I 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2983 

To provide drought assistance and improved water supply reliability to the 

State of California, other western States, and the Nation. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 8, 2015 

Mr. HUFFMAN (for himself, Mr. FARR, Mr. MCNERNEY, Mr. DESAULNIER, 

Mr. THOMPSON of California, Mr. HONDA, Mr. LOWENTHAL, Ms. ESHOO, 

Mr. GARAMENDI, Mr. TAKAI, Mr. DEFAZIO, Mr. CA ́RDENAS, Mrs. CAPPS, 

Mr. PETERS, Mr. SWALWELL of California, Ms. LOFGREN, Ms. SPEIER, 

Mr. O’ROURKE, Ms. LEE, Mr. BERA, Mrs. TORRES, Ms. LINDA T. 

SA ́NCHEZ of California, Mr. GRIJALVA, Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California, Mr. BLUMENAUER, Ms. PINGREE, Mr. PERLMUTTER, Ms. TITUS, 

Ms. MATSUI, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, Mr. RUIZ, Mrs. DAVIS of California, and 

Ms. BROWNLEY of California) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources, and in addition to the 

Committees on the Budget, Science, Space, and Technology, Transportation and Infrastructure, Energy and Commerce, the Judiciary, Ways 

and Means, and Armed Services, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions 

as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To provide drought assistance and improved water supply 

reliability to the State of California, other western 

States, and the Nation. 

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


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS; FINDINGS. 

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

3 ‘‘Drought Recovery and Resilience Act of 2015’’. 

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

5 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents; findings. 

TITLE I—EMERGENCY DROUGHT RESPONSE APPROPRIATIONS 

FROM RECLAMATION FUND 

Sec. 101. Appropriations to be derived from Reclamation Fund. 

Sec. 102. Supplemental appropriations for drought relief. 

Sec. 103. Supplemental appropriations for the Environmental Protection Agency. 

Sec. 104. Supplemental appropriations for the Water Infrastructure Finance 

and Innovation Act program. 

TITLE II—NEW WATER INFRASTRUCTURE PROGRAM 

AUTHORIZATIONS 

Subtitle A—New Water Recycling and Reclamation Program Through EPA 

Sec. 201. Short title; findings; purposes. 

Sec. 202. National Water Recycling and Reclamation Program. 

Subtitle B—Reclamation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (RIFIA) 

Sec. 210. Short title; purposes; definitions. 

CHAPTER 1—INNOVATIVE FINANCING

Sec. 211. Purposes. 

Sec. 212. Authority to provide assistance. 

Sec. 213. Applications. 

Sec. 214. Eligibility for assistance. 

Sec. 215. Determination of eligibility and project selection. 

Sec. 216. Secured loans. 

Sec. 217. Program administration. 

Sec. 218. State and local permits. 

Sec. 219. Regulations. 

Sec. 220. Funding. 

Sec. 221. Report to Congress. 

CHAPTER 2—INTEGRATED REGIONAL WATER MANAGEMENT, RECLAMATION, 

AND RECYCLING PROJECTS

Sec. 231. Water storage projects. 

Sec. 232. Authorization of appropriations. 

CHAPTER 3—RECLAMATION TITLE TRANSFER PROGRAM

Sec. 241. Short title; definitions. 

Sec. 242. Authorization of title transfer program. 


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Sec. 243. Compliance with environmental and historic preservation laws. 

Sec. 244. Eligibility criteria. 

Sec. 245. Liability. 

Sec. 246. Benefits. 

Sec. 247. Compliance with other laws. 

Sec. 248. Authorization of appropriations. 

Sec. 249. Termination of authority. 

Subtitle C—Innovative Stormwater Capture Program 

Sec. 251. Short title. 

Sec. 252. Purposes and findings. 

Sec. 253. Definitions. 

Sec. 254. Centers of Excellence for innovative stormwater control infrastructure. 

Sec. 255. Innovative stormwater control infrastructure project grants. 

Sec. 256. Environmental Protection Agency innovative stormwater control infrastructure promotion. 

Sec. 257. Report to Congress. 

Sec. 258. Authorization of appropriations. 

TITLE III—IMPROVED INFRASTRUCTURE AND WATER 

MANAGEMENT 

Subtitle A—Restoring America’s Watersheds and Increasing Water Yields 

Sec. 301. Short title. 

Sec. 302. Findings. 

Sec. 303. Water Source Protection Program. 

Sec. 304. Watershed Condition Framework. 

Sec. 305. Forest Service Legacy Roads and Trails Remediation Program. 

Sec. 306. Reauthorization of the Collaborative Forest Landscape Restoration 

Fund. 

Subtitle B—Reservoir Operation Improvement 

Sec. 311. Short title. 

Sec. 312. Projects, plans, and reports. 

Subtitle C—Reclamation Projects for Renewable Energy To Reduce 

Evaporation Loss 

Sec. 320. Findings and purpose. 

Sec. 321. Definitions. 

Sec. 322. Evaluation and report. 

Sec. 323. Development of solar and wind energy on covered land. 

Sec. 324. Royalties. 

Sec. 325. Disposition of royalty revenue. 

Subtitle D—Improved Reclamation Crop Data 

Sec. 331. Definitions. 

Sec. 332. Determination of planting of water-intense permanent crops. 

Sec. 333. Report related to water-intense permanent crops. 

Subtitle E—Improved Oversight of State Injection Wells 

Sec. 341. Amendment to the Safe Drinking Water Act. 


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Subtitle F—Combating Water Theft for Illegal Marijuana Cultivation 

Sec. 351. Policy directive on illegal water diversion for marijuana cultivation. 

Sec. 352. Environmental reporting requirements for Domestic Cannabis Eradication program. 

Sec. 353. Trespass marijuana location registry. 

Sec. 354. Funding for remediation of trespass marijuana sites. 

Sec. 355. Voluntary guidelines. 

Sec. 356. Research program. 

Subtitle G—SECURE Water Amendments 

Sec. 361. Authorized activities; eligibility; authorization of appropriations. 

Sec. 362. Authorization of appropriations for national water availability and 

use assessment program. 

Subtitle H—Refundable Tax Credit for Water-Harvesting Systems 

Sec. 371. Refundable tax credit for water-harvesting systems. 

Subtitle I—Funding for Construction for Additional Project Benefits 

Sec. 381. Funding for construction for additional project benefits. 

TITLE IV—PLANNING FOR THE FUTURE 

Subtitle A—X–Prize for Desalination Breakthroughs 

Sec. 401. Short title. 

Sec. 402. Water technology award program. 

Subtitle B—Drought Planning Assistance Through NRCS and Reclamation 

Sec. 411. Drought Planning Assistance through NRCS and Reclamation. 

Subtitle C—Drought Preparedness for Fisheries 

Sec. 421. Drought Preparedness for Fisheries. 

Subtitle D—National Emergency Planning Response 

Sec. 431. National Emergency Planning Response. 

Subtitle E—Military Preparedness for Desalination 

Sec. 441. Report on desalinization technology. 

1 (c) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

2 (1) That, as expressed in the Water Supply Act 

3 of 1958, Congress has recognized the primary re4 sponsibilities of the States and local interests in de5 veloping water supplies for domestic, municipal, in6 dustrial, and other purposes, and that the Federal 


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1 Government should participate and cooperate in 

2 these projects. 

3 (2) That there is a long and robust legal prece4 dent of Federal deference to State primacy in water 

5 law and the legal system that States establish for re6 solving disputes over water use, with the Supreme 

7 Court finding in Kansas v. Colorado that ‘‘Congress 

8 cannot enforce either rule upon any state’’ in mat9 ters of the right regulation of water rights. 

10 (3) That, as established in the Proclamation of 

11 a State of Emergency issued by the Governor of the 

12 State of California on January 17, 2014, California 

13 is experiencing record dry conditions, all regions of 

14 the State are impacted by the drought, and these ex15 tremely dry conditions have persisted since 2012 and 

16 are likely to persist beyond this year and more regu17 larly into the future. 

18 (4) That the State of California is not alone in 

19 the prospects for long-term drought, and that the 

20 entire American West and Southwest are facing 

21 forecasts of prolonged droughts that will leave States 

22 facing major water shortages and catastrophic 

23 wildfires. 

24 (5) That the prolonged period of drought in the 

25 American West has also occurred with higher temVerDate Sep 11 2014 20:56 Jul 10, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2983.IH H2983

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1 peratures throughout the State of California, reduc2 ing snowpack and leading to what climate scientists 

3 conclude may be the most severe drought in over 

4 1,200 years. 

5 (6) That the Colorado River has been under 

6 drought conditions since 2000, and that the chances 

7 of a ‘‘megadrought’’ striking the Southwest and cen8 tral Great Plains are on the rise according to fore9 casts from climate scientists. 

10 (7) That the United States should utilize all ex11 isting authorities and resources made available by 

12 the Agricultural Act of 2014, that over $500 million 

13 in assistance has already been dedicated to assisting 

14 agricultural users and rural communities in Cali15 fornia and other drought-impacted areas, and that 

16 the United States Department of Agriculture should 

17 continue to prioritize such assistance to bring relief 

18 to drought-impacted areas. 

19 (8) That this drought emergency requires an 

20 immediate and credible response that respects State, 

21 local, and tribal law, and that the policies that re22 spond to the drought should not pit State against 

23 State, region against region, or stakeholders against 

24 one another. 


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1 (9) That Federal agencies should continue to 

2 operate the Bureau of Reclamation’s Central Valley 

3 Project in California in compliance with all Federal 

4 and State laws, including biological opinions, while 

5 working with the State to maximize operational 

6 flexibility in order to deliver as much water as rea7 sonably possible to drought-impacted areas and min8 imize the harm suffered by fish and wildlife as a re9 sult of the drought. 

10 (10) That Congress recognizes the range of sep11 arate, distinct Federal agencies with authorities and 

12 resources that play a role in water supply, including 

13 treatment and remediation of groundwater, surface 

14 water storage, water recycling and reuse, and other 

15 clean water infrastructure, and that to avoid dupli16 cation and ensure the efficiency and effectiveness of 

17 these various Federal roles, there is a need for im18 proved coordination, streamlining, and collaboration, 

19 both among Federal agencies and with drought-im20 pacted States and localities. 

21 (11) That it is the policy of the United States 

22 to respect California’s coequal goals, established by 

23 the Delta Reform Act of 2009, of providing a more 

24 reliable water supply for California and protecting, 

25 restoring, and enhancing the Delta ecosystem, and 


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1 that these coequal goals shall be achieved in a man2 ner that protects and enhances the unique cultural, 

3 recreational, natural resource, and agricultural val4 ues of the Delta as an evolving place. 

5 (12) That the State of California, in CA Water 

6 Code Section 85021, has established a policy to re7 duce reliance on the Delta in meeting California’s 

8 future water supply needs through a statewide strat9 egy of investing in improved regional supplies, con10 servation, and water use efficiency, that California 

11 law directs each region that depends on water from 

12 the Delta watershed to improve its regional self-reli13 ance for water through investment in water use effi14 ciency, water recycling, advanced water technologies, 

15 local and regional water supply projects, and im16 proved regional coordination of local and regional 

17 water supply efforts, and that it is the intent of 

18 Congress to ensure that Federal programs, policies, 

19 and investments respect and compliment, and do not 

20 undermine or conflict with, California’s policy of re21 ducing reliance on Delta diversions. 

22 (13) That the Reclamation Fund was estab23 lished in 1902 with the expressed purpose of pro24 viding for the construction and maintenance of 

25 water infrastructure for the economic development of 


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1 the western States and territories, with revenues de2 posited into the fund out of public land sales within 

3 these western States and territories. 

4 (14) That since 1902, the Reclamation Fund 

5 has been supplemented with additional revenues 

6 from Federal water resources development and min7 eral and natural resource leases on Federal lands, 

8 such that the surplus within the Reclamation Fund 

9 now exceeds $10 billion. 

10 (15) That the Reclamation Fund represents a 

11 transfer of a portion of receipts from Federal lands 

12 and Federal natural resources in the West back to 

13 the West for water development, and that in this 

14 time of drought the Reclamation Fund’s surplus 

15 should be used to assist the West in meeting its 

16 water needs for public health and safety, for expand17 ing water recycling, reuse, and reclamation, for 

18 meeting the emergency needs of communities im19 pacted by the drought, and for developing long term 

20 solutions to meet the impacts of climate change on 

21 this already arid region of the country. 


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1 TITLE I—EMERGENCY DROUGHT 

2 RESPONSE APPROPRIATIONS 

3 FROM RECLAMATION FUND 

4 SEC. 101. APPROPRIATIONS TO BE DERIVED FROM REC5 LAMATION FUND. 

6 Amounts made available under this title shall be de7 rived from the reclamation fund established by section 1 

8 of the Act of June 17, 1902 (42 U.S.C. 391; popularly 

9 known as the ‘‘Reclamation Act’’), and shall remain avail10 able until expended. 

11 SEC. 102. SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATIONS FOR 

12 DROUGHT RELIEF. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsection (b), the fol14 lowing sums are appropriated, out of any money in the 

15 Treasury not otherwise appropriated, for fiscal year 2015: 

16 (1) WATER AND RELATED RESOURCES.—For 

17 an additional amount for ‘‘Department of the Inte18 rior—Bureau of Reclamation—Water and Related 

19 Resources’’, $300,000,000, of which not less than 

20 $100,000,000 shall be for water reclamation and 

21 reuse projects authorized under title XVI of Public 

22 Law 102–575; of which not less than $100,000,000 

23 shall be for WaterSMART for assistance under the 

24 Reclamation States Emergency Drought Relief Act 

25 of 1991 (43 U.S.C. 2201 et seq.); and of which not 


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1 less than $50,000,000 shall be for water acquisition, 

2 water conveyance, and facilities construction under 

3 the Refuge Water Supply Program: Provided, That 

4 funds provided under this heading may be used for 

5 recycled water projects without regard to whether 

6 such projects are otherwise authorized under law: 

7 Provided further, That sufficient funds are spent on 

8 the completion of CALFED feasibility studies de9 scribed in section 103(d)(1)(A) of Public Law 108– 

10 361 (118 Stat. 1684) that have the financing and 

11 feasibility to be under construction within 10 years, 

12 and that for the purposes of this Act the Federal 

13 cost share of such feasibility studies shall be no less 

14 than 75% and that the cost share waiver for such 

15 feasibility studies shall extend to December 31, 

16 2017. 

17 (2) HAZARDOUS SUBSTANCE SUPERFUND.—For 

18 an additional amount for ‘‘Environmental Protection 

19 Agency—Hazardous Substance Superfund’’, 

20 $300,000,000 for the cleanup of polluted ground21 water supplies. 

22 (3) RURAL WATER AND WASTE DISPOSAL PRO23 GRAM ACCOUNT.—For an additional amount for 

24 ‘‘Department of Agriculture—Rural Utilities Serv25 ice—Rural Water and Waste Disposal Program AcVerDate Sep 11 2014 20:56 Jul 10, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2983.IH H2983

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1 count’’, $5,000,000 for the cost of direct and guar2 anteed loans and grants for the rural water, waste3 water, and waste disposal programs authorized by 

4 sections 306 and 310B or described in section 

5 381E(d)(2) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural De6 velopment Act. 

7 (4) DRUG ENFORCEMENT ADMINISTRATION.— 

8 For an additional amount for ‘‘Department of Jus9 tice—Drug Enforcement Administration’’, 

10 $3,000,000 for the Domestic Cannabis Eradication 

11 and Suppression Program to assist State or local 

12 law enforcement agencies in the suppression of can13 nabis operations that are conducted on public lands 

14 or that intentionally trespass on the property of an15 other that also divert, redirect, obstruct, drain, or 

16 impound water supply. 

17 (5) ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS.—For an addi18 tional amount for the Army Corps of Engineers, 

19 $40,000,000 to carry out section 5039 of the Water 

20 Resources and Development Act of 2007 (33 U.S.C. 

21 2201 et seq.). 

22 (6) LAND AND WATER CONSERVATION FUND.— 

23 For an additional amount for ‘‘Land and Water 

24 Conservation Fund’’, $100,000,000 for the imple25 mentation of projects under the Land and Water 


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1 Conservation Fund Act of 1965 in drought-affected 

2 States that reduce fire risk, improve water quality or 

3 downstream water quantity, or expand ground water 

4 recharge capacity. 

5 (7) LOW-INCOME MIGRANT AND SEASONAL

6 FARMWORKERS.—For an additional amount for the 

7 Department of Agriculture, $25,000,000 for emer8 gency grants to assist low-income migrant and sea9 sonal farmworkers under section 2281 of the Food, 

10 Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 

11 (42 U.S.C. 5177a) to address impacts of drought 

12 upon declaration of a natural disaster under section 

13 321(a) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Devel14 opment Act (7 U.S.C. 1961(a)) or for the same pur15 poses in counties that are contiguous to a designated 

16 natural disaster area. 

17 (b) DROUGHT PRIORITIZATION.—Each amount ap18 propriated under subsection (a) shall be used in States 

19 impacted by drought, with an emphasis on projects that 

20 will provide additional water supplies most expeditiously 

21 to areas at risk of having an inadequate supply of water 

22 for public health and safety purposes or to improve resil23 iency to drought, or projects that provide relief to drought24 affected communities facing unemployment and economic 

25 dislocation. 


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1 (c) EMERGENCY DESIGNATION.—Each amount ap2 propriated under subsection (a) is designated by the Con3 gress as being for an emergency requirement pursuant to 

4 section 251(b)(2)(A)(i) of the Balanced Budget and 

5 Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985. 

6 (d) GAO STUDY.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Comptroller General 

8 shall conduct a comprehensive study on Federal in9 vestments in clean water and wastewater infrastruc10 ture, addressing duplicative and fragmented pro11 grams. The report shall include— 

12 (A) a description of how Federal agencies, 

13 including the Army Corps of Engineers, the En14 vironmental Protection Agency, the Bureau of 

15 Reclamation, the Rural Utilities Service, and 

16 other relevant agencies, coordinate their efforts 

17 to address nationally, regionally, or locally iden18 tified needs or priorities in an efficient and ef19 fective manner; and 

20 (B) an evaluation of the adequacy of Fed21 eral coordination in meeting the needs of tribal 

22 lands. 

23 (2) REPORT TO CONGRESS.— Not later than 1 

24 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 

25 Comptroller General shall submit to Congress a reVerDate Sep 11 2014 20:56 Jul 10, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00014 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2983.IH H2983

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1 port containing the results of the study required 

2 under paragraph (1) and any recommendations 

3 based on such study. 

4 SEC. 103. SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATIONS FOR THE EN5 VIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY. 

