United States farmers and show that we’re no longer going to tolerate their lack of compliance when it comes to the 1944 Water Treaty,” De La Cruz said.

Under the 1944 Water Treaty, the U.S. delivers 1.5 million acre-feet of water from the Colorado River to Mexico over a five-year period. In return, Mexico is supposed to send 1.75 million acre-feet to the Rio Grande for use by the U.S. over a five-year cycle.

Officials say Mexico has fallen short on its deliveries in nearly every five-year cycle since the late 1990s.

“Further delay of water deliveries could result in bankruptcies, land auctions, more lost jobs, supply chain disruptions and higher prices at the grocery store for Americans around the country,” Cornyn said.

The uncertainty as to whether or not Valley farmers who use the water will have it for the coming season led to the closure of Texas’ last remaining sugar mill in 2024 after 51 years in operation.

“When I first started four years ago, we were under the Biden administration, and I can share that nothing was done in holding the Mexican government accountable. We received zero water in those first two years that I served under the Biden administration,” De La Cruz said. “Once President Trump became our president once again, he immediately acted for South Texas farmers, not only by tweeting out that we would impose tariffs if they did not give us the water they owed us, but encouraging Secretary (of Agriculture) Brooke Rollins and Secretary (of State) Marco Rubio to become actively engaged with the Mexican government so they delivered water.”

Due to those efforts, De La Cruz said Mexico has made some water deliveries to the U.S.

“We have had the most water delivered within the last year and a half than in the previous five years put together. Not only have we met the annual delivery of 250,000 acre-feet of water, but it’s actually been exceeded within the last 12 month period,” De La Cruz said. “It’s really because of the strong leadership in the White House, myself and the secretaries actively engaged in holding the Mexican government accountable.”

In the House, the legislation has been referred to the committees on Foreign Affairs, Ways and Means and Agriculture.

In the Senate, the bill has been read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations.