II 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1894 

To provide short-term water supplies to drought-stricken California. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JULY 29, 2015 

Mrs. FEINSTEIN (for herself and Mrs. BOXER) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources 

A BILL 

To provide short-term water supplies to drought-stricken 

California. 

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

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

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

5 ‘‘California Emergency Drought Relief Act of 2015’’. 

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

7 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Definitions. 

TITLE I—CALIFORNIA EMERGENCY DROUGHT RELIEF 

Subtitle A—Drought Relief Actions 

Sec. 101. Emergency operations. 


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Sec. 102. Emergency environmental reviews. 

Sec. 103. State revolving funds. 

Subtitle B—Protection of Third-Party Water Rights 

Sec. 111. Offset for State water project. 

Sec. 112. Area of origin and water rights protections. 

Sec. 113. No redirected adverse impacts. 

Subtitle C—General Provisions 

Sec. 121. Effect on existing obligations. 

Sec. 122. Level of detail required for analysis. 

Sec. 123. Progress report. 

Sec. 124. Termination. 

TITLE II—ACTIONS TO BENEFIT FISH AND REFUGES 

Sec. 201. Actions to benefit threatened and endangered fish populations. 

Sec. 202. Pilot program to protect native anadramous fish in Stanislaus River, 

Delta, and other Delta tributaries. 

Sec. 203. Improved science to better protect threatened and endangered fish. 

Sec. 204. Actions to benefit refuges. 

TITLE III—LONG-TERM WATER SUPPLY PROJECTS 

Subtitle A—Desalination and Water Reuse 

Sec. 301. Water recycling and desalination projects. 

Sec. 302. Reauthorization of Desalination Act. 

Subtitle B—Storage 

Sec. 311. Definitions. 

Sec. 312. Federal support for investments in storage. 

Sec. 313. CALFED storage projects. 

Sec. 314. Authorization to increase reservoir capacity as part of dam safety 

projects. 

Sec. 315. Reservoir operation improvement. 

Sec. 316. Report to Congress. 

Subtitle C—Water Recycling, Conservation, Efficiency, and Other Programs 

Sec. 321. Promoting water efficiency with WaterSense. 

Sec. 322. Increasing opportunities for agricultural conservation. 

Sec. 323. Assistance for drought-stricken communities. 

Sec. 324. Conservation at California military installations. 

Sec. 325. Support for State Water Resources Control Board curtailment of illegal water diversions. 

Sec. 326. Combating water theft for illegal marijuana cultivation. 

Sec. 327. Support for innovative water supply and conservation technologies. 

Sec. 328. Open water data system. 

TITLE IV—FEDERAL SUPPORT FOR STATE AND LOCAL DROUGHT 

RESILIENCY PROJECTS 

Subtitle A—Reclamation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act 

Sec. 401. Purposes. 


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Sec. 402. Definitions. 

Sec. 403. Authority to provide assistance. 

Sec. 404. Applications. 

Sec. 405. Eligibility for assistance. 

Sec. 406. Determination of eligibility and project selection. 

Sec. 407. Secured loans. 

Sec. 408. Program administration. 

Sec. 409. State and local permits. 

Sec. 410. Regulations. 

Sec. 411. Funding. 

Sec. 412. Deauthorization of inactive projects. 

Subtitle B—Expansion of Water Storage, Integrated Regional Water 

Management, and WaterSMART 

Sec. 421. Water storage, integrated regional water management, reclamation, 

and recycling projects. 

Subtitle C—Water Recycling Eligibility 

Sec. 431. New water recycling and reuse projects. 

Subtitle D—Federal Support for State and Local Drought Solutions Fund 

Sec. 441. Establishment. 

Sec. 442. Accounts. 

Sec. 443. Deposits to Fund. 

Sec. 444. Expenditures from Fund. 

Sec. 445. Investments of amounts. 

Sec. 446. Transfers of amounts. 

Sec. 447. Termination. 

1 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

2 In this Act: 

3 (1) CENTRAL VALLEY PROJECT.—The term 

4 ‘‘Central Valley Project’’ has the meaning given the 

5 term in section 3403 of the Central Valley Project 

6 Improvement Act (Public Law 102–575; 106 Stat. 

7 4707). 

8 (2) DELTA.—The term ‘‘Delta’’ means the Sac9 ramento-San Joaquin Delta and the Suisun Marsh 

10 (as defined in section 12220 of the California Water 

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1 sources Code (as in effect on the date of enactment 

2 of this Act)). 

3 (3) SALMONID BIOLOGICAL OPINION.—The 

4 term ‘‘salmonid biological opinion’’ means the bio5 logical and conference opinion of the National Ma6 rine Fisheries Service, dated June 4, 2009, on the 

7 long-term operation of the Central Valley Project 

8 and the State Water Project, including the operative 

9 incidental take statement of that opinion. 

10 (4) SMELT BIOLOGICAL OPINION.—The term 

11 ‘‘smelt biological opinion’’ means the biological opin12 ion, dated December 15, 2008, on the coordinated 

13 operation of the Central Valley Project and the 

14 State Water Project, including the operative inci15 dental take statement of that opinion. 

16 (5) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means the State 

17 of California. 

18 (6) STATE WATER PROJECT.—The term ‘‘State 

19 Water Project’’ means the water project described in 

20 chapter 5 of part 3 of division 6 of the California 

21 Water Code (sections 11550 et seq. (as in effect on 

22 the date of enactment of this Act)) and operated by 

23 the California Department of Water Resources. 


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1 TITLE I—CALIFORNIA 

2 EMERGENCY DROUGHT RELIEF 

3 Subtitle A—Drought Relief Actions 

4 SEC. 101. EMERGENCY OPERATIONS. 

5 (a) WATER SUPPLIES.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—In response to the declara7 tion of a state of drought emergency by the Gov8 ernor of the State, the Secretary of the Interior and 

9 Secretary of Commerce shall provide the maximum 

10 quantity of water supplies possible to Central Valley 

11 Project agricultural, municipal and industrial, and 

12 refuge service and repayment contractors, State 

13 Water Project contractors, and any other locality or 

14 municipality in the State by approving, consistent 

15 with applicable laws (including regulations), projects 

16 and operations to provide additional water supplies 

17 as quickly as possible, based on available informa18 tion, to address the emergency conditions. 

19 (2) APPLICATION.—Paragraph (1) applies to 

20 any project or operation involving the Klamath 

21 Project, if the project or operation would benefit 

22 Federal water contractors in the State. 

23 (b) LIMITATION.—Nothing in this section allows any 

24 Federal department or agency to approve a project— 


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1 (1) that would otherwise require congressional 

2 authorization; or 

3 (2) without following procedures required by 

4 applicable law. 

5 (c) ADMINISTRATION.—In carrying out subsection 

6 (a), the Secretary of the Interior and Secretary of Com7 merce shall, consistent with applicable laws (including reg8 ulations)— 

9 (1) authorize and implement actions to ensure 

10 that the Delta Cross Channel Gates shall remain 

11 open to the greatest extent possible, timed to maxi12 mize the peak flood tide period and provide water 

13 supply and water quality benefits for the duration of 

14 the drought emergency declaration of the State, con15 sistent with operational criteria and monitoring cri16 teria developed pursuant to the California State 

17 Water Resources Control Board’s Order Approving a 

18 Temporary Urgency Change in License and Permit 

19 Terms in Response to Drought Conditions, effective 

20 January 31, 2014 (or a successor order); 

21 (2) collect data associated with the operation of 

22 the Delta Cross Channel Gates described in para23 graph (1) and the impact of the operation on species 

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1 gered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), 

2 water quality, and water supply; 

3 (3)(A) implement turbidity control strategies 

4 that allow for increased water deliveries while avoid5 ing jeopardy to adult Delta smelt (Hypomesus 

6 transpacificus) due to entrainment at Central Valley 

7 Project and State Water Project pumping plants; 

8 and 

9 (B) manage reverse flow in the Old and Middle 

10 Rivers, as prescribed by the smelt biological opinion 

11 and salmonid biological opinion, to minimize water 

12 supply reductions for the Central Valley Project and 

13 the State Water Project; 

14 (4)(A) in a timely manner, evaluate any pro15 posal to increase flow in the San Joaquin River 

16 through a voluntary sale, transfer, or exchange of 

17 water from an agency with rights to divert water 

18 from the San Joaquin River or its tributaries; and 

19 (B) adopt a 1:1 inflow to export ratio for the 

20 increment of increased flow, as measured as a 3-day 

21 running average at Vernalis during the period from 

22 April 1 through May 31, that results from the vol23 untary sale, transfer, or exchange, unless the Sec24 retary of the Interior and Secretary of Commerce 

25 determine that a 1:1 inflow-to-export ratio for that 


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1 increment of increased flow will cause impacts on 

2 species listed as threatened or endangered under the 

3 Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et 

4 seq.) beyond those anticipated to occur through the 

5 implementation of the salmonid biological opinion. 

6 Any individual sale, transfer, or exchange using a 

7 1:1 inflow to export ratio adopted under the author8 ity of this section may only proceed if— 

9 (i) the Secretary of the Interior determines 

10 that the environmental effects of the proposed 

11 sale, transfer, or exchange are consistent with 

12 effects permitted under applicable law (includ13 ing the Endangered Species Act (16 U.S.C. 

14 1531 et seq.), the Federal Water Pollution Con15 trol Act (33 U.S.C. 1381 et seq.), and the Por16 ter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act (Cali17 fornia Water Code 13000 et seq.)); 

18 (ii) Delta conditions are suitable to allow 

19 movement of the acquired, transferred, or ex20 changed water through the Delta consistent 

21 with existing water rights; and 

22 (iii) such voluntary sale, transfer, or ex23 change of water results in flow that is in addi24 tion to flow that otherwise would occur in the 


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1 absence of the voluntary sale, transfer, or ex2 change; 

3 (5) issue all necessary permit decisions under 

4 the authority of the Secretary of the Interior and 

5 Secretary of Commerce within the shortest prac6 ticable time period after receiving a completed appli7 cation by the State to place and use temporary bar8 riers or operable gates in Delta channels to improve 

9 water quantity and quality for State Water Project 

10 and Central Valley Project south-of-Delta water con11 tractors and other water users, which barriers or 

12 gates shall provide benefits for species protection 

13 and in-Delta water user water quality; 

14 (6) require the Director of the United States 

15 Fish and Wildlife Service and the Commissioner of 

16 Reclamation to complete all requirements under the 

17 National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 

18 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and the Endangered Species 

19 Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) necessary to 

20 make final permit decisions on water transfer re21 quests associated with voluntarily fallowing non22 permanent crops in the State, within the shortest 

23 practicable time period after receiving such a re24 quest; 


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1 (7) in coordination with the Secretary of Agri2 culture, enter into an agreement with the National 

3 Academy of Sciences to conduct a comprehensive 

4 study, to be completed not later than 1 year after 

5 the date of enactment of this Act, on the effective6 ness and environmental impacts of saltcedar biologi7 cal control efforts on increasing water supplies and 

8 improving riparian habitats of the Colorado River 

9 and its principal tributaries, in the State and else10 where; and 

11 (8) use all available scientific tools to identify 

12 any changes to real-time operations of Bureau of 

13 Reclamation, State, and local water projects that 

14 could result in the availability of additional water 

15 supplies. 

16 (d) OTHER AGENCIES.—To the extent that a Federal 

17 agency other than the Department of the Interior and the 

18 Department of Commerce has a role in approving projects 

19 described in subsections (a) and (c), this section shall 

20 apply to the Federal agency. 

21 (e) ACCELERATED PROJECT DECISION AND ELE22 VATION.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—Upon the request of the 

24 State, the heads of Federal agencies shall use the 

25 expedited procedures under this subsection to make 


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1 final decisions relating to a Federal project or oper2 ation to provide additional water supplies or address 

3 emergency drought conditions pursuant to sub4 sections (a) and (c). 

5 (2) REQUEST FOR RESOLUTION.— 

6 (A) IN GENERAL.—Upon the request of 

7 the State, the head of a Federal agency re8 ferred to in subsection (a), or the head of an9 other Federal agency responsible for carrying 

10 out a review of a project, as applicable, the Sec11 retary of the Interior shall convene a final 

12 project decision meeting with the heads of all 

13 relevant Federal agencies to decide whether to 

14 approve a project to provide emergency water 

15 supplies. 

16 (B) MEETING.—The Secretary of the Inte17 rior shall convene a meeting requested under 

18 subparagraph (A) not later than 7 days after 

19 receiving the meeting request. 

20 (3) NOTIFICATION.—Upon receipt of a request 

21 for a meeting under this subsection, the Secretary of 

22 the Interior shall notify the heads of all relevant 

23 Federal agencies of the request, including a descrip24 tion of the project to be reviewed and the date for 

25 the meeting. 


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1 (4) DECISION.—Not later than 10 days after 

2 the date on which a meeting is requested under 

3 paragraph (2), the head of the relevant Federal 

4 agency shall issue a final decision on the project. 

5 (5) MEETING CONVENED BY SECRETARY.—The 

6 Secretary of the Interior may convene a final project 

7 decision meeting under this subsection at any time, 

8 at the discretion of the Secretary, regardless of 

9 whether a meeting is requested under paragraph (2). 

10 SEC. 102. EMERGENCY ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEWS. 

11 To minimize the time spent carrying out environ12 mental reviews and quickly to deliver water that is needed 

13 to address emergency drought conditions in the State, the 

14 head of each applicable Federal agency shall, in carrying 

15 out this Act, consult with the Council on Environmental 

16 Quality in accordance with section 1506.11 of title 40, 

17 Code of Federal Regulations (or successor regulations), to 

18 develop alternative arrangements to comply with the Na19 tional Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 

20 et seq.) during the emergency. 

21 SEC. 103. STATE REVOLVING FUNDS. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator of the Envi23 ronmental Protection Agency, in allocating amounts for 

24 each of the fiscal years during which the emergency 

25 drought declaration of the State is in force to State water 


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1 pollution control revolving funds established under title VI 

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

3 1381 et seq.) and the State drinking water treatment re4 volving loan funds established under section 1452 of the 

5 Safe Drinking Water Act (42 U.S.C. 300j–12), shall, for 

6 those projects that are eligible to receive assistance under 

7 section 603 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act 

8 (33 U.S.C. 1383) or section 1452(a)(2) of the Safe Drink9 ing Water Act (42 U.S.C. 300j–12(a)(2)), respectively, 

10 that the State determines will provide additional water 

11 supplies most expeditiously to areas that are at risk of 

12 having an inadequate supply of water for public health and 

13 safety purposes or to improve resiliency to drought— 

14 (1) require the State to review and prioritize 

15 funding; 

16 (2) make a finding on any request for a waiver 

17 received from the State within 30 days of the con18 clusion of the informal public comment period pursu19 ant to section 436(c) of division G of Public Law 

20 113–76 (128 Stat. 347); and 

21 (3) authorize, at the request of the State, 40- 

22 year financing for assistance under section 

23 603(d)(2) of the Federal Water Pollution Control 

24 Act (33 U.S.C. 1383(d)(2)) or section 1452(f)(2) of 


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1 the Safe Drinking Water Act (42 U.S.C. 300j– 

2 12(f)(2)). 

3 (b) EFFECT OF SECTION.—Nothing in this section 

4 authorizes the Administrator of the Environmental Pro5 tection Agency to modify any funding allocation, funding 

6 criteria, or other requirement relating to State water pol7 lution control revolving funds established under title VI 

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

9 1381 et seq.) or the State drinking water treatment re10 volving loan funds established under section 1452 of the 

11 Safe Drinking Water Act (42 U.S.C. 300j–12) for any 

12 other State. 

13 Subtitle B—Protection of Third14 Party Water Rights 

15 SEC. 111. OFFSET FOR STATE WATER PROJECT. 

16 (a) IMPLEMENTATION IMPACTS.—The Secretary of 

17 the Interior shall confer with the California Department 

18 of Fish and Wildlife in connection with the implementa19 tion of this title on potential impacts to any consistency 

20 determination for operations of the State Water Project 

21 issued pursuant to section 2080.1 of the California Fish 

22 and Game Code (as in effect on the date of enactment 

23 of this Act). 

24 (b) ADDITIONAL YIELD.—If, as a result of the appli25 cation of this title, the California Department of Fish and 


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1 Wildlife requires take authorization under section 2081 of 

2 the California Fish and Game Code (as in effect on the 

3 date of enactment of this Act) for operation of the State 

4 Water Project in a manner that directly or indirectly re5 sults in reduced water supply to the State Water Project, 

6 as compared with the water supply available under the 

7 smelt biological opinion and the salmonid biological opin8 ion, and as a consequence of the action of the Department, 

9 Central Valley Project yield is greater than the yield would 

10 have been absent those actions, that additional yield shall 

11 be made available to the State Water Project for delivery 

12 to State Water Project contractors to offset losses result13 ing from the action of the Department. 

14 (c) NOTIFICATION RELATING TO ENVIRONMENTAL

15 PROTECTIONS.—The Secretary of the Interior and Sec16 retary of Commerce shall— 

17 (1) notify the Director of the California Depart18 ment of Fish and Wildlife regarding any changes in 

19 the manner in which the smelt biological opinion or 

20 the salmonid biological opinion is implemented; and 

21 (2) confirm that those changes are authorized 

22 under the smelt biological opinion or the salmonid 

23 biological opinion. 


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1 SEC. 112. AREA OF ORIGIN AND WATER RIGHTS PROTEC2 TIONS. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Nothing in this title— 

4 (1) diminishes, impairs, or otherwise affects in 

5 any manner any area of origin, watershed of origin, 

6 county of origin, or any other water rights protec7 tion, including rights to water appropriated prior to 

8 December 19, 1914, provided under State law; 

9 (2) limits or otherwise affects the application of 

10 section 10505, 10505.5, 11128, 11460, 11463, or 

11 12200 through 12220 of the California Water Code 

12 or any other provision of State water rights law, 

13 without respect to whether such a provision is spe14 cifically referred to in this Act; or 

15 (3) diminishes, impairs, or otherwise affects in 

16 any manner any water rights priorities under appli17 cable law. 

18 (b) EFFECT OF SECTION.—Nothing in this section 

19 affects or modifies any obligation of the Secretary of the 

20 Interior under section 8 of the Act of June 17, 1902 (32 

21 Stat. 390, chapter 1093). 

22 SEC. 113. NO REDIRECTED ADVERSE IMPACTS. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the Interior and 

24 Secretary of Commerce shall not carry out any specific 

25 action authorized under this title that will directly result 

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1 vidual or district that has in effect a contract for water 

2 with the State Water Project or the Central Valley 

3 Project, or to any other water user or purveyor organized 

4 under State law that obtains water based on any other 

5 legal right, as compared to the water supply that would 

6 be provided in the absence of action under this Act. 