6 The following sums are appropriated, out of any 

7 money in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, for fis8 cal year 2015: 

9 ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY 

10 STATE AND TRIBAL ASSISTANCE GRANTS

11 For an additional amount for ‘‘State and Tribal As12 sistance Grants’’, $500,000,000, of which $400,000,000 

13 shall be for making capitalization grants for the State 

14 water pollution control revolving funds under title VI of 

15 the Federal Water Pollution Control Act; and of which 

16 $100,000,000 shall be for making capitalization grants for 

17 the State drinking water treatment revolving loan funds 

18 under section 1452 of the Safe Drinking Water Act: Pro19 vided, That notwithstanding the time period specified in 

20 section 603(d) (1)(A) of the Federal Water Pollution Con21 trol Act and section 1452(f)(1)(B)(i) of the Safe Drinking 

22 Water Act, loans made by such funds shall be authorized 

23 for 40-year terms: Provided further, That notwithstanding 

24 the formula or allotments set forth in section 604 of the 

25 Federal Water Pollution Control Act and section 


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1 1452(a)(1)(D) of the Safe Drinking Water Act, loans 

2 made by such funds shall be distributed based on an as3 sessment of the immediate need in States impacted by 

4 drought, with an emphasis on projects that will provide 

5 additional water supplies most expeditiously to areas that 

6 are at risk of having an inadequate supply of water for 

7 public health and safety purposes or to improve resiliency 

8 to drought, including projects to increase efficiency and 

9 conservation by end users: Provided further, That to the 

10 maximum extent practicable, highest priority to the loans 

11 made with such funds shall be given to projects that have 

12 been approved by, and have previously received funding 

13 from, State and local water agencies: Provided further, 

14 That such amount is designated by the Congress as being 

15 for an emergency requirement pursuant to section 

16 251(b)(2)(A)(i) of the Balanced Budget and Emergency 

17 Deficit Control Act of 1985. 

18 SEC. 104. SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATIONS FOR THE 

19 WATER INFRASTRUCTURE FINANCE AND IN20 NOVATION ACT PROGRAM. 

21 The following sums are appropriated, out of any 

22 money in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, for fis23 cal year 2015: 


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1 ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY 

2 STATE AND TRIBAL ASSISTANCE GRANTS

3 For an additional amount for ‘‘State and Tribal As4 sistance Grants’’, $20,000,000 to carry out the Water In5 frastructure Finance and Innovation Act of 2014: Pro6 vided, That loans made by such funds shall be distributed 

7 based on an assessment of the immediate need in States 

8 impacted by drought, with an emphasis on projects that 

9 will provide additional water supplies most expeditiously 

10 to areas that are at risk of having an inadequate supply 

11 of water for public health and safety purposes or to im12 prove resiliency to drought, including projects to increase 

13 efficiency and conservation by end users: Provided further, 

14 That the limitations imposed by sections 5028(a)(5) and 

15 5029(b)(2)(A) of the Water Resources Reform and Devel16 opment Act of 2014 shall not apply with respect to a 

17 project receiving such funds in any State with a drought 

18 declaration: Provided further, That notwithstanding sec19 tion 5029(b)(4) of the Water Resources Reform and De20 velopment Act of 2014, the interest rate for a secured loan 

21 under this section shall be not more than the yield on 

22 United States Treasury securities of a similar maturity 

23 to the maturity of the secured loan on the date of execu24 tion of the loan agreement: Provided further, That not25 withstanding section 5028(a)(2)(A) of the Water ReVerDate Sep 11 2014 20:56 Jul 10, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00017 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2983.IH H2983

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1 sources Reform and Development Act of 2014, the eligible 

2 project costs of a project shall be reasonably anticipated 

3 to be not less than $10,000,000: Provided further, That 

4 such amount is designated by the Congress as being for 

5 an emergency requirement pursuant to section 

6 251(b)(2)(A)(i) of the Balanced Budget and Emergency 

7 Deficit Control Act of 1985. 

8 TITLE II—NEW WATER INFRA9 STRUCTURE PROGRAM AU10 THORIZATIONS 

11 Subtitle A—New Water Recycling 

12 and Reclamation Program 

13 Through EPA 

14 SEC. 201. SHORT TITLE; FINDINGS; PURPOSES. 

15 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This subtitle may be cited as the 

16 ‘‘National Water Recycling and Reclamation Act of 

17 2015’’. 

18 (b) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that— 

19 (1) water supply, wastewater, sanitation, and 

20 sewage agencies across the Nation are developing 

21 and investing in water reuse and recycling projects; 

22 (2) almost 900,000 acre-feet of annual water 

23 supply are in development through these projects 

24 and could be expeditiously constructed with in25 creased Federal investment; and 


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1 (3) in California alone, there are water reuse 

2 and recycling projects that could add over 500,000 

3 acre-feet of annual water supply. 

4 (c) PURPOSES.—It is the purpose of this subtitle to 

5 expand investments in water reuse and recycling projects 

6 nationwide. 

7 SEC. 202. NATIONAL WATER RECYCLING AND RECLAMA8 TION PROGRAM. 

9 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Administrator of the En10 vironmental Protection Agency shall establish and carry 

11 out a National Water Recycling and Reclamation Program 

12 to provide grants to eligible entities for water recycling 

13 and reclamation projects. 

14 (b) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the following defi15 nitions apply: 

16 (1) ELIGIBLE COSTS.—The term ‘‘eligible 

17 costs’’ means amounts substantially all of which are 

18 paid by, or for the account of, an eligible entity in 

19 connection with a project, including the cost of— 

20 (A) development phase activities, including 

21 planning, feasibility analysis, revenue fore22 casting, environmental review, permitting, pre23 liminary engineering and design work, and 

24 other preconstruction activities; 


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1 (B) construction, reconstruction, rehabili2 tation, replacement, and acquisition of real 

3 property (including land related to the project 

4 and improvements to land), environment miti5 gation, construction contingencies, and acquisi6 tion of equipment; 

7 (C) capitalized interest necessary to meet 

8 market requirements, reasonably required re9 serve funds, capital issuance expenses, and 

10 other carrying costs during construction; and 

11 (D) reimbursement for costs described in 

12 subparagraphs (A) through (C) incurred prior 

13 to the date of enactment of this Act. 

14 (2) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘‘eligible enti15 ty’’ means a corporation, partnership, joint venture, 

16 trust, public or investor-owned utility, private entity, 

17 government entity, agency, or instrumentality, tribal 

18 government, or any other reclamation and reuse en19 tity, as determined by the Administrator. 

20 (3) PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘program’’ means 

21 the National Water Recycling and Reclamation Pro22 gram established under this section. 

23 (c) ELIGIBILITY.— 

24 (1) PROJECT COSTS.—To be eligible for assist25 ance under the program, a water recycling and recVerDate Sep 11 2014 20:56 Jul 10, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00020 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2983.IH H2983

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1 lamation project shall have total eligible costs that 

2 are reasonably anticipated to exceed $1,000,000. 

3 (2) PROJECT SPONSOR.—To be eligible for as4 sistance under the program, a water recycling and 

5 reclamation project shall have a project sponsor 

6 that— 

7 (A) is an eligible entity; 

8 (B) submits to the Administrator an appli9 cation for the project; and 

10 (C) demonstrates a source for non-Federal 

11 revenues that is sufficient to satisfy the non12 Federal share of the cost of the project. 

13 (d) COMPETITIVE GRANT SELECTION.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall— 

15 (A) establish criteria for selecting among 

16 projects that meet the eligibility criteria speci17 fied in subsection (c); 

18 (B) conduct a national solicitation for ap19 plications; and 

20 (C) award grants on a competitive basis. 

21 (2) SELECTION CRITERIA.—The selection cri22 teria shall include the following: 

23 (A) The extent to which the project ad24 dresses near- and long-term water demand and 

25 supply, protects the environment, or otherwise 


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1 enhances the overall water reclamation and 

2 reuse system. 

3 (B) The extent to which the project en4 hances the return on the Federal investment 

5 through the production of new, highly renew6 able water supplies. 

7 (C) The likelihood that financial assistance 

8 under the program will enable the project to 

9 proceed at an earlier date than the project 

10 would otherwise be able to proceed. 

11 (D) The extent to which the project uses 

12 measures that enhance the efficiency of the 

13 project. 

14 (3) DEADLINES.—The Administrator shall— 

15 (A) publish the selection criteria under 

16 paragraph (1) in the Federal Register not later 

17 than 90 days after the date of enactment of 

18 this Act; 

19 (B) require that applications seeking finan20 cial assistance under the program be submitted 

21 not later than 180 days after the date of publi22 cation of the selection criteria under subpara23 graph (A); and 


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1 (C) provide notice of approved project ap2 plications under the program not later than 1 

3 year after the date of enactment of this Act. 

4 (e) FEDERAL SHARE.—The Federal share of the cost 

5 of a project receiving financial assistance under the pro6 gram may not exceed 80 percent. 

7 (f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be 

9 appropriated to carry out this section $500,000,000 

10 for each of fiscal years 2016 through 2020. Such 

11 sums shall remain available until expended. 

12 (2) ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.—From funds 

13 made available to carry out this section for a fiscal 

14 year, the Administrator may use not to exceed 2 

15 percent of the funds for the costs of administering 

16 this section. 

17 (g) REPORTS TO CONGRESS.—Not later than October 

18 1, 2016, and every 2 years thereafter, the Administrator 

19 shall submit to Congress a report summarizing the finan20 cial performance of projects that are receiving, or have re21 ceived, assistance under the program. 

22 (h) REGULATIONS.—The Administrator may issue 

23 such regulations as the Administrator determines appro24 priate to carry out this section. 


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1 (i) FAILURE TO MEET DEADLINE.—If the Adminis2 trator does not meet a deadline under subsection (d)(3), 

3 the Administrator shall transfer all funds made available 

4 for the program so as to make such funds available for 

5 the purpose of making capitalization grants for water re6 cycling and reclamation projects under the State water 

7 pollution revolving loan fund program under title VI of 

8 the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1381 

9 et seq.) and the State drinking water treatment revolving 

10 loan fund program under section 1452 of the Safe Drink11 ing Water Act (42 U.S.C. 300j–12). 

12 Subtitle B—Reclamation Infra13 structure Finance and Innova14 tion Act (RIFIA) 

15 SEC. 210. SHORT TITLE; PURPOSES; DEFINITIONS. 

16 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This subtitle may be cited as the 

17 ‘‘Reclamation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act’’ 

18 or ‘‘RIFIA’’. 

19 (b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this subtitle are— 

20 (1) to promote increased development of critical 

21 water resources infrastructure by establishing addi22 tional opportunities for financing water resources 

23 projects; 

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1 enue streams through user fees or other dedicated 

2 funding sources; 

3 (3) to complement existing Federal funding 

4 sources and address budgetary constraints on Bu5 reau of Reclamation programs; and 

6 (4) to leverage private investment in water re7 sources infrastructure, with the goal of every $100 

8 million in secured loans being leveraged for $1 bil9 lion in water in water infrastructure financing. 

10 (c) DEFINITIONS.—In this subtitle: 

11 (1) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘‘eligible enti12 ty’’ means— 

13 (A) a corporation; 

14 (B) a partnership; 

15 (C) a joint venture; 

16 (D) a trust; 

17 (E) a State or local governmental entity, 

18 agency, or instrumentality; and 

19 (F) a conservancy district, irrigation dis20 trict, canal company, mutual water company, 

21 water users’ association, Indian tribe, agency 

22 created by interstate compact, or any other en23 tity that has the capacity to contract with the 

24 United States under Federal reclamation law. 


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1 (2) FEDERAL CREDIT INSTRUMENT.—The term 

2 ‘‘Federal credit instrument’’ means a secured loan, 

3 loan guarantee, or other credit enhancement author4 ized to be made available under this subtitle with re5 spect to a project. 

6 (3) INVESTMENT-GRADE RATING.—The term 

7 ‘‘investment-grade rating’’ means a rating of BBB 

8 minus, Baa3, bbb minus, BBB (low), or higher as 

9 assigned by a rating agency to project obligations. 

10 (4) LENDER.— 

11 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘lender’’ 

12 means any non-Federal qualified institutional 

13 buyer (as defined in section 230.144A(a) of 

14 title 17, Code of Federal Regulations (or a suc15 cessor regulation) (commonly known as ‘‘Rule 

16 144A(a) of the Securities and Exchange Com17 mission’’ and issued under the Securities Act of 

18 1933 (15 U.S.C. 77a et seq.))). 

19 (B) INCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘lender’’ in20 cludes— 

21 (i) a qualified retirement plan (as de22 fined in section 4974 of the Internal Rev23 enue Code of 1986) that is a qualified in24 stitutional buyer; and 


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1 (ii) a governmental plan (as defined in 

2 section 414 of the Internal Revenue Code 

3 of 1986) that is a qualified institutional 

4 buyer. 

5 (5) LOAN GUARANTEE.—The term ‘‘loan guar6 antee’’ means any guarantee or other pledge by the 

7 Secretary to pay all or part of the principal of, and 

8 interest on, a loan or other debt obligation issued by 

9 an obligor and funded by a lender. 

10 (6) OBLIGOR.—The term ‘‘obligor’’ means an 

11 eligible entity that is primarily liable for payment of 

12 the principal of, or interest on, a Federal credit in13 strument. 

14 (7) PROJECT OBLIGATION.— 

15 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘project obli16 gation’’ means any note, bond, debenture, or 

17 other debt obligation issued by an obligor in 

18 connection with the financing of a project. 

19 (B) EXCLUSION.—The term ‘‘project obli20 gation’’ does not include a Federal credit in21 strument. 

22 (8) RATING AGENCY.—The term ‘‘rating agen23 cy’’ means a credit rating agency registered with the 

24 Securities and Exchange Commission as a nationally 

25 recognized statistical rating organization (as defined 


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1 in section 3(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 

2 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78c(a)). 

3 (9) RECLAMATION STATE.—The term ‘‘Rec4 lamation State’’ means any of the States of— 

5 (A) Arizona; 

6 (B) California; 

7 (C) Colorado; 

8 (D) Idaho; 

9 (E) Kansas; 

10 (F) Montana; 

11 (G) Nebraska; 

12 (H) Nevada; 

13 (I) New Mexico; 

14 (J) North Dakota; 

15 (K) Oklahoma; 

16 (L) Oregon; 

17 (M) South Dakota; 

18 (N) Texas; 

19 (O) Utah; 

20 (P) Washington; and 

21 (Q) Wyoming. 

22 (10) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ 

23 means the Secretary of the Interior. 

24 (11) SECURED LOAN.—The term ‘‘secured 

25 loan’’ means a direct loan or other debt obligation 


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1 issued by an obligor and funded by the Secretary in 

2 connection with the financing of a project under 

3 chapter 1. 

4 (12) SUBSIDY AMOUNT.—The term ‘‘subsidy 

5 amount’’ means the amount of budget authority suf6 ficient to cover the estimated long-term cost to the 

7 Federal Government of a Federal credit instrument, 

8 as calculated on a net present value basis, excluding 

9 administrative costs and any incidental effects on 

10 Governmental receipts or outlays in accordance with 

11 the Federal Credit Reform Act of 1990 (2 U.S.C. 

12 661 et seq.). 

13 (13) SUBSTANTIAL COMPLETION.—The term 

14 ‘‘substantial completion’’, with respect to a project, 

15 means the earliest date on which a project is consid16 ered to perform the functions for which the project 

17 is designed. 

18 CHAPTER 1—INNOVATIVE FINANCING 

19 SEC. 211. PURPOSES. 

20 The purposes of this chapter are— 

21 (1) to promote increased development of critical 

22 water resources infrastructure by establishing addi23 tional opportunities for financing water resources 

24 projects; 


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1 (2) to attract new investment capital to infra2 structure projects that are capable of generating rev3 enue streams through user fees or other dedicated 

4 funding sources; 

5 (3) to complement existing Federal funding 

6 sources and address budgetary constraints on Bu7 reau of Reclamation programs; and 

8 (4) to leverage private investment in water re9 sources infrastructure. 

10 SEC. 212. AUTHORITY TO PROVIDE ASSISTANCE. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may provide finan12 cial assistance to an eligible entity under this chapter to 

13 carry out projects within— 

14 (1) any Reclamation State; 

15 (2) any other State in which the Bureau of 

16 Reclamation is authorized to provide project assist17 ance; and 

18 (3) the States of Alaska and Hawaii. 

19 (b) SELECTION.—In selecting projects to receive fi20 nancial assistance under subsection (a), the Secretary 

21 shall ensure diversity with respect to— 

22 (1) project types; and 

23 (2) geographical locations. 


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1 SEC. 213. APPLICATIONS. 

2 To be eligible to receive assistance under this chapter, 

3 an eligible entity shall submit to the Secretary an applica4 tion at such time, in such manner, and containing such 

5 information as the Secretary may require. 

6 SEC. 214. ELIGIBILITY FOR ASSISTANCE. 

7 (a) ELIGIBLE PROJECTS.—The following projects 

8 may be carried out using assistance made available under 

9 this chapter: 

10 (1) A project for the reclamation and reuse of 

11 municipal, industrial, domestic, and agricultural 

12 wastewater, and naturally impaired ground, which 

13 the Secretary, acting through the Commissioner of 

14 Reclamation, is authorized to undertake. 

15 (2) Any water infrastructure project not specifi16 cally authorized by law that— 

17 (A) the Secretary determines, through the 

18 completion of an appraisal investigation and 

19 feasibility study, would contribute to a safe, 

20 adequate water supply for domestic, agricul21 tural, environmental, or municipal and indus22 trial use; and 

23 (B) is otherwise eligible for assistance 

24 under this chapter. 


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1 (3) A new water infrastructure facility project, 

2 including a water conduit, pipeline, canal, pumping, 

3 power, and associated facilities. 

4 (4) A project for enhanced energy efficiency in 

5 the operation of a water system. 

6 (5) A project for accelerated repair and replace7 ment of an aging water distribution facility. 

8 (6) A brackish or sea water desalination 

9 project. 

10 (7) Acquisition of real property or an interest 

11 in real property for water storage, reclaimed or recy12 cled water, or wastewater, if the acquisition is inte13 gral to a project described in paragraphs (1) 

14 through (6). 

15 (8) A combination of projects, each of which is 

16 eligible under paragraphs (1) through (7), for which 

17 an eligible entity submits a single application. 

18 (b) ACTIVITIES ELIGIBLE FOR ASSISTANCE.—For 

19 purposes of this chapter, an eligible activity with respect 

20 to an eligible project under subsection (a) includes the cost 

21 of— 

22 (1) development-phase activities, including plan23 ning, feasibility analysis, revenue forecasting, envi24 ronmental review, permitting, transaction costs, preVerDate Sep 11 2014 20:56 Jul 10, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00032 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2983.IH H2983

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1 liminary engineering and design work, and other 

2 preconstruction activities; 

3 (2) construction, reconstruction, rehabilitation, 

4 and replacement activities; 

5 (3) the acquisition of real property (including 

6 water rights, land relating to the project, and im7 provements to land), environmental mitigation, con8 struction contingencies, and acquisition of equip9 ment; 

10 (4) capitalized interest necessary to meet mar11 ket requirements, reasonably required reserve funds, 

12 capital issuance expenses, and other carrying costs 

13 during construction; 

14 (5) refinancing interim construction funding, 

15 long-term project obligations, or a secured loan, loan 

16 guarantee, or other credit enhancement made under 

17 this chapter; 

18 (6) reimbursement or success payments to any 

19 public or private entity that achieves predetermined 

20 outcomes on a pay-for-performance or pay-for-suc21 cess basis; and 

22 (7) grants, loans, or credit enhancement for 

23 community development financial institutions, green 

24 banks, and other financial intermediaries providing 


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1 ongoing finance for projects that meet the purposes 

2 of this chapter. 

3 SEC. 215. DETERMINATION OF ELIGIBILITY AND PROJECT 

4 SELECTION. 

5 (a) ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS.—To be eligible to 

6 receive financial assistance under this chapter, a project 

7 shall meet the following criteria, as determined by the Sec8 retary: 

9 (1) CREDITWORTHINESS.— 

10 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara11 graph (B), the project shall be creditworthy, as 

12 determined by the Secretary, who shall ensure 

13 that any financing for the project has appro14 priate security features, such as a rate cov15 enant, to ensure repayment. 

16 (B) PRELIMINARY RATING OPINION LET17 TER.—The Secretary shall require each appli18 cant to provide a preliminary rating opinion let19 ter from at least 1 rating agency indicating that 

20 the senior obligations of the project (which may 

21 be the Federal credit instrument) have the po22 tential to achieve an investment-grade rating. 

