I 

111TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 925 

To amend the Colorado River Storage Project Act and Public Law 87– 

483 to authorize the construction and rehabilitation of water infrastructure in Northwestern New Mexico, to authorize the use of the reclamation 

fund to fund the Reclamation Water Settlements Fund, to authorize 

the conveyance of certain Reclamation land and infrastructure, to authorize the Commissioner of Reclamation to provide for the delivery of 

water, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

FEBRUARY 9, 2009 

Mr. LUJA ́N introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 

on Natural Resources 

A BILL 

To amend the Colorado River Storage Project Act and Public 

Law 87–483 to authorize the construction and rehabilitation of water infrastructure in Northwestern New Mexico, to authorize the use of the reclamation fund to 

fund the Reclamation Water Settlements Fund, to authorize the conveyance of certain Reclamation land and 

infrastructure, to authorize the Commissioner of Reclamation to provide for the delivery of water, and for 

other purposes. 

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


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

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

3 ‘‘Northwestern New Mexico Rural Water Projects Act’’. 

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

5 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Definitions. 

Sec. 3. Compliance with environmental laws. 

Sec. 4. No reallocation of costs. 

Sec. 5. Interest rate. 

TITLE I—AMENDMENTS TO THE COLORADO RIVER STORAGE 

PROJECT ACT AND PUBLIC LAW 87–483 

Sec. 101. Amendments to the Colorado River Storage Project Act. 

Sec. 102. Amendments to Public Law 87–483. 

Sec. 103. Effect on Federal water law. 

TITLE II—RECLAMATION WATER SETTLEMENTS FUND 

Sec. 201. Reclamation Water Settlements Fund. 

TITLE III—NAVAJO-GALLUP WATER SUPPLY PROJECT 

Sec. 301. Purposes. 

Sec. 302. Authorization of Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project. 

Sec. 303. Delivery and use of Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project water. 

Sec. 304. Project contracts. 

Sec. 305. Navajo Nation Municipal Pipeline. 

Sec. 306. Authorization of conjunctive use wells. 

Sec. 307. San Juan River Navajo Irrigation Projects. 

Sec. 308. Other irrigation projects. 

Sec. 309. Authorization of appropriations. 

TITLE IV—NAVAJO NATION WATER RIGHTS 

Sec. 401. Agreement. 

Sec. 402. Trust Fund. 

Sec. 403. Waivers and releases. 

Sec. 404. Water rights held in trust. 

6 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

7 In this Act: 

8 (1) AAMODT ADJUDICATION.—The term 

9 ‘‘Aamodt adjudication’’ means the general stream 

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1 titled ‘‘State of New Mexico, ex rel. State Engineer 

2 and United States of America, Pueblo de Nambe, 

3 Pueblo de Pojoaque, Pueblo de San Ildefonso, and 

4 Pueblo de Tesuque v. R. Lee Aamodt, et al.’’, No. 

5 66 CV 6639 MV/LCS (D.N.M.). 

6 (2) ABEYTA ADJUDICATION.—The term 

7 ‘‘Abeyta adjudication’’ means the general stream ad8 judication that is the subject of the civil actions enti9 tled ‘‘State of New Mexico v. Abeyta and State of 

10 New Mexico v. Arrellano’’, Civil Nos. 7896–BB 

11 (D.N.M.) and 7939–BB (D.N.M.) (consolidated). 

12 (3) ACRE-FEET.—The term ‘‘acre-feet’’ means 

13 acre-feet per year. 

14 (4) AGREEMENT.—The term ‘‘Agreement’’ 

15 means the agreement among the State of New Mex16 ico, the Nation, and the United States setting forth 

17 a stipulated and binding agreement signed by the 

18 State of New Mexico and the Nation on April 19, 

19 2005. 

20 (5) ALLOTTEE.—The ‘‘allottee’’ means a person 

21 that holds a beneficial real property interest in a 

22 Navajo allotment that— 

23 (A) is located within the Navajo Reserva24 tion or the State of New Mexico; 


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1 (B) is held in trust by the United States; 

2 and 

3 (C) was originally granted to an individual 

4 member of the Nation by public land order or 

5 otherwise. 