7 (b) ACTION ON DETERMINATION.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—If, after exploring all op9 tions, the Secretary of the Interior or the Secretary 

10 of Commerce makes a final determination that a 

11 proposed action under this title cannot be carried 

12 out in accordance with subsection (a), that Secretary 

13 shall— 

14 (A) document that determination in writ15 ing for that action, including a statement of the 

16 facts relied on, and an explanation of the basis, 

17 for the decision; and 

18 (B) comply with any other applicable law 

19 that requires or authorizes action under the cir20 cumstances, including the Endangered Species 

21 Act (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), the Federal 

22 Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1381 et 

23 seq.), and the Porter-Cologne Water Quality 

24 Control Act (California Water Code 13000 et 

25 seq.). 


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1 (2) SUBSTITUTE ACTIONS.—If the Secretary 

2 takes a substitute action as so required or author3 ized under paragraph (1)(B), the substitute action 

4 shall— 

5 (A) be limited to replacement of the spe6 cific action identified in paragraph (1); 

7 (B) not be subject to the requirements of 

8 this title; and 

9 (C) comply with other existing laws (in10 cluding regulations), as applicable, including— 

11 (i) the Endangered Species Act of 

12 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.); and 

13 (ii) the salmonid biological opinion 

14 and the smelt biological opinion. 

15 Subtitle C—General Provisions 

16 SEC. 121. EFFECT ON EXISTING OBLIGATIONS. 

17 Nothing in this Act— 

18 (1) authorizes the Secretary of the Interior, the 

19 Secretary of Commerce, or any other Federal official 

20 to take any action that— 

21 (A) is likely to jeopardize the continued ex22 istence of any endangered species or threatened 

23 species or result in the destruction or adverse 

24 modification of habitat of such a species that is 

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1 priate consultation with affected States, to be 

2 critical; or 

3 (B) would cause any additional adverse ef4 fect on a species listed as threatened or endan5 gered under the Endangered Species Act of 

6 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) beyond those ef7 fects anticipated to occur through implementa8 tion of the smelt biological opinion and 

9 salmonid biological opinion; 

10 (2) preempts or modifies any obligation of the 

11 United States under the reclamation laws to operate 

12 the Central Valley Project in conformance with State 

13 law; or 

14 (3) affects or modifies any obligation under the 

15 Central Valley Project Improvement Act (Public 

16 Law 102–575; 106 Stat. 4706). 

17 SEC. 122. LEVEL OF DETAIL REQUIRED FOR ANALYSIS. 

18 In articulating the determinations and demonstra19 tions required under this title, the Secretary of the Inte20 rior and Secretary of Commerce — 

21 (1) shall fully satisfy the requirements of this 

22 title; but 

23 (2) shall not be expected to provide a greater 

24 level of supporting detail for any analysis than is 

25 feasible to provide within the timeframe permitted 


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1 for timely decisionmaking in response to changing 

2 conditions in the Delta. 

3 SEC. 123. PROGRESS REPORT. 

4 Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment 

5 of this Act, and not less frequently than once every 90 

6 days thereafter, the Secretary of the Interior and Sec7 retary of Commerce shall submit to the Committee on En8 ergy and Natural Resources and the Committee on Envi9 ronment and Public Works of the Senate and the Com10 mittee on Natural Resources of the House of Representa11 tives a progress report describing the implementation of 

12 sections 101 and 102. 

13 SEC. 124. TERMINATION. 

14 This title shall expire on the later of— 

15 (1) the date on which the Governor of the State 

16 declares an end to the State drought emergency; and 

17 (2) September 30, 2017. 

18 TITLE II—ACTIONS TO BENEFIT 

19 FISH AND REFUGES 

20 SEC. 201. ACTIONS TO BENEFIT THREATENED AND ENDAN21 GERED FISH POPULATIONS. 

22 (a) IMPLEMENTATION OF NATIONAL OCEANIC AND

23 ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION’S SALMON RESTORATION

24 PLAN.— 


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1 (1) AUTHORIZATION.—There is authorized to 

2 be appropriated $4,000,000 for each fiscal year 

3 through 2020 to carry out the National Oceanic and 

4 Atmospheric Administration’s Recovery Plan for 

5 Sacramento River winter-run Chinook salmon, Cen6 tral Valley spring-run Chinook salmon, and Central 

7 Valley steelhead. 

8 (2) REQUIREMENT.—The Secretary of the Inte9 rior shall take such steps as are necessary to partner 

10 with, and coordinate the efforts of, the Department 

11 of the Interior, the Department of Commerce, and 

12 other relevant Federal agencies to ensure that all 

13 Federal reviews, analyses, opinions, statements, per14 mits, licenses, or other approvals or decisions re15 quired under Federal law to allow the construction 

16 and operation of salmon recovery projects that are 

17 part of the Sacramento Salmon Recovery Program 

18 are completed on an expeditious basis, consistent 

19 with Federal law. 

20 (b) NONSTRUCTURAL BARRIERS AT DELTA CROSS21 CHANNEL GATES AND OTHER KEY DELTA JUNCTIONS.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—To increase protections of 

23 fish listed under the smelt biological opinion and the 

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1 terior, in consultation with the Secretary of Com2 merce, shall submit to Congress— 

3 (A) by not later than 90 days after the 

4 date of enactment of this Act, a report describ5 ing the current progress of evaluating non6 structural barriers at Deadhorse Island and 

7 other locations to prevent straying of threat8 ened or endangered salmonids through the 

9 Delta cross-channel gates and other key Delta 

10 junctions; and 

11 (B) by not later than 1 year after the date 

12 of enactment of this Act, a report describing 

13 the effectiveness of the nonstructural barriers 

14 described in subparagraph (A) in preventing 

15 straying of endangered salmonids. 

16 (2) COORDINATION.—In carrying out para17 graph (1), the Secretary of the Interior shall coordi18 nate with the California Water Resources Control 

19 Board and the California Departments of Fish and 

20 Wildlife and Water Resources. 

21 (3) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

22 There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

23 this subsection $2,000,000 for the period of fiscal 

24 years 2016 through 2020. 


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1 (c) GRAVEL AND REARING AREA ADDITIONS TO

2 UPPER SACRAMENTO RIVER.— 

3 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 

4 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec5 retary of the Interior, in consultation with the Sec6 retary of Commerce, shall submit to Congress— 

7 (A) a report on the cost and effectiveness 

8 of additional gravel that was placed downstream 

9 of the Keswick Dam in 2013 and 2014 in im10 proving salmon spawning rates; 

11 (B) a report on the feasibility of imple12 menting gravel additions at additional locations 

13 to improve salmon and steelhead spawning 

14 rates, including the timetable for implementing 

15 any approved locations; and 

16 (C) a report on the feasibility of con17 structing or restoring additional natural rearing 

18 areas in the upper mainstem Sacramento River 

19 to improve salmon and steelhead population re20 covery. 

21 (2) COMMENCEMENT.—If the Secretary of the 

22 Interior determines, in the feasibility reports de23 scribed in paragraph (1), that additions of gravel 

24 and natural rearing areas are feasible and beneficial 

25 for protecting and recovering fish populations, the 


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1 Secretary shall commence implementation of those 

2 additions by not later than 1 year after the date of 

3 submission of the feasibility reports. 

4 (3) COORDINATION.—In carrying out para5 graphs (1) and (2), the Secretary shall coordinate 

6 with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife 

7 and the Secretary of Commerce. 

8 (4) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

9 There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

10 this subsection $4,000,000 for the period of fiscal 

11 years 2016 through 2020. 

12 (d) ALTERNATIVE HATCHERY SALMON RELEASE

13 STRATEGIES.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the Inte15 rior, in consultation with the Secretary of Com16 merce, shall— 

17 (A) establish pilot programs to test alter18 native release strategies for hatchery-raised, 

19 winter-run salmon to reduce mortality rates be20 yond those in effect on the date of enactment 

21 of this Act, including alternative release loca22 tions, trucking options, or barging options; and 

23 (B) not later than 3 years after the date 

24 of enactment of this Act, and annually there25 after, submit to Congress reports regarding the 


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1 progress and results of the pilot programs 

2 under subparagraph (A), including rec3 ommendations on whether those pilot programs 

4 should be continued. 

5 (2) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

6 There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

7 this subsection $7,000,000 for the period of fiscal 

8 years 2016 through 2020. 

9 (e) REDUCING PREDATOR HABITAT.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 2 years after 

11 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of 

12 the Interior and Secretary of Commerce shall imple13 ment a pilot program— 

14 (A) to identify natural and artificial fac15 tors in the Sacramento River and the Sac16 ramento-San Joaquin River Delta watershed 

17 that could be providing favorable predatory fish 

18 habitat for fish that prey on juvenile salmon; 

19 (B) to collect scientific data at those loca20 tions to determine whether those natural or ar21 tificial factors are contributing to predation of 

22 endangered fish; and 

23 (C) to provide recommendations on wheth24 er those natural or artificial factors that enable 

25 the formation or continuation of predatory fish 


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1 habitat could be feasibly and effectively modi2 fied, in compliance with all applicable State and 

3 Federal laws (including regulations), to reduce 

4 predation. 

5 (2) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

6 There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

7 this subsection $6,000,000 for the period of fiscal 

8 years 2016 through 2020. 

9 (f) ELIMINATING OR REDUCING LIGHTING AT IN10 RIVER STRUCTURES.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the Inte12 rior and Secretary of Commerce shall— 

13 (A) assess the effectiveness of lowering 

14 light intensity at artificial structures in the Sac15 ramento-San Joaquin River Delta to reduce 

16 predation of endangered fish; and 

17 (B) implement actions to lower light inten18 sity at other artificial structures in the Delta if 

19 the assessment under subparagraph (A) results 

20 in a determination that the action is effective in 

21 reducing predation. 

22 (2) COORDINATION.—In carrying out para23 graph (1), the Secretary of the Interior and Sec24 retary of Commerce shall coordinate with the CaliVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:25 Aug 01, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00026 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1894.IS S1894

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1 fornia Department of Fish and Wildlife and other 

2 relevant local and State authorities. 

3 (3) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

4 There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

5 this subsection $3,000,000 for the period of fiscal 

6 years 2016 through 2020. 

7 (g) EVALUATING AND IMPROVING DELTA PUMP FISH

8 SALVAGE SYSTEM.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after 

10 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of 

11 the Interior and Secretary of Commerce shall evalu12 ate and submit to Congress a report that describes 

13 alternatives— 

14 (A) to redeposit salvaged salmon smolts 

15 and other fish from the Delta that would reduce 

16 predation losses; and 

17 (B) to reduce predation at the existing fish 

18 salvage system. 

19 (2) COORDINATION.—In carrying out actions 

20 under paragraph (1), the Secretary of the Interior 

21 and Secretary of Commerce shall coordinate with the 

22 California Department of Fish and Wildlife. 

23 (3) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

24 There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out 


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1 this subsection $10,000,000 for the period of fiscal 

2 years 2016 through 2020. 

3 (h) TRAP AND BARGE PILOT PROJECT TO INCREASE

4 FISH SURVIVAL THROUGH DELTA.— 

5 (1) PILOT PROGRAM.— 

6 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Assistant Adminis7 trator for Fisheries of the National Marine 

8 Fisheries Service and the Commissioner of Rec9 lamation, in collaboration with the United 

10 States Fish and Wildlife Service, the California 

11 Department of Fish and Wildlife, applicable 

12 water agencies, and other interested parties, 

13 shall design, permit, implement, and evaluate a 

14 pilot program to test the efficacy of an experi15 mental trap and barge program to improve sur16 vival of juvenile salmonids emigrating from the 

17 San Joaquin watershed through the Delta. 

18 (B) PLAN.— 

19 (i) WORKING GROUP.—Not later than 

20 30 days after the date of enactment of this 

21 Act, the Assistant Administrator and the 

22 Commissioner shall convene a working 

23 group, to be comprised of representatives 

24 of relevant agencies and other interested 

25 parties, to develop and execute a plan for 


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1 the design, budgeting, implementation, and 

2 evaluation of the pilot program under this 

3 paragraph using such existing expertise on 

4 trap and barge programs as may be avail5 able. 

6 (ii) REQUIREMENTS.—The plan under 

7 this subparagraph shall— 

8 (I) include a schedule and budget 

9 for the pilot program; and 

10 (II) identify the responsible par11 ties for each element of the program. 

12 (C) IMPLEMENTATION.—The Assistant Ad13 ministrator and the Commissioner shall seek to 

14 commence implementation of the pilot program 

15 under this paragraph during calendar year 

16 2016, if practicable. 

17 (D) REPORTS.—Not less frequently than 

18 once each calendar year, the Assistant Adminis19 trator and the Commissioner shall jointly sub20 mit to the Committees on Environment and 

21 Public Works and Energy and Natural Re22 sources of the Senate and the Committee on 

23 Natural Resources of the House of Representa24 tives a report that describes— 


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1 (i) progress made in implementing 

2 this subsection; 

3 (ii) estimated survival rates through 

4 the Delta for both juvenile salmonids that 

5 were barged through the Delta and those 

6 that were not barged; and 

7 (iii) if the survival rates described in 

8 clause (ii) are significantly higher for 

9 barged fish, as compared to other 

10 outmigrating smolts, recommendations re11 garding broadening the pilot program. 

12 (2) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

13 There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

14 this subsection $3,000,000 for the period of fiscal 

15 years 2016 through 2020. 

16 (i) IMPROVED TEMPERATURE MODELING AND RE17 LATED FORECASTED INFORMATION.—There is authorized 

18 to be appropriated $4,000,000 for the Commissioner to 

19 improve temperature modeling and related forecasted in20 formation for purposes of predicting impacts to salmon 

21 and salmon habitat as a result of water management. 


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1 SEC. 202. PILOT PROGRAM TO PROTECT NATIVE 

2 ANADRAMOUS FISH IN STANISLAUS RIVER, 

3 DELTA, AND OTHER DELTA TRIBUTARIES. 

4 (a) NONNATIVE PREDATOR FISH REMOVAL PRO5 GRAM ON STANISLAUS RIVER.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Assistant Administrator 

7 for Fisheries of the National Marine Fisheries Serv8 ice (referred to in this section as the ‘‘Assistant Ad9 ministrator’’) and the Oakdale Irrigation District 

10 and South San Joaquin Irrigation District (referred 

11 to in this section as the ‘‘participating districts’’), in 

12 consultation with the United States Fish and Wild13 life Service, the California Department of Fish and 

14 Wildlife, and other interested parties, shall jointly 

15 develop and implement a scientifically based pilot 

16 program to remove nonnative predator fish from the 

17 Stanislaus River not later than 180 days after the 

18 date of enactment of this Act. 

19 (2) REQUIREMENTS.—In implementing the pro20 gram, the following requirements shall apply: 

21 (A) STAFFING.—By agreement between 

22 the Assistant Administrator and the partici23 pating districts, the pilot program may be con24 ducted by any combination of participating dis25 trict personnel, qualified private contractors, 

26 and personnel of, on loan to, or otherwise asVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:25 Aug 01, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00031 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1894.IS S1894

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1 signed to the National Marine Fisheries Serv2 ice. 

3 (B) PARTICIPATION BY NATIONAL MARINE

4 FISHERIES SERVICE.— 

5 (i) IN GENERAL.—In the event the 

6 participating districts elect to conduct the 

7 program using the personnel or qualified 

8 private contractors of the participating dis9 tricts, the Assistant Administrator may as10 sign an employee of, on loan to, or other11 wise assigned to the National Marine Fish12 eries Service to be present for all activities 

13 performed in the field. 

14 (ii) COST.—The participating districts 

15 shall pay 100 percent of the cost of partici16 pation under clause (i), in accordance with 

17 paragraph (3). 

18 (C) TIMING OF AGREEMENT.—The partici19 pating districts and the Assistant Administrator 

20 shall reach agreement on the work plan for the 

21 subsequent calendar year on or before October 

22 15 of each calendar year of the pilot program. 

23 (3) FUNDING.— 

24 (A) CONTRIBUTED FUNDS.—The Assistant 

25 Administrator is authorized to receive and exVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:25 Aug 01, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00032 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1894.IS S1894

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1 pend contributed funds for the purposes for 

2 which the funds are contributed in a like man3 ner as if said sums had been specifically appro4 priated for said purposes. 

5 (B) ANNUAL FUNDING.— 

6 (i) IN GENERAL.—The participating 

7 districts shall be responsible through con8 tributed funds for 100 percent of the cost 

9 of the pilot program. 

10 (ii) ESTIMATES.—Not later than De11 cember 1 of each year of the pilot pro12 gram, the Assistant Administrator shall 

13 submit to the participating districts an es14 timate of the cost to be incurred by the 

15 National Marine Fisheries Service during 

16 the following calendar year, if any. 

17 (C) ACCOUNTING.— 

18 (i) IN GENERAL.—On or before Sep19 tember 1 of each calendar year, the Assist20 ant Administrator shall provide an ac21 counting of the expenses of the prior cal22 endar year to the participating districts. 

23 (ii) UNDERESTIMATE.—If the esti24 mate paid by the participating districts 


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1 was less than the actual costs incurred by 

2 the National Marine Fisheries Service— 

3 (I) the participating districts 

4 shall have until September 30 of that 

5 calendar year to pay the difference 

6 pursuant to subparagraph (A); or 

7 (II) the National Marine Fish8 eries Service shall have no obligation 

9 to conduct any activities otherwise 

10 scheduled to be carried out under the 

11 pilot program under this subsection. 

12 (iii) OVERESTIMATE.—If the estimate 

13 paid by the participating districts was 

14 greater than the actual costs incurred by 

15 the National Marine Fisheries Service, a 

16 credit shall be provided to the participating 

17 districts, which shall be deducted from the 

18 estimate payment the participating dis19 tricts shall make for the work performed 

20 by the National Marine Fisheries Service, 

21 if any, during the following calendar year. 

22 (4) REPORTING AND EVALUATION.— 

23 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than the 15th 

24 day of each month, the Assistant Administrator 

25 shall post on the website of the National Marine 


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1 Fisheries Service a tabular summary of the raw 

2 data collected during the prior month. 

3 (B) REPORT.—Not later than June 30 of 

4 the calendar year following the completion of 

5 the pilot program, the Assistant Administrator 

6 and the participating districts shall jointly sub7 mit for peer review a report that— 

8 (i) describes any data, analyses, and 

9 findings relating to the pilot program; and 

10 (ii) makes recommendations for fur11 ther study and action. 

12 (5) PERMITS PROCESS.— 

13 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 

14 days after the date on which an application to 

15 authorize the pilot program is filed, the Sec16 retary of the Interior and Secretary of Com17 merce shall make a final determination on any 

18 permits required under section 10(a)(1) of the 

19 Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 

20 1539(a)(1)) for the performance of the pilot 

21 program. 

22 (B) STATE LAW.—The Secretary of the In23 terior, the Secretary of Commerce, and the par24 ticipating districts shall comply with applicable 


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1 requirements of State law with respect to the 

2 program under this subsection. 

3 (6) SUNSET.—The authorities provided by this 

4 subsection shall expire on the date that is 7 years 

5 after the date on which the final applicable permit 

6 is issued under paragraph (5). 

