I 

114TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4521 

To transfer recreational management authority for Lake Berryessa in the 

State of California from the Bureau of Reclamation to the Bureau 

of Land Management, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

FEBRUARY 10, 2016 

Mr. THOMPSON of California (for himself, Mr. BECERRA, Mr. BENISHEK, Mr. 

BERA, Mr. BILIRAKIS, Mr. BISHOP of Georgia, Mr. BLUMENAUER, Mr. 

BOUSTANY, Mr. BRADY of Pennsylvania, Mr. BRADY of Texas, Ms. 

BROWNLEY of California, Mr. BUCHANAN, Mr. CALVERT, Mr. CA ́RDENAS, 

Mr. CARNEY, Mr. CICILLINE, Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts, Ms. CLARKE

of New York, Mr. CLAY, Mr. COHEN, Mr. COLE, Mr. CONNOLLY, Mr. 

CONYERS, Mr. COOK, Mr. COOPER, Mr. COSTA, Mr. CRENSHAW, Mr. 

CROWLEY, Mrs. DAVIS of California, Ms. DEGETTE, Mr. DELANEY, Ms. 

DELAURO, Mr. DENT, Ms. EDWARDS, Ms. ESHOO, Ms. ESTY, Mr. FARR, 

Mr. FATTAH, Mr. FITZPATRICK, Mr. GARAMENDI, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. 

RUPPERSBERGER, Mr. RYAN of Ohio, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. SCHIFF, 

Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia, Mr. SESSIONS, Ms. SEWELL of Alabama, 

Mr. SHIMKUS, Ms. SINEMA, Mr. SIRES, Ms. SLAUGHTER, Ms. SPEIER, 

Mr. SWALWELL of California, Mr. TAKANO, Mr. TIBERI, Ms. TITUS, Mr. 

TONKO, Mr. VARGAS, Mr. WALZ, Ms. MAXINE WATERS of California, Mr. 

WESTMORELAND, Ms. WILSON of Florida, Mr. YOUNG of Alaska, Mr. 

CAPUANO, Mr. CARSON of Indiana, Mr. DOGGETT, Mr. MICHAEL F. 

DOYLE of Pennsylvania, Mr. ENGEL, Ms. GABBARD, Mr. GRAYSON, Mr. 

HECK of Washington, Mr. HIMES, Mr. KEATING, Mr. KENNEDY, Mr. 

KILMER, Ms. KUSTER, Mr. LEVIN, Mr. LEWIS, Mrs. LOWEY, Mr. NEAL, 

Mr. HASTINGS, Mr. HONDA, Mr. HUFFMAN, Mr. HUNTER, Mr. ISRAEL, 

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia, Ms. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON of Texas, Ms. 

KAPTUR, Mr. KING of New York, Mr. LAMALFA, Mr. LANGEVIN, Mr. 

LARSON of Connecticut, Mr. LATTA, Ms. LEE, Mr. LOBIONDO, Ms. LOFGREN, Mr. LOWENTHAL, Mr. BEN RAY LUJA ́N of New Mexico, Ms. 

MICHELLE LUJAN GRISHAM of New Mexico, Mrs. CAROLYN B. MALONEY

of New York, Ms. MATSUI, Ms. MCCOLLUM, Mr. MCDERMOTT, Mr. 

MCNERNEY, Mr. MEEHAN, Ms. MENG, Ms. MOORE, Mr. MURPHY of 

Florida, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, Mr. NOLAN, Mr. NUNES, Mr. O’ROURKE, 

Mr. PASCRELL, Mr. PERLMUTTER, Ms. PINGREE, Mr. POCAN, Mr. POE

of Texas, Mr. POLIS, Mr. RANGEL, Ms. ROYBAL-ALLARD, Mr. PRICE of 

North Carolina, Mr. RUIZ, Ms. LINDA T. SA ́NCHEZ of California, Mr. 


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SHERMAN, Mr. VAN HOLLEN, Mr. VEASEY, Mr. VELA, Ms. VELA ́ZQUEZ, 

Mr. YARMUTH, Ms. BONAMICI, Ms. DELBENE, Ms. BASS, Ms. JUDY CHU

of California, Ms. HAHN, Mr. HIGGINS, Mr. KIND, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. 

PETERS, Mr. PETERSON, Mr. SMITH of Washington, Mr. VISCLOSKY, Ms. 

WASSERMAN SCHULTZ, Mr. WELCH, Mrs. CAPPS, Mr. DEFAZIO, Mr. 

KILDEE, Mrs. BEATTY, Mr. CUMMINGS, Mr. DANNY K. DAVIS of Illinois, 

Mr. DEUTCH, Ms. FRANKEL of Florida, Mr. HOYER, Ms. JACKSON LEE, 

and Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi) introduced the following bill; which 

was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources 

A BILL 

To transfer recreational management authority for Lake 

Berryessa in the State of California from the Bureau 

of Reclamation to the Bureau of Land Management, 

and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Lake Berryessa Recreation Enhancement Act of 2016’’. 

6 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

7 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Findings; purposes. 