6 (6) ANIMAS-LA PLATA PROJECT.—The term 

7 ‘‘Animas-La Plata Project’’ has the meaning given 

8 the term in section 3 of Public Law 100–585 (102 

9 Stat. 2973), including Ridges Basin Dam, Lake 

10 Nighthorse, the Navajo Nation Municipal Pipeline, 

11 and any other features or modifications made pursu12 ant to the Colorado Ute Settlement Act Amend13 ments of 2000 (Public Law 106–554; 114 Stat. 

14 2763A–258). 

15 (7) CITY.—The term ‘‘City’’ means the city of 

16 Gallup, New Mexico, or a designee of the City, with 

17 authority to provide water to the Gallup, New Mex18 ico service area. 

19 (8) COMPACT.—The term ‘‘Compact’’ means 

20 the Upper Colorado River Basin Compact as con21 sented to by the Act of April 6, 1949 (63 Stat. 31, 

22 chapter 48). 

23 (9) CONTRACT.—The term ‘‘Contract’’ means 

24 the contract between the United States and the Na25 tion setting forth certain commitments, rights, and 


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1 obligations of the United States and the Nation, as 

2 described in paragraph 6.0 of the Agreement. 

3 (10) DEPLETION.—The term ‘‘depletion’’ 

4 means the depletion of the flow of the San Juan 

5 River stream system in the State of New Mexico by 

6 a particular use of water (including any depletion in7 cident to the use) and represents the diversion from 

8 the stream system by the use, less return flows to 

9 the stream system from the use. 

10 (11) DRAFT IMPACT STATEMENT.—The term 

11 ‘‘Draft Impact Statement’’ means the draft environ12 mental impact statement prepared by the Bureau of 

13 Reclamation for the Project dated March 2007. 

14 (12) FUND.—The term ‘‘Fund’’ means the Rec15 lamation Waters Settlements Fund established by 

16 section 201(a). 

17 (13) HYDROLOGIC DETERMINATION.—The term 

18 ‘‘hydrologic determination’’ means the hydrologic de19 termination entitled ‘‘Water Availability from Nav20 ajo Reservoir and the Upper Colorado River Basin 

21 for Use in New Mexico’’, prepared by the Bureau of 

22 Reclamation pursuant to section 11 of the Act of 

23 June 13, 1962 (Public Law 87–483; 76 Stat. 99), 

24 and dated May 23, 2007. 


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1 (14) NATION.—The term ‘‘Nation’’ means the 

2 Navajo Nation, a body politic and federally recog3 nized Indian nation as provided for in section 101(2) 

4 of the Federally Recognized Indian Tribe List of 

5 1994 (25 U.S.C. 497a(2)), also known variously as 

6 the ‘‘Navajo Tribe’’, the ‘‘Navajo Tribe of Arizona, 

7 New Mexico & Utah’’, and the ‘‘Navajo Tribe of In8 dians’’ and other similar names, and includes all 

9 bands of Navajo Indians and chapters of the Navajo 

10 Nation. 

11 (15) NAVAJO-GALLUP WATER SUPPLY PROJECT; 

12 PROJECT.—The term ‘‘Navajo-Gallup Water Supply 

13 Project’’ or ‘‘Project’’ means the Navajo-Gallup 

14 Water Supply Project authorized under section 

15 302(a), as described as the preferred alternative in 

16 the Draft Impact Statement. 

17 (16) NAVAJO INDIAN IRRIGATION PROJECT.— 

18 The term ‘‘Navajo Indian Irrigation Project’’ means 

19 the Navajo Indian irrigation project authorized by 

20 section 2 of Public Law 87–483 (76 Stat. 96). 