23 (2) ELIGIBLE PROJECT COSTS.—The eligible 

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1 tershed shall be reasonably anticipated to be not less 

2 than $10,000,000. 

3 (3) DEDICATED REVENUE SOURCES.—The Fed4 eral credit instrument for the project shall be repay5 able from dedicated revenue sources that also secure 

6 the project obligations. 

7 (4) PUBLIC SPONSORSHIP OF PRIVATE ENTI8 TIES.—In the case of a project carried out by an en9 tity that is not a State or local government or an 

10 agency or instrumentality of a State or local govern11 ment, the project shall be publicly sponsored. 

12 (b) SELECTION CRITERIA.— 

13 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall es14 tablish criteria for the selection of projects that meet 

15 the eligibility requirements of subsection (a), in ac16 cordance with paragraph (2). 

17 (2) CRITERIA.—The selection criteria shall in18 clude the following: 

19 (A) The extent to which the project is na20 tionally or regionally significant. 

21 (B) The extent to which assistance under 

22 this section would foster innovative public-pri23 vate partnerships and attract private debt or 

24 equity investment. 


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1 (C) The likelihood that assistance under 

2 this section would enable the project to proceed 

3 at an earlier date than the project would other4 wise be able to proceed. 

5 (D) The extent to which the project uses 

6 new or innovative approaches. 

7 (E) The extent to which projects track evi8 dence about the effectiveness of the 1 or more 

9 projects financed and the availability of the evi10 dence and project information to the public to 

11 facilitate replication. 

12 (F) The amount of budget authority re13 quired to fund the Federal credit instrument 

14 made available under this chapter. 

15 (G) The extent to which the project helps 

16 maintain or protect the environment. 

17 (H) The extent to which the project sup18 ports the local economy and provides local jobs. 

19 (3) PRIORITY.—The Secretary shall prioritize 

20 projects that promote wastewater recycling, agricul21 tural or urban water conservation and efficiency, 

22 stormwater capture, or other innovative projects that 

23 reduce reliance on surface and groundwater supplies. 

24 (c) RECEIPT OF OTHER FEDERAL FUNDING.—Re25 ceipt of a Federal grant or contract or other Federal fundVerDate Sep 11 2014 20:56 Jul 10, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00036 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2983.IH H2983

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1 ing to support an eligible project shall not preclude the 

2 project from being eligible for assistance under this chap3 ter. 

4 (d) FEDERAL REQUIREMENTS.—Nothing in this sec5 tion supersedes the applicability of other requirements of 

6 Federal law (including regulations). 

7 SEC. 216. SECURED LOANS. 

8 (a) AGREEMENTS.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraphs (2) 

10 through (4), the Secretary may enter into agree11 ments with 1 or more obligors to make secured 

12 loans, the proceeds of which shall be used— 

13 (A) to finance eligible project costs of any 

14 project selected under section 215; 

15 (B) to refinance interim construction fi16 nancing of eligible project costs of any project 

17 selected under section 215; or 

18 (C) to refinance long-term project obliga19 tions or Federal credit instruments, if that refi20 nancing provides additional funding capacity for 

21 the completion, enhancement, or expansion of 

22 any project that— 

23 (i) is selected under section 215; or 

24 (ii) otherwise meets the requirements 

25 of section 215. 


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1 (2) LIMITATION ON REFINANCING OF INTERIM

2 CONSTRUCTION FINANCING.—A secured loan under 

3 paragraph (1) shall not be used to refinance interim 

4 construction financing under paragraph (1)(B) later 

5 than 1 year after the date of substantial completion 

6 of the applicable project. 

7 (3) RISK ASSESSMENT.—Before entering into 

8 an agreement under this subsection for a secured 

9 loan, the Secretary, in consultation with the Director 

10 of the Office of Management and Budget and each 

11 rating agency providing a preliminary rating opinion 

12 letter under section 215(a)(1)(B), shall determine an 

13 appropriate capital reserve subsidy amount for the 

14 secured loan, taking into account each such prelimi15 nary rating opinion letter. 

16 (4) INVESTMENT-GRADE RATING REQUIRE17 MENT.—The execution of a secured loan under this 

18 section shall be contingent on receipt by the senior 

19 obligations of the project of an investment-grade rat20 ing. 

21 (b) TERMS AND LIMITATIONS.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—A secured loan provided for 

23 a project under this section shall be subject to such 

24 terms and conditions, and contain such covenants, 

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1 cluding requirements for audits), as the Secretary 

2 determines to be appropriate. 

3 (2) MAXIMUM AMOUNT.—The amount of a se4 cured loan under this section shall not exceed the 

5 lesser of— 

6 (A) an amount equal to 100 percent of the 

7 reasonably anticipated eligible project costs; and 

8 (B) if the secured loan does not receive an 

9 investment-grade rating, the amount of the sen10 ior project obligations of the project. 

11 (3) PAYMENT.—A secured loan under this sec12 tion— 

13 (A) shall be payable, in whole or in part, 

14 from State or local taxes, user fees, or other 

15 dedicated revenue sources that also secure the 

16 senior project obligations of the relevant 

17 project; 

18 (B) shall include a rate covenant, coverage 

19 requirement, or similar security feature sup20 porting the project obligations; and 

21 (C) may have a lien on revenues described 

22 in subparagraph (A), subject to any lien secur23 ing project obligations. 

24 (4) INTEREST RATE.—The interest rate on a 

25 secured loan under this section shall be not more 


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1 than the yield on United States Treasury securities 

2 of a similar maturity to the maturity of the secured 

3 loan on the date of execution of the loan agreement, 

4 as determined by the Secretary. 

5 (5) MATURITY DATE.—The final maturity date 

6 of a secured loan under this section shall be not 

7 later than 35 years after the expected date of sub8 stantial completion of the relevant project. 

9 (6) NONSUBORDINATION.—A secured loan 

10 under this section shall not be subordinated to the 

11 claims of any holder of project obligations in the 

12 event of bankruptcy, insolvency, or liquidation of the 

13 obligor of the project. 

14 (7) FEES.—The Secretary may establish fees 

15 under section 217(b) at a level sufficient to cover all 

16 or a portion of the costs to the Federal Government 

17 of making a secured loan under this section. 

18 (8) NON-FEDERAL SHARE.—The proceeds of a 

19 secured loan under this section may be used to pay 

20 any non-Federal share of project costs required if 

21 the loan is repayable from non-Federal funds. 

22 (c) REPAYMENT.— 

23 (1) SCHEDULE.—The Secretary shall establish 

24 a repayment schedule for each secured loan provided 


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1 under this section, based on the projected cash flow 

2 from project revenues and other repayment sources. 

3 (2) COMMENCEMENT.—Scheduled loan repay4 ment of principal or interest on a secured loan under 

5 this section shall commence not later than 5 years 

6 after the date of substantial completion of the 

7 project. 

8 (3) DEFERRED PAYMENTS.— 

9 (A) AUTHORIZATION.—If, at any time 

10 after the date of substantial completion of a 

11 project for which a secured loan is provided 

12 under this section, the project is unable to gen13 erate sufficient revenues to pay the scheduled 

14 loan repayments of principal and interest on the 

15 secured loan, the Secretary may allow the obli16 gor, subject to subparagraph (C), to add unpaid 

17 principal and interest to the outstanding bal18 ance of the secured loan. 

19 (B) INTEREST.—Any payment deferred 

20 under subparagraph (A) shall— 

21 (i) continue to accrue interest in ac22 cordance with subsection (b)(4) until fully 

23 repaid; and 

24 (ii) be scheduled to be amortized over 

25 the remaining term of the secured loan. 


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1 (C) CRITERIA.— 

2 (i) IN GENERAL.—Any payment defer3 ral under subparagraph (A) shall be con4 tingent on the project meeting such cri5 teria as the Secretary may establish. 

6 (ii) REPAYMENT STANDARDS.—The 

7 criteria established under clause (i) shall 

8 include standards for reasonable assurance 

9 of repayment. 

10 (4) PREPAYMENT.— 

11 (A) USE OF EXCESS REVENUES.—Any ex12 cess revenues that remain after satisfying 

13 scheduled debt service requirements on the 

14 project obligations and secured loan and all de15 posit requirements under the terms of any trust 

16 agreement, bond resolution, or similar agree17 ment securing project obligations may be ap18 plied annually to prepay a secured loan under 

19 this section without penalty. 

20 (B) USE OF PROCEEDS OF REFI21 NANCING.—A secured loan under this section 

22 may be prepaid at any time without penalty 

23 from the proceeds of refinancing from non-Fed24 eral funding sources. 

25 (d) SALE OF SECURED LOANS.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), as 

2 soon as practicable after the date of substantial 

3 completion of a project and after providing a notice 

4 to the obligor, the Secretary may sell to another en5 tity or reoffer into the capital markets a secured 

6 loan for a project under this section, if the Secretary 

7 determines that the sale or reoffering can be made 

8 on favorable terms. 

9 (2) CONSENT OF OBLIGOR.—In making a sale 

10 or reoffering under paragraph (1), the Secretary 

11 may not change the original terms and conditions of 

12 the secured loan without the written consent of the 

13 obligor. 

14 (e) LOAN GUARANTEES.— 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may provide a 

16 loan guarantee to a lender in lieu of making a se17 cured loan under this section, if the Secretary deter18 mines that the budgetary cost of the loan guarantee 

19 is substantially the same as that of a secured loan. 

20 (2) TERMS.—The terms of a loan guarantee 

21 provided under this subsection shall be consistent 

22 with the terms established in this section for a se23 cured loan, except that the rate on the guaranteed 

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1 tiated between the obligor and the lender, with the 

2 consent of the Secretary. 

3 SEC. 217. PROGRAM ADMINISTRATION. 

4 (a) REQUIREMENT.—The Secretary shall establish a 

5 uniform system to service the Federal credit instruments 

6 made available under this chapter. 

7 (b) CAPITAL RESERVE FUND.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—There is hereby established 

9 in the Treasury of the United States the Reclama10 tion Loan Finance Capital Reserve Fund, which 

11 shall be available for deposit of capital reserve fees 

12 provided for under this subsection. Amounts depos13 ited shall be credited as offsetting collections. 

14 (2) CAPITAL RESERVE FEES.—To the extent re15 quired by appropriations Acts, the Secretary may as16 sess, collect, and spend capital reserve fees at a level 

17 that is sufficient to cover— 

18 (A) the costs of services of expert firms re19 tained pursuant to subsection (d); and 

20 (B) all or a portion of the costs to the 

21 Federal Government of servicing the Federal 

22 credit instruments provided under this chapter, 

23 including all or a portion of the outlays associ24 ated with the provision of the Federal credit in25 struments under this chapter. 


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1 (3) DETERMINATION OF FEE AMOUNTS.—The 

2 capital reserve fees shall be established at amounts 

3 that will result in the collection, during each fiscal 

4 year, of an amount that can be reasonably expected 

5 to equal the outlays associated with the provision of 

6 the Federal credit instruments under this chapter. 

7 (c) SERVICER.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may appoint 

9 a financial entity to assist the Secretary in servicing 

10 the Federal credit instruments provided under this 

11 chapter. 

12 (2) DUTIES.—A servicer appointed under para13 graph (1) shall act as the agent for the Secretary. 

14 (3) FEE.—A servicer appointed under para15 graph (1) shall receive a servicing fee, subject to ap16 proval by the Secretary. 

17 (d) ASSISTANCE FROM EXPERTS.—The Secretary 

18 may retain the services, including counsel, of any organi19 zation or entity with expertise in the field of municipal 

20 and project finance to assist in the underwriting and serv21 icing of Federal credit instruments provided under this 

22 chapter. 

23 (e) LOAN COORDINATION; INTERAGENCY COOPERA24 TION.—The Secretary— 


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1 (1) shall coordinate implementation of loan 

2 guarantees under this section with the Administrator 

3 to avoid duplication and enhance the effectiveness of 

4 implementation of the State revolving funds estab5 lished under the Federal Water Pollution Control 

6 Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.) and the Safe Drinking 

7 Water Act (42 U.S.C. 300f et seq.); 

8 (2) shall consult with the Secretary of Agri9 culture before promulgating criteria with respect to 

10 financial appraisal functions and loan guarantee ad11 ministration for activities carried out under this 

12 chapter; and 

13 (3) may enter into a memorandum of agree14 ment providing for Department of Agriculture finan15 cial appraisal functions and loan guarantee adminis16 tration for activities carried out under this chapter. 

17 SEC. 218. STATE AND LOCAL PERMITS. 

18 The provision of financial assistance for a project 

19 under this chapter shall not— 

20 (1) relieve any recipient of the assistance of any 

21 obligation to obtain any required State or local per22 mit or approval with respect to the project; 

23 (2) limit the right of any unit of State or local 

24 government to approve or regulate any rate of re25 turn on private equity invested in the project; or 


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1 (3) otherwise supersede any State or local law 

2 (including any regulation) applicable to the construc3 tion or operation of the project. 

4 SEC. 219. REGULATIONS. 

5 The Secretary may promulgate such regulations as 

6 the Secretary determines to be appropriate to carry out 

7 this chapter. 

8 SEC. 220. FUNDING. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be appro10 priated to the Secretary to carry out this chapter 

11 $100,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2015 through 2019, 

12 to remain available until expended. 

13 (b) ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS.—Of the funds made 

14 available to carry out this chapter, the Secretary may use 

15 for the administration of this chapter not more than 

16 $2,200,000 for each of fiscal years 2015 through 2019. 

17 SEC. 221. REPORT TO CONGRESS. 

18 Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment 

19 of this Act, and every 2 years thereafter, the Secretary 

20 shall submit to the Committee on Energy and Natural Re21 sources of the Senate and the Committee on Natural Re22 sources of the House of Representatives a report summa23 rizing the financial performance and on-the-ground out24 comes of the projects that are receiving, or have received, 


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1 assistance under this chapter, including an assessment of 

2 whether the objectives of this chapter are being met. 

3 CHAPTER 2—INTEGRATED REGIONAL 

4 WATER MANAGEMENT, RECLAMATION, 

5 AND RECYCLING PROJECTS 

6 SEC. 231. WATER STORAGE PROJECTS. 

7 (a) AGREEMENTS.—The Secretary may enter into a 

8 cost-shared financial assistance agreement with any non9 Federal entity in a Reclamation State or the State of Ha10 waii to carry out the planning, design, and construction 

11 of any permanent water storage and conveyance facility 

12 used solely to regulate and maximize the water supply 

13 arising from a project that is eligible for assistance under 

14 this chapter or any other provision of law, including recy15 cled water projects not congressionally authorized— 

16 (1) to recycle wastewater or ground water; or 

17 (2) to use integrated and coordinated water 

18 management on a watershed or regional scale. 

19 (b) FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.—In providing financial 

20 assistance under this section, the Secretary shall give pri21 ority to storage and conveyance components that— 

22 (1) ensure the efficient and beneficial use of 

23 water or reuse of the recycled water; 

24 (2) make maximum use of natural systems; 


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1 (3) consistent with Secretarial Order No. 3297, 

2 dated February 22, 2010, support sustainable water 

3 management practices and the water sustainability 

4 objectives of 1 or more offices of the Department of 

5 the Interior or any other Federal agency; 

6 (4)(A) increase the availability of usable water 

7 supplies in a watershed or region to benefit people, 

8 the economy, and the environment; and 

9 (B) include adaptive measures needed to ad10 dress climate change and future demands; 

11 (5) where practicable— 

12 (A) provide flood control or recreation ben13 efits; and 

14 (B) include the development of incremental 

15 hydroelectric power generation; 

16 (6) include partnerships that go beyond political 

17 and institutional jurisdictions to support the effi18 cient use of the limited water resources of the 

19 United States and the applicable region; 

20 (7) generate environmental benefits, such as 

21 benefits to fisheries, wildlife and habitat, and water 

22 quality and water-dependent ecological systems, as 

23 well as water supply benefits to agricultural and 

24 urban water users; and 


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1 (8) the financing of which leverages private and 

2 other non-Federal resources. 

3 (c) FEDERAL SHARE.—The Federal share of the cost 

4 of a project carried out under subsection (a) shall be— 

5 (1) equal to the lesser of— 

6 (A) 50 percent of total cost of the project; 

7 and 

8 (B) $15,000,000, adjusted for inflation; 

9 and 

10 (2) nonreimbursable. 

11 (d) NON-FEDERAL SHARE.—The non-Federal share 

12 of the cost of a project carried out under subsection (a) 

13 may include in-kind contributions to the planning, design, 

14 and construction of a project. 

15 (e) TITLE AND COSTS.—A non-Federal entity enter16 ing into a financial assistance agreement under this sec17 tion shall— 

18 (1) hold title to all facilities constructed under 

19 this section; and 

20 (2) be solely responsible for the costs of oper21 ating and maintaining those facilities. 

22 (f) APPROVAL.—The Secretary may enter into a fi23 nancial assistance agreement under this section, if— 


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1 (1) the Secretary notifies Congress of the pro2 posed agreement at least 90 days before the date on 

3 which the Secretary enters into the agreement; and 

4 (2) Congress does not pass a joint resolution 

5 disapproving the agreement before such date. 

6 SEC. 232. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

7 There is authorized to be appropriated $700,000,000 

8 to carry out this chapter. 

9 CHAPTER 3—RECLAMATION TITLE 

10 TRANSFER PROGRAM 

11 SEC. 241. SHORT TITLE; DEFINITIONS. 

12 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This chapter may be cited as the 

13 ‘‘Reclamation Title Transfer Act of 2015’’. 

14 (b) DEFINITIONS.—In this chapter: 

15 (1) CONVEYED PROPERTY.—The term ‘‘con16 veyed property’’ means an eligible facility that has 

17 been conveyed to a qualifying entity under section 

18 242(b)(1). 

19 (2) ELIGIBLE FACILITY.— 

20 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘eligible fa21 cility’’ means a reclamation project or facility, 

22 or a portion of a reclamation project or facility, 

23 for which the United States holds title and that 

24 meets the criteria for potential transfer estab25 lished under section 244(a). 


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1 (B) INCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘eligible facil2 ity’’ includes dams and appurtenant works, in3 frastructure, recreational facilities, buildings, 

4 distribution and drainage works, and associated 

5 land or interests in land or water. 

6 (3) QUALIFYING ENTITY.—The term ‘‘quali7 fying entity’’ means a State, unit of local govern8 ment, Indian tribe, municipal corporation, quasi-mu9 nicipal corporation, or other entity (such as a water 

10 district) that, as determined by the Secretary, has 

11 the capacity to continue to manage the conveyed 

12 property for the same purposes that the conveyed 

13 property has been managed for under the reclama14 tion laws. 

15 (4) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

16 the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the 

17 Commissioner of the Bureau of Reclamation. 

18 SEC. 242. AUTHORIZATION OF TITLE TRANSFER PROGRAM. 

19 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF TITLE TRANSFER PRO20 GRAM.—The Secretary may establish a program that— 

21 (1) identifies and analyzes the potential for 

22 public benefits from the transfer out of Federal own23 ership of eligible facilities, including analyses of the 

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1 istics of the eligible facilities proposed for transfer; 

2 and 

3 (2) facilitates the transfer to qualifying entities 

4 of the title to eligible facilities to promote more effi5 cient management of water and water-related facili6 ties. 

7 (b) AUTHORIZATION TO TRANSFER TITLE TO ELIGI8 BLE FACILITIES.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may convey 

10 to a qualifying entity all right, title, and interest of 

11 the United States in and to any eligible facility, sub12 ject to paragraphs (2) through (6), if— 

13 (A) the Secretary notifies Congress in writ14 ing of the proposed conveyance at least 90 days 

15 before the date on which the Secretary makes 

16 the conveyance; and 

17 (B) Congress does not pass a joint resolu18 tion disapproving the conveyance before such 

19 date. 

