State negotiators grappling with how to share the drought-ravaged Colorado River say they could be close to breaking free from gridlock just as the Trump administration warns that missing a November deadline could force the federal government to take control. Members of the Upper Colorado River Commission — which represents Colorado, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming — announced Thursday that the states are weighing a new method of sharing the waterway based on the actual flow of the river, as opposed to projected flows and historical agreements. … The plan — at the heart of which is a formula for declaring how much water can be shared among the seven states each year, based on actual flows from the preceding three years — was proposed by the Lower Basin states of Arizona, California and Nevada. … On Thursday, he (Interior Department acting secretary for water and science Scott Cameron) set hard deadlines for the states to meet, warning that if a draft agreement has not taken shape by Nov. 11, then Reclamation will need to shift its focus to federal action.

Other Colorado River Basin news:

• The Colorado Sun (Denver, Colo.): Colorado River Basin states inch forward in high-stakes negotiations as deadlines loom
• The Salt Lake Tribune (Utah): ‘We stand on the brink of system failure’: Feds up pressure for states to reach deal on the future of the Colorado River
• The Hill: Trump admin urges Colorado River deal among states, but warns it will step in if necessary
• KDVR (Denver, Colo.): Senate approves Colorado River Conservation Extension Act