21 (17) NAVAJO RESERVOIR.—The term ‘‘Navajo 

22 Reservoir’’ means the reservoir created by the im23 poundment of the San Juan River at Navajo Dam, 

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1 monly known as the ‘‘Colorado River Storage 

2 Project Act’’) (43 U.S.C. 620 et seq.). 

3 (18) NAVAJO NATION MUNICIPAL PIPELINE; 

4 PIPELINE.—The term ‘‘Navajo Nation Municipal 

5 Pipeline’’ or ‘‘Pipeline’’ means the pipeline used to 

6 convey the water of the Animas-La Plata Project of 

7 the Navajo Nation from the City of Farmington, 

8 New Mexico, to communities of the Navajo Nation 

9 located in close proximity to the San Juan River 

10 Valley in the State of New Mexico (including the 

11 City of Shiprock), as authorized by section 15(b) of 

12 the Colorado Ute Indian Water Rights Settlement 

13 Act of 1988 (Public Law 100–585; 102 Stat. 2973; 

14 114 Stat. 2763A–263). 

15 (19) NON-NAVAJO IRRIGATION DISTRICTS.— 

16 The term ‘‘Non-Navajo Irrigation Districts’’ 

17 means— 

18 (A) the Hammond Conservancy District; 

19 (B) the Bloomfield Irrigation District; and 

20 (C) any other community ditch organiza21 tion in the San Juan River basin in the State 

22 of New Mexico. 

23 (20) PARTIAL FINAL DECREE.—The term ‘‘Par24 tial Final Decree’’ means a final and binding judge25 ment and decree entered by a court in the stream 


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1 adjudication, setting forth the rights of the Nation 

2 to use and administer waters of the San Juan River 

3 Basin in New Mexico, as set forth in appendix 1 of 

4 the Agreement. 

5 (21) PROJECT PARTICIPANTS.—The term 

6 ‘‘Project Participants’’ means the City, the Nation, 

7 and the Jicarilla Apache Nation. 

8 (22) SAN JUAN RIVER BASIN RECOVERY IMPLE9 MENTATION PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘San Juan River 

10 Basin Recovery Implementation Program’’ means 

11 the intergovernmental program established pursuant 

12 to the cooperative agreement dated October 21, 

13 1992 (including any amendments to the program). 

14 (23) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ 

15 means the Secretary of the Interior, acting through 

16 the Commissioner of Reclamation or any other des17 ignee. 

18 (24) STREAM ADJUDICATION.—The term 

19 ‘‘stream adjudication’’ means the general stream ad20 judication that is the subject of New Mexico v. 

21 United States, et al., No. 75–185 (11th Jud. Dist., 

22 San Juan County, New Mexico) (involving claims to 

23 waters of the San Juan River and the tributaries of 

24 that river). 


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1 (25) SUPPLEMENTAL PARTIAL FINAL DE2 CREE.—The term ‘‘Supplemental Partial Final De3 cree’’ means a final and binding judgement and de4 cree entered by a court in the stream adjudication, 

5 setting forth certain water rights of the Nation, as 

6 set forth in appendix 2 of the Agreement. 

7 (26) TRUST FUND.—The term ‘‘Trust Fund’’ 

8 means the Navajo Nation Water Resources Develop9 ment Trust Fund established by section 402(a). 

10 SEC. 3. COMPLIANCE WITH ENVIRONMENTAL LAWS. 

11 (a) EFFECT OF EXECUTION OF AGREEMENT.—The 

12 execution of the Agreement under section 401(a)(2) shall 

13 not constitute a major Federal action under the National 

14 Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et 

15 seq.). 

16 (b) COMPLIANCE WITH ENVIRONMENTAL LAWS.—In 

17 carrying out this Act, the Secretary shall comply with each 

18 law of the Federal Government relating to the protection 

19 of the environment, including— 

20 (1) the National Environmental Policy Act of 

21 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.); and 

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

23 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). 


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1 SEC. 4. NO REALLOCATION OF COSTS. 

2 (a) EFFECT OF ACT.—Notwithstanding any other 

3 provision of law, the Secretary shall not reallocate or reas4 sign any costs of projects that have been authorized under 

5 the Act of April 11, 1956 (commonly known as the ‘‘Colo6 rado River Storage Project Act’’) (43 U.S.C. 620 et seq.), 

7 as of the date of enactment of this Act because of— 

8 (1) the authorization of the Navajo-Gallup 

9 Water Supply Project under this Act; or 

10 (2) the changes in the uses of the water di11 verted by the Navajo Indian Irrigation Project or 

12 the waters stored in the Navajo Reservoir authorized 

13 under this Act. 