7 (b) PILOT PROJECTS TO IMPLEMENT CALFED 

8 INVASIVE SPECIES PROGRAM.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than January 1, 

10 2017, the Secretary of the Interior, in collaboration 

11 with the Secretary of Commerce, the Director of the 

12 California Department of Fish and Wildlife, and 

13 other relevant agencies and interested parties, shall 

14 begin pilot projects to implement the invasive species 

15 control program authorized pursuant to section 

16 103(d)(6)(A)(iv) of Public Law 108–361 (118 Stat. 

17 1690). 

18 (2) REQUIREMENTS.—The pilot projects shall— 

19 (A) seek to reduce invasive aquatic vegeta20 tion, predators, and other competitors which 

21 contribute to the decline of native listed pelagic 

22 and anadromous species that occupy the Sac23 ramento and San Joaquin Rivers and their trib24 utaries and the Sacramento-San Joaquin Bay25 Delta; and 


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1 (B) remove, reduce, or control the effects 

2 of species, including Asiatic clams, silversides, 

3 gobies, Brazilian water weed, largemouth bass, 

4 smallmouth bass, striped bass, crappie, bluegill, 

5 white and channel catfish, and brown bullheads. 

6 (3) SUNSET.—The authorities provided under 

7 this subsection shall expire on the date that is 7 

8 years after the date on which the Secretary of the 

9 Interior and Secretary of Commerce commence im10 plementation of the pilot projects pursuant to para11 graph (1). 

12 (c) EMERGENCY ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEWS.—To 

13 expedite the environmentally beneficial programs for the 

14 conservation of threatened and endangered species, the 

15 Secretary of the Interior and Secretary of Commerce shall 

16 consult with the Council on Environmental Quality in ac17 cordance with section 1506.11 of title 40, Code of Federal 

18 Regulations (or successor regulations), to develop alter19 native arrangements to comply with the National Environ20 mental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) for 

21 the programs. 


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1 SEC. 203. IMPROVED SCIENCE TO BETTER PROTECT 

2 THREATENED AND ENDANGERED FISH. 

3 (a) DELTA SMELT DISTRIBUTION STUDY.—Not later 

4 than January 1, 2016, contingent on funding, the Sec5 retary of the Interior shall— 

6 (1) initiate studies designed to understand the 

7 location and distribution of Delta smelt throughout 

8 the range of the Delta smelt and to determine poten9 tial methods to minimize the effects of Central Val10 ley Project and State Water Project operations on 

11 the Delta smelt; and 

12 (2) utilize, to the maximum extent practicable, 

13 new technologies to allow for better tracking of 

14 Delta smelt, such as acoustic tagging, optical rec15 ognition during trawls, and fish detection using re16 sidual DNA. 

17 (3) CONSULTATION.—In determining the scope 

18 of the studies under this subsection, the Secretary 

19 may consult with— 

20 (A) Federal and State water users; and 

21 (B) appropriate nongovernmental organiza22 tions. 

23 (4) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

24 There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

25 this subsection $7,500,000 for the period of fiscal 

26 years 2016 through 2020. 


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1 (b) REAL-TIME MONITORING.—Contingent on fund2 ing, during the period beginning on December 1, 2015, 

3 and ending March 31, 2016, and during each following 

4 December-through-March period for which this Act is in 

5 effect, if suspended sediment loads enter the Delta from 

6 the Sacramento River and the suspended sediment loads 

7 appear likely to raise turbidity levels in Old River north 

8 of the export pumps from values below 12 Nephelometric 

9 Turbidity Units (NTUs) to values above 12 NTUs, the 

10 Secretary shall— 

11 (1) conduct daily monitoring using appropriate 

12 survey methods at locations including the vicinity of 

13 Station 902 to determine the extent that adult Delta 

14 smelt are moving with turbidity toward the export 

15 pumps; and 

16 (2) use results from the monitoring surveys at 

17 locations including the vicinity of Station 902 to de18 termine how increased trawling can inform daily 

19 real-time Central Valley Project and State Water 

20 Project operations to achieve fish protection and 

21 water supply benefits. 

22 SEC. 204. ACTIONS TO BENEFIT REFUGES. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—In addition to funding under sec24 tion 3407 of the Central Valley Project Improvement Act 

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1 ized to be appropriated to the Secretary of the Interior 

2 $2,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2016 through 2020 

3 for the acceleration and completion of water infrastructure 

4 and conveyance facilities necessary to achieve full water 

5 deliveries to Central Valley wildlife refuges and habitat 

6 areas pursuant to section 3406(d) of that Act (Public Law 

7 102–575; 106 Stat. 4722). 

8 (b) COST-SHARING.— 

9 (1) FEDERAL SHARE.—The Federal share of 

10 the cost of carrying out an activity described in this 

11 section shall be not more than 50 percent. 

12 (2) NON-FEDERAL SHARE.—The non-Federal 

13 share of the cost of carrying out an activity de14 scribed in this section— 

15 (A) shall be not less than 50 percent; and 

16 (B) may be provided in cash or in-kind. 

17 TITLE III—LONG-TERM WATER 

18 SUPPLY PROJECTS 

19 Subtitle A—Desalination and Water 

20 Reuse 

21 SEC. 301. WATER RECYCLING AND DESALINATION 

22 PROJECTS. 

23 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that— 

24 (1) Federal funding to support water recycling 

25 and desalination projects in recent years has been 


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1 insufficient to address water supply needs in many 

2 regions across the United States; 

3 (2) climate change and drought resiliency re4 quire additional water supply projects to cope with 

5 higher probabilities of longer more intense droughts; 

6 (3) the historic drought in California highlights 

7 the necessity of long-term projects to address a 

8 changing climate; 

9 (4) a recycled water project national survey 

10 conducted by the National Association of Clean 

11 Water Agencies, the Water Reuse Association, the 

12 Association of California Water Agencies, and the 

13 California Association of Sanitation Agencies in Oc14 tober 2013 identified 92 projects in 14 States that 

15 are under consideration or development by water 

16 districts capable of producing up to approximately 

17 900,000 acre-feet of new water supplies if there were 

18 sufficient funding or financing tools to facilitate the 

19 development of those projects; and 

20 (5) desalination of both seawater and brackish 

21 water has the potential to provide significant new 

22 water supplies to regions of the United States vul23 nerable to drought, as is done in Israel, Australia, 

24 and many other countries around the world with 

25 scarce water supplies. 


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1 (b) ELIGIBILITY FOR WATER RECYCLING FEDERAL

2 SUPPORT.—Upon the submission of a completed feasi3 bility report compliant with Bureau of Reclamation stand4 ards, the Secretary of the Interior shall review requests 

5 for water recycling project funding assistance and, subject 

6 to the availability of appropriations, award funding, on a 

7 competitive basis, for projects that meet the eligibility re8 quirements of title IV, including among the projects re9 viewed water recycling projects sponsored by any of the 

10 following: 

11 (1) Bear Valley Community Services District. 

12 (2) Beaumont Cherry Valley Water District. 

13 (3) Burbank Water and Power. 

14 (4) Cambria Community Services District. 

15 (5) Central Contra Costa Sanitary District. 

16 (6) City of American Canyon. 

17 (7) City of Benicia. 

18 (8) City of Brentwood. 

19 (9) City of Camarillo. 

20 (10) City of Carlsbad (Municipal Water Dis21 trict). 

22 (11) City of Corona Department of Water and 

23 Power. 

24 (12) City of Daly City. 

25 (13) City of Del Mar. 


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1 (14) City of Escondido. 

2 (15) City of Fresno. 

3 (16) City of Hayward. 

4 (17) City of Los Angeles A. (Bureau of Sanita5 tion & Department of Water & Power). 

6 (18) City of Modesto. 

7 (19) City of Morro Bay. 

8 (20) City of Mountain View. 

9 (21) City of Oceanside. 

10 (22) City of Palo Alto. 

11 (23) City of Paso Robles. 

12 (24) City of Pismo Beach. 

13 (25) City of Pleasanton. 

14 (26) City of Poway. 

15 (27) City of Redwood City. 

16 (28) City of Riverside. 

17 (29) City of Roseville. 

18 (30) City of Sacramento. 

19 (31) City of San Bernardino. 

20 (32) City of San Diego. 

21 (33) City of San Luis Obispo. 

22 (34) City of Santa Barbara. 

23 (35) City of Santa Rosa. 

24 (36) City of Shasta Lake. 

25 (37) City of Sunnyvale. 


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1 (38) City of Turlock. 

2 (39) City of Vacaville. 

3 (40) City of Visalia. 

4 (41) Clear Creek Community Services District. 

5 (42) Coachella Valley Water District. 

6 (43) Cucamonga Valley Water District. 

7 (44) Delta Diablo Sanitation District. 

8 (45) Desert Water Agency. 

9 (46) Dublin San Ramon Services District. 

10 (47) East Bay Municipal Utility District. 

11 (48) East Valley Water District. 

12 (49) Eastern Municipal Water District. 

13 (50) El Dorado Irrigation District. 

14 (51) Fallbrook Public Utility District. 

15 (52) Goleta Water District. 

16 (53) Helendale Community Services District. 

17 (54) Hi-Desert Water District. 

18 (55) Idyllwild Water District. 

19 (56) Inland Empire Utilities Agency. 

20 (57) Ironhouse Sanitary District. 

21 (58) Irvine Ranch Water District. 

22 (59) Las Virgenes Municipal Water District. 

23 (60) Leucadia Wastewater District. 

24 (61) Los Carneros Water District. 

25 (62) Marin Municipal Water District. 


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1 (63) Monterey Regional Water Pollution Con2 trol Agency. 

3 (64) Napa County Department of Public 

4 Works. 

5 (65) North Bay Water Reuse Authority. 

6 (66) North Marin Water District. 

7 (67) Novato Sanitary District. 

8 (68) Olivenhain Municipal Water District. 

9 (69) Orange County Sanitation District. 

10 (70) Orange County Water District. 

11 (71) Otay Water District. 

12 (72) Padre Dam Municipal Water District. 

13 (73) Pajaro Valley Water Management Agency. 

14 (74) Paradise Irrigation District. 

15 (75) Pebble Beach Community Services Dis16 trict. 

17 (76) Rainbow Municipal Water District. 

18 (77) Ramona Municipal Water District. 

19 (78) Rancho California Water District. 

20 (79) Rincon Del Diablo Municipal Water Dis21 trict. 

22 (80) Sacramento Regional County Sanitation 

23 District. 

24 (81) San Bernardino County Special Districts. 


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1 (82) San Francisco Public Utilities Commis2 sion. 

3 (83) San Jose Water Company. 

4 (84) San Luis Obispo County. 

5 (85) Santa Clara Valley Water District. 

6 (86) Santa Clarita Valley Sanitation District. 

7 (87) Santa Fe Irrigation District. 

8 (88) Santa Margarita Water District. 

9 (89) Sonoma County Water Agency. 

10 (90) South Orange County Wastewater Author11 ity. 

12 (91) South Tahoe Public Utility District. 

13 (92) Sunnyslope County Water District. 

14 (93) Town of Yountville. 

15 (94) Tuolumne Utilities District. 

16 (95) Upper San Gabriel Valley Municipal Water 

17 District. 

18 (96) Valley Center Municipal Water District. 

19 (97) Valley Sanitary District. 

20 (98) Ventura County Waterworks District No. 

21 8. 

22 (99) Victor Valley Wastewater Reclamation Au23 thority. 

24 (100) West Basin Municipal Water District. 

25 (101) West Bay Sanitary District. 


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1 (102) West County Wastewater District (Rich2 mond, California). 

3 (103) Western Municipal Water District of Riv4 erside County. 

5 (104) Western Riverside County Regional 

6 Wastewater Authority. 

7 (105) Yucaipa Valley Water District. 

8 (c) ELIGIBILITY FOR DESALINATION PROJECT FED9 ERAL SUPPORT.—Upon the submission of a completed 

10 feasibility report compliant with Bureau of Reclamation 

11 standards, the Secretary of the Interior shall review re12 quests for water desalination funding assistance and, sub13 ject to the availability of appropriations, award funding 

14 on a competitive basis for projects that meet the eligibility 

15 requirements of title IV, including among the projects re16 viewed the following desalination projects referenced in the 

17 2013 California Water Plan: 

18 (1) Cambria Desalination Project. 

19 (2) Camp Pendleton Seawater Desalination 

20 Project. 

21 (3) Chino Basin Desalter 3. 

22 (4) Doheny Ocean Desalination Project. 

23 (5) GREAT Program Groundwater Desalina24 tion Facility Expansion. 


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1 (6) Huntington Beach Seawater Desalination 

2 Project. 

3 (7) Irvine Non-Potable Shallow Groundwater 

4 Unit Desalter. 

5 (8) Irvine Ranch Water District Wells 51, 52, 

6 53, 21 & 22 Potable (Non-exempt) Desalter Plant. 

7 (9) Long Beach Seawater Desalination Project. 

8 (10) Marina Desalination Facility Expansion. 

9 (11) Mission Valley Brackish Groundwater Re10 covery Project. 

11 (12) Monterey Bay Regional Water Project De12 salination Facility (Moss Landing). 

13 (13) Monterey Peninsula Water Supply Project. 

14 (14) Monterey Peninsula Water Supply Project 

15 (Ocean Desalination/Groundwater Replenishment). 

16 (15) Moorpark Groundwater Desalter. 

17 (16) North Pleasant Valley Groundwater 

18 Desalter. 

19 (17) Oceanside Ocean Desalination Project 

20 (San Luis Rey Basin). 

21 (18) Perris II Desalter. 

22 (19) Ramona Desalting Facility. 

23 (20) San Diego Formation/Balboa Park 

24 Goundwater Desal Facility. 

25 (21) San Elijo Valley Groundwater Project. 


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1 (22) San Pasqual Brackish Groundwater Re2 covery Project. 

3 (23) Santa Cruz/Soquel Creek Water District 

4 Desalination Plant. 

5 (24) South Orange Coastal Ocean Desalination 

6 Project. 

7 (25) West Basin Seawater Desalination Re8 gional Project. 

9 (26) West Simi Valley Desalter. 

10 (d) ELIGIBILITY FOR WATER SUPPLY PROJECT FED11 ERAL SUPPORT.—Upon the submission of a completed 

12 feasibility report compliant with Bureau of Reclamation 

13 standards, the Secretary of the Interior shall review re14 quests for funding assistance and, subject to the avail15 ability of appropriations, award funding on a competitive 

16 basis for projects that meet the eligibility requirements of 

17 title IV, including in the review drought recovery and resil18 iency projects for— 

19 (1) groundwater recharge; 

20 (2) stormwater capture; 

21 (3) agricultural or urban water conservation 

22 and efficiency; or 

23 (4) other innovative projects that can reduce re24 liance on surface and groundwater supplies. 


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1 SEC. 302. REAUTHORIZATION OF DESALINATION ACT. 

2 (a) DEFINITIONS.—Section 2 of the Water Desalina3 tion Act of 1996 (42 U.S.C. 10301 note; Public Law 104– 

4 298) is amended— 

5 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (1), (2), (3), 

6 (4), and (5) as paragraphs (2), (3), (5), (6), and 

7 (4), respectively, and moving the paragraphs so as 

8 to appear in numerical order; and 

9 (2) by inserting before paragraph (2) (as so re10 designated) the following: 

11 ‘‘(1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘Adminis12 trator’ means the Administrator of the Environ13 mental Protection Agency.’’. 

14 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF RESEARCH AND STUDIES.— 

15 Section 3 of the Water Desalination Act of 1996 (42 

16 U.S.C. 10301 note; Public Law 104–298) is amended by 

17 adding at the end the following: 

18 ‘‘(e) PRIORITIZATION.—In carrying out this section, 

19 the Secretary of the Interior shall prioritize funding for 

20 research— 

21 ‘‘(1) to reduce energy consumption and lower 

22 the cost of seawater and brackish water desalination; 

23 ‘‘(2) to reduce the environmental impacts of 

24 seawater desalination and develop technology and 

25 strategies to minimize those impacts; 


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1 ‘‘(3) to improve existing reverse osmosis and 

2 membrane technology; 

3 ‘‘(4) to carry out basic and applied research on 

4 next generation desalination technologies, including 

5 graphene membranes, forward osmosis, hybrid mem6 brane-thermal desalination, improved energy recov7 ery systems, and renewable energy-powered desalina8 tion systems that could significantly reduce desalina9 tion costs; and 

10 ‘‘(5) to develop portable or modular desalina11 tion units capable of providing temporary emergency 

12 water supplies for domestic or military deployment 

13 purposes.’’. 

14 (c) DESALINATION DEMONSTRATION AND DEVELOP15 MENT.—Section 4 of the Water Desalination Act of 1996 

16 (42 U.S.C. 10301 note; Public Law 104–298) is amended 

17 by adding at the end the following: 

18 ‘‘(c) PRIORITIZATION.—In carrying out demonstra19 tion and development activities under this section, the Sec20 retary shall prioritize projects— 

21 ‘‘(1) in drought-stricken States and commu22 nities; 

23 ‘‘(2) in States that have authorized funding for 

24 research and development of desalination tech25 nologies and projects; and 


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1 ‘‘(3) that can reduce reliance on imported water 

2 supplies that have an impact on species listed under 

3 the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 

4 1531 et seq.).’’. 

5 (d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Section 

6 8 of the Water Desalination Act of 1996 (42 U.S.C. 10301 

7 note; Public Law 104–298) is amended— 

8 (1) in subsection (a), in the first sentence— 

9 (A) by striking ‘‘$5,000,000’’ and inserting 

10 ‘‘$10,000,000’’; and 

11 (B) by striking ‘‘2013’’ and inserting 

12 ‘‘2020’’; and 

13 (2) in subsection (b), by striking ‘‘for each of 

14 fiscal years 2012 through 2013’’ and inserting ‘‘for 

15 each of fiscal years 2016 through 2020’’. 

16 (e) CONSULTATION.—Section 9 of the Water Desali17 nation Act of 1996 (42 U.S.C. 10301 note; Public Law 

18 104–298) is amended— 

19 (1) by striking the section designation and 

20 heading and all that follows through ‘‘In carrying 

21 out’’ in the first sentence and inserting the fol22 lowing: 

23 ‘‘SEC. 9. CONSULTATION AND COORDINATION. 

24 ‘‘(a) CONSULTATION.—In carrying out’’; 


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1 (2) in the second sentence, by striking ‘‘The au2 thorization’’ and inserting the following: 

3 ‘‘(c) OTHER DESALINATION PROGRAMS.—The au4 thorization’’; and 

5 (3) by inserting after subsection (a) (as des6 ignated by paragraph (1)) the following: 

7 ‘‘(b) COORDINATION OF FEDERAL DESALINATION

8 RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT.— 

9 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The White House Office of 

10 Science and Technology Policy shall develop a co11 ordinated strategic plan that— 

12 ‘‘(A) establishes priorities for future Fed13 eral investments in desalination; and 

14 ‘‘(B) coordinates the activities of Federal 

15 agencies involved in desalination, including the 

16 Bureau of Reclamation, the National Science 

17 Foundation, the Office of Naval Research of the 

18 Department of Defense, the National Labora19 tories of the Department of Energy, the United 

20 States Geological Survey, the Environmental 

21 Protection Agency, and the National Oceanic 

22 and Atmospheric Administration.’’. 

