Join the Colorado Water Conservation Board (CWCB) in a year-long 75th anniversary celebration!
The CWCB plans to showcase its programs throughout the year at Board meetings, participate in joint celebrations with other water organizations and will commemorate the celebration with the publishing of its history book:
Defend and Develop: A Brief History of the Colorado Water Conservation Board’s First 75 Years.
Check back often for updates, book progress and
calendar events!
CWCB Established
In 1937 the Colorado Legislature passed
House Bill 6, establishing the CWCB:
| For the purpose of aiding in the protection and development of the waters of the state for the benefit of the present and future inhabitants of the state there is hereby created a Colorado Water Conservation Board with the powers and duties herein set out. Said Board is hereby declared to be an agency of the state and the functions it is to perform, as herein set out, are hereby declared to be governmental functions for the welfare and benefit of the state and its inhabitants. |
Historical Board Duties
The Board's original duties were to:
- Foster and encourage irrigation and other water user entities
- Devise plans and cooperate with U.S. to bring about greater utilization of state’s waters and prevention of floods
- Formulate state and federal legislation to these same ends
- Investigate the plans of other states and the U.S. and protect and assert the state’s rights
Historical Board Members
The composition of the original Board included only 12 members, 5 ex officio and 7 governor-appointed, all of whom were voting members:
| Governor (chairman) |
Arkansas basin |
| Attorney General |
North Platte basin |
| State Engineer |
Rio Grande basin |
| Director of the State Planning Commission |
South Platte basin |
| CWCB Director |
Three at-large west slope representatives |
Starting in 1945, a number of changes were made to the Board, which are still reflected in the Board composition today:
- 1945
- City & County of Denver representative added
- 4th west slope representative added; all now designated by basin
- 1967
- Governor removed
- Director, State Planning Committee, removed
- Natural Resources Coordinator added (became DNR in 1968)
- 1981 - Attorney General, State Engineer, & CWCB Director become non-voting
- 1987 - Director, DOW, added as ex officio, non-voting
- 1999 - Commissioner, Agriculture, added as ex officio, non-voting