14 (b) USE OF POWER REVENUES.—Notwithstanding 

15 any other provision of law, no power revenues under the 

16 Act of April 11, 1956 (commonly known as the ‘‘Colorado 

17 River Storage Project Act’’) (43 U.S.C. 620 et seq.), shall 

18 be used to pay or reimburse any costs of the Navajo In19 dian Irrigation Project or Navajo-Gallup Water Supply 

20 Project. 

21 SEC. 5. INTEREST RATE. 

22 Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the inter23 est rate applicable to any repayment contract entered into 

24 under section 304 shall be equal to the discount rate for 

25 Federal water resources planning, as determined by the 

26 Secretary. 


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1 TITLE I—AMENDMENTS TO THE 

2 COLORADO RIVER STORAGE 

3 PROJECT ACT AND PUBLIC 

4 LAW 87–483 

5 SEC. 101. AMENDMENTS TO THE COLORADO RIVER STOR6 AGE PROJECT ACT. 

7 (a) PARTICIPATING PROJECTS.—Paragraph (2) of 

8 the first section of the Act of April 11, 1956 (commonly 

9 known as the ‘‘Colorado River Storage Project Act’’) (43 

10 U.S.C. 620(2)) is amended by inserting ‘‘the Navajo-Gal11 lup Water Supply Project,’’ after ‘‘Fruitland Mesa,’’. 

12 (b) NAVAJO RESERVOIR WATER BANK.—The Act of 

13 April 11, 1956 (commonly known as the ‘‘Colorado River 

14 Storage Project Act’’) is amended— 

15 (1) by redesignating section 16 (43 U.S.C. 

16 620o) as section 17; and 

17 (2) by inserting after section 15 (43 U.S.C. 

18 620n) the following: 

19 ‘‘SEC. 16. (a) The Secretary of the Interior may cre20 ate and operate within the available capacity of Navajo 

21 Reservoir a top water bank. 

22 ‘‘(b) Water made available for the top water bank in 

23 accordance with subsections (c) and (d) shall not be sub24 ject to section 11 of Public Law 87–483 (76 Stat. 99). 


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1 ‘‘(c) The top water bank authorized under subsection 

2 (a) shall be operated in a manner that— 

3 ‘‘(1) is consistent with applicable law, except 

4 that, notwithstanding any other provision of law, 

5 water for purposes other than irrigation may be 

6 stored in the Navajo Reservoir pursuant to the rules 

7 governing the top water bank established under this 

8 section; and 

9 ‘‘(2) does not impair the ability of the Secretary 

10 of the Interior to deliver water under contracts en11 tered into under— 

12 ‘‘(A) Public Law 87–483 (76 Stat. 96); 

13 and 

14 ‘‘(B) New Mexico State Engineer File Nos. 

15 2847, 2848, 2849, and 2917. 

16 ‘‘(d)(1) The Secretary of the Interior, in cooperation 

17 with the State of New Mexico (acting through the Inter18 state Stream Commission), shall develop any terms and 

19 procedures for the storage, accounting, and release of 

20 water in the top water bank that are necessary to comply 

21 with subsection (c). 

22 ‘‘(2) The terms and procedures developed under para23 graph (1) shall include provisions requiring that— 

24 ‘‘(A) the storage of banked water shall be sub25 ject to approval under State law by the New Mexico 


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1 State Engineer to ensure that impairment of any ex2 isting water right does not occur, including storage 

3 of water under New Mexico State Engineer File No. 

4 2849; 

5 ‘‘(B) water in the top water bank be subject to 

6 evaporation and other losses during storage; 

7 ‘‘(C) water in the top water bank be released 

8 for delivery to the owner or assigns of the banked 

9 water on request of the owner, subject to reasonable 

10 scheduling requirements for making the release; 

11 ‘‘(D) water in the top water bank be the first 

12 water spilled or released for flood control purposes 

13 in anticipation of a spill, on the condition that top 

14 water bank water shall not be released or included 

15 for purposes of calculating whether a release should 

16 occur for purposes of satisfying the flow rec17 ommendations of the San Juan River Basin Recov18 ery Implementation Program; and 

19 ‘‘(E) water eligible for banking in the top water 

20 bank shall be water that otherwise would have been 

21 diverted and beneficially used in New Mexico that 

22 year. 