23 (f) DESALINATION PROJECT ASSISTANCE.—The 

24 Water Desalination Act of 1996 (42 U.S.C. 10301 note; 


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1 Public Law 104–298) is amended by adding at the end 

2 the following: 

3 ‘‘SEC. 10. FEASIBILITY STUDY AND DESIGN ASSISTANCE. 

4 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In order to facilitate the develop5 ment of water desalination projects, the Administrator 

6 shall develop and implement a program to provide finan7 cial assistance to study the feasibility and support the de8 sign of desalination facilities (including associated water 

9 distribution infrastructure) that provide usable water. 

10 ‘‘(b) FEASIBILITY STUDIES.— 

11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator may 

12 provide grant assistance to a non-Federal project 

13 sponsor to evaluate and determine the feasibility of 

14 a public or public-private desalination project. 

15 ‘‘(2) FEDERAL SHARE.—The Federal share for 

16 a feasibility study under paragraph (1) shall not ex17 ceed 50 percent of the cost of the study. 

18 ‘‘(3) CRITERIA FOR ELIGIBILITY.—In carrying 

19 out this subsection, the Administrator shall establish 

20 criteria to determine projects eligible for grant fund21 ing based on the ability of the projects to provide re22 gional water supply benefits, including— 

23 ‘‘(A) improving water supply reliability in 

24 regions subject to frequent and severe drought; 


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1 ‘‘(B) enhancement of public health, safety, 

2 ecosystems, and watershed sustainability; 

3 ‘‘(C) preservation of groundwater through 

4 reduction of withdrawals from aquifers; 

5 ‘‘(D) offsetting demand for water conveyed 

6 from environmentally sensitive areas outside 

7 service area of the project; and 

8 ‘‘(E) mitigation of saltwater intrusion to 

9 aquifers. 

10 ‘‘(c) PROJECT DESIGN.— 

11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator may 

12 provide grant assistance to a non-Federal project 

13 sponsor for the design of a public or public-private 

14 desalination project. 

15 ‘‘(2) FEDERAL SHARE.—The Federal share for 

16 project design under paragraph (1) shall not exceed 

17 25 percent of the cost of project design of the 

18 project. 

19 ‘‘(3) CRITERIA FOR ELIGIBILITY.—In carrying 

20 out this subsection, the Administrator shall establish 

21 criteria to determine projects eligible for grant fund22 ing, including— 

23 ‘‘(A) completion of a feasibility study de24 scribed in subsection (b); 


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1 ‘‘(B) demonstration of technical feasibility 

2 and cost effectiveness; 

3 ‘‘(C) completion of all required State and 

4 Federal environmental impact analyses; 

5 ‘‘(D) receipt of all necessary local, State, 

6 and Federal permits; 

7 ‘‘(E) demonstration of financial capability 

8 of non-Federal project sponsors; 

9 ‘‘(F) quantification and net cost of water 

10 produced by the project; and 

11 ‘‘(G) identification of users of produced 

12 water supply, including water purchase agree13 ments and other contractually binding mecha14 nisms. 

15 ‘‘(d) GUIDANCE.—Not later than 180 days after the 

16 date of enactment of this section, the Administrator shall 

17 publish appropriate guidance to implement this section. 

18 ‘‘(e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

19 is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

20 $10,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2016 through 2020, 

21 to remain available until expended. 

22 ‘‘(f) REPORT ON DESALINATION TECHNOLOGY.—Not 

23 later than 90 days after the date of enactment of this sec24 tion, the Secretary of the Navy shall submit to Congress 

25 a report on the application of desalinization technology for 


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1 defense and national security purposes to provide drought 

2 relief to areas impacted by sharp declines in water sup3 ply.’’. 

4 Subtitle B—Storage 

5 SEC. 311. DEFINITIONS. 

6 In this subtitle: 

7 (1) FEDERAL STORAGE PROJECT.—The term 

8 ‘‘Federal storage project’’ means any water storage 

9 facility to which the United States holds title and 

10 which was authorized to be constructed, operated, 

11 and maintained pursuant to the reclamation laws. 

12 (2) NON-FEDERAL STORAGE PROJECT.—The 

13 term ‘‘non-Federal storage project’’ means any 

14 water storage facility constructed, operated, and 

15 maintained by any State, department of a State, 

16 subdivision of a State, or public agency organized 

17 pursuant to State law. 

18 SEC. 312. FEDERAL SUPPORT FOR INVESTMENTS IN STOR19 AGE. 

20 (a) FEDERAL STORAGE PROJECTS.— 

21 (1) AGREEMENTS.—On the request of any 

22 State, department, agency, or subdivision of a State, 

23 or public agency organized pursuant to State law, 

24 the Secretary of the Interior may negotiate and 

25 enter into an agreement on behalf of the United 


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1 States for participation in the construction or expan2 sion of any Federal storage project in accordance 

3 with this section. 

4 (2) FEDERAL COST SHARE.—Subject to the re5 quirements of this subsection, the Secretary may 

6 participate in a Federal storage project in an 

7 amount equal to not more than 50 percent of the 

8 total cost of the Federal storage project. 

9 (3) COMMENCEMENT.—The construction of a 

10 Federal storage project that is the subject of an 

11 agreement under this subsection shall not commence 

12 until the Secretary secures an agreement providing 

13 such funds as are necessary to pay the capital costs 

14 for any purpose that would otherwise be considered 

15 to be reimbursable under the reclamation laws. 

16 (4) RIGHTS TO USE CAPACITY.—Subject to 

17 compliance with State water rights laws, the right to 

18 use the capacity of a Federal storage project for 

19 which the Secretary has entered into an agreement 

20 under this subsection shall be allocated in such man21 ner as may be mutually agreed on by the Secretary 

22 and each other party to the agreement. 

23 (5) ENVIRONMENTAL LAWS.—In participating 

24 in a Federal storage project under this subsection, 

25 the Secretary shall comply with all applicable enviVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:25 Aug 01, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00058 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1894.IS S1894

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1 ronmental laws, including the National Environ2 mental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.). 

3 (b) NON-FEDERAL STORAGE PROJECTS.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to the requirements 

5 of this subsection, the Secretary of the Interior may 

6 participate in a non-Federal storage project in an 

7 amount equal to not more than 25 percent of the 

8 total cost of the non-Federal storage project. 

9 (2) REQUEST BY GOVERNOR.—Participation in 

10 a non-Federal storage project under this subsection 

11 shall not occur unless— 

12 (A) the participation has been requested by 

13 the Governor of the State in which the non14 Federal storage project is located; and 

15 (B) the Secretary— 

16 (i) makes each determination de17 scribed in paragraph (3); and 

18 (ii) submits to Congress a written no19 tification of those determinations. 

20 (3) DESCRIPTION OF DETERMINATIONS.—The 

21 determinations referred to in paragraph (2)(B)(i) in22 clude a determination by the Secretary that— 

23 (A) the relevant non-Federal storage 

24 project is technically and financially feasible; 


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1 (B) sufficient non-Federal funding is avail2 able to complete the non-Federal storage 

3 project; 

4 (C) the non-Federal storage project spon5 sors are financially solvent; 

6 (D) the environmental impacts of the non7 Federal storage project are acceptable; and 

8 (E) the Federal benefits of the non-Fed9 eral storage project, including water supplies 

10 dedicated to specific purposes such as environ11 mental enhancement or wildlife refuges, meet or 

12 exceed the proposed Federal investment. 

13 (4) PROJECTS IN CALIFORNIA.—Federal fund14 ing for construction of the Los Vaqueros Reservoir, 

15 North-of-Delta Offstream Storage (Sites Reservoir), 

16 and the Upper San Joaquin River non-Federal stor17 age projects described in clauses (i)(II), (ii)(I), and 

18 (ii)(II) of section 103(d)(1)(A) of Public Law 108– 

19 361 (118 Stat. 1684) is conditional on the Cali20 fornia Water Commission determining that— 

21 (A) the project is feasible, is consistent 

22 with all applicable laws and regulations, and 

23 will advance the long-term objectives of restor24 ing ecological health and improving water man25 agement for beneficial uses of the Delta, pursuVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:25 Aug 01, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00060 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1894.IS S1894

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1 ant to section 79755(a)(5)(B) of the California 

2 Water Quality, Supply, and Infrastructure Im3 provement Act of 2014 (division 26.7 of the 

4 California Water Code); and 

5 (B) pursuant to section 79753(a) of that 

6 Act, 50 percent or more of the total public ben7 efits of the project provide the following: 

8 (i) Ecosystem improvements, includ9 ing changing the timing of water diver10 sions, improvement in flow conditions, tem11 perature, or other benefits that contribute 

12 to restoration of aquatic ecosystems and 

13 native fish and wildlife, including those 

14 ecosystems and fish and wildlife in the 

15 Delta. 

16 (ii) Water quality improvements in the 

17 Delta, or in other river systems, that pro18 vide significant public trust resources, or 

19 that clean up and restore groundwater re20 sources. 

21 (iii) Flood control benefits, including 

22 increases in flood reservation space in ex23 isting reservoirs by exchange for existing 

24 or increased water storage capacity in re25 sponse to the effects of changing hydrology 


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1 and decreasing snow pack on the water 

2 and flood management system of the State. 

3 (iv) Emergency response, including se4 curing emergency water supplies and flows 

5 for dilution and salinity repulsion following 

6 a natural disaster or act of terrorism. 

7 (v) Recreational purposes, including 

8 those recreational pursuits generally asso9 ciated with the outdoors. 

10 (5) ENVIRONMENTAL LAWS.—In participating 

11 in a non-Federal storage project under this sub12 section, the Secretary shall comply with all applica13 ble environmental laws, including the National Envi14 ronmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et 

15 seq.). 

16 (6) INFORMATION.—In participating in a non17 Federal storage project under this subsection, the 

18 Secretary— 

19 (A) may rely on reports prepared by the 

20 non-Federal storage project sponsor, including 

21 feasibility (or equivalent) studies, environmental 

22 analyses, and other pertinent reports and anal23 yses; but 


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1 (B) shall retain responsibility for making 

2 the independent determinations described in 

3 paragraph (3). 

4 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

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

6 appropriated to carry out this section $600,000,000 

7 through fiscal year 2025. 

8 (2) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the 

9 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the 

10 Interior shall submit to the Committee on Energy 

11 and Natural Resources of the Senate and the Com12 mittee on Natural Resources of the House of Rep13 resentatives a report that contains recommendations 

14 of the Secretary, if any, regarding whether addi15 tional appropriations are needed to carry out the 

16 purposes of this section, and the amount of such ad17 ditional appropriations. 

18 SEC. 313. CALFED STORAGE PROJECTS. 

19 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that— 

20 (1) the record drought conditions being experi21 enced in the State as of the date of enactment of 

22 this Act are— 

23 (A) expected to recur in the future; and 

24 (B) likely to do so with increasing fre25 quency; 


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1 (2) water storage is an indispensable and inte2 gral part of any solution to address the long-term 

3 water challenges of the State; 

4 (3) Congress authorized relevant feasibility 

5 studies for 5 water storage projects in the State, in6 cluding projects for— 

7 (A) enlargement of Shasta Dam in Shasta 

8 County under section 2(a) of Public Law 96– 

9 375 (94 Stat. 1506), as reaffirmed under sec10 tion 103(d)(1)(A)(i)(I) of Public Law 108–361 

11 (118 Stat. 1684); 

12 (B) enlargement of Los Vaqueros Res13 ervoir in Contra Costa County under section 

14 215 of Public Law 108–7 (117 Stat. 147), as 

15 reaffirmed under section 103(d)(1)(A)(i)(II) of 

16 Public Law 108–361 (118 Stat. 1684); 

17 (C) construction of North-of-Delta 

18 Offstream Storage (Sites Reservoir) in Colusa 

19 County under section 215 of Public Law 108– 

20 7 (117 Stat. 147), as reaffirmed under section 

21 103(d)(1)(A)(ii)(I) of Public Law 108–361 

22 (118 Stat. 1684); 

23 (D) construction of the Upper San Joaquin 

24 River storage (Temperance Flat) in Fresno and 

25 Madera Counties under section 215 of Public 


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1 Law 108–7 (117 Stat. 147), as reaffirmed 

2 under section 103(d)(1)(A)(ii)(II) of Public 

3 Law 108–361 (118 Stat. 1684); and 

4 (E) expansion of San Luis Reservoir under 

5 section 103(f)(1)(A) of Public Law 108–361 

6 (118 Stat. 1694); 

7 (4) as of the date of enactment of this Act, it 

8 has been more than 10 years since the authorization 

9 of the feasibility studies referred to in paragraph 

10 (3), but complete and final feasibility studies have 

11 not been prepared for any of those water storage 

12 projects; 

13 (5) the slow pace of work on completion of the 

14 feasibility studies for those 5 water storage projects 

15 is unjustified and of deep concern; and 

16 (6) there is significant public interest in, and 

17 urgency with respect to, completing all feasibility 

18 studies and environmental reviews for the water 

19 storage projects referred to in paragraph (3), given 

20 the critical need for that infrastructure to address 

21 current and future water challenges of the State. 

22 (b) DEADLINES FOR COMPLETING STORAGE STUD23 IES.—The Secretary of the Interior, through the Commis24 sioner of Reclamation, shall— 


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1 (1) complete the feasibility studies described in 

2 clauses (i)(I) and (ii)(II) of section 103(d)(1)(A) of 

3 Public Law 108–361 (118 Stat. 1684) and submit 

4 such studies to the appropriate committees of the 

5 House of Representatives and the Senate not later 

6 than December 31, 2015; 

7 (2) complete the feasibility study described in 

8 clause (i)(II) of section 103(d)(1)(A) of Public Law 

9 108–361 (118 Stat. 1684) and submit such study to 

10 the appropriate committees of the House of Rep11 resentatives and the Senate not later than November 

12 30, 2016; 

13 (3) complete a publicly available draft of the 

14 feasibility study described in clause (ii)(I) of section 

15 103(d)(1)(A) of Public Law 108–361 (118 Stat. 

16 1684) and submit such study to the appropriate 

17 committees of the House of Representatives and the 

18 Senate not later than November 30, 2016; 

19 (4) complete the feasibility study described in 

20 clause (ii)(I) of section 103(d)(1)(A) of Public Law 

21 108–361 (118 Stat. 1684) and submit such study to 

22 the appropriate committees of the House of Rep23 resentatives and the Senate not later than November 

24 30, 2017; 


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1 (5) complete the feasibility study described in 

2 section 103(f)(1)(A) of Public Law 108–361 (118 

3 Stat. 1694) and submit such study to the appro4 priate Committees of the House of Representatives 

5 and the Senate not later than December 31, 2017; 

6 (6) provide a progress report on the status of 

7 the feasibility studies referred to in paragraphs (1) 

8 through (3) to the appropriate committees of the 

9 House of Representatives and the Senate not later 

10 than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this 

11 Act and every 180 days thereafter until December 

12 31, 2017, as applicable, which report shall include 

13 timelines for study completion, draft environmental 

14 impact statements, final environmental impact state15 ments, and records of decision; and 

16 (7) communicate, coordinate, and cooperate 

17 with public water agencies that contract with the 

18 United States for Central Valley Project water and 

19 that are expected to participate in the cost pools 

20 that will be created for the projects proposed in the 

21 feasibility studies under this section. 

22 (c) IMPACTS.—The Secretary of the Interior, in con23 sultation with other appropriate agencies, shall establish 

24 a process to address direct and substantial impacts caused 

25 by any storage projects under this section. 


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1 SEC. 314. AUTHORIZATION TO INCREASE RESERVOIR CA2 PACITY AS PART OF DAM SAFETY PROJECTS. 

3 The Reclamation Safety of Dams Act of 1978 is 

4 amended by— 

5 (1) in section 3 (43 U.S.C. 507), in the first 

6 sentence, by striking ‘‘Construction’’ and inserting 

7 ‘‘Except as provided in section 5B, construction’’; 

8 and 

9 (2) inserting after section 5A (43 U.S.C. 509a) 

10 the following: 

11 ‘‘SEC. 5B. AUTHORIZATION TO INCREASE RESERVOIR CA12 PACITY AS PART OF DAM SAFETY PROJECTS. 

13 ‘‘(a) DETERMINATION BY SECRETARY OF THE INTE14 RIOR.— 

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsection (b), 

16 notwithstanding section 3, if the Secretary makes a 

17 determination described in paragraph (2), the Sec18 retary may develop additional project benefits 

19 through the construction of new or supplementary 

20 works on a project— 

21 ‘‘(A) in conjunction with the activities of 

22 the Secretary under section 2; and 

23 ‘‘(B) subject to the conditions described in 

24 the relevant feasibility study. 

25 ‘‘(2) DESCRIPTION OF DETERMINATION.—A de26 termination referred to in paragraph (1) is a deterVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:25 Aug 01, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00068 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1894.IS S1894

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1 mination by the Secretary that an additional project 

2 benefit (including additional conservation storage ca3 pacity) is— 

4 ‘‘(A) necessary; 

5 ‘‘(B) in the interests of— 

6 ‘‘(i) the United States; and 

7 ‘‘(ii) the project; 

8 ‘‘(C) feasible; and 

9 ‘‘(D) not inconsistent with the purposes of 

10 this Act. 

11 ‘‘(b) REQUIREMENT.—The costs associated with de12 veloping an additional project benefit under subsection (a) 

13 shall be— 

14 ‘‘(1) allocated to the authorized purposes of the 

15 project that have a benefit; 

16 ‘‘(2) subject to a cost-sharing agreement among 

17 applicable Federal, State, and local agencies relating 

18 to the additional project benefit; and 

19 ‘‘(3) repaid in accordance with the reclamation 

20 laws.’’. 

21 SEC. 315. RESERVOIR OPERATION IMPROVEMENT. 

22 (a) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after the date 

23 of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Army shall 

24 submit to the Committees on Appropriations and the Com25 mittee on Environment and Public Works of the Senate 


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1 and the Committee on Appropriations and the Committee 

2 on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of 

3 Representatives a report including the following informa4 tion for any State under a gubernatorial drought declara5 tion during water year 2015: 

6 (1) A list of Corps of Engineer projects and 

7 non-Federal projects operated for flood control in 

8 accordance with rules prescribed by the Secretary of 

9 the Army pursuant to section 7 of the Act of De10 cember 22, 1944 (commonly known as the ‘‘Flood 

11 Control Act of 1944’’) (58 Stat. 890, chapter 665). 

12 (2) The year during which the original water 

13 control manual was approved. 

14 (3) The year during which any subsequent revi15 sions to the water control plan and manual of the 

16 project are proposed to occur. 