20 (2) RIGHT OF FIRST REFUSAL.—If the entity 

21 that operates an eligible facility at the time that the 

22 Secretary attempts to facilitate the transfer of title 

23 under subsection (a)(2) is a qualifying entity, that 

24 entity shall have the right of first refusal to receive 

25 the conveyance under paragraph (1). 


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1 (3) RESERVATION OF EASEMENT.—The Sec2 retary may reserve an easement over a conveyed 

3 property if the Secretary determines that the ease4 ment is necessary for the management of any inter5 ests retained by the Federal Government under this 

6 chapter. 

7 (4) MINERAL INTERESTS.— 

8 (A) RETENTION.—The Secretary shall re9 tain any mineral interests associated with a 

10 conveyed property. 

11 (B) MANAGEMENT.—The mineral interests 

12 retained under subparagraph (A) shall be man13 aged— 

14 (i) consistent with Federal law; and 

15 (ii) in a manner that would not inter16 fere with the purposes for which the rec17 lamation project was authorized. 

18 (5) INTERESTS IN WATER.—No interests in 

19 water shall be conveyed under this chapter unless 

20 the conveyance is provided for in writing in an 

21 agreement between the Secretary and the qualifying 

22 entity. 

23 (6) ADDITIONAL CRITERIA.—Title transfers 

24 under this section shall be carried out consistent 

25 with— 


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1 (A) this chapter; and 

2 (B) any additional criteria or procedures 

3 that the Secretary determines to be in the pub4 lic interest. 

5 (c) RESTRICTIONS ON USE.—As a condition of ob6 taining title to an eligible facility, the qualifying entity 

7 shall agree to use the eligible facility for substantially the 

8 same purposes the eligible facility is being used for during 

9 the period in which the eligible facility was under reclama10 tion ownership. 

11 SEC. 243. COMPLIANCE WITH ENVIRONMENTAL AND HIS12 TORIC PRESERVATION LAWS. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—Before conveying eligible facilities 

14 under this chapter, the Secretary shall complete all actions 

15 required under all applicable laws, including— 

16 (1) the National Environmental Policy Act of 

17 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.); 

18 (2) the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 

19 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.); and 

20 (3) the National Historic Preservation Act (16 

21 U.S.C. 470 et seq.). 

22 (b) LIMITATION ON CONVEYANCES.—The Secretary 

23 may not convey an eligible facility under this chapter if 

24 the Secretary determines, as part of a review conducted 

25 under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 and 


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1 with public input, that making the conveyance will lessen 

2 any of the protections afforded under the laws referred 

3 to in subsection (a) or is inconsistent with other applicable 

4 requirements to preserve and protect environmental, cul5 tural, and historic assets. 

6 SEC. 244. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA. 

7 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall establish 

8 criteria for determining whether facilities are eligible for 

9 conveyance under this chapter. 

10 (b) MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS.— 

11 (1) AGREEMENT OF QUALIFYING ENTITY.—The 

12 criteria established under subsection (a) shall in13 clude a requirement that a qualifying entity agree— 

14 (A) to accept title to the eligible facility; 

15 (B) to accept all liability for the eligible fa16 cility, except as otherwise provided in section 

17 245; 

18 (C) to use the eligible facility for substan19 tially the same purposes the eligible facility is 

20 being used for at the time the Secretary evalu21 ates the potential transfer; and 

22 (D) to provide, as consideration for the as23 sets to be conveyed, compensation to the United 

24 States in an amount that is the equivalent of 

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1 tion to the United States or other income 

2 stream the United States derives from the eligi3 ble facility to be transferred as of the date of 

4 the transfer, including any costs previously 

5 deemed beyond the irrigator’s ability to pay and 

6 reassigned to project power customers for re7 payment. 

8 (2) DETERMINATIONS OF SECRETARY.— 

9 (A) IN GENERAL.—The criteria established 

10 under subsection (a) shall include a require11 ment that the Secretary, in consultation with 

12 the Governor of any State in which the project 

13 is located, determine that the proposed trans14 fer— 

15 (i) would not have an unmitigated sig16 nificant effect on the environment; 

17 (ii) is uncomplicated, based on, as de18 termined by the Secretary— 

19 (I) there being no significant op20 position to the proposed transfer; 

21 (II) the eligible facility not being 

22 hydrologically, operationally, or finan23 cially integrated with other Federal or 

24 non-Federal water projects; 


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1 (III) the eligible facility not gen2 erating electric power sold to, or eligi3 ble to be sold to, power customers 

4 (other than the project itself); and 

5 (IV) the parties to the transfer 

6 being able to reach agreement on 

7 legal, institutional, and financial ar8 rangements relating to the convey9 ance; 

10 (iii) is consistent with the responsi11 bility of the Secretary— 

12 (I) to protect land and water re13 sources held in trust for federally rec14 ognized Indian tribes; and 

15 (II) to ensure compliance with 

16 any applicable international treaties 

17 and interstate compacts; and 

18 (iv) is in the financial interest of the 

19 United States. 

20 (B) PUBLICATION.—The Secretary shall 

21 make publically available information on how 

22 the Secretary made the determinations under 

23 subparagraph (A). 

24 (3) STATUS OF RECLAMATION LAND.—The cri25 teria established under subsection (a) shall require 


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1 that any land to be conveyed out of Federal owner2 ship under this Act is— 

3 (A) land acquired by the Secretary; or 

4 (B) land withdrawn by the Secretary, only 

5 if— 

6 (i) the Secretary determines in writing 

7 that the withdrawn land is encumbered by 

8 reclamation project facilities to the extent 

9 that the withdrawn land is unsuitable for 

10 return to the public domain; and 

11 (ii) the qualifying entity agrees to pay 

12 fair market value for the withdrawn land 

13 to be conveyed. 

14 SEC. 245. LIABILITY. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection 

16 (b), effective beginning on the date of conveyance of any 

17 eligible facility under this chapter, the United States shall 

18 not be liable under any law for damages of any kind aris19 ing out of any act, omission, or occurrence based on the 

20 prior ownership or operation of the conveyed property. 

21 (b) LIMITATION.—Notwithstanding subsection (a), 

22 the United States shall retain the responsibilities and au23 thorities of the United States for a conveyed property 

24 based on the prior ownership or operation of the conveyed 

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1 mental laws, including the Comprehensive Environmental 

2 Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (42 

3 U.S.C. 9601 et seq.). 

4 SEC. 246. BENEFITS. 

5 After a conveyance of an eligible facility under this 

6 chapter— 

7 (1) the conveyed property shall no longer be 

8 considered to be a part of a reclamation project; and 

9 (2) the entity to which the conveyed property is 

10 conveyed shall not be eligible to receive any benefits 

11 with respect to the conveyed property (including 

12 project power), except for benefits that would be 

13 available to a similarly situated entity with respect 

14 to property that is not part of a reclamation project. 

15 SEC. 247. COMPLIANCE WITH OTHER LAWS. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—After a conveyance of title under 

17 this chapter, the qualifying entity to which the property 

18 is conveyed shall comply with all applicable Federal, State, 

19 and local laws (including regulations) in the operation of 

20 the conveyed property. 

21 (b) EFFECT.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—Nothing in this chapter shall 

23 affect or interfere with— 

24 (A) the laws of any State relating to the 

25 control, appropriation, use, or distribution of 


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1 water used in irrigation or for any other pur2 pose; 

3 (B) any vested right acquired under State 

4 law; or 

5 (C) any interstate compact, decree, or ne6 gotiated water rights agreement. 

7 (2) CONFORMITY WITH STATE LAW.—In car8 rying out this chapter, the Secretary shall proceed in 

9 conformity with the State laws and rights acquired 

10 under State law described in paragraph (1). 

11 SEC. 248. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be appro13 priated to carry out this chapter such sums as are nec14 essary. 

15 (b) USE OF AMOUNTS.—Amounts made available 

16 under subsection (a) may be used— 

17 (1) to carry out the investigations to carry out 

18 this chapter; and 

19 (2) to pay any other costs associated with con20 veyances under this chapter, including an appro21 priate Federal share of the costs of compliance with 

22 the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 

23 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and other applicable law. 

24 (c) NOT TREATED AS PROJECT COSTS.—Expendi25 tures made by the Secretary under this chapter— 


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1 (1) shall not be a project cost assignable to a 

2 reclamation project; and 

3 (2) shall be nonreimbursable. 

4 SEC. 249. TERMINATION OF AUTHORITY. 

5 The authority of the Secretary to carry out convey6 ances under this chapter shall terminate 15 years after 

7 the date of enactment of this Act. 

8 Subtitle C—Innovative Stormwater 

9 Capture Program 

10 SEC. 251. SHORT TITLE. 

11 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Innovative 

12 Stormwater Infrastructure Act of 2015’’. 

13 SEC. 252. PURPOSES AND FINDINGS. 

14 Congress finds that— 

15 (1) many water resources in the United States 

16 are declining, particularly in urban and agricultural 

17 areas; 

18 (2) the decline of water resources is the result 

19 of— 

20 (A) an increase in population, water con21 sumption, and impermeable surfaces; and 

22 (B) the negative effects of urbanization, 

23 commercial and industrial activities, and in24 creasing and persistent droughts; 


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1 (3) an October 2008 study by the National Re2 search Council found that some of the benefits of in3 novative stormwater control infrastructure include— 

4 (A) increased water supplies; 

5 (B) the creation of jobs; 

6 (C) cost savings; and 

7 (D) a reduction of stormwater runoff, sur8 face water discharge, stormwater pollution, and 

9 stormwater flows to protect and restore natural 

10 hydrology, meeting local conditions to the max11 imum extent feasible; and 

12 (4) capturing stormwater runoff in urban and 

13 suburban areas of the State of California can in14 crease water supplies by over 600,000 acre-feet an15 nually, and that similar benefits are achievable in 

16 the urban and suburban areas of other States. 

17 SEC. 253. DEFINITIONS. 

18 In this subtitle: 

19 (1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis20 trator’’ means the Administrator of the Environ21 mental Protection Agency. 

22 (2) CENTER.—The term ‘‘center’’ means a cen23 ter of excellence for innovative stormwater control 

24 infrastructure established under section 4(a). 


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1 (3) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘‘eligible enti2 ty’’ means— 

3 (A) a State, tribal, or local government; or 

4 (B) a local, regional, or other entity that 

5 manages stormwater, drinking water resources, 

6 or waste water resources. 

7 (4) ELIGIBLE INSTITUTION.— 

8 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘eligible in9 stitution’’ means an institution of higher edu10 cation (as defined in section 101 of the Higher 

11 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001)), or a 

12 research institution, that has demonstrated ex13 cellence in innovative stormwater control infra14 structure by— 

15 (i) conducting research on innovative 

16 stormwater control infrastructure to deter17 mine the means by which innovative infra18 structure reduces stormwater runoff, en19 hances and protects drinking water 

20 sources, and improves water quality; 

21 (ii) developing and disseminating in22 formation regarding the means by which 

23 an organization can use innovative 

24 stormwater control infrastructure; 


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1 (iii) providing technical assistance to 

2 an organization for an innovative 

3 stormwater control infrastructure project; 

4 (iv) developing best practices stand5 ards for innovative stormwater control in6 frastructure; 

7 (v) providing job training relating to 

8 innovative stormwater control infrastruc9 ture; 

10 (vi) developing course curricula for— 

11 (I) elementary schools (as defined 

12 in section 9101 of the Elementary and 

13 Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 

14 U.S.C. 7801)); 

15 (II) secondary schools (as defined 

16 in that section); 

17 (III) institutions of higher edu18 cation (as defined in section 101 of 

19 the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 

20 U.S.C. 1001)); or 

21 (IV) vocational schools; 

22 (vii) training students regarding inno23 vative stormwater control infrastructure; or 

24 (viii) providing information to the 

25 Federal Government or State, tribal, and 


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1 local governments regarding the implemen2 tation of innovative stormwater control in3 frastructure. 

4 (B) ASSOCIATED DEFINITION.—For pur5 poses of subparagraph (A), the term ‘‘research 

6 institution’’ means an entity that is— 

7 (i) described in section 501(c)(3) of 

8 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986; 

9 (ii) exempt from tax under section 

10 501(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 

11 1986; and 

12 (iii) organized and operated for re13 search purposes. 

14 (5) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘‘Indian tribe’’ 

15 has the meaning given the term in section 518(h) of 

16 the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 

17 1377(h)). 

18 (6) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means— 

19 (A) each of the several States of the 

20 United States; 

21 (B) the District of Columbia; 

22 (C) the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico; 

23 (D) Guam; 

24 (E) American Samoa; 


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1 (F) the Commonwealth of the Northern 

2 Mariana Islands; 

3 (G) the Federated States of Micronesia; 

4 (H) the Republic of the Marshall Islands; 

5 (I) the Republic of Palau; and 

6 (J) the United States Virgin Islands. 

7 (7) INNOVATIVE STORMWATER CONTROL INFRA8 STRUCTURE.— 

9 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘innovative 

10 stormwater control infrastructure’’ means any 

11 green infrastructure stormwater management 

12 technique that— 

13 (i) uses natural systems or engineered 

14 systems that mimic natural processes to 

15 infiltrate, evapotranspire, or capture 

16 stormwater; and 

17 (ii) preserves, enhances, or mimics 

18 natural hydrology to protect or restore 

19 water quality. 

20 (B) INCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘innovative 

21 stormwater control infrastructure’’ includes— 

22 (i) methods that promote absorption, 

23 uptake, percolation, evapotranspiration, 

24 and filtration by soil and plant life; and 


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1 (ii) the preservation or restoration 

2 of— 

3 (I) natural topography, including 

4 hills, plains, ravines, and shorelines; 

5 (II) interconnected networks of 

6 natural land that protect essential ec7 ological functions critical for water 

8 quality; 

9 (III) ecological function, includ10 ing forests, grasslands, and deserts; 

11 (IV) bodies of water, including 

12 lakes, flood plains, headwaters, and 

13 wetlands; and 

14 (V) native soil characteristics of 

15 composition, structure, and 

16 transmissivity. 

17 SEC. 254. CENTERS OF EXCELLENCE FOR INNOVATIVE 

18 STORMWATER CONTROL INFRASTRUCTURE. 

19 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF CENTERS.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall pro21 vide grants, on a competitive basis, to eligible insti22 tutions to establish and maintain not less than 3, 

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1 cated in various regions throughout the United 

2 States. 

3 (2) GENERAL OPERATION.—Each center 

4 shall— 

5 (A) conduct research on innovative 

6 stormwater control infrastructure that is rel7 evant to the geographical region in which the 

8 center is located, including stormwater and 

9 sewer overflow reduction, other approaches to 

10 water resource enhancement, and other environ11 mental, economic, and social benefits; 

12 (B) develop manuals and establish industry 

13 standards on best management practices relat14 ing to State, tribal, local, and commercial inno15 vative stormwater control infrastructure for use 

16 by State, tribal, and local governments and the 

17 private sector; 

18 (C) develop and administer testing and 

19 evaluation protocols to measure and verify the 

20 performance of stormwater infrastructure prod21 ucts and practices; 

22 (D) provide information regarding research 

23 conducted under subparagraph (A), manuals 

24 developed under subparagraph (B), and testing 

25 and evaluation performed under subparagraph 


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1 (C) to the national electronic clearinghouse cen2 ter for publication on the Internet website es3 tablished under subsection (c) to provide to the 

4 Federal Government and State, tribal, and local 

5 governments and the private sector information 

6 regarding innovative stormwater control infra7 structure; 

8 (E) provide technical assistance to State, 

9 tribal, and local governments to assist with the 

10 construction, operation, and maintenance of in11 novative stormwater control infrastructure 

12 projects; 

13 (F) collaborate with institutions of higher 

14 education and private and public organizations 

15 in the geographical region in which the center 

16 is located on innovative stormwater control in17 frastructure research and technical assistance 

18 projects; 

19 (G) assist institutions of higher education, 

20 secondary schools, and vocational schools to de21 velop innovative stormwater control infrastruc22 ture curricula; 

23 (H) provide training regarding innovative 

24 stormwater control infrastructure to institutions 

25 of higher education and professional schools; 


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1 (I) evaluate regulatory and policy issues 

2 relating to innovative stormwater control infra3 structure; and 

4 (J) coordinate with the other centers to 

5 avoid duplication of efforts. 

6 (b) APPLICATION.—To be eligible to receive a grant 

7 under this section, an eligible institution shall prepare and 

8 submit to the Administrator an application at such a time, 

9 in such form, and containing such information as the Ad10 ministrator may require. 

11 (c) NATIONAL ELECTRONIC CLEARINGHOUSE CEN12 TER.—Of the centers established under subsection (a)(1), 

13 one shall— 

14 (1) be designated as the ‘‘national electronic 

15 clearinghouse center’’; and 

16 (2) in addition to the other functions of that 

17 center— 

18 (A) develop, operate, and maintain an 

19 Internet website and a public database that 

20 contain information relating to innovative 

21 stormwater control infrastructure; and 

22 (B) post to the website information from 

23 all centers. 


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1 SEC. 255. INNOVATIVE STORMWATER CONTROL INFRA2 STRUCTURE PROJECT GRANTS. 

3 (a) GRANT AUTHORITY.—The Administrator shall 

4 provide grants, on a competitive basis, to eligible entities 

5 to carry out innovative stormwater control infrastructure 

6 projects in accordance with this section. 

7 (b) INNOVATIVE STORMWATER CONTROL INFRA8 STRUCTURE PROJECTS.— 

9 (1) PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT GRANTS.— 

10 The Administrator may make planning and develop11 ment grants under this section for the following 

12 projects: 

13 (A) Planning and designing innovative 

14 stormwater control infrastructure projects, in15 cluding engineering surveys, landscape plans, 

16 maps, and implementation plans. 

17 (B) Identifying and developing standards 

18 and revisions to local zoning, building, or other 

19 local codes necessary to accommodate innova20 tive stormwater control infrastructure projects. 

21 (C) Identifying and developing fee struc22 tures to provide financial support for design, in23 stallation, and operations and maintenance of 

24 innovative stormwater control infrastructure. 


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1 (D) Developing training and educational 

2 materials regarding innovative stormwater con3 trol infrastructure for distribution to— 

4 (i) individuals and entities with appli5 cable technical knowledge; and 

6 (ii) the public. 

7 (E) Developing an innovative stormwater 

8 control infrastructure portfolio standard pro9 gram described in section 6(e). 

10 (2) IMPLEMENTATION GRANTS.—The Adminis11 trator may make implementation grants under this 

12 section for the following projects: 

13 (A) Installing innovative stormwater con14 trol infrastructure. 

15 (B) Protecting or restoring interconnected 

16 networks of natural areas that protect water 

17 quality. 

18 (C) Monitoring and evaluating the environ19 mental, economic, or social benefits of innova20 tive stormwater control infrastructure. 

21 (D) Implementing a best practices stand22 ard for an innovative stormwater control infra23 structure program. 


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1 (E) Implementing an innovative 

2 stormwater control infrastructure portfolio 

3 standard program described in section 6(e). 