Sec. 3. Definitions. 

Sec. 4. Establishment of Lake Berryessa Recreation Area. 

Sec. 5. Management of Recreation Area. 

Sec. 6. Concessions permits and agreements. 

Sec. 7. Continued authorities of Commissioner of Reclamation. 

Sec. 8. Existing authorizations. 

8 SEC. 2. FINDINGS; PURPOSES. 

9 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that— 

10 (1) the Monticello Dam— 


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1 (A) was authorized by the Reclamation 

2 Project Act of 1939 (53 Stat. 1187); 

3 (B) resulted in the formation of Lake 

4 Berryessa; and 

5 (C) is operated by the Bureau of Reclama6 tion; 

7 (2) Lake Berryessa— 

8 (A) covers approximately 28,915 acres of 

9 surface water and land; 

10 (B) has 165 miles of shoreline; 

11 (C) has a 2,000-acre wildlife area on the 

12 east side; 

13 (D) is located less than 100 miles from 

14 both Sacramento and San Francisco, Cali15 fornia; and 

16 (E) has become an important regional 

17 recreation destination; and 

18 (3) the recreational use at Lake Berryessa gen19 erates tourism that is important to local economies. 

20 (b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are— 

21 (1) to provide diverse, high-quality recreational 

22 facilities and services on Lake Berryessa and the 

23 surrounding lands; 

24 (2) to conserve the natural, scenic, scientific, 

25 historic, and other resource values contributing to 


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1 the public use and enjoyment of that land and 

2 water; 

3 (3) to promote cooperation between the Federal 

4 Government and private entities to manage that ex5 ceptional resource; and 

6 (4) to establish the Lake Berryessa Recreation 

7 Area and transfer administrative jurisdiction over 

8 certain Federal land for management as public lands 

9 by the Bureau of Land Management as part of that 

10 area. 

11 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

12 In this Act: 

13 (1) DAM.—The term ‘‘Dam’’ means— 

14 (A) the Monticello Dam; and 

15 (B) any facility relating to the Monticello 

16 Dam. 

17 (2) RECREATION AREA.—The term ‘‘Recreation 

18 Area’’ means the Lake Berryessa Recreation Area 

19 designated by section 4(a). 

20 (3) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

21 the Secretary of the Interior. 

22 (4) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means the State 

23 of California. 


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1 SEC. 4. ESTABLISHMENT OF LAKE BERRYESSA RECRE2 ATION AREA. 

3 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Subject to valid existing 

4 rights, the approximately lll acres of land adminis5 tered by the Bureau of Reclamation that is underlying or 

6 adjacent to Lake Berryessa and is identified as ‘‘lll’’ 

7 on the map dated lll, including any improvements 

8 thereon, are hereby established as the Lake Berryessa 

9 Recreation Area. 

10 (b) TRANSFER OF ADMINISTRATIVE JURISDIC11 TION.—Administrative jurisdiction over the Recreation 

12 Area is transferred from the Bureau of Reclamation to 

13 the Bureau of Land Management. 

14 (c) TRANSFER OF OWNERSHIP OF PERSONAL PROP15 ERTY.—The Bureau of Reclamation may transfer to the 

16 Bureau of Land Management, without compensation, ad17 ministrative jurisdiction over items of personal property 

18 used in the administration of the Recreation Area. 

19 SEC. 5. MANAGEMENT OF RECREATION AREA. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to valid existing rights, 

21 the Secretary shall manage and administer the Recreation 

22 Area in accordance with this Act, sections 601 through 

23 604 of Public Law 93–493, and the laws (including regu24 lations) applicable to land under the administrative juris25 diction of the Bureau of Land Management. 

26 (b) COMPREHENSIVE MANAGEMENT PLAN.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall develop 

2 a management plan for the administration and man3 agement of the Recreation Area. 

4 (2) DEVELOPMENT OF MANAGEMENT PLAN.— 

5 For purposes of this Act, the Secretary may use or 

6 adopt, in whole or part— 

7 (A) the recreational use plan adopted by 

8 the Bureau of Reclamation on June 2, 2006, or 

9 may develop a new management plan; and 

10 (B) any concessions planning or environ11 mental documents prepared by or for the Bu12 reau of Reclamation for the Recreation Area. 

13 (3) NEPA.—The decision to use or adopt, in 

14 whole or part, any document referenced in para15 graph (2) shall not constitute a major Federal action 

16 for the purposes of the National Environmental Pol17 icy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.). This deci18 sion is not subject to judicial review. 

19 (4) APPLICABILITY.—Nothing in this Act re20 quires an immediate revision or amendment to any 

21 plan for the Recreation Area. 

22 (5) RECREATIONAL SAFETY AND SECURITY.— 

23 Subject to paragraph (5), the Secretary of the Inte24 rior may establish guidelines and restrictions on recVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:58 Feb 12, 2016 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4521.IH H4521

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1 reational uses to ensure the safety and security of 

2 recreational users in Recreational Area. 

