The earthen dam was completed in 1963 by the New Mexico Interstate Stream Commission, without federal funding, and with a height of and a length of at its crest. It impounds the
Canadian River for municipal water use. The dam is owned and operated by the Commission, which is authorized under state law to implement projects and negotiate with neighboring states on water issues. Ute Reservoir is the only large state-owned and operated reservoir in New Mexico. Structurally the Ute Dam has the largest labyrinth
weir spillway in the United States. It was a 1984 addition to the original structure, designed by the
United States Bureau of Reclamation, which raised the height of the lake by . In 2023, the FW1 Ute Reservoir pipeline project started construction to provide potable water by 2030 for
Cannon Air Force Base and the communities of
Clovis,
Portales,
Elida,
Texico. == References ==