The U.S. House of Representatives did not achieve the two-thirds majority needed on Thursday to override President Donald Trump's veto of a bill designed to facilitate the completion of a clean water pipeline in southeastern Colorado. The vote was 248 in favor of overriding the veto and 177 opposed.
Key Details
Thirty-five Republican representatives joined all voting Democrats in supporting the override attempt. All eight U.S. House members from Colorado, composed of four Democrats and four Republicans, voted to override the veto.
The legislation, known as the "Finish the Arkansas Valley Conduit Act," had previously passed Congress unanimously. Its aim was to transfer a larger portion of the Arkansas Valley Conduit's completion costs from local communities in southeastern Colorado to the federal government.
The Arkansas Valley Conduit, initially approved in 1962, is a 130-mile pipeline project intended to transport clean water from Lake Pueblo to the Lamar area for municipal and industrial purposes. The communities it would serve face challenges in providing water due to naturally occurring salinity or radionuclide contamination in their groundwater.
Presidential Veto and Rationale
President Trump vetoed the bill, stating concerns about shifting the cost burden to federal taxpayers. In a letter explaining his decision, he cited "ending the massive cost of taxpayer handouts and restoring fiscal sanity is vital to economic growth and the fiscal health of the nation." The Congressional Budget Office had estimated the bill would increase the federal government's project costs by less than $500,000, out of a total estimated project cost of $1.3 billion shared between federal and local entities.
Lawmakers and reports suggested that the veto may also be related to President Trump's expressed intention to punish Colorado over the state’s refusal to release Tina Peters from prison. Ms. Peters, a former Mesa County clerk, is serving a state prison sentence for orchestrating a breach of her county’s election system.
Lawmaker Reactions
U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO), the primary sponsor of the legislation, criticized the veto, noting that the affected region had overwhelmingly supported President Trump. She emphasized the bipartisan support the bill received throughout the legislative process.
Rep. Jeff Hurd (R-CO) stated that the override attempt was a test of the federal government's commitment to rural areas. Rep. Joe Neguse (D-CO) expressed concerns about potential political retaliation from the administration, irrespective of local political alignment.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) stated that leadership was not influencing members' votes on the veto override. He personally voted to sustain the vetoes, finding the President's reasons "very reasonable," but committed to assisting Colorado lawmakers with the pipeline issue moving forward.
The failure of the override in the House prevents the bill from advancing to the Senate. U.S. Sen. John Hickenlooper (D-CO), who worked on the bill, expressed disappointment, calling the outcome "Washington at its worst" and attributing it to "political games" that would harm rural Colorado.