23 ‘‘(e) The Secretary of the Interior may charge fees 

24 to water users that use the top water bank in amounts 


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1 sufficient to cover the costs incurred by the United States 

2 in administering the water bank.’’. 

3 SEC. 102. AMENDMENTS TO PUBLIC LAW 87–483. 

4 (a) NAVAJO INDIAN IRRIGATION PROJECT.—Public 

5 Law 87–483 (76 Stat. 96) is amended by striking section 

6 2 and inserting the following: 

7 ‘‘SEC. 2. (a) In accordance with the Act of April 11, 

8 1956 (commonly known as the ‘Colorado River Storage 

9 Project Act’) (43 U.S.C. 620 et seq.), the Secretary of 

10 the Interior is authorized to construct, operate, and main11 tain the Navajo Indian Irrigation Project to provide irriga12 tion water to a service area of not more than 110,630 

13 acres of land. 

14 ‘‘(b)(1) Subject to paragraph (2), the average annual 

15 diversion by the Navajo Indian Irrigation Project from the 

16 Navajo Reservoir over any consecutive 10-year period shall 

17 be the lesser of— 

18 ‘‘(A) 508,000 acre-feet per year; or 

19 ‘‘(B) the quantity of water necessary to supply 

20 an average depletion of 270,000 acre-feet per year. 

21 ‘‘(2) The quantity of water diverted for any 1 year 

22 shall not exceed the average annual diversion determined 

23 under paragraph (1) by more than 15 percent. 

24 ‘‘(c) In addition to being used for irrigation, the 

25 water diverted by the Navajo Indian Irrigation Project 


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1 under subsection (b) may be used within the area served 

2 by Navajo Indian Irrigation Project facilities for the fol3 lowing purposes: 

4 ‘‘(1) Aquaculture purposes, including the 

5 rearing of fish in support of the San Juan River 

6 Basin Recovery Implementation Program authorized 

7 by Public Law 106–392 (114 Stat. 1602). 

8 ‘‘(2) Domestic, industrial, or commercial pur9 poses relating to agricultural production and proc10 essing. 

11 ‘‘(3)(A) The generation of hydroelectric power 

12 as an incident to the diversion of water by the Nav13 ajo Indian Irrigation Project for authorized pur14 poses. 

15 ‘‘(B) Notwithstanding any other provision of 

16 law— 

17 ‘‘(i) any hydroelectric power generated 

18 under this paragraph shall be used or marketed 

19 by the Navajo Nation; 

20 ‘‘(ii) the Navajo Nation shall retain any 

21 revenues from the sale of the hydroelectric 

22 power; and 

23 ‘‘(iii) the United States shall have no trust 

24 obligation to monitor, administer, or account 


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1 for the revenues received by the Navajo Nation, 

2 or the expenditure of the revenues. 

3 ‘‘(4) The implementation of the alternate water 

4 source provisions described in subparagraph 9.2 of 

5 the agreement executed under section 401(a)(2) of 

6 the Northwestern New Mexico Rural Water Projects 

7 Act. 

8 ‘‘(d) The Navajo Indian Irrigation Project water di9 verted under subsection (b) may be transferred to areas 

10 located within or outside the area served by Navajo Indian 

11 Irrigation Project facilities, and within or outside the 

12 boundaries of the Navajo Nation, for any beneficial use 

13 in accordance with— 

14 ‘‘(1) the agreement executed under section 

15 401(a)(2) of the Northwestern New Mexico Rural 

16 Water Projects Act; 

17 ‘‘(2) the contract executed under section 

18 304(a)(2)(B) of that Act; and 

19 ‘‘(3) any other applicable law. 

20 ‘‘(e) The Secretary may use the capacity of the Nav21 ajo Indian Irrigation Project works to convey water sup22 plies for— 

23 ‘‘(1) the Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project 

24 under section 302 of the Northwestern New Mexico 

25 Rural Water Projects Act; or 


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1 ‘‘(2) other nonirrigation purposes authorized 

2 under subsection (c) or (d). 