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

19 and the status of the request. 

20 (5) The means by which water conservation and 

21 water quality improvements were addressed. 

22 (6) A list of projects for which permanent 

23 changes to storage allocations have been requested, 

24 and the status of the request. 


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1 (b) PROJECT IDENTIFICATION.—Not later than 60 

2 days after the date of completion of the report under sub3 section (a), the Secretary of the Army shall identify any 

4 projects described in the report that meet the following 

5 criteria: 

6 (1) The project is located in a State in which 

7 a drought emergency has been declared or was in ef8 fect during the 1-year period preceding the date of 

9 final review by the Secretary. 

10 (2) The water control manual and hydrometeo11 rological information establishing the flood control 

12 rule curves of the project have not been revised dur13 ing the 20-year period ending on the date of review 

14 by the Secretary. 

15 (3) Revision of water operations manuals, in16 cluding flood control rule curves, based on the use 

17 of improved weather forecasting or run-off fore18 casting methods, new watershed data, or changes to 

19 project operations, for the project is likely to en20 hance the existing authorized project purposes in21 cluding water supply storage capacity and reliability, 

22 flood control operations and environmental restora23 tion. 

24 (c) ADDITIONAL PROJECTS IDENTIFIED.—Not later 

25 than 60 days after the date of completion of the report 


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1 under subsection (a), the Secretary of the Army shall iden2 tify any non-Corps of Engineers projects that meet— 

3 (1) the criteria described in subsection (b); and 

4 (2)(A) the owner of the non-Federal project has 

5 submitted to the Secretary of the Army a formal re6 quest to review or revise the operations manual or 

7 flood control rule curves to accommodate new water8 shed data or projected project modifications or oper9 ational changes; and 

10 (B) the modifications or operational changes 

11 proposed by the owner of the non-Federal project 

12 are likely to enhance water supply benefits and flood 

13 control operations. 

14 (d) PILOT PROJECTS.— 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after 

16 the date of identification of the projects under sub17 sections (b) and (c), if any, the Secretary of the 

18 Army shall carry out not more than 5 pilot projects, 

19 including at least 2 non-Federal projects (within the 

20 meaning of subsection (a)(1)) (if any are identified 

21 under subsection (b) or (c)), to implement revisions 

22 of water operations manuals, including flood control 

23 rule curves, based on the best available science, 

24 which may include— 

25 (A) forecast-informed operations; 


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1 (B) new watershed data; and 

2 (C) if applicable, spillway improvements. 

3 (2) CONSULTATION.—In implementing the pilot 

4 projects pursuant to this subsection, the Secretary of 

5 the Army shall consult with all affected interests, in6 cluding non-Federal entities responsible for oper7 ations and maintenance costs of a Corps of Engi8 neers facility, affected water rights holders, individ9 uals and entities with storage entitlements, and local 

10 agencies with flood control responsibilities down11 stream of a Corps of Engineers facility. 

12 (e) COORDINATION WITH NON-FEDERAL PROJECT

13 ENTITIES.—If a project identified under subsection (b) or 

14 (c) is— 

15 (1) a non-Federal project, the Secretary of the 

16 Army, prior to carrying out an activity under this 

17 section, shall— 

18 (A) consult with the non-Federal project 

19 owner; and 

20 (B) enter into a cooperative agreement, 

21 memorandum of understanding, or other agree22 ment with the non-Federal project owner; and 

23 (2) owned and operated by the Corps of Engi24 neers, the Secretary of the Army, prior to carrying 

25 out an activity under this section, shall— 


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1 (A) consult with each non-Federal entity 

2 (including a municipal water district, irrigation 

3 district, joint powers authority, or other local 

4 governmental entity) that currently— 

5 (i) manages (in whole or in part) a 

6 Corps of Engineers dam or reservoir; or 

7 (ii) is responsible for operations and 

8 maintenance costs; and 

9 (B) enter into a cooperative agreement, 

10 memorandum of understanding, or other agree11 ment with each such entity. 

12 (f) CONSIDERATION.—In designing and imple13 menting a forecast-informed reservoir operations plan, the 

14 Secretary of the Army may consider— 

15 (1) the relationship between ocean and atmos16 pheric conditions, including the El Nino and La 

17 Nina cycles, and the potential for above-normal, nor18 mal, and below-normal rainfall for the coming water 

19 year, including consideration of atmospheric river 

20 forecasts; 

21 (2) the precipitation and runoff index specific 

22 to the basin and watershed of the relevant dam or 

23 reservoir, including incorporating knowledge of 

24 hydrological and meteorological conditions that influ25 ence the timing and quantity of runoff; 


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1 (3) improved hydrologic forecasting for precipi2 tation, snowpack, and soil moisture conditions; 

3 (4) an adjustment of operational flood control 

4 rule curves to optimize water supply storage and re5 liability, hydropower production, environmental bene6 fits for flows and temperature, and other authorized 

7 project benefits, without a reduction in flood safety; 

8 and 

9 (5) proactive management in response to 

10 changes in forecasts. 

11 (g) FUNDING.—On finalizing an agreement with a 

12 non-Federal project sponsor or non-Federal project owner 

13 pursuant to subsection (e), the Secretary of the Army may 

14 accept non-Federal funds for all or a portion of the cost 

15 of carrying out a review or revision of water control manu16 als and flood control rule curves. 

17 (h) EFFECT.— 

18 (1) MANUAL REVISIONS.—A revision of a man19 ual shall not interfere with the authorized purposes 

20 of a project. 

21 (2) EFFECT.— 

22 (A) ACT.—Nothing in this Act authorizes 

23 the Secretary of the Army to carry out, at a 

24 Corps of Engineers or non-Federal dam or res25 ervoir, any project or activity for a purpose not 


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1 otherwise authorized as of the date of enact2 ment of this Act. 

3 (B) SECTION.—Nothing in this section af4 fects or modifies any obligation of the Secretary 

5 of the Army under State law or authorizes the 

6 diversion or use of water in a manner that is 

7 inconsistent with State water rights law. 

8 (3) BUREAU OF RECLAMATION PROJECTS EX9 CLUDED.—This section shall not apply to any dam 

10 or reservoir owned by the Bureau of Reclamation. 

11 (i) MODIFICATIONS TO MANUALS AND CURVES.—Not 

12 later than 180 days after the date of completion of a modi13 fication to an operations manual or flood control rule 

14 curve, the Secretary of the Army shall submit to Congress 

15 a report regarding the components of the forecast-based 

16 reservoir operations plan incorporated into the change. 

17 SEC. 316. 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 of the projects that are 

24 receiving, or have received, assistance under this subtitle, 


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1 including an assessment of whether the objectives of this 

2 subtitle are being met. 

3 Subtitle C—Water Recycling, Con4 servation, Efficiency, and Other 

5 Programs 

6 SEC. 321. PROMOTING WATER EFFICIENCY WITH 

7 WATERSENSE. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—There is established within the 

9 Environmental Protection Agency a program, to be known 

10 as the ‘‘WaterSense Program’’, to identify and promote 

11 water efficient products, buildings, landscapes, facilities, 

12 processes, and services so as— 

13 (1) to reduce water use; 

14 (2) to reduce the strain on water, wastewater, 

15 and stormwater infrastructure; 

16 (3) to conserve energy used to pump, heat, 

17 transport, and treat water; and 

18 (4) to preserve water resources for future gen19 erations, through voluntary labeling of, or other 

20 forms of communications regarding, products, build21 ings, landscapes, facilities, processes, and services 

22 that meet the highest water efficiency and perform23 ance criteria. 


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1 (b) DUTIES.—The Administrator of the Environ2 mental Protection Agency (referred to in this section as 

3 the ‘‘Administrator’’) shall— 

4 (1) establish— 

5 (A) a WaterSense label to be used for cer6 tain items; and 

7 (B) the procedure by which an item may 

8 be certified to display the WaterSense label; 

9 (2) promote WaterSense-labeled products, 

10 buildings, landscapes, facilities, processes, and serv11 ices in the marketplace as the preferred technologies 

12 and services for— 

13 (A) reducing water use; and 

14 (B) ensuring product and service perform15 ance; 

16 (3) work to enhance public awareness of the 

17 WaterSense label through public outreach, edu18 cation, and other means; 

19 (4) preserve the integrity of the WaterSense 

20 label by— 

21 (A) establishing and maintaining perform22 ance criteria so that products, buildings, land23 scapes, facilities, processes, and services labeled 

24 with the WaterSense label perform as well or 

25 better than less water-efficient counterparts; 


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1 (B) overseeing WaterSense certifications 

2 made by third parties; 

3 (C) conducting reviews of the use of the 

4 WaterSense label in the marketplace and taking 

5 corrective action in any case in which misuse of 

6 the label is identified; and 

7 (D) carrying out such other measures as 

8 the Administrator determines to be appropriate; 

9 (5) regularly review and, if appropriate, update 

10 WaterSense criteria for categories of products, build11 ings, landscapes, facilities, processes, and services, 

12 at least once every 6 years; 

13 (6) to the maximum extent practicable, regu14 larly estimate and make available to the public the 

15 production and relative market shares of, and the 

16 savings of water, energy, and capital costs of water, 

17 wastewater, and stormwater infrastructure attrib18 utable to the use of WaterSense-labeled products, 

19 buildings, landscapes, facilities, processes, and serv20 ices, at least annually; 

21 (7) solicit comments from interested parties and 

22 the public prior to establishing or revising a 

23 WaterSense category, specification, installation cri24 terion, or other criterion; 


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1 (8) provide reasonable notice to interested par2 ties and the public of any changes (including effec3 tive dates), on the adoption of a new or revised cat4 egory, specification, installation criterion, or other 

5 criterion, along with— 

6 (A) an explanation of the changes; and 

7 (B) as appropriate, responses to comments 

8 submitted by interested parties and the public; 

9 (9) provide appropriate lead time (as deter10 mined by the Administrator) prior to the applicable 

11 effective date for a new or significant revision to a 

12 category, specification, installation criterion, or other 

13 criterion, taking into account the timing require14 ments of the manufacturing, marketing, training, 

15 and distribution process for the specific product, 

16 building and landscape, or service category ad17 dressed; 

18 (10) identify and, if appropriate, implement 

19 other voluntary approaches in commercial, institu20 tional, residential, industrial, and municipal sectors 

21 to encourage recycling and reuse technologies to im22 prove water efficiency or lower water use; and 

23 (11) if appropriate, authorize the WaterSense 

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1 ergy Star program implemented by the Adminis2 trator and the Secretary of Energy. 

3 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

4 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this sec5 tion— 

6 (1) $5,000,000 for fiscal year 2016; 

7 (2) $5,000,000 for fiscal year 2017; 

8 (3) $5,000,000 for fiscal year 2018; 

9 (4) $5,000,000 for fiscal year 2019; and 

10 (5) for each subsequent fiscal year, the applica11 ble amount for the preceding fiscal year, as adjusted 

12 to reflect changes for the 12-month period ending 

13 the preceding November 30 in the Consumer Price 

14 Index for All Urban Consumers published by the 

15 Bureau of Labor Statistics of the Department of 

16 Labor. 

17 SEC. 322. INCREASING OPPORTUNITIES FOR AGRICUL18 TURAL CONSERVATION. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the Interior is 

20 authorized and directed to enter into voluntary agree21 ments with public water agencies or other entities that re22 ceive water from any project operated by the Bureau of 

23 Reclamation to implement water conservation programs. 


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1 (b) USES OF CONSERVED WATER.—Of the quantity 

2 of water conserved as a result of the exercise of the au3 thority of the Secretary under subsection (a)— 

4 (1) 25 percent shall be retained by the public 

5 water agency or entity with which the Secretary has 

6 entered into a water conservation agreement; and 

7 (2) 75 percent shall be retained by the Sec8 retary, of which— 

9 (A) 33 percent shall be used or marketed 

10 on an annual basis for purposes that will pro11 mote groundwater recharge and conservation; 

12 and 

13 (B) 67 percent shall be used on an annual 

14 basis for refuge water supply or other author15 ized project purposes. 

16 (c) EXCEPTIONS.—For good reason, the Secretary 

17 and the public water agency or entity with which the Sec18 retary has entered into a water conservation agreement 

19 may agree to modify the percentages of uses of the water 

20 conserved specified in subsection (b) in a particular in21 stance. 

22 (d) CONTRIBUTED FUNDS.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—Any existing water service or 

24 repayment contractor within the project service area 


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1 may contribute funds for the implementation of the 

2 water conservation agreement. 

3 (2) ACTION BY SECRETARY.—If a contractor 

4 provides contributed funds pursuant to paragraph 

5 (1), the Secretary shall provide to that water service 

6 or repayment contractor some or all of the water de7 scribed in subsection (b)(2)(B), but not to exceed 

8 the proportion of funds contributed by the con9 tractor. 

10 (3) ADDITIONAL WATER.—If a contractor con11 tributes over 50 percent of the project cost, the Sec12 retary may reach an agreement with the contractor 

13 to provide some of the water described in subsection 

14 (b)(2)(A) for the contractor to use for groundwater 

15 recharge and conservation, subject to the condition 

16 that the contractor may not receive a higher propor17 tion of the water conserved than the proportion of 

18 the funds contributed by the contractor. 

19 SEC. 323. ASSISTANCE FOR DROUGHT-STRICKEN COMMU20 NITIES. 

21 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that— 

22 (1) across the United States, more than 90 per23 cent of the community water systems serve popu24 lations of less than 10,000 individuals; 


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1 (2) the number of dry wells continues to in2 crease as the State enters the fourth consecutive 

3 summer of drought, with approximately 1,988 wells 

4 statewide identified as critical or dry, which affects 

5 an estimated 9,940 residents, with 1,883 of the 

6 1,988 dry wells concentrated in the inland regions 

7 within the Central Valley; 

8 (3) many areas of the State are disproportion9 ately impacted by drought because the areas are 

10 heavily dependent or completely reliant on ground11 water from basins that are in overdraft and in which 

12 the water table declines year after year or from ba13 sins that are contaminated; and 

14 (4) those communities throughout the State 

15 have been impacted by the presence of naturally oc16 curring arsenic in the groundwater among other con17 taminants, as a result of higher concentration of 

18 contaminants in the water. 

19 (b) ADDITIONAL ASSISTANCE FOR COMMUNITIES

20 WITHOUT ACCESS TO ADEQUATE WATER.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—To assist disadvantaged 

22 communities that have experienced a significant de23 cline in quantity or quality of drinking water, and to 

24 obtain or maintain adequate quantities of water that 

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1 tion Control Act (33 U.S.C. et seq.), there is estab2 lished within the Rural Water and Waste Disposal 

3 Program of the Department of Agriculture a pro4 gram under which the Secretary of Agriculture shall 

5 provide grants for communities— 

6 (A) that are unable to meet the primary 

7 water quality standards under that Act; or 

8 (B) the local private or public water supply 

9 of which has been lost or severely diminished 

10 due to drought conditions. 

11 (2) ELIGIBLE COMMUNITIES.— 

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

13 subparagraph (B), to be eligible to receive a 

14 grant under this subsection, a community shall 

15 carry out a project described in paragraph (3), 

16 the service area of which— 

17 (i) shall not be located in any city or 

18 town with a population of more than 

19 10,000 residents; and 

20 (ii) has a median household income of 

21 less than 100 percent of a the nonmetro22 politan median household income of the 

23 State. 

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1 sistance to communities exceeding the 10,000 

2 population limit established by that subpara3 graph in the event there is a threat to the 

4 human health and safety of the community as 

5 a result of decreased water supplies or water 

6 quality. 

7 (3) ELIGIBLE PROJECTS.—Projects eligible for 

8 this program may be used for— 

9 (A) point of use treatment; 

10 (B) point of entry systems; 

11 (C) distributed treatment facilities; 

12 (D) construction of new water source fa13 cilities including wells and connections to exist14 ing systems; 

15 (E) water distribution facilities; 

16 (F) connection fees to existing systems; 

17 (G) assistance to households to connect to 

18 water facilities; and 

19 (H) any combination of activities described 

20 in subparagraphs (A) through (G). 

21 (4) PRIORITIZATION.—In determining priorities 

22 for funding projects, the Secretary of Agriculture 

23 shall take into consideration— 

24 (A) where water outages— 

25 (i) are most imminent; and 


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1 (ii) pose the greatest threat to public 

2 health and safety; and 

3 (B) the access of the applicant to, or abil4 ity to qualify for, alternative funding sources. 

5 (5) MAXIMUM AMOUNT.—The amount of a 

6 grant provided under this section may be made up 

7 to 100 percent of costs, including— 

8 (A) initial operation costs incurred for 

9 start-up and testing of project facilities; 

10 (B) components to ensure such facilities 

11 and components are properly operational; and 

12 (C) costs of operation or maintenance in13 curred subsequent to placing the facilities or 

14 components into service. 

15 (6) NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS.—The Sec16 retary may use amounts made available to carry out 

17 this section to provide grants to, or enter into coop18 erative agreements with, nonprofit organizations 

19 that can provide onsite technical assistance, assist20 ance with implementing source water protection 

21 plans, and assistance with implementing monitoring 

22 and maintenance plans. 

23 (c) PILOT PROJECTS.—There is authorized to be ap24 propriated to the Secretary to carry out this section 


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1 $15,000,000 for up to 15 pilot projects to implement the 

2 program under this section. 

3 SEC. 324. CONSERVATION AT CALIFORNIA MILITARY IN4 STALLATIONS. 

5 (a) INITIAL ASSESSMENT.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 

7 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec8 retary of Defense shall submit to the Subcommittees 

9 on Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Re10 lated Agencies of the Committees on Appropriations 

11 of the Senate and the House of Representatives a 

12 list of water conservation activities and best prac13 tices that the Secretary— 

14 (A) has carried out on military installa15 tions in the State; or 

16 (B) will carry out in the State pursuant to 

17 sections 2866 and 2914 of title 10, United 

18 States Code. 

19 (2) INCLUSIONS.—The report under paragraph 

20 (1) shall include— 

21 (A) consideration of— 

22 (i) implementing the Net Zero initia23 tive of the Army in the State; 

24 (ii) reducing irrigation for landscaping 

25 and golf courses; 


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1 (iii) addressing distribution leaks and 

2 inadequate or faulty plumbing fixtures; 

3 and 

4 (iv) wastewater reclamation and rain5 water harvesting; and 

6 (B) a description of— 

7 (i) how installations can use the En8 ergy and Water focus area of the Strategic 

9 Environmental Research and Development 

10 Program and Environmental Security 

11 Technology Certification Program to pro12 mote and accelerate conservation at mili13 tary installations in the State; and 

14 (ii) the feasibility of entering into 

15 agreements with a utility or other entity to 

16 adopt technologies or practices that— 

17 (I) reduce water demand; 

18 (II) increase water conservation; 

19 or 

20 (III) reclaim water. 

21 (b) PILOT PROJECTS.—Not later than 180 days after 

22 the date of submission of the report under subsection (a), 

23 the Secretary of Defense shall commence, including 

24 through initial planning and study, not fewer than 3 pilot 


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1 projects on military installations in the State to implement 

2 the actions described in the report. 

