WASHINGTON, D.C. – The United States Supreme Court announced Friday that it would hear appeals in the lawsuit from the Tarrant Regional Water District against the Oklahoma Water Resources Board.
In a one-sentence brief, the court said, simply, that a writ of certiorari had been granted in the case, Tarrant Regional Water District versus Herrman.
In that case – originally filed in 2007 – the TRWD sued Oklahoma in an effort to secure the sale of more than 130 billion gallons of water from basins north of the Red River.
The Tarrant District’s general manager, Jim Oliver, said he was pleased by the ruling in an emailed statement to The Journal Record.
“The Tarrant Regional Water District has worked for many years to resolve the legal questions concerning rights to water under the Red River Compact,” Oliver said. “We expect the Supreme Court’s decision will bring finality to the legal issues that have precluded us from addressing regional water needs due to the growing population in the Metroplex. We look forward to presenting our case and we are hopeful the end result will be an opportunity to move forward in a constructive manner.”
In 2010, an Oklahoma federal judge dismissed the Tarrant lawsuit.
The water district appealed to the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, but in September of that same year, a three-judge panel upheld the lower court’s action. In October 2010, the court denied a request a rehearing in front of the full court.
By M. Scott Carter Oklahoma City / Capitol bureau reporter. Contact: 405-278-2838, scott.carter@journalrecord.com, @JRMScottCarter.
Posted: 03:53 PM Friday, January 4, 2013