3 ‘‘(f)(1) Repayment of the costs of construction of the 

4 project (as authorized in subsection (a)) shall be in accord5 ance with the Act of April 11, 1956 (commonly known 

6 as the ‘Colorado River Storage Project Act’) (43 U.S.C. 

7 620 et seq.), including section 4(d) of that Act. 

8 ‘‘(2) The Secretary shall not reallocate, or require re9 payment of, construction costs of the Navajo Indian Irri10 gation Project because of the conveyance of water supplies 

11 for nonirrigation purposes under subsection (e).’’. 

12 (b) RUNOFF ABOVE NAVAJO DAM.—Section 11 of 

13 Public Law 87–483 (76 Stat. 100) is amended by adding 

14 at the end the following: 

15 ‘‘(d)(1) For purposes of implementing in a year of 

16 prospective shortage the water allocation procedures es17 tablished by subsection (a), the Secretary of the Interior 

18 shall determine the quantity of any shortages and the ap19 propriate apportionment of water using the normal diver20 sion requirements on the flow of the San Juan River origi21 nating above Navajo Dam based on the following criteria: 

22 ‘‘(A) The quantity of diversion or water delivery 

23 for the current year anticipated to be necessary to 

24 irrigate land in accordance with cropping plans pre25 pared by contractors. 


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1 ‘‘(B) The annual diversion or water delivery de2 mands for the current year anticipated for non-irri3 gation uses under water delivery contracts, including 

4 contracts authorized by the Northwestern New Mex5 ico Rural Water Projects Act, but excluding any cur6 rent demand for surface water for placement into 

7 aquifer storage for future recovery and use. 

8 ‘‘(C) An annual normal diversion demand of 

9 135,000 acre-feet for the initial stage of the San 

10 Juan-Chama Project authorized by section 8. 

11 ‘‘(2) The Secretary shall not include in the normal 

12 diversion requirements— 

13 ‘‘(A) the quantity of water that reliably can be 

14 anticipated to be diverted or delivered under a con15 tract from inflows to the San Juan River arising 

16 below Navajo Dam under New Mexico State Engi17 neer File No. 3215; or 

18 ‘‘(B) the quantity of water anticipated to be 

19 supplied through reuse. 

20 ‘‘(e)(1) If the Secretary determines that there is a 

21 shortage of water under subsection (a), the Secretary shall 

22 respond to the shortage in the Navajo Reservoir water 

23 supply by curtailing releases and deliveries in the following 

24 order: 


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1 ‘‘(A) The demand for delivery for uses in the 

2 State of Arizona under the Navajo-Gallup Water 

3 Supply Project authorized by section 303 of the 

4 Northwestern New Mexico Rural Water Projects 

5 Act, excluding the quantity of water anticipated to 

6 be diverted for the uses from inflows to the San 

7 Juan River that arise below Navajo Dam in accord8 ance with New Mexico State Engineer File No. 

9 3215. 

10 ‘‘(B) The demand for delivery for uses allocated 

11 under paragraph 8.2 of the agreement executed 

12 under section 401(a)(2) of the Northwestern New 

13 Mexico Rural Water Projects Act, excluding the 

14 quantity of water anticipated to be diverted for such 

15 uses under State Engineer File No. 3215. 

16 ‘‘(C) The uses in the State of New Mexico that 

17 are determined under subsection (d), in accordance 

18 with the procedure for apportioning the water supply 

19 under subsection (a). 

20 ‘‘(2) For any year for which the Secretary determines 

21 and responds to a shortage in the Navajo Reservoir water 

22 supply, the Secretary shall not deliver, and contractors of 

23 the water supply shall not divert, any of the water supply 

24 for placement into aquifer storage for future recovery and 

25 use. 


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1 ‘‘(3) To determine the occurrence and amount of any 

2 shortage to contracts entered into under this section, the 

3 Secretary shall not include as available storage any water 

4 stored in a top water bank in Navajo Reservoir established 

5 under section 16(a) of the Act of April 11, 1956 (com6 monly known as the ‘Colorado River Storage Project Act’). 