3 (c) FUNDING.—For the purposes of managing and 

4 administering the Recreation Area during a transition pe5 riod not to exceed five years after the date of enactment 

6 of this Act, the Secretary may transfer funds from the 

7 Bureau of Reclamation to the ‘‘Bureau of Land Manage8 ment-Management of Lands and Resources’’ account, to 

9 remain available until expended, for the administration the 

10 Recreation Area. 

11 (d) RECREATIONAL USES.—Nothing in this Act or 

12 the comprehensive management plan for the Recreation 

13 Area shall prohibit historical or existing authorized rec14 reational uses, including motorized use, from occurring in 

15 the Recreation Area. 

16 SEC. 6. CONCESSIONS PERMITS AND AGREEMENTS. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary is authorized to 

18 issue recreation concession permits, including at the 

19 Recreation Area, to allow a third party to provide facilities 

20 and services to visitors on lands and waters managed by 

21 the Bureau of Land Management in support of outdoor 

22 recreational opportunities in accordance with an applicable 

23 land use plan. Any such permit shall not constitute a con24 tract for the procurement of goods and services for the 

25 benefit of the government or otherwise. 


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1 (b) COMPENSATION TO THE GOVERNMENT.—Each 

2 permit issued under this section shall provide for monetary 

3 compensation, including franchise fees, to the Federal 

4 Government for the rights and privileges provided. 

5 (c) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary shall promulgate 

6 regulations to facilitate the implementation of this section. 

7 (d) REVENUES.—Revenues collected under this sec8 tion shall be deposited into an account in the Treasury, 

9 and shall remain available until expended for managing 

10 and enhancing the public lands at the specific area where 

11 the revenues are collected. 

12 (e) EXISTING AGREEMENTS AT LAKE BERRYESSA

13 RECREATION AREA.— 

14 (1) CONTINUATION OF AGREEMENTS.—Facili15 ties and services provided in the Recreation Area 

16 under existing recreation concessions and recreation 

17 lease agreements with the Bureau of Reclamation, 

18 including agreements for campgrounds and marinas, 

19 may continue pursuant to the terms and conditions 

20 of each agreement. 

21 (2) EXTENSION OF AGREEMENTS.—The Sec22 retary may extend an existing recreation concessions 

23 and recreation lease agreement at the Recreation 

24 Area after expiration for a period not to exceed 3 


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1 years to allow continuation of services during the 

2 transition. 

3 (3) REDUCTION IN FEDERAL COSTS.—To re4 duce Federal costs in administering this subsection, 

5 the issuance of new agreements or concession per6 mits for activities within the Recreation Area that 

7 have been considered and permitted by the Bureau 

8 of Reclamation under previous analysis, that are 

9 similar to existing uses, or that are not inconsistent 

10 with approved uses and will not substantially in11 crease the use of an area, shall not constitute a 

12 major Federal action for the purposes of the Na13 tional Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 

14 4321 et seq.). 

15 SEC. 7. CONTINUED AUTHORITIES OF COMMISSIONER OF 

16 RECLAMATION. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Commissioner of Reclama18 tion shall continue to administer and operate— 

19 (1) the Dam; and 

20 (2) any power facility relating to the Dam. 

21 (b) EFFECTS.—Nothing in this Act or any subse22 quent management plan shall— 

23 (1) impair the ability of the Bureau of Rec24 lamation and its managing partners to operate, 

25 maintain, or manage Monticello Dam, Lake 


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1 Berryessa, and other Solano Project facilities in ac2 cordance with authorized purposes; 

3 (2) affect the use or allocation, in existence on 

4 the date of the enactment of this Act, of any water, 

5 water right, or interest in water; 

6 (3) affect any vested absolute or decreed condi7 tional water right in existence on the date of the en8 actment of this Act, including any water right held 

9 by the United States; 

10 (4) affect any interstate water compact in exist11 ence on the date of the enactment of this Act; 

12 (5) authorize or impose any new reserved Fed13 eral water rights; 

14 (6) relinquish or reduce any water rights re15 served or appropriated by the United States in the 

16 State on or before the date of the enactment of this 

17 Act; or 

18 (7) modify, change, or supersede any water con19 tract or agreements approved or administered by the 

20 Bureau of Reclamation or Solano County Water 

21 Agency or Solano Irrigation District. 

22 SEC. 8. EXISTING AUTHORIZATIONS. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise provided in 

24 this Act, nothing in this Act affects any authorization in 

25 effect as of the date of the enactment of this Act made 


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1 by any department or agency of the Federal Government 

2 for the use of land or water located in the Recreation Area 

3 (referred to in this section as an ‘‘existing authorization’’). 

4 (b) ASSUMPTION OF EXISTING AUTHORIZATION.— 

5 Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of 

6 this Act, the Secretary shall assume the administration 

7 of any existing authorization, with such revisions as nec8 essary to align the authorization with existing law and 

9 policies of the Bureau of Land Management. 

10 (c) RENEWAL OF EXISTING AUTHORIZATION.—The 

11 renewal of any existing authorization shall be made in ac12 cordance with such terms and conditions as the Secretary 

13 may prescribe. 

Æ 


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