3 (c) SUBSEQUENT REPORTS.—Not later than 1 year 

4 after the date of enactment of this Act, and annually 

5 thereafter for each year during which there exists a 

6 drought declaration in the State, the Secretary of Defense 

7 shall submit to the Subcommittees on Military Construc8 tion, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies of the Com9 mittees on Appropriations of the Senate and the House 

10 of Representatives a progress report describing the imple11 mentation of this section during the preceding calendar 

12 year. 

13 SEC. 325. SUPPORT FOR STATE WATER RESOURCES CON14 TROL BOARD CURTAILMENT OF ILLEGAL 

15 WATER DIVERSIONS. 

16 The Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of 

17 Commerce shall support the efforts of the State Water Re18 sources Control Board to regulate the State’s water sup19 plies during the drought emergency by providing technical 

20 and modeling assistance upon request. 

21 SEC. 326. COMBATING WATER THEFT FOR ILLEGAL MARI22 JUANA CULTIVATION. 

23 In addition to other amounts made available under 

24 this Act (or an amendment made by this Act), there is 

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1 trator of the Drug Enforcement Administration for a do2 mestic cannabis eradication and suppression program to 

3 assist State or local law enforcement agencies in the sup4 pression of cannabis operations that— 

5 (1) are conducted on public land; or 

6 (2)(A) trespass on the property of an individual 

7 or entity; and 

8 (B) unlawfully divert, redirect, obstruct, drain, 

9 or impound water. 

10 SEC. 327. SUPPORT FOR INNOVATIVE WATER SUPPLY AND 

11 CONSERVATION TECHNOLOGIES. 

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—In order to promote the develop13 ment of innovative water supply and conservation tech14 nologies, the Administrator of the Environmental Protec15 tion Agency is authorized, on a competitive basis, to award 

16 grants and enter into contracts to assist in the financing 

17 of research and demonstration projects for such innovative 

18 technologies. 

19 (b) ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.—Entities eligible to receive 

20 grants and enter into contracts pursuant to this section 

21 include local entities, public nonprofit institutions or orga22 nizations, businesses, federally recognized Indian tribal 

23 governments, and nonprofit institutions or organizations. 

24 (c) ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA.—The Administrator shall 

25 establish criteria for applicants to be eligible to receive a 


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1 grant from, or enter into a contract with, the Adminis2 trator under this section, including— 

3 (1) demonstration of the technical feasibility of 

4 the proposal and the qualifications of the entity to 

5 carry out the proposal; 

6 (2) demonstration of the financial capability 

7 and creditworthiness of non-Federal project spon8 sors; 

9 (3) compliance with all applicable laws and re10 ceipt of all necessary local, State, and Federal per11 mits; and 

12 (4) quantification of the estimated water to be 

13 produced or saved by the project and the net cost of 

14 the project. 

15 (d) EVALUATION CRITERIA.—The Administrator 

16 shall establish criteria for evaluating on a competitive 

17 basis eligible applicants under this section, including the 

18 degree to which the proposed technology— 

19 (1) proposes an innovation that has broad, fun20 damental implications for water savings or water 

21 supply; 

22 (2) is economically feasible; 

23 (3) could reduce the costs of water supply, in24 cluding reductions in associated energy costs; 


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1 (4) would solve environmental concerns or pro2 vide environmental benefits; 

3 (5) has a proof of concept, and a likely path to 

4 success within a reasonable time frame; and 

5 (6) is aimed at the development of a specific 

6 water saving or water supply application, as opposed 

7 to basic research aimed at discovery and funda8 mental knowledge generation. 

9 (e) AUTHORITY TO ENGAGE OTHERS.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out research and 

11 studies authorized in this section, the Administrator 

12 may engage the necessary personnel, industrial or 

13 engineering firms, Federal laboratories, water re14 sources research and technology institutions, other 

15 facilities, and educational institutions suitable to 

16 conduct investigations and studies authorized under 

17 this section. 

18 (2) TECHNICAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE ASSIST19 ANCE.—The Administrator may— 

20 (A) accept technical and administrative as21 sistance from States and public or private agen22 cies in connection with studies, surveys, loca23 tion, construction, operation, and other work re24 lating to the desalting of water; and 


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1 (B) enter into contracts or agreements 

2 stating the purposes for which the assistance is 

3 contributed and providing for the sharing of 

4 costs between the Administrator and any such 

5 agency. 

6 (f) COST-SHARING.— 

7 (1) 25-PERCENT FEDERAL COST SHARE.—A 

8 Federal contribution in excess of 25 percent for a 

9 project carried out under this section may not be 

10 made unless the Administrator determines that the 

11 project is not feasible without such increased Fed12 eral contribution. 

13 (2) MAXIMUM FEDERAL COST SHARE.—In no 

14 case shall the Federal cost-share for a project under 

15 this section exceed 50 percent of the total cost of the 

16 project. 

17 (3) PROCEDURES FOR ALLOCATING COSTS.— 

18 The Administrator shall prescribe appropriate proce19 dures to implement the provisions of this section. 

20 Costs of operation, maintenance, repair, and reha21 bilitation of facilities funded under the authority of 

22 this section shall be non-Federal responsibilities. 

23 (g) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

24 authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 


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1 $35,000,000 for the period of fiscal years 2016 through 

2 2020. 

3 SEC. 328. OPEN WATER DATA SYSTEM. 

4 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

5 (1) EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTION.—The term 

6 ‘‘educational institution’’ means— 

7 (A) a public or private elementary or sec8 ondary school; 

9 (B) an institution of vocational, profes10 sional, or higher education (including a junior 

11 college or teachers’ college); and 

12 (C) an association of schools or institutions 

13 described in subparagraphs (A) and (B). 

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

15 has the meaning given that term in section 4 of the 

16 Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance 

17 Act (25 U.S.C. 450b). 

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

19 the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Di20 rector of the United States Geological Survey. 

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

22 (A) a State; 

23 (B) the District of Columbia; 

24 (C) the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico; 

25 and 


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1 (D) any other territory or possession of the 

2 United States. 

3 (5) SYSTEM.—The term ‘‘system’’ means the 

4 open water data system established under subsection 

5 (b). 

6 (b) SYSTEM.—The Secretary shall establish and 

7 maintain an open water data system within the United 

8 States Geological Survey to advance the availability, time9 ly distribution, and widespread use of water data and in10 formation for water management, education, research, as11 sessment, and monitoring purposes. 

12 (c) PURPOSES.—The purposes of the system are— 

13 (1) to advance the quantification of the avail14 ability, use of, and risks to, water resources through15 out the United States; 

16 (2) to increase accessibility to, and expand the 

17 use of, water data and information in a standard, 

18 easy-to-use format by Federal, State, local, and trib19 al governments, communities, educational institu20 tions, and the private sector; and 

21 (3) to facilitate the open exchange of water in22 formation particularly in the face of climate change 

23 and unprecedented drought. 

24 (d) ACTIVITIES.—In carrying out this section, the 

25 Secretary shall— 


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1 (1) integrate water data and information into a 

2 interoperable, national, geospatially referenced water 

3 data framework; 

4 (2) identify new water data and information 

5 needs, including data on surface and groundwater 

6 quality and quantity, sediment, erosion, transport, 

7 water chemistry, precipitation, reservoir storage, 

8 water cycle, landscape variables, hydrography, cli9 mate and weather impacts, soil moisture, and human 

10 use; 

11 (3) leverage existing shared databases, infra12 structure, and tools to provide a platform for water 

13 data and information innovation, modeling and data 

14 sharing, and solution development; 

15 (4) support water data and information shar16 ing, applied research, and educational programs of 

17 State, local, and tribal governments, communities, 

18 educational institutions, and the private sector; and 

19 (5) promote cooperation and sharing of exper20 tise regarding water data and information among 

21 State, local, and tribal governments, communities, 

22 educational institutions, and the private sector. 

23 (e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

24 authorized to be appropriated to carry out this subsection 

25 $4,000,000 for each fiscal year from 2016 through 2020. 


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1 TITLE IV—FEDERAL SUPPORT 

2 FOR STATE AND LOCAL 

3 DROUGHT RESILIENCY 

4 PROJECTS 

5 Subtitle A—Reclamation Infra6 structure Finance and Innova7 tion Act 

8 SEC. 401. PURPOSES. 

9 The purposes of this subtitle are— 

10 (1) to promote increased development of critical 

11 water resources infrastructure by establishing addi12 tional opportunities for financing water resources 

13 projects; 

14 (2) to attract new investment capital to infra15 structure projects that are capable of generating rev16 enue streams through user fees or other dedicated 

17 funding sources; 

18 (3) to complement existing Federal funding 

19 sources and address budgetary constraints on Bu20 reau of Reclamation programs; and 

21 (4) to leverage private investment in water re22 sources infrastructure. 

23 SEC. 402. DEFINITIONS. 

24 In this subtitle: 


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

3 (A) a corporation; 

4 (B) a partnership; 

5 (C) a joint venture; 

6 (D) a trust; 

7 (E) a State, or local governmental entity, 

8 agency, or instrumentality; and 

9 (F) a conservancy district, irrigation dis10 trict, canal company, mutual water company, 

11 water users’ association, Indian tribe, agency 

12 created by interstate compact, or any other en13 tity that has the capacity to contract with the 

14 United States under the reclamation laws. 

15 (2) FEDERAL CREDIT INSTRUMENT.—The term 

16 ‘‘Federal credit instrument’’ means a secured loan 

17 or loan guarantee authorized to be made available 

18 under this title with respect to a project. 

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

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

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

22 assigned by a rating agency to project obligations.. 

23 (4) LENDER.— 

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

25 means any non-Federal qualified institutional 


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

2 title 17, Code of Federal Regulations (or a suc3 cessor regulation) (commonly known as ‘‘Rule 

4 144A(a) of the Securities and Exchange Com5 mission’’ and issued under the Securities Act of 

6 1933 (15 U.S.C. 77a et seq.))). 

7 (B) INCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘lender’’ in8 cludes— 

9 (i) a qualified retirement plan (as de10 fined in section 4974 of the Internal Rev11 enue Code of 1986) that is a qualified in12 stitutional buyer; and 

13 (ii) a governmental plan (as defined in 

14 section 414 of the Internal Revenue Code 

15 of 1986) that is a qualified institutional 

16 buyer. 

17 (5) LOAN GUARANTEE.—The term ‘‘loan guar18 antee’’ means any guarantee or other pledge by the 

19 Secretary of the Interior to pay all or part of the 

20 principal of, and interest on, a loan or other debt ob21 ligation issued by an obligor and funded by a lender. 

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

23 eligible entity that is primarily liable for payment of 

24 the principal of, or interest on, a Federal credit in25 strument. 


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1 (7) PROJECT OBLIGATION.— 

2 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘project obli3 gation’’ means any note, bond, debenture, or 

4 other debt obligation issued by an obligor in 

5 connection with the financing of a project. 

6 (B) EXCLUSION.—The term ‘‘project obli7 gation’’ does not include a Federal credit in8 strument. 

9 (8) RATING AGENCY.—The term ‘‘rating agen10 cy’’ means a credit rating agency registered with the 

11 Securities and Exchange Commission as a nationally 

12 recognized statistical rating organization (as defined 

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

14 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78c(a)). 

15 (9) RECLAMATION STATE.—The term ‘‘Rec16 lamation State’’ means any of the States of— 

17 (A) Arizona; 

18 (B) California; 

19 (C) Colorado; 

20 (D) Idaho; 

21 (E) Kansas; 

22 (F) Montana; 

23 (G) Nebraska; 

24 (H) Nevada; 

25 (I) New Mexico; 


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1 (J) North Dakota; 

2 (K) Oklahoma; 

3 (L) Oregon; 

4 (M) South Dakota; 

5 (N) Texas; 

6 (O) Utah; 

7 (P) Washington; and 

8 (Q) Wyoming. 

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

10 means the Secretary of the Interior. 

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

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

13 issued by an obligor and funded by the Secretary in 

14 connection with the financing of a project under sub15 title A. 

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

17 amount’’ means the amount of budget authority suf18 ficient to cover the estimated long-term cost to the 

19 Federal Government of a Federal credit instrument, 

20 as calculated on a net present value basis, excluding 

21 administrative costs and any incidental effects on 

22 Governmental receipts or outlays in accordance with 

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

24 661 et seq.). 


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1 (13) SUBSTANTIAL COMPLETION.—The term 

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

3 means the earliest date on which a project is consid4 ered to perform the functions for which the project 

5 is designed. 

6 SEC. 403. AUTHORITY TO PROVIDE ASSISTANCE. 

7 The Secretary may provide financial assistance under 

8 this subtitle to carry out projects within— 

9 (1) any Reclamation State; 

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

11 Reclamation is authorized to provide project assist12 ance; and 

13 (3) the States of Alaska and Hawaii. 

14 SEC. 404. APPLICATIONS. 

15 To be eligible to receive assistance under this subtitle, 

16 an eligible entity shall submit to the Secretary an applica17 tion at such time, in such manner, and containing such 

18 information as the Secretary may require. 

19 SEC. 405. ELIGIBILITY FOR ASSISTANCE. 

20 (a) ELIGIBLE PROJECTS.—The following non-Fed21 eral projects may be carried out using assistance made 

22 available under this subtitle: 

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

24 municipal, industrial, domestic, and agricultural 


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1 wastewater, and naturally impaired ground and sur2 face waters, which— 

3 (A) has a completed feasibility study that 

4 complies with Reclamation standards; and 

5 (B) the Secretary, acting through the 

6 Commissioner of Reclamation, is authorized to 

7 undertake. 

8 (2) Any water infrastructure project not specifi9 cally authorized by law the Secretary determines 

10 would contribute to a safe, adequate water supply 

11 for domestic, agricultural, environmental, or munic12 ipal and industrial use. 

13 (3) A new water infrastructure facility project, 

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

15 power, and associated facilities. 

16 (4) A project for accelerated repair and replace17 ment of an aging water distribution facility. 

18 (5) A brackish or sea water desalination 

19 project. 

20 (6) A combination of projects, each of which is 

21 eligible under paragraphs (1) through (5), for which 

22 an eligible entity or group of eligible entities submits 

23 a single application. 

24 (b) ACTIVITIES ELIGIBLE FOR ASSISTANCE.—For 

25 purposes of this subtitle, an eligible activity with respect 


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

2 of— 

3 (1) development-phase activities, including plan4 ning, feasibility analysis, revenue forecasting, envi5 ronmental review, permitting, preliminary engineer6 ing and design work, and other preconstruction ac7 tivities; 

8 (2) construction, reconstruction, rehabilitation, 

9 and replacement activities; 

10 (3) the acquisition of real property (including 

11 water rights, land relating to the project, and im12 provements to land), environmental mitigation, con13 struction contingencies, and acquisition of equip14 ment; 

15 (4) capitalized interest necessary to meet mar16 ket requirements, reasonably required reserve funds, 

17 capital issuance expenses, and other carrying costs 

18 during construction; and 

19 (5) refinancing interim construction funding, 

20 existing long-term project obligations, or a secured 

21 loan or loan guarantee made under this subtitle. 

22 SEC. 406. DETERMINATION OF ELIGIBILITY AND PROJECT 

23 SELECTION. 

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

25 receive financial assistance under this subtitle, a project 


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1 shall meet the following criteria, as determined by the Sec2 retary: 

3 (1) CREDITWORTHINESS.— 

4 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara5 graph (B), the project shall be creditworthy, as 

6 determined by the Secretary, who shall ensure 

7 that any financing for the project has appro8 priate security features, such as a rate cov9 enant, to ensure repayment. 

10 (B) PRELIMINARY RATING OPINION LET11 TER.—The Secretary shall require each appli12 cant to provide a preliminary rating opinion let13 ter from at least 1 rating agency indicating that 

14 the senior obligations of the project (which may 

15 be the Federal credit instrument) have the po16 tential to achieve an investment-grade rating. 

17 (2) ELIGIBLE PROJECT COSTS.—The eligible 

18 project costs of a project shall be reasonably antici19 pated to be not less than $20,000,000. 

20 (3) DEDICATED REVENUE SOURCES.—The Fed21 eral credit instrument for the project shall be repay22 able, in whole or in part, from dedicated revenue 

23 sources that also secure the project obligations. 

24 (4) PUBLIC SPONSORSHIP OF PRIVATE ENTI25 TIES.—In the case of a project carried out by an enVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:25 Aug 01, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00106 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1894.IS S1894

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1 tity that is not a State or local government or an 

2 agency or instrumentality of a State or local govern3 ment, the project shall be publicly sponsored. 

4 (b) SELECTION CRITERIA.— 

5 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall es6 tablish criteria for the selection of projects that meet 

7 the eligibility requirements of subsection (a), in ac8 cordance with paragraph (2). 

9 (2) CRITERIA.—The selection criteria shall in10 clude the following: 

11 (A) The extent to which a project serves a 

12 region with significant water resources chal13 lenges. 

14 (B) The extent to which the project is na15 tionally or regionally significant. 

16 (C) The extent to which assistance under 

17 this section would foster innovative public-pri18 vate partnerships and attract private debt or 

19 equity investment. 

20 (D) The extent to which the project fos21 ters— 

22 (i) collaborative partnerships between 

23 cities, counties, water districts, and State 

24 and Federal agencies; and 


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1 (ii) innovative recycling programs that 

2 augment a combination of industrial, com3 mercial, residential, and agricultural uses. 

4 (E) The likelihood that assistance under 

5 this section would enable the project to proceed 

6 at an earlier date than the project would other7 wise be able to proceed. 

8 (F) The amount of budget authority re9 quired to fund the Federal credit instrument 

10 made available under this subtitle. 

11 (G) The extent to which the project helps 

12 maintain or protect the environment. 

13 (3) CONSISTENCY OF CRITERIA.—Not later 

14 than 180 days after the enactment of this Act, the 

15 Secretary shall issue eligibility requirements under 

16 title IV of this Act for water recycling projects that 

17 reclaim and reuse municipal, industrial, domestic, or 

18 agricultural wastewater or impaired ground or sur19 face waters. 

20 (c) RECEIPT OF OTHER FEDERAL FUNDING.—Re21 ceipt of a Federal grant or contract or other Federal fund22 ing to support an eligible project shall not preclude the 

23 project from being eligible for assistance under this sub24 title and shall not be counted towards any Federal costVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:25 Aug 01, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00108 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1894.IS S1894

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1 share requirements otherwise applicable to a project eligi2 ble for assistance under this subtitle. 

3 SEC. 407. SECURED LOANS. 

4 (a) AGREEMENTS.— 

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

6 through (4), the Secretary may enter into agree7 ments with 1 or more obligors to make secured 

8 loans, the proceeds of which shall be used— 

9 (A) to finance eligible project costs of any 

10 project selected under section 406; 

11 (B) to refinance interim construction fi12 nancing of eligible project costs of any project 

13 selected under section 406; or 

14 (C) to refinance long-term project obliga15 tions or Federal credit instruments, if that refi16 nancing provides additional funding capacity for 

17 the completion, enhancement, or expansion of 

18 any project that— 

19 (i) is selected under section 406; or 

20 (ii) otherwise meets the requirements 

21 of section 406. 