4 (c) APPLICATION.—Except as otherwise provided in 

5 this Act, to be eligible to receive a grant under this section, 

6 an eligible entity shall prepare and submit to the Adminis7 trator an application at such time, in such form, and con8 taining such information as the Administrator may re9 quire, including, as applicable— 

10 (1) a description of the innovative stormwater 

11 control infrastructure project; 

12 (2) a plan for monitoring the impacts of the in13 novative stormwater control infrastructure project 

14 on the water quality and quantity; 

15 (3) an evaluation of other environmental, eco16 nomic, and social benefits of the innovative 

17 stormwater control infrastructure project; and 

18 (4) a plan for the long-term operation and 

19 maintenance of the innovative stormwater control in20 frastructure project. 

21 (d) ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENT FOR INNOVATIVE

22 STORMWATER CONTROL INFRASTRUCTURE PORTFOLIO

23 STANDARD PROJECT.—In addition to an application 

24 under subsection (c), a State or Indian tribe applying for 

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1 ture portfolio standard program described in section 6(e) 

2 shall prepare and submit to the Administrator a schedule 

3 of increasing minimum percentages of the annual water 

4 to be managed using innovative stormwater control infra5 structure under the program. 

6 (e) PRIORITY.—In making grants under this section, 

7 the Administrator shall give priority to applications sub8 mitted on behalf of— 

9 (1) a community that— 

10 (A) has combined storm and sanitary sew11 ers in the collection system of the community; 

12 or 

13 (B) is a low-income or disadvantaged com14 munity, as determined by the Administrator; or 

15 (2) an eligible entity that will use not less than 

16 10 percent of the grant to provide service to a low17 income or disadvantaged community, as determined 

18 by the Administrator. 

19 (f) MAXIMUM AMOUNTS.— 

20 (1) PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT GRANTS.— 

21 (A) SINGLE GRANT.—The amount of a sin22 gle planning and development grant provided 

23 under this section shall be not more than 

24 $200,000. 


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1 (B) AGGREGATE AMOUNT.—The total 

2 amount of all planning and development grants 

3 provided under this section for a fiscal year 

shall be not more than 1 4 ⁄3 of the total amount 

5 made available to carry out this section. 

6 (2) IMPLEMENTATION GRANTS.— 

7 (A) SINGLE GRANT.—The amount of a sin8 gle implementation grant provided under this 

9 section shall be not more than $3,000,000. 

10 (B) AGGREGATE AMOUNT.—The total 

11 amount of all implementation grants provided 

12 under this section for a fiscal year shall be not 

more than 2 13 ⁄3 of the total amount made avail14 able to carry out this section. 

15 (g) FEDERAL SHARE.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para17 graph (3), the Federal share of a grant provided 

18 under this section shall not exceed 65 percent of the 

19 total project cost. 

20 (2) CREDIT FOR IMPLEMENTATION GRANTS.— 

21 The Administrator shall credit toward the non-Fed22 eral share of the cost of an implementation project 

23 carried out under this section the cost of planning, 

24 design, and construction work completed for the 


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1 project using funds other than funds provided under 

2 this Act. 

3 (3) EXCEPTION.—The Administrator may waive 

4 the Federal share limitation under paragraph (1) for 

5 an eligible entity that has adequately demonstrated 

6 financial need. 

7 SEC. 256. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY INNOVA8 TIVE STORMWATER CONTROL INFRASTRUC9 TURE PROMOTION. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall ensure 

11 that the Office of Water, the Office of Enforcement and 

12 Compliance, the Office of Research and Development, and 

13 the Office of Policy of the Environmental Protection Agen14 cy promote the use of innovative stormwater control infra15 structure in and coordinate the integration of innovative 

16 stormwater control infrastructure into permitting pro17 grams, planning efforts, research, technical assistance, 

18 and funding guidance. 

19 (b) DUTIES.—The Administrator shall ensure that 

20 the Office of Water— 

21 (1) promotes the use of innovative stormwater 

22 control infrastructure in the programs of the Envi23 ronmental Protection Agency; 

24 (2) supports establishing public-private partner25 ships and other innovative financing mechanisms in 


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1 the implementation of innovative stormwater control 

2 infrastructure; and 

3 (3) coordinates efforts to increase the use of in4 novative stormwater control infrastructure with— 

5 (A) other Federal departments and agen6 cies; 

7 (B) State, tribal, and local governments; 

8 and 

9 (C) the private sector. 

10 (c) REGIONAL INNOVATIVE STORMWATER CONTROL

11 INFRASTRUCTURE PROMOTION.—The Administrator shall 

12 direct each regional office of the Environmental Protection 

13 Agency, as appropriate based on local factors, to promote 

14 and integrate the use of innovative stormwater control in15 frastructure within the region that includes— 

16 (1) a plan for monitoring, financing, mapping, 

17 and designing the innovative stormwater control in18 frastructure; 

19 (2) outreach and training regarding innovative 

20 stormwater control infrastructure implementation 

21 for State, tribal, and local governments, tribal com22 munities, and the private sector; and 

23 (3) the incorporation of innovative stormwater 

24 control infrastructure into permitting and other reg25 ulatory programs, codes, and ordinance development, 


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1 including the requirements under consent decrees 

2 and settlement agreements in enforcement actions. 

3 (d) INNOVATIVE STORMWATER CONTROL INFRA4 STRUCTURE INFORMATION-SHARING.—The Administrator 

5 shall promote innovative stormwater control infrastructure 

6 information-sharing, including through an Internet 

7 website, to share information with, and provide technical 

8 assistance to, State, tribal, and local governments, tribal 

9 communities, the private sector, and the public regarding 

10 innovative stormwater control infrastructure approaches 

11 for— 

12 (1) reducing water pollution; 

13 (2) protecting water resources; 

14 (3) complying with regulatory requirements; 

15 and 

16 (4) achieving other environmental, public 

17 health, and community goals. 

18 (e) INNOVATIVE STORMWATER CONTROL INFRA19 STRUCTURE PORTFOLIO STANDARD.—The Administrator, 

20 in collaboration with State, tribal, and local water resource 

21 managers, shall establish voluntary measurable goals, to 

22 be known as the ‘‘innovative stormwater control infra23 structure portfolio standard’’, to increase the percentage 

24 of annual water managed by eligible entities that use inno25 vative stormwater control infrastructure. 


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1 SEC. 257. REPORT TO CONGRESS. 

2 Not later than September 30, 2017, the Adminis3 trator shall submit to Congress a report that includes, 

4 with respect to the period covered by the report— 

5 (1) a description of all grants provided under 

6 this Act; 

7 (2) a detailed description of— 

8 (A) the projects supported by those grants; 

9 and 

10 (B) the outcomes of those projects; 

11 (3) a description of the improvements in tech12 nology, environmental benefits, resources conserved, 

13 efficiencies, and other benefits of the projects funded 

14 under this Act; 

15 (4) recommendations for improvements to pro16 mote and support innovative stormwater control in17 frastructure for the centers, grants, and activities 

18 under this Act; and 

19 (5) a description of existing challenges con20 cerning the use of innovative stormwater control in21 frastructure. 

22 SEC. 258. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

23 There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

24 this Act such sums as are necessary for each of fiscal 

25 years 2016 through 2021. 


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1 TITLE III—IMPROVED INFRA2 STRUCTURE AND WATER 

3 MANAGEMENT 

4 Subtitle A—Restoring America’s 

5 Watersheds and Increasing 

6 Water Yields 

7 SEC. 301. SHORT TITLE. 

8 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Restoring Amer9 ica’s Watersheds Act of 2015’’. 

10 SEC. 302. FINDINGS. 

11 Congress makes the following findings: 

12 (1) Watershed health and effective headwaters 

13 management can have multiple benefits for water 

14 supply reliability, water quality, and ecosystems. 

15 (2) Investments to restore meadows, forests, 

16 and watersheds will improve their critical 

17 hydrological functions and reduce wildfire impacts. 

18 (3) Proper ecosystem restoration could increase 

19 groundwater storage by 50,000 to 500,000 acre-feet 

20 per year just within the National Forest System 

21 lands in the Sierra bioregion of the State of Cali22 fornia. 

23 (4) Improved headwaters management would 

24 have a similarly significant impact on groundwater 


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1 storage within National Forest System lands across 

2 the western States. 

3 (5) Source watersheds are recognized and de4 fined as an integral part of federally funded water 

5 systems. 

6 SEC. 303. WATER SOURCE PROTECTION PROGRAM. 

7 Subtitle A of title III of the Omnibus Public Land 

8 Management Act of 2009 (Public Law 111–11; 123 Stat. 

9 1126) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

10 ‘‘SEC. 3002. WATER SOURCE PROTECTION PROGRAM. 

11 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Agriculture, 

12 acting through the Chief of the Forest Service (referred 

13 to in this section as the ‘Secretary’), shall establish and 

14 maintain a Water Source Protection Program (referred to 

15 in this section as the ‘Program’) within the National For16 est System west of the 100th Meridian. 

17 ‘‘(b) WATER SOURCE INVESTMENT PARTNER18 SHIPS.— 

19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out the Pro20 gram, the Secretary may enter into water source in21 vestment partnerships with end water users (includ22 ing States, political subdivisions, Indian tribes, utili23 ties, municipal water systems, irrigation districts, 

24 nonprofit organizations, and corporations) to protect 

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1 sheds that provide water to the non-Federal part2 ners. 

3 ‘‘(2) FORM.—A partnership described in para4 graph (1) may take the form of memoranda of un5 derstanding, cost-share or collection agreements, 

6 long-term match funding commitments, or other ap7 propriate instruments. 

8 ‘‘(c) WATER SOURCE MANAGEMENT PLAN.— 

9 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out the Pro10 gram, the Secretary may produce a water source 

11 management plan in cooperation with the water 

12 source investment partnership participants and 

13 State, local, and tribal governments. 

14 ‘‘(2) FIREWOOD.—A water source management 

15 plan may give priority to projects that facilitate the 

16 gathering of firewood for personal use pursuant to 

17 section 223.5 of title 36, Code of Federal Regula18 tions (or successor regulations). 

19 ‘‘(3) ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS.—The Sec20 retary may conduct— 

21 ‘‘(A) a single environmental impact state22 ment or similar analysis required under the Na23 tional Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 

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1 toration projects in the water source manage2 ment plan; and 

3 ‘‘(B) a statement or analysis described in 

4 subparagraph (A) as part of the development of 

5 the water source management plan or after the 

6 finalization of the plan. 

7 ‘‘(4) ENDANGERED SPECIES ACT.—In carrying 

8 out the Program, the Secretary may use the Manual 

9 on Adaptive Management of the Department of the 

10 Interior, including any associated guidance, for pur11 poses of fulfilling any requirements under the En12 dangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et 

13 seq.). 

14 ‘‘(5) FUNDS AND SERVICES.— 

15 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out the 

16 Program, the Secretary may accept and use 

17 funding, services, and other forms of investment 

18 and assistance from water source investment 

19 partnership participants to implement the water 

20 source management plan. 

21 ‘‘(B) MANNER OF USE.—The Secretary 

22 may accept and use investments described in 

23 subparagraph (A) directly or indirectly through 

24 the National Forest Foundation. 


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1 ‘‘(C) WATER SOURCE PROTECTION

2 FUND.— 

3 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Subject to the 

4 availability of appropriations, the Secretary 

5 may establish a Water Source Protection 

6 Fund to match funds or in-kind support 

7 contributed by water source investment 

8 partnership participants under subpara9 graph (A). 

10 ‘‘(ii) USE OF APPROPRIATED

11 FUNDS.—The Secretary may use funds ap12 propriated to carry out this subparagraph 

13 to make multiyear commitments, if nec14 essary, to implement 1 or more water 

15 source investment partnership agree16 ments.’’. 

17 SEC. 304. WATERSHED CONDITION FRAMEWORK. 

18 Subtitle A of title III of the Omnibus Public Land 

19 Management Act of 2009 (Public Law 111–11; 123 Stat. 

20 1126) is amended by inserting after section 3002, as 

21 added by section 303, the following: 

22 ‘‘SEC. 3003. WATERSHED CONDITION FRAMEWORK. 

23 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Agriculture, 

24 acting through the Chief of the Forest Service (referred 

25 to in this section as the ‘Secretary’), shall establish and 


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1 maintain a Watershed Condition Framework within the 

2 National Forest System west of the 100th Meridian— 

3 ‘‘(1) to evaluate and classify the condition of 

4 watersheds, taking into consideration— 

5 ‘‘(A) water quality and quantity; 

6 ‘‘(B) aquatic habitat and biota; 

7 ‘‘(C) riparian and wetland vegetation; 

8 ‘‘(D) the presence of roads and trails; 

9 ‘‘(E) soil type and condition; 

10 ‘‘(F) groundwater-dependent ecosystems; 

11 ‘‘(G) relevant terrestrial indicators, such as 

12 fire regime, risk of catastrophic fire, forest and 

13 rangeland vegetation, invasive species, and in14 sects and disease; and 

15 ‘‘(H) other significant factors, as deter16 mined by the Secretary; 

17 ‘‘(2) to identify for restoration up to 5 priority 

18 watersheds in each National Forest, and up to 2 pri19 ority watersheds in each national grassland, taking 

20 into consideration the impact of the condition of the 

21 watershed condition on— 

22 ‘‘(A) wildfire behavior; 

23 ‘‘(B) flood risk; 

24 ‘‘(C) fish and wildlife; 

25 ‘‘(D) drinking water supplies; 


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1 ‘‘(E) irrigation water supplies; 

2 ‘‘(F) forest-dependent communities; and 

3 ‘‘(G) other significant impacts, as deter4 mined by the Secretary; 

5 ‘‘(3) to develop a watershed restoration action 

6 plan for each priority watershed that— 

7 ‘‘(A) takes into account existing restora8 tion activities being implemented in the water9 shed; and 

10 ‘‘(B) includes, at a minimum— 

11 ‘‘(i) the major stressors responsible 

12 for the impaired condition of the water13 shed; 

14 ‘‘(ii) a set of essential projects that, 

15 once completed, will address the identified 

16 stressors and improve watershed condi17 tions; 

18 ‘‘(iii) a proposed implementation 

19 schedule; 

20 ‘‘(iv) potential partners and funding 

21 sources; and 

22 ‘‘(v) a monitoring and evaluation pro23 gram; 

24 ‘‘(4) to prioritize restoration activities for each 

25 watershed restoration action plan; 


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1 ‘‘(5) to implement each watershed restoration 

2 action plan; and 

3 ‘‘(6) to monitor the effectiveness of restoration 

4 actions and indicators of watershed health. 

5 ‘‘(b) COORDINATION.—Throughout the establishment 

6 and maintenance of the Watershed Condition Framework, 

7 the Secretary shall— 

8 ‘‘(1) coordinate with interested non-Federal 

9 landowners and with State, tribal, and local govern10 ments within the relevant watershed; and 

11 ‘‘(2) provide for an active and ongoing public 

12 engagement process. 

13 ‘‘(c) EMERGENCY DESIGNATION.—Notwithstanding 

14 subsection (a)(2), the Secretary may identify a watershed 

15 as a priority for rehabilitation in the Watershed Condition 

16 Framework without using the process described in sub17 section (a), if the appropriate Forest Supervisor deter18 mines that— 

19 ‘‘(1) a wildfire has significantly diminished the 

20 condition of the watershed; and 

21 ‘‘(2) the emergency stabilization activities of the 

22 Burned Area Emergency Response Team are insuffi23 cient to return the watershed to proper function.’’. 


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1 SEC. 305. FOREST SERVICE LEGACY ROADS AND TRAILS RE2 MEDIATION PROGRAM. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Agriculture, act4 ing through the Chief of the Forest Service (referred to 

5 in this section as the ‘‘Secretary’’), shall establish and 

6 maintain a Forest Service Legacy Roads and Trails Reme7 diation Program (referred to in this section as the ‘‘Pro8 gram’’) within the National Forest System west of the 

9 100th Meridian— 

10 (1) to carry out critical maintenance and urgent 

11 repairs and improvements on National Forest Sys12 tem roads, trails, and bridges; 

13 (2) to restore fish and other aquatic organism 

14 passage by removing or replacing unnatural barriers 

15 to the passage of fish and other aquatic organisms; 

16 (3) to decommission unneeded roads and trails; 

17 and 

18 (4) to carry out associated activities. 

19 (b) PRIORITY.—In implementing the Program, the 

20 Secretary shall give priority to projects that protect or re21 store— 

22 (1) water quality; 

23 (2) watersheds that feed public drinking water 

24 systems; or 

25 (3) habitat for threatened, endangered, and 

26 sensitive fish and wildlife species. 


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1 (c) NATIONAL FOREST SYSTEM.—Except as author2 ized under section 323 of the Department of the Interior 

3 and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 1999 (16 

4 U.S.C. 1011a), all projects carried out under the Program 

5 shall be on National Forest System roads. 

6 (d) NATIONAL PROGRAM STRATEGY.—Not later than 

7 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec8 retary shall develop a national strategy for implementing 

9 the Program. 

10 SEC. 306. REAUTHORIZATION OF THE COLLABORATIVE 

11 FOREST LANDSCAPE RESTORATION FUND. 

12 Section 4003(f)(6) of the Omnibus Public Land Man13 agement Act of 2009 (16 U.S.C. 7303(f)(6)) is amended 

14 by striking ‘‘2019, to remain available until expended’’ 

15 and inserting ‘‘2015, and $80,000,000 for each of fiscal 

16 years 2016 through 2024, to remain available until ex17 pended’’. 

18 Subtitle B—Reservoir Operation 

19 Improvement 

20 SEC. 311. SHORT TITLE. 

21 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Five Demonstra22 tions of Advancing Yields by Fixing Operations of Res23 ervoirs to Encompass Climatic and Atmospheric Science 

24 Trends Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 312. PROJECTS, PLANS, AND REPORTS. 

2 (a) SPECIFIC INFORMATION.—Not later than 90 days 

3 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of 

4 the Army shall provide to the Committees on Appropria5 tions of the House of Representatives and the Senate a 

6 report including the following information for any State 

7 under a gubernatorial drought declaration during water 

8 year 2015: 

9 (1) A list of Army Corps and non-Army Corps 

10 (section 7 of the Flood Control Act of 1944 (33 

11 U.S.C. 709)) projects that have a water control 

12 plan. 

13 (2) The year the original water control manual 

14 was approved. 

15 (3) The year for any subsequent revisions to 

16 the project’s water control plan and manual. 

17 (4) A list of projects in which operational devi18 ations for drought contingency have been requested 

19 or implemented and the status of the request. 

20 (5) How water conservation and water quality 

21 improvements were addressed. 

22 (6) A list of projects where permanent changes 

23 to storage allocations have been requested and the 

24 status of the request. 

25 (b) IDENTIFICATION OF PROJECTS.—Not later than 

26 60 days after completion of the report under subsection 


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1 (a), the Secretary of the Army, in consultation with the 

2 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, shall 

3 identify any projects from the report that meet the fol4 lowing criteria: 

5 (1) Located in a State in which a drought 

6 emergency has been declared or was in effect during 

7 the 1-year period preceding the date of completion 

8 of the report by the Secretary under subsection (a). 

9 (2) Future revision of a water operations man10 ual, including flood control rule curves, based on the 

11 better use of improved weather forecasting or run12 off forecasting methods, new watershed data, or 

13 changes to project operations, would be likely to en14 hance the existing authorized project purposes for 

15 water supply storage capacity and reliability, or 

16 flood control operations. 

17 (c) ADDITIONAL PROJECTS.—In addition, not later 

18 than 60 days after completion of the report in subsection 

19 (a), the Secretary of the Army shall identify any non20 Corps projects that meet the criteria in subsection (b) and 

21 the following 2 criteria: 

22 (1) The owner of the non-Corps project has 

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1 shed data or projected project modifications or oper2 ational changes. 