7 ‘‘(f) The Secretary of the Interior shall apportion 

8 water under subsections (a), (d), and (e) on an annual 

9 volume basis. 

10 ‘‘(g) The Secretary of the Interior may revise a deter11 mination of shortages, apportionments, or allocations of 

12 water under subsections (a), (d), and (e) on the basis of 

13 information relating to water supply conditions that was 

14 not available at the time at which the determination was 

15 made. 

16 ‘‘(h) Nothing in this section prohibits the distribution 

17 of water in accordance with cooperative water agreements 

18 between water users providing for a sharing of water sup19 plies. 

20 ‘‘(i) Diversions under New Mexico State Engineer 

21 File No. 3215 shall be distributed, to the maximum extent 

22 water is available, in proportionate amounts to the diver23 sion demands of contractors and subcontractors of the 

24 Navajo Reservoir water supply that are diverting water 

25 below Navajo Dam.’’. 


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1 SEC. 103. EFFECT ON FEDERAL WATER LAW. 

2 Unless expressly provided in this Act, nothing in this 

3 Act modifies, conflicts with, preempts, or otherwise af4 fects— 

5 (1) the Boulder Canyon Project Act (43 U.S.C. 

6 617 et seq.); 

7 (2) the Boulder Canyon Project Adjustment Act 

8 (54 Stat. 774, chapter 643); 

9 (3) the Act of April 11, 1956 (commonly known 

10 as the ‘‘Colorado River Storage Project Act’’) (43 

11 U.S.C. 620 et seq.); 

12 (4) the Act of September 30, 1968 (commonly 

13 known as the ‘‘Colorado River Basin Project Act’’) 

14 (82 Stat. 885); 

15 (5) Public Law 87–483 (76 Stat. 96); 

16 (6) the Treaty between the United States of 

17 America and Mexico representing utilization of wa18 ters of the Colorado and Tijuana Rivers and of the 

19 Rio Grande, signed at Washington February 3, 1944 

20 (59 Stat. 1219); 

21 (7) the Colorado River Compact of 1922, as ap22 proved by the Presidential Proclamation of June 25, 

23 1929 (46 Stat. 3000); 

24 (8) the Compact; 

25 (9) the Act of April 6, 1949 (63 Stat. 31, chap26 ter 48); 


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1 (10) the Jicarilla Apache Tribe Water Rights 

2 Settlement Act (106 Stat. 2237); or 

3 (11) section 205 of the Energy and Water De4 velopment Appropriations Act, 2005 (118 Stat. 

5 2949). 

6 TITLE II—RECLAMATION WATER 

7 SETTLEMENTS FUND 

8 SEC. 201. RECLAMATION WATER SETTLEMENTS FUND. 

9 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the 

10 Treasury of the United States a fund, to be known as the 

11 ‘‘Reclamation Water Settlements Fund’’, consisting of— 

12 (1) such amounts as are deposited to the Fund 

13 under subsection (b); and 

14 (2) any interest earned on investment of 

15 amounts in the Fund under subsection (d). 

16 (b) DEPOSITS TO FUND.— 

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—For each of fiscal years 

18 2009 through 2023, the Secretary of the Treasury 

19 shall deposit in the Fund, if available, $120,000,000 

20 of the revenues that would otherwise be deposited 

21 for the fiscal year in the fund established by the 

22 first section of the Act of June 17, 1902 (32 Stat. 

23 388, chapter 1093). 


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1 (2) AVAILABILITY OF AMOUNTS.—Amounts de2 posited in the Fund under paragraph (1) shall be 

3 made available pursuant to this section— 

4 (A) without further appropriation; and 

5 (B) in addition to amounts appropriated 

6 pursuant to any authorization contained in any 

7 other provision of law. 

8 (c) EXPENDITURES FROM FUND.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.— 

10 (A) EXPENDITURES.—Subject to subpara11 graph (B), for each of fiscal years 2009 

12 through 2028, the Secretary may expend from 

13 the Fund an amount not to exceed 

14 $120,000,000, plus the interest accrued in the 

15 Fund, for the fiscal year in which expenditures 

16 are made pursuant to paragraphs (2) and (3). 