22 (2) LIMITATION ON REFINANCING OF INTERIM

23 CONSTRUCTION FINANCING.—A secured loan under 

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

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


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1 than 1 year after the date of substantial completion 

2 of the applicable project. 

3 (3) RISK ASSESSMENT.—Before entering into 

4 an agreement under this subsection for a secured 

5 loan, the Secretary, in consultation with the Director 

6 of the Office of Management and Budget and each 

7 rating agency providing a preliminary rating opinion 

8 letter under section 406(a)(1)(B), shall determine an 

9 appropriate capital reserve subsidy amount for the 

10 secured loan, taking into account each such prelimi11 nary rating opinion letter. 

12 (4) INVESTMENT-GRADE RATING REQUIRE13 MENT.—The execution of a secured loan under this 

14 section shall be contingent on receipt by the senior 

15 obligations of the project of an investment-grade rat16 ing. 

17 (b) TERMS AND LIMITATIONS.— 

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

19 a project under this section shall be subject to such 

20 terms and conditions, and contain such covenants, 

21 representations, warranties, and requirements (in22 cluding requirements for audits), as the Secretary 

23 determines to be appropriate. 

24 (2) NONSUBORDINATION.—A secured loan 

25 under this section shall not be subordinated to the 


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1 claims of any holder of project obligations in the 

2 event of bankruptcy, insolvency, or liquidation of the 

3 obligor of the project. 

4 (3) MAXIMUM AMOUNT.—The amount of a se5 cured loan under this section shall not exceed the 

6 lesser of— 

7 (A) an amount equal to 49 percent of the 

8 reasonably anticipated eligible project costs; and 

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

10 investment-grade rating, an amount equal to 

11 other project obligations that have received an 

12 investment-grade rating. 

13 (4) PAYMENT.—A secured loan under this sec14 tion— 

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

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

17 dedicated revenue sources that also secure the 

18 senior project obligations of the relevant 

19 project; 

20 (B) shall include a rate covenant, coverage 

21 requirement, or similar security feature sup22 porting the project obligations; and 

23 (C) may have a lien on revenues described 

24 in subparagraph (A), subject to any lien secur25 ing project obligations. 


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1 (5) INTEREST RATE.—The interest rate on a 

2 secured loan under this section shall be not less than 

3 the yield on United States Treasury securities of a 

4 similar maturity to the maturity of the secured loan 

5 on the date of execution of the loan agreement. 

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

7 of a secured loan under this section shall be not 

8 later than 35 years after the date of substantial 

9 completion of the relevant project. 

10 (7) FEES.—The Secretary may establish fees, 

11 in accordance with section 408(b)(2) at a level suffi12 cient to cover all or a portion of the costs to the 

13 Federal Government of making a secured loan under 

14 this section. 

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

16 secured loan under this section may be used to pay 

17 any non-Federal share of project costs required if 

18 the loan is repayable from non-Federal funds. 

19 (9) MAXIMUM FEDERAL INVOLVEMENT.—The 

20 total amount of Federal assistance provided for a 

21 project for which assistance is provided under this 

22 subtitle from all sources (including this subtitle) 

23 shall not exceed 80 percent of the total cost of the 

24 project. 

25 (c) REPAYMENT.— 


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1 (1) SCHEDULE.—The Secretary shall establish 

2 a repayment schedule for each secured loan provided 

3 under this section, based on the projected cash flow 

4 from project revenues and other repayment sources. 

5 (2) COMMENCEMENT.—Scheduled loan repay6 ment of principal or interest on a secured loan under 

7 this section shall commence not later than 5 years 

8 after the date of substantial completion of the 

9 project, with interest accruing during those 5 years 

10 and during construction. 

11 (3) DEFERRED PAYMENTS.— 

12 (A) AUTHORIZATION.—If, at any time 

13 after the date of substantial completion of a 

14 project for which a secured loan is provided 

15 under this section, the project is unable to gen16 erate sufficient revenues to pay the scheduled 

17 loan repayments of principal and interest on the 

18 secured loan, the Secretary may allow the obli19 gor, subject to subparagraph (C), to add unpaid 

20 principal and interest to the outstanding bal21 ance of the secured loan. 

22 (B) INTEREST.—Any payment deferred 

23 under subparagraph (A) shall— 


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1 (i) continue to accrue interest in ac2 cordance with subsection (b)(5) until fully 

3 repaid; and 

4 (ii) be scheduled to be amortized over 

5 the remaining term of the secured loan. 

6 (C) CRITERIA.— 

7 (i) IN GENERAL.—Any payment defer8 ral under subparagraph (A) shall be con9 tingent on the project meeting such cri10 teria as the Secretary may establish. 

11 (ii) REPAYMENT STANDARDS.—The 

12 criteria established under clause (i) shall 

13 include standards for reasonable assurance 

14 of repayment. 

15 (4) PREPAYMENT.— 

16 (A) USE OF EXCESS REVENUES.—Any ex17 cess revenues that remain after satisfying 

18 scheduled debt service requirements on the 

19 project obligations and secured loan and all de20 posit requirements under the terms of any trust 

21 agreement, bond resolution, or similar agree22 ment securing project obligations may be ap23 plied annually to prepay a secured loan under 

24 this section without penalty. 


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1 (B) USE OF PROCEEDS OF REFI2 NANCING.—A secured loan under this section 

3 may be prepaid at any time without penalty 

4 from the proceeds of refinancing from non-Fed5 eral funding sources. 

6 (d) SALE OF SECURED LOANS.— 

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

8 soon as practicable after the date of substantial 

9 completion of a project and after providing a notice 

10 to the obligor, the Secretary may sell to another en11 tity or reoffer into the capital markets a secured 

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

13 determines that the sale or reoffering can be made 

14 on favorable terms. 

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

16 or reoffering under paragraph (1), the Secretary 

17 may not change the original terms and conditions of 

18 the secured loan without the written consent of the 

19 obligor. 

20 (e) LOAN GUARANTEES.— 

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

22 loan guarantee to a lender in lieu of making a se23 cured loan under this section, if the Secretary deter24 mines that the budgetary cost of the loan guarantee 

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


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

2 provided under this subsection shall be consistent 

3 with the terms established in this section for a se4 cured loan, except that the rate on the guaranteed 

5 loan and any prepayment features shall be nego6 tiated between the obligor and the lender, with the 

7 consent of the Secretary. 

8 SEC. 408. PROGRAM ADMINISTRATION. 

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

10 uniform system to service the Federal credit instruments 

11 made available under this subtitle. 

12 (b) RECLAMATION LOAN FINANCE CAPITAL RE13 SERVE FUND.— 

14 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.— 

15 (A) IN GENERAL.—There is established in 

16 the Treasury of the United States a fund, to be 

17 known as the ‘‘Reclamation Loan Finance Cap18 ital Reserve Fund’’. 

19 (B) DEPOSITS TO FUND.—The Secretary 

20 of the Treasury shall deposit in the fund estab21 lished by subparagraph (A) an amount equal to 

22 the amount of capital reserve fees collected 

23 under paragraph (2) for each applicable fiscal 

24 year. 


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1 (C) TREATMENT.—The amounts deposited 

2 in the fund under subparagraph (B) shall be 

3 credited as offsetting collections. 

4 (2) CAPITAL RESERVE FEES.— 

5 (A) IN GENERAL.—To the extent required 

6 by appropriations Acts, the Secretary may as7 sess, collect, and spend capital reserve fees at a 

8 level that is sufficient to cover all or a portion 

9 of the costs to the Federal Government of serv10 icing the Federal credit instruments provided 

11 under this subtitle, including all or a portion of 

12 the outlays associated with the provision of the 

13 Federal credit instruments under this subtitle. 

14 (B) AMOUNT.—The capital reserve fees 

15 under this paragraph shall be established at 

16 amounts that will result in the collection, dur17 ing each fiscal year, of an amount that can be 

18 reasonably expected to equal the outlays associ19 ated with the provision of the Federal credit in20 struments under this subtitle. 

21 (c) SERVICER.— 

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

23 a financial entity to assist the Secretary in servicing 

24 the Federal credit instruments provided under this 

25 subtitle. 


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1 (2) DUTIES.—A servicer appointed under para2 graph (1) shall act as the agent for the Secretary. 

3 (3) FEE.—A servicer appointed under para4 graph (1) shall receive a servicing fee, subject to ap5 proval by the Secretary. 

6 SEC. 409. STATE AND LOCAL PERMITS. 

7 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.— 

8 (1) ASSUMPTION OF RESPONSIBILITY.— 

9 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to this section, 

10 the Secretary and the State may enter into a 

11 written agreement, which may be in the form of 

12 a memorandum of understanding, under which 

13 the Secretary may designate the State as lead 

14 agency for purposes of the National Environ15 mental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et 

16 seq.). 

17 (B) PROCEDURAL AND SUBSTANTIVE RE18 QUIREMENTS.—If designated as the lead agency 

19 under subparagraph (A), the State shall assume 

20 responsibility under this section, subject to the 

21 same procedural and substantive requirements 

22 that would apply if that responsibility were car23 ried out by the Secretary. 

24 (2) PRESERVATION OF FEDERAL RESPONSI25 BILITY AND AUTHORITY.— 


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1 (A) FEDERAL RESPONSIBILITY.—Any re2 sponsibility of the Secretary not explicitly as3 sumed by the State by written agreement under 

4 this section shall remain the responsibility of 

5 the Secretary. 

6 (B) NO EFFECT ON AUTHORITY.—Nothing 

7 in this section preempts or interferes with any 

8 power, jurisdiction, responsibility, or authority 

9 of an agency, other than the Department of the 

10 Interior, under applicable law (including regula11 tions) with respect to a project. 

12 (3) PRESERVATION OF FLEXIBILITY.—The Sec13 retary may not require a State, as a condition of 

14 participation and assuming lead agency status in the 

15 program, to forego project delivery methods that are 

16 otherwise permissible for projects. 

17 (b) STATE PARTICIPATION.— 

18 (1) PARTICIPATING STATES.—The Secretary 

19 shall permit the State, and not more than 4 addi20 tional States, to participate in the program under 

21 this section, subject to the limitations described in 

22 paragraph (4). 

23 (2) APPLICATION.—Not later than 270 days 

24 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec25 retary shall amend, as appropriate, regulations that 


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1 establish requirements relating to information re2 quired to be contained in an application of a State 

3 to participate in the program and to assume lead 

4 agency status, including, at a minimum— 

5 (A) the projects or classes of projects for 

6 which the State anticipates exercising the au7 thority that may be granted under the program; 

8 (B) verification of the financial, regulatory, 

9 and enforcement resources necessary to carry 

10 out the authority that may be granted under 

11 the program; and 

12 (C) evidence of the notice and solicitation 

13 of public comment by the State relating to par14 ticipation of the State in the program, including 

15 copies of comments received from that solicita16 tion. 

17 (3) PUBLIC NOTICE.— 

18 (A) IN GENERAL.—The State that submits 

19 an application under this subsection shall give 

20 notice of the intent of the State to participate 

21 in the program not later than 30 days before 

22 the date of submission of the application. 

23 (B) METHOD OF NOTICE AND SOLICITA24 TION.—The State shall provide notice and so25 licit public comment under this paragraph by 


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1 publishing the complete application of the State 

2 in accordance with the appropriate public notice 

3 State law. 

4 (4) SELECTION CRITERIA.—The Secretary may 

5 approve the application of a State under this section 

6 only if— 

7 (A) the regulatory requirements of para8 graph (2) have been met; 

9 (B) the Secretary determines that the 

10 State has the capability, including financial, 

11 regulatory, enforcement, and personnel, to as12 sume the responsibility of a lead agency for the 

13 project; and 

14 (C) the head of the State agency with pri15 mary jurisdiction over water infrastructure mat16 ters enters into a written agreement with the 

17 Secretary described in subsection (c). 

18 (c) WRITTEN AGREEMENT.—A written agreement 

19 under this section shall— 

20 (1) be executed by the Governor or the top 

21 ranking water infrastructure official in the State 

22 who is charged with responsibility for water infra23 structure construction; 

24 (2) be in such form as the Secretary may pre25 scribe; 


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1 (3) provide that the State— 

2 (A) agrees to assume all or part of the re3 sponsibilities of the Secretary described in sub4 section (a), including all responsibilities as a 

5 lead agency; 

6 (B) expressly consents, on behalf of the 

7 State, to accept the jurisdiction of the Federal 

8 courts for the compliance, discharge, and en9 forcement of any responsibility of the Secretary 

10 assumed by the State; 

11 (C) certifies that State laws (including reg12 ulations) are in effect that authorize the State 

13 to take the actions necessary to carry out the 

14 responsibilities being assumed; and 

15 (D) agrees to maintain the financial re16 sources necessary to carry out the responsibil17 ities being assumed; 

18 (4) require the State to provide to the Secretary 

19 any information that the Secretary considers nec20 essary to ensure that the State is adequately car21 rying out the responsibilities assigned to the State; 

22 (5) have a term of not more than 5 years; and 

23 (6) be renewable. 

24 (d) JURISDICTION.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The United States district 

2 courts shall have exclusive jurisdiction over any civil 

3 action against a State for failure to carry out any 

4 responsibility of the State under this section. 

5 (2) LEGAL STANDARDS AND REQUIREMENTS.— 

6 A civil action under paragraph (1) shall be governed 

7 by the legal standards and requirements that would 

8 apply in such a civil action against the Secretary if 

9 the Secretary had taken the actions in question. 

10 (3) INTERVENTION.—The Secretary shall have 

11 the right to intervene in any action described in 

12 paragraph (1). 

13 (e) EFFECT OF ASSUMPTION OF RESPONSIBILITY.— 

14 A State that assumes responsibility under subsection 

15 (a)(2) shall be solely responsible and solely liable for car16 rying out, in lieu of the Secretary, the responsibilities as17 sumed under subsection (a), until the program is termi18 nated as provided in subsection (h). 

19 (f) AUDITS.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—To ensure compliance by a 

21 State with any agreement of the State under sub22 section (c) (including compliance by the State with 

23 all Federal laws for which responsibility is assumed 

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1 pating in the program under this section, the Sec2 retary shall conduct— 

3 (A) semiannual audits during each of the 

4 first 2 years of State participation; and 

5 (B) annual audits during of the third and 

6 fourth years of State participation. 

7 (2) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY AND COMMENT.— 

8 (A) IN GENERAL.—An audit conducted 

9 under paragraph (1) shall be provided to the 

10 public for comment. 

11 (B) RESPONSE.—Not later than 60 days 

12 after the date on which the period for public 

13 comment ends, the Secretary shall respond to 

14 public comments received under subparagraph 

15 (A). 

16 (g) MONITORING.—After the fourth year of the par17 ticipation of a State in the program, the Secretary shall 

18 monitor compliance by the State with the written agree19 ment, including the provision by the State of financial re20 sources to carry out the written agreement. 

21 (h) TERMINATION.— 

22 (1) TERMINATION BY SECRETARY.—The Sec23 retary may terminate the participation of any State 

24 in the program if— 


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1 (A) the Secretary determines that the 

2 State is not adequately carrying out the respon3 sibilities assigned to the State; 

4 (B) the Secretary provides to the State— 

5 (i) notification of the determination of 

6 noncompliance; and 

7 (ii) a period of at least 30 days during 

8 which to take such corrective action as the 

9 Secretary determines is necessary to com10 ply with the applicable agreement; and 

11 (C) the State, after the notification and 

12 period provided under subparagraph (B), fails 

13 to take satisfactory corrective action, as deter14 mined by Secretary. 

15 (2) TERMINATION BY STATE.—The State may 

16 terminate the participation of the State in the pro17 gram at any time by providing to the Secretary a 

18 notice by not later than the date that is 90 days be19 fore the date of termination, and subject to such 

20 terms and conditions as the Secretary may provide. 

21 (i) LIMITATIONS ON AGREEMENTS.—Nothing in this 

22 section or program— 

23 (1) authorizes a State to assume any rule24 making authority of the Secretary under any Fed25 eral law; 


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1 (2) relieves any recipient of the assistance of 

2 any obligation to obtain any other required State or 

3 local permit or approval with respect to the project; 

4 (3) limits the right of any unit of State or local 

5 government to approve or regulate any rate of re6 turn on private equity invested in the project; or 

7 (4) otherwise supersedes any State or local law 

8 (including any regulation) applicable to the construc9 tion or operation of the project. 

10 SEC. 410. REGULATIONS. 

11 The Secretary may promulgate such regulations as 

12 the Secretary determines to be appropriate to carry out 

13 this subtitle. 

14 SEC. 411. FUNDING. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be appro16 priated to the Secretary to carry out this subtitle 

17 $200,000,000 through fiscal year 2020, to remain avail18 able until expended. 

19 (b) OFFSET REQUIRED.—No funds made available 

20 under this section may be used to provide financial assist21 ance under this subtitle unless sufficient funds have been 

22 appropriated to offset any decrease in Federal revenue re23 sulting from the use by any unit of State or local govern24 ment of proceeds of any obligation— 


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1 (1) the interest on which is exempt from the 

2 tax imposed under chapter 1 of the Internal Rev3 enue Code of 1986; or 

4 (2) with respect to which credit is allowable 

5 under subpart I or J of part IV of subchapter A of 

6 chapter 1 of that Code. 

7 (c) ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS.—Of the funds made 

8 available to carry out this subtitle, the Secretary may use 

9 for the administration of this subtitle not more than 

10 $2,200,000 for each of fiscal years 2016 through 2020. 

11 SEC. 412. DEAUTHORIZATION OF INACTIVE PROJECTS. 

12 (a) PURPOSES; DEFINITIONS.— 

13 (1) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this section 

14 are— 

15 (A) to establish an efficient and trans16 parent process for deauthorizing projects and 

17 programs that have failed to receive a minimum 

18 level of investment to ensure active projects can 

19 move forward while reducing the backlog of au20 thorized projects; 

21 (B) to create an expedited and definitive 

22 process to deauthorize water resources develop23 ment programs and projects; 


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1 (C) to allow the continued authorization of 

2 water resources development programs and 

3 projects that are viable for construction; and 

4 (D) to establish a process for identifying 

5 authorized reclamation projects that are no 

6 longer— 

7 (i) in the Federal interest; or 

8 (ii) feasible. 

9 (2) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

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

11 means the Secretary of the Interior. 

12 (B) WATER RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT

13 PROGRAM OR PROJECT.—The term ‘‘water re14 sources development program or project’’ in15 cludes any water and related resource project or 

16 program of the Bureau of Reclamation. 