3 (2) The modifications or operational changes 

4 proposed by the owner of the non-Corps projects are 

5 likely to enhance water supply benefits and flood 

6 control operations. 

7 (d) PILOT PROJECTS.—Not later than 1 year after 

8 identification of the projects in subsections (b) and (c), 

9 if any, the Secretary of the Army, in consultation with 

10 the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 

11 shall establish not more than 5 pilot projects to implement 

12 forecast-based reservoir operations. 

13 (e) COORDINATION WITH NON-FEDERAL PROJECT

14 SPONSOR.— 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—If any of the projects identi16 fied in subsections (b) and (c) are non-Federal 

17 projects, the Secretary of the Army, prior to car18 rying out an activity under this section, shall consult 

19 with the non-Federal project sponsor and enter into 

20 a cooperative agreement, memorandum of under21 standing, or other agreement with the non-Federal 

22 project sponsor. 

23 (2) DEFINITION.—In this subsection, the term 

24 ‘‘non-Federal project sponsor’’ means an entity or a 

25 local government entity, including a municipal water 


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1 district, that currently manages (in whole or in part) 

2 an Army Corps of Engineers dam or reservoir. 

3 (f) FORECAST-BASED RESERVOIR OPERATIONS

4 PLAN.—As part of the pilot project under subsection (d), 

5 the Secretary, in consultation with the National Oceanic 

6 and Atmospheric Administration, in designing and imple7 menting a forecast-based reservoir operations plan, shall 

8 include the following: 

9 (1) The relationship between ocean and atmos10 pheric conditions, including the El Nin ̃o and La 

11 Nin ̃a cycles, and the potential for above normal, nor12 mal, and below normal rainfall for the coming water 

13 year. 

14 (2) The precipitation and runoff index specific 

15 to the basin and watershed of the relevant dam or 

16 reservoir, including incorporating information about 

17 hydrological and meteorological conditions that influ18 ence the timing and quantity of runoff. 

19 (3) Improved hydrologic forecasting for precipi20 tation, snowpack, streamflow, and soil moisture con21 ditions. 

22 (4) An adjustment of operational flood control 

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1 fits for flows and temperature, and other authorized 

2 project benefits, without a reduction in flood safety. 

3 (5) Proactive management in response to 

4 changes in forecasts. 

5 (g) NON-FEDERAL FUNDS.—Upon finalizing an 

6 agreement with a non-Federal project sponsor pursuant 

7 to subsection (e), the Secretary of the Army may accept 

8 non-Federal funds for all or a portion of the cost of car9 rying out a review or revision of water control manuals 

10 and flood control rule curves. 

11 (h) NO ADDITIONAL AUTHORITY.—Revisions of the 

12 manuals referred to in subsection (b) shall not interfere 

13 with authorized purposes. Nothing in this Act authorizes 

14 the Secretary of the Army to carry out, at a Corps of En15 gineers dam or reservoir, any project for a purpose not 

16 otherwise authorized as of the date of enactment of this 

17 Act. 

18 (i) CONSULTATION.—In implementing the pilot 

19 projects pursuant to subsection (d), the Secretary of the 

20 Army may consult with other affected interests, including 

21 non-Federal entities responsible for operations and main22 tenance costs of a Corps facility, affected water rights 

23 holders, individuals and entities with storage entitlements, 

24 and local agencies with flood control responsibilities down25 stream of a Corps facility. 


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1 (j) CHANGE TO OPERATIONS MANUAL.—Not later 

2 than 180 days after the completion of a change to the 

3 operations manual or flood control rule curves, the Sec4 retary shall submit a report to the appropriate committees 

5 of Congress regarding the components of the forecast6 based reservoir operations plan incorporated into the 

7 change. 

8 Subtitle C—Reclamation Projects 

9 for Renewable Energy To Re10 duce Evaporation Loss 

11 SEC. 320. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE. 

12 (a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds that— 

13 (1) evaporative loss along Bureau of Reclama14 tion reservoirs, canals, and other conveyance systems 

15 reduces the quantity and reliability of water deliv16 eries; 

17 (2) drought and extreme aridity from changing 

18 weather patterns will contribute to increased evapo19 rative loss in the future; and 

20 (3) existing Central Valley Project operations 

21 assume a conveyance loss for evaporation and seep22 age south of the Delta of 150,000 acre-feet annu23 ally. 

24 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this subtitle is to ex25 pand investments in infrastructure for Bureau of RecVerDate Sep 11 2014 20:56 Jul 10, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00096 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2983.IH H2983

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1 lamation reservoirs, canals, and other conveyance systems, 

2 that will provide shade, reduce evaporative loss, and in3 crease water supplies in the arid western States. 

4 SEC. 321. DEFINITIONS. 

5 In this subtitle: 

6 (1) COVERED LAND.—The term ‘‘covered land’’ 

7 means land that is— 

8 (A) land under the administrative jurisdic9 tion of the Bureau of Reclamation; and 

10 (B) not excluded from the development of 

11 solar or wind energy under— 

12 (i) a final land use plan established 

13 under the Federal Land Policy and Man14 agement Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1701 et 

15 seq.); or 

16 (ii) Federal law. 

17 (2) FUND.—The term ‘‘Fund’’ means the Fish 

18 and Wildlife Restoration Fund established under 

19 section 324. 

20 (3) PUBLIC LAND.—The term ‘‘public land’’ 

21 has the meaning given the term ‘‘public lands’’ in 

22 section 103 of the Federal Land Policy and Manage23 ment Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1702). 

24 (4) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

25 the Secretary of the Interior. 


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1 SEC. 322. EVALUATION AND REPORT. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than one year after the 

3 date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall com4 plete an evaluation and report to Congress on the potential 

5 for developing rights-of-way along Bureau of Reclamation 

6 canals and infrastructure, including reservoirs, for solar 

7 or wind energy production through leasing of lands or 

8 other means. 

9 (b) REPORT.—The report to Congress shall specify— 

10 (1) the location of potential rights-of-way for 

11 energy production; 

12 (2) estimates of water losses due to evaporation 

13 that would be reduced due to shade and other bene14 fits from energy production; 

15 (3) the total acreage available for energy pro16 duction; 

17 (4) existing transmission infrastructure at such 

18 locations; 

19 (5) estimates of fair market leasing value of po20 tential energy sites; and 

21 (6) estimates of energy development potential 

22 at sites. 

23 SEC. 323. DEVELOPMENT OF SOLAR AND WIND ENERGY ON 

24 COVERED LAND. 

25 (a) PILOT PROGRAM ON SELECTED COVERED

26 LAND.— 


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1 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 180 days 

2 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Sec3 retary shall establish a wind and solar energy leas4 ing pilot program under which the Secretary con5 ducts lease sales of certain sites located on covered 

6 land for purposes of carrying out wind and solar en7 ergy projects. 

8 (2) SELECTION OF SITES ON COVERED LAND.— 

9 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days 

10 after the date the pilot program is established 

11 under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall select 

12 from covered land— 

13 (i) 1 site for the development of a 

14 solar energy project; and 

15 (ii) 1 site for the development of a 

16 wind energy project. 

17 (B) SITE SELECTION.—In selecting sites 

18 under subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall— 

19 (i) give a preference to sites that the 

20 Secretary determines— 

21 (I) are likely to attract a high 

22 level of wind and solar energy indus23 try interest; 

24 (II) would likely have a positive 

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1 ducing water loss from evaporation by 

2 providing shade and temperature re3 ductions, or beneficial impacts from 

4 energy production and infrastructure; 

5 and 

6 (III) would serve as models for 

7 the expansion of the pilot program to 

8 other locations if the program is ex9 panded under subsection (c); 

10 (ii) take into consideration the value 

11 of the multiple resources of the covered 

12 land on which such sites are located; and 

13 (iii) not select any site for which a 

14 right-of-way or special use permit for site 

15 testing or construction has been issued 

16 under title V of the Federal Land Policy 

17 and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 

18 1761 et seq.). 

19 (3) LEASE SALES OF PROJECT SITES.— 

20 (A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

21 paragraph (4)(B)(i), not later than 180 days 

22 after the date on which sites are selected under 

23 paragraph (2), the Secretary shall offer each 

24 site for competitive leasing under such terms 

25 and conditions as the Secretary requires. 


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1 (B) BIDDING.—Bidding on a site offered 

2 for lease under this subsection shall be— 

3 (i) limited to one round; 

4 (ii) open only to bidders who— 

5 (I) submit a plan of development 

6 for such site together with the bid; 

7 and 

8 (II) the Secretary determines are 

9 qualified under subparagraph (C)(ii); 

10 and 

11 (iii) conducted using a bidding system 

12 selected by the Secretary, including— 

13 (I) a cash bonus bids system re14 quiring payment of the royalty estab15 lished under this Act; 

16 (II) a variable royalty bids sys17 tem based on a percentage of the 

18 gross proceeds from the sale of elec19 tricity produced from the site offered 

20 for lease, except that the royalty shall 

21 not be less than the royalty required 

22 under this Act, together with a fixed 

23 cash bonus; or 

24 (III) such other bidding system 

25 as ensures a fair return to the public 


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1 consistent with the royalty established 

2 under this Act. 

3 (C) BIDDER QUALIFICATIONS.—The Sec4 retary shall— 

5 (i) before conducting any lease sale 

6 under this subsection, establish qualifica7 tion requirements for bidders on a site of8 fered for lease that ensure that such bid9 ders, with respect to wind or solar energy 

10 projects— 

11 (I) are able to expeditiously de12 velop such a project on the site; 

13 (II) possess the financial re14 sources necessary to complete such a 

15 project; 

16 (III) possess knowledge of the 

17 technology needed to complete such a 

18 project; 

19 (IV) meet eligibility requirements 

20 that are substantially similar to the 

21 eligibility requirements for leasing 

22 that apply under the first section of 

23 the Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 

24 181 et seq.); and 


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1 (V) possess such other qualifica2 tions as the Secretary determines are 

3 necessary; and 

4 (ii) using the requirements established 

5 under clause (i), determine whether a per6 son is qualified to be a bidder on a site of7 fered for lease under this subsection. 

8 (D) CREDIT FOR BID PREPARATION EX9 PENDITURES.—In the case of a site offered for 

10 lease under this subsection with respect to 

11 which more than one bid is submitted on the 

12 date of the lease sale of such site, the Secretary 

13 shall give credit to each person who submitted 

14 a bid with respect to such site for expenditures 

15 such person incurred in the preparation of such 

16 bid. 

17 (4) LEASE TERMS.— 

18 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may es19 tablish such lease terms and conditions, includ20 ing the duration of the lease with respect to any 

21 site offered for lease under this subsection. 

22 (B) SHORT-TERM LEASES FOR DATA COL23 LECTION.—In carrying out this subsection, the 

24 Secretary shall— 


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1 (i) offer on a noncompetitive basis a 

2 short-term lease on not less than one site 

3 selected under paragraph (2) for purposes 

4 of data collection; and 

5 (ii) upon the expiration of the short6 term lease, offer on a competitive basis a 

7 long-term lease, giving credit toward the 

8 bonus bid submitted with respect to the 

9 long-term lease to the holder of the short10 term lease for any qualified expenditures 

11 made by such holder to collect data or to 

12 develop the site during such short-term 

13 lease. 

14 (5) REVENUES.—Subject to section 324, the 

15 Secretary may collect bonus bids, royalties, fees, or 

16 other payments (except rental payments) with re17 spect to sites offered for lease under this subsection. 

18 (6) REPORT.—Not later than 90 days after the 

19 date on which the Secretary conducts the final lease 

20 sale under this subsection, the Secretary shall sub21 mit to the Committee on Energy and Natural Re22 sources of the Senate and the Committee on Natural 

23 Resources of the House of Representatives a report 

24 on the results of each lease sale conducted under 

25 this subsection, including— 


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1 (A) the level of competitive interest; 

2 (B) a summary of bids and revenues re3 ceived; and 

4 (C) any other factors that may have im5 pacted the lease sale. 

6 (7) OTHER LAWS.— 

7 (A) COMPLIANCE WITH LAND MANAGE8 MENT AND ENVIRONMENTAL LAWS.—In offer9 ing sites for lease under this subsection, the 

10 Secretary concerned shall comply with— 

11 (i) all Federal laws applicable to lands 

12 under the administrative jurisdiction of the 

13 Bureau of Land Management; and 

14 (ii) Federal or State environmental 

15 laws or any other relevant laws. 

16 (B) APPLICABILITY TO WIND AND SOLAR

17 ENERGY PROJECTS UNDER OTHER FEDERAL

18 LAWS.—Nothing in this subsection shall be con19 strued so as to prohibit the Secretary from 

20 issuing rights-of-way or special use permits with 

21 respect to wind and solar energy projects in 

22 compliance with other Federal laws and regula23 tions in effect on the date of the enactment of 

24 this Act. 


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1 (8) ENFORCEMENT OF FEDERAL LAND POLICY

2 MANAGEMENT.— 

3 (A) IN GENERAL.—Sections 302(c) and 

4 303 of the Federal Land Policy and Manage5 ment Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1732(c), 1733) 

6 shall apply to activities conducted on sites on 

7 covered land offered for lease under this sub8 section. 

9 (B) EFFECT ON ENFORCEMENT AUTHOR10 ITY UNDER OTHER FEDERAL LAW.—Nothing in 

11 this subsection shall be construed so as to re12 duce or limit the enforcement authority vested 

13 in the Secretary or the Attorney General on 

14 covered land under any other Federal law. 

15 (b) TEMPORARY EXTENSION OF PILOT PROGRAM.— 

16 Until final regulations are issued under subsection (c)(4), 

17 the Secretary shall continue to carry out the pilot program 

18 under subsection (a) on the sites offered for lease under 

19 such subsection. The Secretary may extend any lease 

20 issued for such sites under subsection (a) under the same 

21 terms and conditions applicable to such lease on the date 

22 of the lease sale as necessary until final regulations are 

23 issued under subsection (c)(4) with respect to such sites. 

24 (c) EXPANSION OF PILOT PROGRAM TO ALL COV25 ERED LAND.— 


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1 (1) JOINT DETERMINATION REQUIRED.—Not 

2 later than 5 years after the date of the enactment 

3 of this Act, the Secretary shall determine whether to 

4 expand the pilot program established under sub5 section (a) to apply to all covered land, including 

6 sites with respect to which leases were issued under 

7 subsection (a). In making such determination, the 

8 Secretary shall— 

9 (A) take into consideration the results of 

10 the pilot program; 

11 (B) consult with— 

12 (i) the heads of Federal agencies and 

13 relevant State agencies (including State 

14 fish and wildlife agencies); 

15 (ii) interested States, Indian tribes, 

16 and local governments; 

17 (iii) representatives of the solar and 

18 wind energy industries; 

19 (iv) representatives of the environ20 ment, conservation, and outdoor sporting 

21 communities; and 

22 (v) the public; and 

23 (C) consider whether such expansion— 

24 (i) provides an effective means of de25 veloping wind or solar energy; and 


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1 (ii) is in the public interest. 

2 (2) EXPANSION AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary 

3 shall expand pilot program only if the Secretary de4 termined to expand the pilot program under para5 graph (1). 

6 (3) REPORT ON JOINT DETERMINATION.—Not 

7 later than 60 days after making the determination 

8 under paragraph (1) to expand the pilot program, 

9 the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on En10 ergy and Natural Resources of the Senate and the 

11 Committee on Natural Resources of the House of 

12 Representatives a report describing the basis and 

13 findings for the determination. 

14 (4) REGULATIONS TO IMPLEMENT EXPAN15 SION.—Not later than one year after making a de16 termination to expand the pilot program under para17 graph (1), the Secretary shall issue final regulations 

18 to implement this subtitle. 

19 (5) APPLICABILITY OF PROVISIONS OF PILOT

20 PROGRAM TO EXPANDED PROGRAM.— 

21 (A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

22 subparagraph (B), paragraphs (3), (7), and (8) 

23 of subsection (a) shall apply to covered land of24 fered for lease under this subsection in the 


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1 same manner as such paragraphs apply to sites 

2 offered for lease under subsection (a). 

3 (B) COMPETITIVE LEASING NOT REQUIRED

4 UNDER CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES.—The re5 quirement under subsection (a)(3) that a lease 

6 be sold on a competitive basis shall not apply 

7 to a lease issued under this subsection if the 

8 Secretary determines that— 

9 (i) no competitive interest exists for 

10 the covered land offered for lease; 

11 (ii) the public interest would not be 

12 served by the competitive issuance of a 

13 lease with respect to such covered land; or 

14 (iii) the lease is for a purpose de15 scribed in paragraph (7)(A)(ii). 

16 (6) PAYMENTS.— 

17 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to section 324, 

18 the Secretary shall establish fees, bonuses, or 

19 other payments (except rental payments) to en20 sure a fair return to the United States for any 

21 lease issued under this subsection. 

22 (B) BONUS BIDS.—The Secretary may 

23 grant credit toward any bonus bid for a quali24 fied expenditure by the holder of a lease de25 scribed in paragraph (7)(A)(ii) in any competiVerDate Sep 11 2014 20:56 Jul 10, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00109 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2983.IH H2983

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1 tive lease sale held for a long-term lease of the 

2 covered land that is the subject of the lease de3 scribed in such paragraph. 

4 (C) READJUSTMENT.— 

5 (i) IN GENERAL.—Royalties and other 

6 terms and conditions of a lease issued 

7 under this subsection shall be subject to 

8 readjustment— 

9 (I) on the date that is 15 years 

10 after the date on which the lease is 

11 issued; and 

12 (II) every 10 years thereafter. 

13 (ii) INDEXING.—Effective on the first 

14 day of the first month beginning after the 

15 date of enactment of this Act and each 

16 year thereafter, the amount of royalties or 

17 other terms and conditions subject to read18 justment under clause (i) shall be adjusted 

19 to reflect changes for the 12-month period 

20 ending on the most recent date for which 

21 data are available in the Consumer Price 

22 Index for All Urban Consumers published 

23 by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the 

24 Department of Labor. 


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1 (7) LEASE DURATION, ADMINISTRATION, AND

2 READJUSTMENT.— 

3 (A) DURATION.— 

4 (i) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided 

5 in clause (ii), a lease issued under this sub6 section shall be for— 

7 (I) an initial term of 25 years; 

8 and 

9 (II) any additional period after 

10 the initial 25-year term during which 

11 electricity is being produced annually 

12 in commercial quantities from the 

13 lease. 

14 (ii) DATA COLLECTION LEASES.—In 

15 the case of a lease issued under this sub16 section for the placement and operation of 

17 a meteorological or data collection facility 

18 or for the development or demonstration of 

19 a new wind or solar energy technology, 

20 such lease shall have a term of not more 

21 than 5 years. 

22 (B) ADMINISTRATION.—The Secretary of 

23 the Interior shall establish terms and conditions 

24 for the issuance, transfer, renewal, suspension, 


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1 and cancellation of a lease issued under this 

2 subsection. 

3 (C) READJUSTMENT PROVISION RE4 QUIRED.—Each lease issued under this sub5 section shall provide for readjustment in ac6 cordance with subparagraph (A). 

7 (8) SURFACE-DISTURBING ACTIVITIES.—The 

8 Secretary shall issue regulations regarding surface9 disturbing activities conducted under any lease 

10 issued under this subsection, including any reclama11 tion and other actions necessary to conserve and to 

12 offset impacts to surface resources. 

13 (9) SECURITY.— 

14 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall re15 quire that the holder of a lease issued under 

16 this subsection— 

17 (i) furnish a surety bond or other 

18 form of security, as prescribed by the Sec19 retary; 

20 (ii) provide for the reclamation and 

21 restoration of the covered land that is the 

22 subject of the lease; and 

23 (iii) comply with such other require24 ments as the Secretary considers necessary 


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1 to protect the interests of the public and 

2 the United States. 

