The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation has been prodding Western states to wrap up drought contingency plans, one each in the lower and upper basins.

A new ruling Monday by the U.S. Supreme Court could open the door to Arizonans legally betting for -- or against -- the Diamondbacks, the Cardinals and even the Wildcats, Sun Devils and Lumberjacks.

Overall, the agreement represents incremental progress – but even more significant may be the much-needed spark it provides to re-energize drought contingency discussions within Arizona and across the entire Colorado River Basin.

In a unanimous decision, the justices rejected arguments by the Gila River Indian Community that Arizona court must transfer such cases to tribal courts. Writing for the court Chief Justice Scott Bales said while such transfer is permissive, it is not a right.

The latest agreement will allow the City of Phoenix to store water in underground storage facilities on Gila River Indian Community land in exchange for supporting the revitalization of the Gila River through various diversion projects.

A federal appeals court has refused to issue an emergency order to stop construction of a new Phoenix- freeway.

In return for tribes’ agreement to limit the number and size of casinos and amount of games offered, the poison pill is designed to protect them against state lawmakers or courts granting non-tribal entities licenses to operate casinos in Arizona.

Lost in this week’s headlines about the Glendale City Council’s 4-3 vote to no longer oppose the Tohono O’odham Nation’s neighborhood casino are some critical points about what this new casino could mean for Valley neighborhoods and for the Nation’s sister tribes.

Federal officials on Thursday gave the Tohono O’odham Nation final permission to make land it owns near Glendale part of the reservation, a crucial step toward the tribe’s plans to build a casino there.

In the aftermath of the Glendale City Council’s March 18th workshop, touted by the Tohono O’Odham Nation as a victory for their proposed neighborhood casino, media headlines spoke of the beginning of “negotiations” between the Nation and the city. As a veteran of this five-year-long political and legal battle and the governor of the Gila River Indian Community, I write to offer a strong note of caution about such “negotiations.”