17 (b) COMPREHENSIVE REPORTS.— 

18 (1) MINIMUM FUNDING LIST.—Not later than 

19 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the 

20 Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Energy 

21 and Natural Resources of the Senate and the Com22 mittee on Natural Resources of the House of Rep23 resentatives, and make available on a publicly acces24 sible Internet website in a manner that is download25 able, searchable, and sortable, a list of— 


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1 (A) projects or separable elements of 

2 projects authorized for construction for which 

3 funding has been obligated during the current 

4 fiscal year or any of the 5 preceding fiscal 

5 years; 

6 (B) the amount of funding obligated for 

7 each such project or separable element per fis8 cal year; 

9 (C) the current phase of each such project 

10 or separable element; and 

11 (D) the amount required to complete the 

12 current phase of each such project or separable 

13 element. 

14 (2) BACKLOG REPORT.—Together with the re15 port under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall submit 

16 to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources 

17 of the Senate and the Committee on Natural Re18 sources of the House of Representatives, and make 

19 available on a publicly accessible Internet website in 

20 a manner that is downloadable, searchable, and sort21 able, a list of— 

22 (A) projects or separable elements that are 

23 authorized for construction but have not been 

24 completed; 


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1 (B) the date of authorization of the project 

2 or separable element, including any subsequent 

3 modifications to the original authorization; 

4 (C) the original budget authority for the 

5 project or separable element; 

6 (D) a brief description of the project or 

7 separable element; 

8 (E) the estimated date of completion of the 

9 project or separable element; 

10 (F) the estimated cost of completion of the 

11 project or separable element; and 

12 (G) any amounts appropriated for the 

13 project or separable element that remain unobli14 gated. 

15 (c) INTERIM DEAUTHORIZATION LIST.— 

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

17 an interim deauthorization list that identifies each 

18 water resources development program or project, or 

19 separable element of a program or project, author20 ized for construction before March 30, 2009, for 

21 which— 

22 (A) construction was not initiated before 

23 the date of enactment of this Act; or 

24 (B) construction was initiated before the 

25 date of enactment of this Act, but for which no 


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1 Federal or non-Federal funds were obligated for 

2 construction of the program, project, or sepa3 rable element of the program or project during 

4 the current fiscal year or any of the 6 preceding 

5 fiscal years. 

6 (2) PUBLIC COMMENT AND CONSULTATION.— 

7 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall so8 licit comments from the public and the Gov9 ernors of each applicable State on the interim 

10 deauthorization list developed under paragraph 

11 (1). 

12 (B) COMMENT PERIOD.—The public com13 ment period shall be 90 days. 

14 (3) SUBMISSION TO CONGRESS; PUBLICA15 TION.—Not later than 90 days after the date of sub16 mission of the list required by subsection (b), the 

17 Secretary shall— 

18 (A) submit the interim deauthorization list 

19 to the Committee on Energy and Natural Re20 sources of the Senate and the Committee on 

21 Natural Resources of the House of Representa22 tives; and 

23 (B) publish the interim deauthorization list 

24 in the Federal Register. 

25 (d) FINAL DEAUTHORIZATION LIST.— 


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

2 a final deauthorization list of each water resources 

3 development program or project, or separable ele4 ment of a program or project, described in sub5 section (c)(1) that is identified pursuant to this sub6 section. 

7 (2) IDENTIFICATION OF PROJECTS.— 

8 (A) CRITERIA FOR INCLUSION.— 

9 (i) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall 

10 identify programs, projects, and separable 

11 elements of programs and projects for in12 clusion on the final deauthorization list 

13 that may no longer be viable for construc14 tion. 

15 (ii) FACTORS TO CONSIDER.—The 

16 Secretary may identify programs, projects, 

17 and separable elements of programs and 

18 projects for exclusion from the final de19 authorization list if the Secretary deter20 mines, on a case-by-case basis, that a 

21 project or separable element of a project is 

22 critical for interests of the United States, 

23 based on the possible impact of the project 

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1 lic health and safety, the national economy, 

2 or the environment. 

3 (iii) CONSIDERATION OF PUBLIC COM4 MENTS.—In making determinations under 

5 clauses (i) and (ii), the Secretary shall con6 sider any comments received under sub7 section (c)(3). 

8 (B) APPENDIX.—The Secretary shall in9 clude as part of the final deauthorization list an 

10 appendix that— 

11 (i) identifies each program, project, 

12 and separable element of a program or 

13 project on the interim deauthorization list 

14 developed under subsection (c) that is not 

15 included on the final deauthorization list; 

16 and 

17 (ii) describes the reasons why the pro18 gram, project, or separable element is not 

19 included. 

20 (3) SUBMISSION TO CONGRESS; PUBLICA21 TION.—Not later than 120 days after the date on 

22 which the public comment period under subsection 

23 (c)(3) expires, the Secretary shall— 

24 (A) submit the final deauthorization list 

25 and the appendix to the final deauthorization 


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1 list to the Committee on Energy and Natural 

2 Resources of the Senate and the Committee on 

3 Natural Resources of the House of Representa4 tives; and 

5 (B) publish the final deauthorization list 

6 and the appendix to the final deauthorization 

7 list in the Federal Register. 

8 (e) DEAUTHORIZATION; CONGRESSIONAL REVIEW.— 

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

10 after the date that is 180 days after the date of sub11 mission of the final deauthorization report under 

12 subsection (d), a program, project, or separable ele13 ment of a program or project identified in the report 

14 is deauthorized, unless Congress passes a joint reso15 lution disapproving the final deauthorization report 

16 prior to the end of that period. 

17 (2) NON-FEDERAL CONTRIBUTIONS.—A pro18 gram, project, or separable element of a program or 

19 project identified in the final deauthorization report 

20 under subsection (d) shall not be deauthorized under 

21 this subsection if, before the expiration of the 180- 

22 day period referred to in paragraph (1), the non23 Federal interest of the program, project, or sepa24 rable element of the project provides sufficient funds 


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1 to complete the program, project, or separable ele2 ment of the project. 

3 (f) TREATMENT OF PROJECT MODIFICATIONS.—For 

4 purposes of this section, if an authorized water resources 

5 development program, project, or separable element of the 

6 program or project has been modified by an Act of Con7 gress, the date of authorization of the program, project, 

8 or separable element shall be deemed to be the date of 

9 the most recent modification. 

10 Subtitle B—Expansion of Water 

11 Storage, Integrated Regional 

12 Water Management, and 

13 WaterSMART 

14 SEC. 421. WATER STORAGE, INTEGRATED REGIONAL 

15 WATER MANAGEMENT, RECLAMATION, AND 

16 RECYCLING PROJECTS. 

17 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that— 

18 (1) the State is currently experiencing an his19 toric drought that has not been witnessed in over 

20 100 years of recorded history, and funding will allow 

21 the Bureau of Reclamation to better respond to and 

22 mitigate the potential impacts of extended drought 

23 and long-term sustainability challenges; 

24 (2) since WaterSMART was established in 

25 2010, the program has provided approximately 


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1 $250,000,000 in competitively awarded funding to 

2 non-Federal partners, including Indian tribes, water 

3 districts, municipalities, and institutions of higher 

4 education, which investments have conserved enough 

5 water to meet the needs of more than 3,800,000 in6 dividuals, allowing every acre-foot of water conserved 

7 to be made available for other uses; and 

8 (3) activities funded under WaterSMART in9 clude those critical to meeting the Priority Goal for 

10 Climate Change of the Department of the Interior, 

11 which includes climate risk assessment activities and 

12 related efforts that ensure sustainable water supplies 

13 in the western United States. 

14 (b) AMENDMENT.—Section 9504 of the Omnibus 

15 Public Land Management Act of 2009 (42 U.S.C. 10368) 

16 is amended— 

17 (1) by redesignating subsections (c) through (e) 

18 as subsections (d) through (f), respectively; 

19 (2) by inserting after subsection (b) the fol20 lowing: 

21 ‘‘(c) WATER STORAGE, INTEGRATED REGIONAL

22 WATER MANAGEMENT, RECLAMATION, AND RECYCLING

23 PROJECTS.— 

24 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary is authorized 

25 to enter into cost shared financial assistance and 


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1 other long-term agreements with non-Federal par2 ticipants in Reclamation States (as defined in sec3 tion 402 of the California Emergency Drought Re4 lief Act of 2015) and the States of Hawaii and Alas5 ka to advance the planning, design, and construction 

6 of non-Federal permanent water storage and convey7 ance facilities, projects for the reclamation and reuse 

8 of municipal, industrial, domestic and agricultural 

9 wastewater, and naturally impaired ground and sur10 face waters, and other water management improve11 ment projects for which the Secretary is authorized 

12 under this subtitle to assist an applicant in the plan13 ning, design, and construction. 

14 ‘‘(2) PRIORITY.—In providing financial assist15 ance under this section, the Secretary shall give pri16 ority to storage, conveyance, and water management 

17 improvement projects that— 

18 ‘‘(A) ensure the efficient and beneficial use 

19 of water or reuse of recycled water; 

20 ‘‘(B) use integrated and coordinated water 

21 management on a watershed or regional scale; 

22 ‘‘(C) increase the availability of usable 

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1 ment and include adaptive measures needed to 

2 address climate change and future demands; 

3 ‘‘(D) where practicable, provide flood con4 trol or recreation benefits and include the devel5 opment of incremental hydroelectric power gen6 eration; 

7 ‘‘(E) include partnerships that go beyond 

8 political and institutional jurisdictions to sup9 port the efficient use of the limited water re10 sources of a region and the United States; and 

11 ‘‘(F) generate environmental benefits, such 

12 as benefits to fisheries, wildlife and habitat, 

13 water quality, water-dependent ecological sys14 tems, and water supply benefits to agricultural 

15 and urban water users. 

16 ‘‘(3) FEDERAL COST SHARE.—The Federal 

17 share of the cost of a project authorized under sub18 section (a) shall be— 

19 ‘‘(A) an amount equal to the lesser of— 

20 ‘‘(i) 25 percent of total costs; and 

21 ‘‘(ii) $20,000,000 (adjusted for infla22 tion); and 

23 ‘‘(B) nonreimbursable. 

24 ‘‘(4) IN-KIND CONTRIBUTIONS.—The non-Fed25 eral share of the cost of a project authorized under 


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1 subsection (a) may include in-kind contributions to 

2 the planning, design, and construction of a project. 

3 ‘‘(5) TITLE; OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE

4 COSTS.—The non-Federal entity entering into a fi5 nancial assistance agreement under this subsection 

6 shall hold title to any and all facilities constructed 

7 under this section, and shall be solely responsible for 

8 the costs of operating and maintaining such facili9 ties.’’; and 

10 (3) in subsection (f) (as redesignated by para11 graph (1)), by striking ‘‘$300,000,000’’ and insert12 ing ‘‘$400,000,000’’. 

13 Subtitle C—Water Recycling 

14 Eligibility 

15 SEC. 431. NEW WATER RECYCLING AND REUSE PROJECTS. 

16 Section 1602 of the Reclamation Wastewater and 

17 Groundwater Study and Facilities Act (43 U.S.C. 390h) 

18 is amended by adding at the end the following: 

19 ‘‘(e) AUTHORIZATION OF NEW WATER RECYCLING

20 AND REUSE PROJECTS.— 

21 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A non-Federal interest may 

22 submit to the Secretary proposals for eligible 

23 projects in the form of completed feasibility studies. 


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1 ‘‘(2) ELIGIBLE PROJECTS.—A project shall be 

2 considered eligible for consideration under this sub3 section if the project reclaims and reuses— 

4 ‘‘(A) municipal, industrial, domestic, or ag5 ricultural wastewater; or 

6 ‘‘(B) impaired ground or surface waters. 

7 ‘‘(3) GUIDELINES.— 

8 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 

9 days after the date of enactment of this sub10 section, the Secretary shall issue water recy11 cling project solicitation and evaluation guide12 lines that include the criteria listed in sub13 section (f)(2). 

14 ‘‘(B) REVIEW.—Consistent with the prior15 ities described in section 301 of the California 

16 Emergency Drought Relief Act of 2015, the 

17 Secretary shall review each feasibility study re18 ceived under paragraph (1) for the purpose of 

19 determining whether the study, and the process 

20 under which the study was developed, comply 

21 with Federal laws and regulations applicable to 

22 feasibility studies of water recycling and reuse 

23 projects. 

24 ‘‘(f) COMPETITIVE GRANT FUNDING OF WATER RE25 CYCLING AND REUSE PROJECTS.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall es2 tablish a competitive grant program under which the 

3 non-Federal project sponsor of any project deter4 mined by the Secretary to be feasible under sub5 section (e)(2) shall be eligible to apply for funding 

6 for the planning, design, and construction of the 

7 project. 

8 ‘‘(2) PRIORITY.—When funding projects under 

9 paragraph (1), the Secretary shall give funding pri10 ority to projects that meet 1 or more of the criteria 

11 listed in paragraph (3) and are located in an area 

12 that at any time in the 10-year period before such 

13 funds are made available— 

14 ‘‘(A) has been identified by the United 

15 States Drought Monitor as experiencing severe, 

16 extreme, or exceptional drought; or 

17 ‘‘(B) was designated as a disaster area by 

18 a State. 

19 ‘‘(3) CRITERIA.—The project criteria referred 

20 to in paragraph (2) are as follows: 

21 ‘‘(A) Projects that are likely— 

22 ‘‘(i) to provide a more reliable water 

23 supply; and 

24 ‘‘(ii) to protect, restore, or enhance 

25 aquatic ecosystems including estuaries, 


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1 groundwater basins, and rivers and 

2 streams and tributaries. 

3 ‘‘(B) Projects that are likely to increase 

4 water management flexibility and reduce im5 pacts on environmental resources. 

6 ‘‘(C) Projects that are regional in scale or 

7 are included in integrated regional water man8 agement plans. 

9 ‘‘(D) Projects that use integrated and co10 ordinated water management on a watershed or 

11 regional scale. 

12 ‘‘(E) Projects that provide multiple bene13 fits, including improved water supply reliability 

14 for urban and agricultural water users, eco15 system benefits, such as benefits to fisheries, 

16 wildlife and habitat, water quality, groundwater 

17 management, and water quality improvements. 

18 ‘‘(F) Projects for which a feasibility study 

19 has been completed and any necessary environ20 mental or public reviews have been initiated. 

21 ‘‘(4) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

22 There is authorized to be appropriated to the Sec23 retary to carry out this subsection $200,000,000 

24 through fiscal year 2020.’’. 


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1 Subtitle D—Federal Support for 

2 State and Local Drought Solu3 tions Fund 

4 SEC. 441. ESTABLISHMENT. 

5 There is established in the Treasury of the United 

6 States a fund, to be known as the ‘‘Federal Support for 

7 State and Local Drought Solutions Fund’’ (referred to in 

8 this subtitle as the ‘‘Fund’’), consisting of— 

9 (1) such amounts as are deposited in the Fund 

10 under section 443; and 

11 (2) any interest earned on investment of 

12 amounts in the Fund under section 445. 

13 SEC. 442. ACCOUNTS. 

14 Within the Fund, there are established the following 

15 accounts: 

16 (1) The Federal Assistance to State and Local 

17 Storage Project Account, for expenditure on projects 

18 with a maximum 25-percent Federal cost share au19 thorized under section 301(c). 

20 (2) The Reclamation Infrastructure Finance 

21 and Innovation Account, for expenditure on Federal 

22 loan guarantees authorized under subtitle A. 

23 SEC. 443. DEPOSITS TO FUND. 

24 (a) IN GENERAL.—For each of fiscal years 2026 

25 through 2050, the Secretary of the Treasury shall deposit 


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1 in the Fund $150,000,000 of the revenues that would oth2 erwise be deposited for the fiscal year in the reclamation 

3 fund established by the first section of the Act of June 

4 17, 1902 (32 Stat. 388, chapter 1093), of which— 

5 (1) $75,000,000 for each of those fiscal years 

6 shall be deposited in the Federal Assistance to State 

7 and Local Storage Project Account established by 

8 section 442(1); 

9 (2) $40,000,000 for each of those fiscal years 

10 shall be used to fund projects pursuant to section 

11 1602 of the Reclamation Wastewater and Ground12 water Study and Facilities Act (43 U.S.C. 390h); 

13 and 

14 (3) $35,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 

15 shall be deposited in the Reclamation Infrastructure 

16 Finance and Innovation Account established by sec17 tion 442(2). 

18 (b) AVAILABILITY OF AMOUNTS.—Amounts depos19 ited in the Fund under this subtitle shall— 

20 (1) be made available in accordance with this 

21 section, without further appropriation; and 

22 (2) be in addition to amounts appropriated for 

23 such purposes under any other provision of law. 


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1 SEC. 444. EXPENDITURES FROM FUND. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsection (b), for each 

3 of fiscal years 2026 through 2050, the Secretary of the 

4 Interior may expend from the Fund, in accordance with 

5 this subtitle, not more than an amount equal to the sum 

6 of— 

7 (1) the amounts deposited in the Fund that 

8 year under section 443; and 

9 (2) the amount of interest accrued in the Fund 

10 in each account for the fiscal year in which the ex11 penditures are made, with the interest accrued in 

12 each account used only for expenditures from that 

13 account. 

14 (b) ADDITIONAL EXPENDITURES.— 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may expend 

16 more in any fiscal year than the amounts described 

17 in subsection (a) if the additional amounts are avail18 able in the Fund as a result of a failure of the Sec19 retary to expend all of the amounts available under 

20 subsection (a) in 1 or more prior fiscal years. 

21 (2) RETENTION IN ACCOUNTS.—Any additional 

22 amounts referred to in paragraph (1) shall— 

23 (A) be retained within the account to 

24 which the amounts were designated; 

25 (B) accrue interest for the designated ac26 count in accordance with this subtitle; and 


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1 (C) only be expended for the purposes for 

2 which expenditures from the designated ac3 counts are authorized. 

4 SEC. 445. INVESTMENTS OF AMOUNTS. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall invest such 

6 portion of the Fund as is not, in the judgment of the Sec7 retary, required to meet current withdrawals. 

8 (b) CREDITS TO FUND.—The interest on, and the 

9 proceeds from the sale or redemption of, any obligations 

10 held in the Fund shall be credited to, and form a part 

11 of, the Fund. 

12 SEC. 446. TRANSFERS OF AMOUNTS. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—The amounts required to be 

14 transferred to the Fund under this subtitle shall be trans15 ferred at least monthly from the general fund of the 

16 Treasury to the Fund on the basis of estimates made by 

17 the Secretary of the Treasury. 

18 (b) ADJUSTMENTS.—Proper adjustment shall be 

19 made in amounts subsequently transferred to the extent 

20 prior estimates are in excess of or less than the amounts 

21 required to be transferred. 

22 SEC. 447. TERMINATION. 

23 On September 30, 2050— 

24 (1) the Fund shall terminate; and 


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1 (2) the unexpended and unobligated balance of 

2 the Fund shall be transferred to the reclamation 

3 fund established by the first section of the Act of 

4 June 17, 1902 (32 Stat. 388, chapter 1093). 

Æ 


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