3 (B) PERIODIC REVIEW.—Not less fre4 quently than once every 5 years, the Secretary 

5 shall conduct a review of the adequacy of the 

6 surety bond or other form of security provided 

7 by the holder of a lease issued under this sub8 section. 

9 SEC. 324. ROYALTIES. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall require as a 

11 term and condition of any lease issued under section 323, 

12 the payment of a royalty. The Secretary shall establish 

13 such royalty pursuant to a rulemaking. The royalty shall 

14 be a percentage of the gross proceeds from the sale of elec15 tricity produced on covered land that is the subject of such 

16 lease, at a rate that— 

17 (1) encourages production of solar or wind en18 ergy; 

19 (2) ensures a fair return to the public com20 parable to the return that would be obtained on 

21 State or private land; and 

22 (3) encourages the maximum energy generation 

23 while disturbing the least quantity of covered land 

24 and other natural resources, including water. 


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1 (b) CONSIDERATION.—In establishing the royalty 

2 under subsection (a), the Secretary shall consider the rel3 ative capacity factors of wind and solar energy projects. 

4 (c) EXCLUSIVE PAYMENT ON SALE OF ELEC5 TRICITY.—The royalty under subsection (a) shall be the 

6 only rent, royalty, or similar payment to the Federal Gov7 ernment required with respect to the sale of electricity pro8 duced under a lease issued under section 323. 

9 (d) ROYALTY RELIEF.—The Secretary may reduce 

10 the royalty rate established under subsection (a) if the 

11 holder of a lease issued under this Act shows by clear and 

12 convincing evidence that— 

13 (1) collection of the full royalty would unreason14 ably burden energy generation on covered land that 

15 is the subject of the lease; and 

16 (2) the royalty reduction is in the public inter17 est. 

18 (e) ENFORCEMENT.— 

19 (1) AUDITING SYSTEM.—The Secretary shall 

20 establish a comprehensive inspection, collection, fis21 cal, and production accounting and auditing sys22 tem— 

23 (A) to accurately determine royalties, in24 terest, fines, penalties, fees, deposits, and other 

25 payments owed under this subtitle; and 


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1 (B) to collect and account for the pay2 ments in a timely manner. 

3 (2) APPLICABILITY OF FEDERAL OIL AND ROY4 ALTY MANAGEMENT ACT OF 1982.—The provisions of 

5 the Federal Oil and Gas Royalty Management Act 

6 of 1982 (30 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) (including the civil 

7 and criminal enforcement provisions of such Act) 

8 shall apply to leases issued under this subtitle with 

9 respect to wind and solar energy projects in the 

10 same manner as such provisions apply to oil and gas 

11 leases. 

12 (f) REPORT ON ROYALTIES.—Not later than 5 years 

13 after the date of enactment of this Act and every 5 years 

14 thereafter, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee 

15 on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate and the 

16 Committee on Natural Resources of the House of Rep17 resentatives a report consisting of a review of the collec18 tions and impacts of the royalties and fees collected under 

19 this subtitle, including— 

20 (1) the total revenues received (by category) on 

21 an annual basis as royalties from wind and solar en22 ergy development and production (specified by en23 ergy source) on covered land; 

24 (2) whether the revenues received for the devel25 opment of wind and solar energy development are 


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1 comparable to the revenues received for similar de2 velopment on State or private land; 

3 (3) any impact on the development of wind and 

4 solar energy on covered land as a result of the royal5 ties; and 

6 (4) any recommendations with respect to 

7 changes in Federal law (including regulations) relat8 ing to the amount or method of collection (including 

9 auditing, compliance, and enforcement) of the royal10 ties. 

11 (g) REGULATIONS.—Not later than one year after the 

12 date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall issue 

13 final regulations to carry out this section. 

14 SEC. 325. DISPOSITION OF ROYALTY REVENUE. 

15 (a) ALLOCATION OF REVENUE.—All amounts col16 lected by the Secretary as royalties or bonuses under sub17 section (a)(5) or (c)(6) of section 323 shall be distributed 

18 as follows: 

19 (1) 25 percent shall be paid by the Secretary of 

20 the Treasury to States within the boundaries of 

21 which the royalties or bonuses are derived, to be al22 located among such States based on the percentage 

23 of covered land from which such royalties or bonuses 

24 are derived in each State. 


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1 (2) 25 percent shall be paid by the Secretary of 

2 the Treasury to the counties within the boundaries 

3 of which the royalties or bonuses are derived, to be 

4 allocated among such counties based on the percent5 age of covered land from which such royalties or bo6 nuses are derived in each county. 

7 (3) 25 percent shall be deposited into the Fish 

8 and Wildlife Restoration Fund established by sub9 section (b) and used in accordance with that sub10 section. 

11 (4) For the period that begins on the date of 

12 the enactment of this Act and ending on the date 

13 that is 15 years after the date of the enactment of 

14 this Act, 15 percent shall be paid by the Secretary 

15 of the Treasury directly to the State offices of the 

16 Bureau of Reclamation with jurisdiction over the 

17 areas of which the royalties or bonuses are derived 

18 for purposes of reducing the number of renewable 

19 energy permits that have not been processed before 

20 the date of the enactment of this Act, to be allocated 

21 among such offices based on the percentage of cov22 ered land from which the royalties or bonuses are 

23 derived in each State. 


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1 (5) The remainder shall be deposited into the 

2 general fund of the Treasury for purposes of reduc3 ing the annual Federal budget deficit. 

4 (b) FISH AND WILDLIFE RESTORATION FUND.— 

5 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in 

6 the Treasury a Fish and Wildlife Restoration Fund 

7 to be administered by the Secretary of the Interior 

8 for use in regions impacted by the development of 

9 hydropower by Federal agencies, including the Bu10 reau of Reclamation, and the development of wind or 

11 solar energy on Bureau of Reclamation land. 

12 (2) USE OF FUNDS.—The Secretary shall use 

13 amounts in the Fund to take actions and to make 

14 payments to State agencies, Federal agencies, or 

15 other interested persons in such regions for— 

16 (A) protecting and restoring important fish 

17 and wildlife habitat and native populations in 

18 such regions, including corridors, water re19 sources, and other sensitive land; and 

20 (B) improving fish species habitat or na21 tive population within the boundaries and down22 stream of a Bureau of Reclamation project. 

23 (3) AVAILABILITY OF AMOUNTS.—Amounts in 

24 the Fund shall be available for expenditure, in acVerDate Sep 11 2014 20:56 Jul 10, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00118 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2983.IH H2983

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1 cordance with this subsection, without further appro2 priation and without fiscal year limitation. 

3 (4) INVESTMENT OF FUND.— 

4 (A) IN GENERAL.—Any amounts deposited 

5 in the Fund shall earn interest in an amount 

6 determined by the Secretary of the Treasury on 

7 the basis of the current average market yield on 

8 outstanding marketable obligations of the 

9 United States of comparable maturities. 

10 (B) DEPOSIT.—Any interest earned under 

11 subparagraph (A) shall be deposited into the 

12 Fund. 

13 (5) MITIGATION REQUIREMENTS.—The expend14 iture of funds under this subsection shall be sepa15 rate and distinct from any mitigation requirements 

16 imposed pursuant to any law, regulation, or term or 

17 condition of any lease, right-of-way, or other author18 ization. 

19 (c) ALLOCATION FOR PERMITTING AFTER EXPIRA20 TION OF 15-YEAR PERIOD.— 

21 (1) CERTIFICATION BY SECRETARY.—At the 

22 end of the period described in subsection (a)(4), the 

23 Secretary shall certify whether the State offices re24 ferred to in such subsection have adequately reduced 


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1 the renewable energy permitting backlog referred to 

2 in such subsection. 

3 (2) ALLOCATION AFTER CERTIFICATION.—If 

4 the Secretary certifies under paragraph (1) that— 

5 (A) the State offices referred to in such 

6 paragraph have not adequately reduced the 

7 backlog referred to in such paragraph— 

8 (i) the period described in subsection 

9 (a)(4) shall be extended by an additional 

10 15-year period; and 

11 (ii) payments shall continue to be 

12 made during that period as described in 

13 such subsection; or 

14 (B) the State offices referred to in such 

15 paragraph have adequately reduced such back16 log— 

17 (i) two-thirds of the amount otherwise 

18 required to be paid under subsection (a)(4) 

19 shall be added to the amount deposited in 

20 the Fund established under subsection (b); 

21 and 

22 (ii) one-third of such amount shall be 

23 deposited into the general fund of the 

24 Treasury for purposes of reducing the an25 nual Federal budget deficit. 


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1 (d) PAYMENTS TO STATES AND COUNTIES.— 

2 (1) IN GENERAL.—Amounts paid to States and 

3 counties under subsection (a) shall be used in a 

4 manner that is consistent with section 35 of the 

5 Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 191). 

6 (2) IMPACTS.—Not less than 35 percent of the 

7 amount paid to a State each fiscal year shall be used 

8 for the purposes described in subsection (b)(2). 

9 Subtitle D—Improved Reclamation 

10 Crop Data 

11 SEC. 331. DEFINITIONS. 

12 For the purposes of this subtitle: 

13 (1) AGRICULTURAL WATER CONTRACT.—The 

14 term ‘‘agricultural water contract’’ means any con15 tract or arrangement, including water service con16 tracts, repayment contracts, water rights settlement 

17 contracts, exchange contracts, or other form of 

18 agreement, through which agricultural users receive 

19 water and deliveries through a facility owned, oper20 ated, or constructed in whole or in part by the Bu21 reau of Reclamation, including contracts under the 

22 Reclamation Act of 1902 (ch.1093; 32 Stat. 388) as 

23 amended and supplemented. 

24 (2) DROUGHT EMERGENCY.—The term 

25 ‘‘drought emergency’’ means a period when a state 


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1 of drought emergency declared by the Governor of 

2 the State is in effect. 

3 (3) FEDERALLY DEVELOPED WATER SUP4 PLIES.—The term ‘‘federally developed water sup5 plies’’ means water supplies derived from a project 

6 developed by the Secretary pursuant to Federal law. 

7 (4) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

8 the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the 

9 Commissioner of the Bureau of Reclamation. 

10 (5) WATER-INTENSE PERMANENT CROP.—The 

11 term ‘‘water-intense permanent crop’’ means any 

12 crop considered by the Secretary, after consultation 

13 with the Secretary of Agriculture, to be 

14 unsustainable for an area given its expected level of 

15 rainfall in the absence of the federally developed 

16 water supply. 

17 SEC. 332. DETERMINATION OF PLANTING OF WATER-IN18 TENSE PERMANENT CROPS. 

19 The Secretary shall survey agricultural water con20 tracts related to federally developed water supplies to de21 termine if water-intense permanent crops have been plant22 ed by or on behalf of the customers or beneficiaries of any 

23 agricultural water contract during a drought emergency. 

24 The survey shall include the examination of all such con25 tracts in effect at any time during the period from the 


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1 date of the enactment of this Act and until the date that 

2 is 10 years before the date of the enactment of this Act. 

3 SEC. 333. REPORT RELATED TO WATER-INTENSE PERMA4 NENT CROPS. 

5 Not later than 90 days after the date of the enact6 ment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit a report based 

7 on the survey conducted pursuant to section 331 and other 

8 information available to the Secretary to Congress that in9 cludes— 

10 (1) the number and location of acres put into 

11 production of water-intense permanent crops during 

12 a drought emergency; 

13 (2) the types of water-intense permanent crops 

14 put into production on each acre; and 

15 (3) the impact that putting the water-intense 

16 permanent crops into production had and is pro17 jected to have on the water demands for the agricul18 tural water contracts and federally developed water 

19 supply related to those crops. 


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1 Subtitle E—Improved Oversight of 

2 State Injection Wells 

3 SEC. 341. AMENDMENT TO THE SAFE DRINKING WATER 

4 ACT. 

5 Section 1422 of the Safe Drinking Water Act (42 

6 U.S.C. 300h–1) is amended by adding at the end the fol7 lowing new subsection: 

8 ‘‘(f) For the purposes of subsection (c), if the Admin9 istrator finds that a State has, at any time, improperly 

10 issued permits under the State’s underground injection 

11 control program and the State fails to address such defi12 ciencies and take sufficient remedial action, as determined 

13 by the Administrator, by the date that is 90 days after 

14 the date on which the Administrator notifies the State of 

15 such finding, the State shall be considered to no longer 

16 meet the requirements of clause (i) or (ii) of subsection 

17 (b)(1)(A) until such time as the State has addressed the 

18 deficiencies and taken sufficient remedial action, as deter19 mined by the Administrator.’’. 

20 Subtitle F—Combating Water Theft 

21 for Illegal Marijuana Cultivation 

22 SEC. 351. POLICY DIRECTIVE ON ILLEGAL WATER DIVER23 SION FOR MARIJUANA CULTIVATION. 

24 Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment 

25 of this Act, the Director of National Drug Control Policy, 


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1 in collaboration with the Secretary of the Interior and the 

2 Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, 

3 shall determine the amount of water diverted for mari4 juana cultivation in each of the high intensity drug traf5 ficking areas (as designated under section 707 of the Of6 fice of National Drug Control Policy Reauthorization Act 

7 of 1998 (21 U.S.C. 1706)) within the State of California 

8 and other States with declared droughts. 

9 SEC. 352. ENVIRONMENTAL REPORTING REQUIREMENTS 

10 FOR DOMESTIC CANNABIS ERADICATION 

11 PROGRAM. 

12 Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment 

13 of this Act, and annually thereafter, the Attorney General 

14 shall require, as a condition of the receipt of any funds 

15 under the Domestic Cannabis Eradication/Suppression 

16 program of the Drug Enforcement Administration, or any 

17 successor program thereto, a report from any participant 

18 in such program containing information on the environ19 mental consequences of actions taken pursuant to pro20 gram participation. The Attorney General, in making any 

21 determination to provide funding under the program, shall 

22 take into account the information so reported. 

23 SEC. 353. TRESPASS MARIJUANA LOCATION REGISTRY. 

24 Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment 

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1 tain a registry, in which reports received by the Attorney 

2 General of incidents of cultivation of marijuana on Federal 

3 or State property or while intentionally trespassing on the 

4 property of another will be recorded and, to the extent 

5 feasible, made available to the public. 

6 SEC. 354. FUNDING FOR REMEDIATION OF TRESPASS MARI7 JUANA SITES. 

8 (a) FROM FORFEITURE FUND.—Section 

9 524(c)(1)(E)(ii) of title 28, United States Code, is amend10 ed— 

11 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of subclause 

12 (I); 

13 (2) by inserting ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon at 

14 the end of subclause (II); and 

15 (3) by inserting after subclause (II) the fol16 lowing: 

17 ‘‘(III) costs incurred by or on behalf of any 

18 State, local, or tribal government in connection 

19 with the remediation of any area formerly used 

20 for the production or cultivation of marijuana, 

21 including the removal of any hazardous sub22 stance or pollutant or contaminant, in which 

23 such State, local, or tribal government has as24 sisted in a federal prosecution related to mari25 juana;’’. 


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1 (b) FROM RESTITUTION IN CRIMINAL CASES.—Sec2 tion 413(q) of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 

3 853(q)) is amended— 

4 (1) by striking ‘‘or methamphetamine’’ the first 

5 place it appears and inserting ‘‘, methamphetamine, 

6 or marijuana’’; and 

7 (2) by inserting after ‘‘or methamphetamine’’ 

8 the second place it appears the following: ‘‘, or cul9 tivation of marijuana,’’. 

10 SEC. 355. VOLUNTARY GUIDELINES. 

11 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF VOLUNTARY GUIDELINES.— 

12 Not later than 6 months after the date of enactment of 

13 this Act, the Secretary of Agriculture (in this section re14 ferred to as the ‘‘Secretary’’), in consultation with other 

15 appropriate Federal agencies, including the Environ16 mental Protection Agency, shall establish voluntary guide17 lines, based on the best currently available scientific 

18 knowledge— 

19 (1) for the remediation of former indoor and 

20 outdoor marijuana cultivation and processing sites, 

21 including guidelines regarding preliminary site as22 sessment and the remediation of residual contami23 nants and ecosystems; and 

24 (2) for State, local, and tribal governments to 

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1 tions, guidelines, and other policies that apply the 

2 best available research and technology to the remedi3 ation of former indoor and outdoor marijuana cul4 tivation and processing sites. 

5 (b) CONSIDERATIONS.—In establishing the voluntary 

6 guidelines under subsection (a), the Secretary shall con7 sider, at a minimum— 

8 (1) relevant standards, guidelines, and require9 ments found in Federal, State, tribal, and local laws 

10 and regulations; 

11 (2) the various types and locations of former 

12 marijuana cultivation or processing sites, including 

13 both indoor and outdoor sites; and 

14 (3) the estimated costs of carrying out any such 

15 guidelines. 

16 (c) CONSULTATION.—The Secretary shall work with 

17 State, local, and tribal governments and other non-Federal 

18 agencies and organizations the Secretary determines rel19 evant to promote and encourage the adoption of the vol20 untary guidelines. 

21 (d) REVISIONS TO THE GUIDELINES.—The Secretary 

22 shall periodically review and, as the Secretary, in consulta23 tion with State, local, and tribal governments and other 

24 interested parties, determines necessary and appropriate, 

25 revise the voluntary guidelines to incorporate findings of 


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1 the research conducted pursuant to section 356 and other 

2 new knowledge. 

3 SEC. 356. RESEARCH PROGRAM. 

4 The Secretary of Agriculture, in consultation with 

5 other appropriate Federal agencies, including the Environ6 mental Protection Agency, shall establish a program of re7 search to support the development and revision of the vol8 untary guidelines established under section 355. Such pro9 gram shall— 

10 (1) identify marijuana cultivation or processing11 related chemicals of concern; 

12 (2) assess the types and levels of exposure to 

13 chemicals of concern identified under paragraph (1) 

14 that may present significant adverse biological ef15 fects, and identify actions and additional research 

16 necessary to remediate such biological effects; 

17 (3) assess the impacts of marijuana cultivation 

18 and processing on waterways and bodies of water, 

19 and identify actions and additional research nec20 essary to remediate such impacts; 

21 (4) evaluate the performance of current remedi22 ation techniques for marijuana cultivation and proc23 essing sites; 

24 (5) identify areas where additional research is 

25 necessary, including research relating to— 


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1 (A) the impacts of indoor and outdoor 

2 marijuana cultivation and processing, including 

3 biological and hydrological effects and impacts 

4 to soil and landscape, such as the potential for 

5 erosion; and 

6 (B) the remediation of former indoor or 

7 outdoor marijuana cultivation or processing 

8 sites; 

9 (6) support other research priorities identified 

10 by the Secretary, in consultation with State, local, 

11 and tribal governments and other interested parties; 

12 and 

13 (7) include collaboration with colleges and uni14 versities currently engaged in research on any mat15 ter described in this section or additional research 

16 priorities determined appropriate by the Secretary. 

17 Subtitle G—SECURE Water 

18 Amendments 

19 SEC. 361. AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES; ELIGIBILITY; AUTHOR20 IZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 9504 of the Omnibus 

22 Public Land Management Act of 2009 (42 U.S.C. 10364) 

23 is amended— 

24 (1) in subsection (a)— 

25 (A) in paragraph (1)(H)— 


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1 (i) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘or’’ at 

2 the end; 

3 (ii) in clause (ii), by striking the pe4 riod and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

5 (iii) by adding at the end the fol6 lowing: 

7 ‘‘(iii) to plan for or address the im8 pacts of drought.’’; and 

9 (B) in paragraph (2)(A)— 

10 (i) by striking ‘‘; and’’ and inserting 

11 ‘‘; or’’; 

12 (ii) by striking ‘‘(A) be located within 

13 the States’’ and inserting the following: 

14 ‘‘(A) be located in— 

15 ‘‘(i) the States’’; and 

16 (iii) by adding at the end the fol17 lowing: 

18 ‘‘(ii) the State of Hawaii; and’’; and 

19 (2) in subsection (e), by striking ‘‘There is’’ 

20 and all that follows through ‘‘$200,000,000’’ and in21 serting ‘‘There are authorized to be appropriated 

22 such sums as are necessary to carry out this section 

23 for each of fiscal years 2015 through 2023’’. 


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1 SEC. 362. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR NA2 TIONAL WATER AVAILABILITY AND USE AS3 SESSMENT PROGRAM. 

4 Section 9508(e)(2) of the Omnibus Public Land Man5 agement Act of 2009 (42 U.S.C. 10368(e)(2)) is amended 

6 by striking ‘‘$12,500,000 for the period of fiscal years 

7 2009 through 2013’’ and inserting ‘‘such sums as are nec8 essary for the period of fiscal years 2014 through 2023’’. 

9 Subtitle H—Refundable Tax Credit 

10 for Water-Harvesting Systems 

11 SEC. 371. REFUNDABLE TAX CREDIT FOR WATER-HAR12 VESTING SYSTEMS. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subpart C of part IV of sub14 chapter A of subtitle A of the Internal Revenue Code of 

15 1986 is amended by inserting after section 36B the fol16 lowing new section: 

17 ‘‘SEC. 36C. WATER-HARVESTING SYSTEMS. 

18 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In the case of an individual, 

19 there shall be allowed as a credit against the tax imposed 

20 by this subtitle for any taxable year an amount equal to 

21 the aggregate amount paid or incurred for the purchase 

22 and installation of a qualified water-harvesting system. 

23 ‘‘(b) LIMITATION.—The amount allowed as a credit 

24 under subsection (a) shall not exceed the excess (if any) 

25 of— 

26 ‘‘(1) $2,000, over 


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1 ‘‘(2) the amount allowed as a credit under sub2 section (a) for all prior taxable years. 

3 ‘‘(c) QUALIFIED WATER-HARVESTING SYSTEM DE4 FINED.—For purposes of this section, the term ‘qualified 

5 water-harvesting system’ means earthworks or passive 

6 rain gardens, gutters, cisterns, tanks, and other systems 

7 that meet the guidelines developed under subsection (d) 

8 and that are installed in the United States with respect 

9 to the principal place of abode of the taxpayer. 

10 ‘‘(d) GUIDELINES.—The Secretary, in consultation 

11 with the Administrator of the Environmental Protection 

12 Agency, shall— 

13 ‘‘(1) develop guidelines for the identification 

14 and approval of qualified water-harvesting systems, 

15 and 

16 ‘‘(2) shall review and, if appropriate, update 

17 such guidelines at least once every 6 years. 

18 Such guidelines shall include the establishment and main19 tenance of performance criteria so that products, land20 scapes, and processes meet industry standards for water21 efficiency and water-capture. In developing and updating 

22 guidelines under this subsection, the Secretary shall solicit 

23 public comment. 


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1 ‘‘(e) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary shall prescribe 

2 such regulations or other guidance as may be necessary 

3 or appropriate to carry out subsection (a).’’. 

4 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

5 (1) Section 1324(b)(2) of title 31, United 

6 States Code, is amended by inserting ‘‘36C,’’ after 

7 ‘‘36B,’’. 

8 (2) The table of sections for subpart C of part 

9 IV of subchapter A of chapter 1 of the Internal Rev10 enue Code of 1986 is amended by inserting after the 

11 item relating to section 36B the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 36C. Water-harvesting systems.’’. 

12 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

13 this section shall apply to taxable years beginning after 

14 the date of the enactment of this Act. 

15 Subtitle I—Funding for Construc16 tion for Additional Project Ben17 efits 

18 SEC. 381. FUNDING FOR CONSTRUCTION FOR ADDITIONAL 

19 PROJECT BENEFITS. 

20 The Reclamation Safety of Dams Act of 1978 (43 

21 U.S.C. 509 et seq.) is amended— 

22 (1) in section 3, by striking ‘‘Construction’’ and 

23 inserting ‘‘Except as provided in section 5, construc24 tion’’; and 

25 (2) by inserting after section 5A the following: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 5B. (a) Notwithstanding section 3, if the Sec2 retary determines that additional project benefits, such as 

3 additional conservation storage capacity, are feasible and 

4 not inconsistent with the purposes of this Act, the Sec5 retary is authorized to develop additional project benefits 

6 through the construction of new or supplementary works 

7 on a project in conjunction with the Secretary’s activities 

8 under section 2 and subject to the conditions described 

9 in the feasibility study, if— 

10 ‘‘(1) the Secretary determines that developing 

11 additional project benefits through the construction 

12 of new or supplementary works on a project is likely 

13 to promote more efficient management of water and 

14 water-related facilities; 

15 ‘‘(2) the feasibility study pertaining to addi16 tional project benefits has been authorized pursuant 

17 to section 8 of the Federal Water Project Recreation 

18 Act of 1965 (16 U.S.C. 460l–18); and 

19 ‘‘(3) the Secretary determines, in advance of 

20 funds being committed or expanded, that— 

21 ‘‘(A) the project sponsor shall provide 

22 funding for not less than 75 percent of project 

23 costs; 

24 ‘‘(B) the project shall generate environ25 mental enhancement, including increase water 


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1 deliveries for environmental flows or refuge 

2 water supplies, that justify a non-reimbursable 

3 Federal cost share of not more than 25 percent 

4 and that a share of the increased water supply 

5 made possible from expanded storage capacity 

6 equal to the Federal cost share shall be made 

7 available for such environmental purposes; 

8 ‘‘(C) all of the estimated costs properly al9 locable to irrigation, power, and municipal 

10 water supply or other miscellaneous purposes 

11 are included in the non-Federal cost share; 

12 ‘‘(D) any State cost identified shall be pro13 cured or committed by the State; and 

14 ‘‘(E) the project sponsor shall complete a 

15 feasibility study consistent with Bureau of Rec16 lamation requirements and report the findings 

17 of that study to the Secretary. 

18 ‘‘(b) If the project sponsor has a completed feasibility 

19 study and the Secretary makes a finding of feasibility, the 

20 Secretary is authorized to expend available appropriated 

21 funds for construction of the project if— 

22 ‘‘(1) in the determination of the Secretary an 

23 analysis commensurate with risk has been performed 

24 that demonstrates that— 


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1 ‘‘(A) financial feasibility or capability for 

2 reimbursable project purposes and any remain3 ing non-reimbursable project purposes not being 

4 funded by the maximum 25 percent Federal 

5 cost-share; and 

6 ‘‘(B) the costs of non-reimbursable project 

7 purposes to be borne by the United States are 

8 justified by the environmental enhancement, in9 cluding increase water deliveries for environ10 mental flows or refuge water supplies, and that 

11 the Federal share of the project costs shall not 

12 exceed 25 percent; and 

13 ‘‘(2) any environmental document prepared by 

14 the project sponsor is supplemented to address any 

15 changes to the project that the Secretary determines 

16 are necessary.’’. 

17 TITLE IV—PLANNING FOR THE 

18 FUTURE 

19 Subtitle A—X–Prize for 

20 Desalination Breakthroughs 

21 SEC. 401. SHORT TITLE. 

22 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Water Innovation 

23 and Prize Competition Act of 2015’’. 


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1 SEC. 402. WATER TECHNOLOGY AWARD PROGRAM. 

2 (a) PROGRAM ESTABLISHED.—The Secretary of En3 ergy shall, in consultation with the Administrator of the 

4 Environmental Protection Agency and the Secretary of the 

5 Interior, working through the Bureau of Reclamation, es6 tablish a program to award prizes to eligible persons de7 scribed in subsection (b) for achievement in 1 or more of 

8 the following applications of water technology: 

9 (1) Demonstration of desalination of brackish 

10 or sea water with significantly less energy than com11 mercially available reverse osmosis technology. 

12 (2) Demonstration of portable or modular de13 salination units that can process 1 to 5,000,000 gal14 lons per day that could be deployed for temporary 

15 emergency uses in coastal communities or commu16 nities with brackish ground water supplies. 

17 (3) Demonstration of significant advantages 

18 over commercially available reverse osmosis tech19 nology as determined by the board established under 

20 subsection (c). 

21 (b) ELIGIBLE PERSON.—An eligible person described 

22 in this subsection is— 

23 (1) an individual who is— 

24 (A) a citizen or legal resident of the 

25 United States; or 


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1 (B) a member of a group that includes 

2 citizens or legal residents of the United States; 

3 or 

4 (2) an entity that is incorporated and maintains 

5 its primary place of business in the United States. 

6 (c) ESTABLISHMENT OF BOARD.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Energy 

8 shall establish a board to administer the program es9 tablished under subsection (a). 

10 (2) MEMBERSHIP.—The board shall be com11 posed of not less than 15 and not more than 21 

12 members appointed by the President, of whom— 

13 (A) not less than 1 shall— 

14 (i) be a representative of the interests 

15 of academic, business, and nonprofit orga16 nizations; and 

17 (ii) have expertise in— 

18 (I) the field of water technology, 

19 including desalination; or 

20 (II) administering award com21 petitions; and 

22 (B) not less than 1 shall be from each of— 

23 (i) the Department of Energy; 

24 (ii) the Environmental Protection 

25 Agency; 


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1 (iii) the Bureau of Reclamation of the 

2 Department of the Interior; and 

3 (iv) the National Science Foundation. 

4 (d) AWARDS.—Subject to the availability of appro5 priations, the board established under subsection (c) may 

6 make awards under the program established under sub7 section (a) as follows: 

8 (1) FINANCIAL PRIZE.—The board may hold a 

9 financial award competition and award a financial 

10 award in an amount determined before the com11 mencement of the competition to the first competitor 

12 to meet such criteria as the board shall establish. 

13 (2) RECOGNITION PRIZE.— 

14 (A) IN GENERAL.—The board may recog15 nize an eligible person for superlative achieve16 ment in 1 or more applications described in 

17 subsection (a). 

18 (B) NO FINANCIAL REMUNERATION.—An 

19 award under this paragraph shall not include 

20 any financial remuneration. 

21 (C) NATIONAL TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVA22 TION MEDAL RECOMMENDATIONS.—For each 

23 eligible person recognized under this paragraph, 

24 the board shall recommend to the Secretary of 

25 Commerce that the Secretary recommend to the 


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1 President under section 16(b) of the Stevenson2 Wydler Technology Innovation Act of 1980 (15 

3 U.S.C. 3711) that the President award the Na4 tional Technology and Innovation Medal estab5 lished under section 16(a) of such Act to such 

6 eligible person. 

7 (e) ADMINISTRATION.— 

8 (1) CONTRACTING.—The board established 

9 under subsection (c) may contract with a private or10 ganization to administer a financial award competi11 tion described in subsection (d)(1). 

12 (2) SOLICITATION OF FUNDS.—A member of 

13 the board or any administering organization with 

14 which the board has a contract under paragraph (1) 

15 may solicit gifts from private and public entities to 

16 be used for a financial award under subsection 

17 (d)(1). 

18 (3) LIMITATION ON PARTICIPATION OF DO19 NORS.—The board may allow a donor who is a pri20 vate person described in paragraph (2) to participate 

21 in the determination of criteria for an award under 

22 subsection (d), but such donor may not solely deter23 mine the criteria for such award. 

24 (4) NO ADVANTAGE FOR DONATION.—A donor 

25 who is a private person described in paragraph (3) 


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1 shall not be entitled to any special consideration or 

2 advantage with respect to participation in a financial 

3 award competition under subsection (d)(1). 

4 (f) INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY.—The Federal Gov5 ernment may not acquire an intellectual property right in 

6 any product or idea by virtue of the submission of such 

7 product or idea in any competition under subsection 

8 (d)(1). 

9 (g) LIABILITY.—The board established under sub10 section (c) may require a competitor in a financial award 

11 competition under subsection (d)(1) to waive liability 

12 against the Federal Government for injuries and damages 

13 that result from participation in such competition. 

14 (h) ANNUAL REPORT.—Each year, the board estab15 lished under subsection (c) shall submit to Congress a re16 port on the program established under subsection (a). 

17 (i) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be 

19 appropriated sums for the program established 

20 under subsection (a) as follows: 

21 (A) For administration of prize competi22 tions under subsection (d), $750,000 for each 

23 fiscal year. 

24 (B) For the awarding of a financial prize 

25 award under subsection (d)(1), in addition to 


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1 any amounts received under subsection (e)(2), 

2 $2,000,000 for each fiscal year. 

3 (2) AVAILABILITY.—Amounts appropriated pur4 suant to the authorization of appropriations under 

5 paragraph (1) shall remain available until expended. 

6 Subtitle B—Drought Planning As7 sistance Through NRCS and 

8 Reclamation 

9 SEC. 411. DROUGHT PLANNING ASSISTANCE THROUGH 

10 NRCS AND RECLAMATION. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Agriculture, act12 ing through the Natural Resources Conservation Service, 

13 in collaboration with the Secretary of the Interior, acting 

14 through the Bureau of Reclamation, shall, upon request, 

15 provide assistance to water or power delivery authorities, 

16 including water districts and irrigation districts, that are 

17 authorized under subtitle F of title IX of the Omnibus 

18 Public Land Management Act of 2009 (42 U.S.C. 10362 

19 et seq.) to receive financial assistance from the Bureau 

20 of Reclamation, for the purposes of increasing water use 

21 efficiency and providing on-farm assistance to address 

22 water quantity and water quality conservation practices. 

23 (b) TYPES OF ASSISTANCE.—Assistance under sub24 section (a) shall include— 

25 (1) hydrological forecasting; 


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1 (2) assessment of water supply sources under 

2 different water year classification types; 

3 (3) identification of alternative water supply 

4 sources; 

5 (4) guidance on potential water transfer part6 ners; 

7 (5) technical assistance regarding Federal and 

8 State permits and contracts under the Act of Feb9 ruary 21, 1911 (36 Stat. 925, chapter 141) (com10 monly known as the ‘‘Warren Act’’); 

11 (6) installation of districtwide or on-farm water 

12 efficiency and conservation technologies, including 

13 behavioral water efficiency, system modernizations 

14 (including leak repair and supervisory control and 

15 data acquisition systems), and other technologies 

16 that have been proven to provide improvements in 

17 water use efficiency through verification by a third 

18 party; 

19 (7) technical assistance regarding emergency 

20 provision of water supplies for critical health and 

21 safety purposes; and 

22 (8) activities carried out in conjunction with the 

23 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 

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1 grated Drought Information System under the Na2 tional Integrated Drought Information System Act 

3 of 2006 (15 U.S.C. 313d)— 

4 (A) to collect and integrate key indicators 

5 of drought severity and impacts; and 

6 (B) to produce and communicate timely 

7 monitoring and forecast information to local 

8 and regional communities. 

9 Subtitle C—Drought Preparedness 

10 for Fisheries 

11 SEC. 421. DROUGHT PREPAREDNESS FOR FISHERIES. 

12 (a) SALMON DROUGHT PLAN.—Not later than Janu13 ary 1, 2016, the Director of the United States Fish and 

14 Wildlife Service shall, in consultation with the National 

15 Marine Fisheries Service, the Bureau of Reclamation, the 

16 Army Corps of Engineers, and the California Department 

17 of Fish and Wildlife, prepare a California salmon drought 

18 plan. The plan shall investigate options to protect salmon 

19 populations originating in the State of California, con20 tribute to the recovery of populations listed under the En21 dangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), 

22 and contribute to the goals of the Central Valley Project 

23 Improvement Act (Public Law 102–575). The plan shall 

24 focus on actions that can aid salmon populations during 

25 the driest years. Strategies investigated shall include— 


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1 (1) relocating the release location and timing of 

2 hatchery fish to avoid predation and temperature 

3 impacts; 

4 (2) barging of hatchery release fish to improve 

5 survival and reduce straying; 

6 (3) coordinating with water users, the Bureau 

7 of Reclamation, and the California Department of 

8 Water Resources regarding voluntary water trans9 fers, to determine if water released upstream to 

10 meet the needs of downstream or South-of-Delta 

11 water users can be managed in a way that provides 

12 additional benefits for salmon; 

13 (4) hatchery management modifications, such 

14 as expanding hatchery production of listed fish dur15 ing the driest years, if appropriate; 

16 (5) increasing rescue operations of upstream 

17 migrating fish; and 

18 (6) improving temperature modeling and related 

19 forecasted information to predict water management 

20 impacts to salmon and salmon habitat with a higher 

21 degree of accuracy than current models. 

22 (b) COORDINATION WITH FISHERIES AGENCIES.—In 

23 preparing the plan under subsection (a), the Director shall 

24 coordinate with the National Marine Fisheries Service and 

25 relevant State agencies. 


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1 (c) APPROPRIATION.—There is hereby appropriated 

2 for fiscal year 2014, out of any funds in the Treasury not 

3 otherwise appropriated, a total amount of $3,000,000, to 

4 remain available until the end of the period during which 

5 the State’s emergency drought designation is in effect, for 

6 the United States Fish and Wildlife Service for urgent 

7 fish, stream, and hatchery activities related to extreme 

8 drought conditions, including work with the National Ma9 rine Fisheries Service, the Bureau of Reclamation, the 

10 Army Corps of Engineers, the California Department of 

11 Fish and Wildlife, or a qualified tribal government. 

12 (d) QUALIFIED TRIBAL GOVERNMENT DEFINI13 TION.—For the purposes of this section, the term ‘‘quali14 fied tribal government’’ means any government of an In15 dian tribe that the Secretary of the Interior determines— 

16 (1) is involved in salmon management and re17 covery activities including under the Endangered 

18 Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.); and 

19 (2) has the management and organizational ca20 pability to maximize the benefits of assistance pro21 vided under this section. 


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1 Subtitle D—National Emergency 

2 Planning Response 

3 SEC. 431. NATIONAL EMERGENCY PLANNING RESPONSE. 

4 (a) CATASTROPHIC DROUGHT PLAN.—Not later than 

5 120 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the 

6 President shall update the National Response Plan and 

7 the National Disaster Recovery Framework to include a 

8 plan for catastrophic drought that calls on the capabilities 

9 of all applicable Federal agencies and departments, includ10 ing the pre-positioning of Federal resources to provide 

11 emergency clean water supplies. 

12 (b) DEFINITIONS.—For the purposes of this sec13 tion— 

14 (1) the term ‘‘National Response Plan’’ means 

15 the National Response Plan or any successor plan 

16 prepared under section 504(a)(6) of the Homeland 

17 Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 314(a)(6)); and 

18 (2) the term ‘‘National Disaster Recovery 

19 Framework’’ means the National Disaster Recovery 

20 Framework or any successor document prepared 

21 under section 682 of the Post-Katrina Emergency 

22 Management Reform Act of 2006 (6 U.S.C. 771). 


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1 Subtitle E—Military Preparedness 

2 for Desalination 

3 SEC. 441. REPORT ON DESALINIZATION TECHNOLOGY. 

4 Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment 

5 of this Act, the Secretary of the Navy shall submit to Con6 gress a report on desalinization technology’s application 

7 for defense and national security purposes to provide 

8 drought relief to areas impacted by sharp declines in water 

9 supply. 

Æ 


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