17 (B) ADDITIONAL EXPENDITURES.—The 

18 Secretary may expend more than $120,000,000 

19 for any fiscal year if such amounts are available 

20 in the Fund due to expenditures not reaching 

21 $120,000,000 for prior fiscal years. 

22 (2) AUTHORITY.—The Secretary may expend 

23 money from the Fund to implement a settlement 

24 agreement approved by Congress that resolves, in 

25 whole or in part, litigation involving the United 


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1 States, if the settlement agreement or implementing 

2 legislation requires the Bureau of Reclamation to 

3 provide financial assistance for, or plan, design, and 

4 construct— 

5 (A) water supply infrastructure; or 

6 (B) a project— 

7 (i) to rehabilitate a water delivery sys8 tem to conserve water; or 

9 (ii) to restore fish and wildlife habitat 

10 or otherwise improve environmental condi11 tions associated with or affected by, or lo12 cated within the same river basin as, a 

13 Federal reclamation project that is in ex14 istence on the date of enactment of this 

15 Act. 

16 (3) USE FOR COMPLETION OF PROJECT AND

17 OTHER SETTLEMENTS.— 

18 (A) PRIORITIES.— 

19 (i) FIRST PRIORITY.— 

20 (I) IN GENERAL.—The first pri21 ority for expenditure of amounts in 

22 the Fund during the entire period in 

23 which the Fund is in existence shall 

24 be for the purposes described in, and 


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1 in the order of, clauses (i) through 

2 (iv) of subparagraph (B). 

3 (II) RESERVED AMOUNTS.—The 

4 Secretary shall reserve amounts de5 posited into the Fund in accordance 

6 with subclause (I). 

7 (ii) OTHER PURPOSES.—Any amounts 

8 in the Fund that are not needed for the 

9 purposes described in subparagraph (B) 

10 may be used for other purposes authorized 

11 in paragraph (2). 

12 (B) COMPLETION OF PROJECT.— 

13 (i) NAVAJO-GALLUP WATER SUPPLY

14 PROJECT.— 

15 (I) IN GENERAL.—Subject to 

16 subclause (II), effective beginning 

17 January 1, 2009, if, in the judgment 

18 of the Secretary on an annual basis 

19 the deadline described in section 

20 401(f)(1)(A)(ix) is unlikely to be met 

21 because a sufficient amount of fund22 ing is not otherwise available through 

23 appropriations made available pursu24 ant to section 309(a), the Secretary 

25 shall expend from the Fund such 


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1 amounts on an annual basis con2 sistent with paragraphs (1) and (2), 

3 as are necessary to pay the Federal 

4 share of the costs, and substantially 

5 complete as expeditiously as prac6 ticable, the construction of the water 

7 supply infrastructure authorized as 

8 part of the Project. 

9 (II) MAXIMUM AMOUNT.— 

10 (aa) IN GENERAL.—Except 

11 as provided under item (bb), the 

12 amount expended under sub13 clause (I) shall not exceed 

14 $500,000,000 for the period of 

15 fiscal years 2009 through 2018. 

16 (bb) EXCEPTION.—The limi17 tation on the expenditure amount 

18 under item (aa) may be exceeded 

19 during the entire period in which 

20 the Fund is in existence. 

21 (ii) OTHER NEW MEXICO SETTLE22 MENTS.— 

23 (I) IN GENERAL.—Subject to 

24 subclause (II), effective beginning 

25 January 1, 2009, in addition to the 


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1 funding made available under clause 

2 (i), if in the judgment of the Sec3 retary on an annual basis a sufficient 

4 amount of funding is not otherwise 

5 available through annual appropria6 tions, the Secretary shall expend from 

7 the Fund such amounts on an annual 

8 basis consistent with paragraphs (1) 

9 and (2), as are necessary to pay the 

10 Federal share of the costs of imple11 menting the Indian water rights set12 tlement agreements entered into by 

13 the State of New Mexico in the 

14 Aamodt adjudication and the Abeyta 

15 adjudication, if such settlements are 

16 subsequently approved and authorized 

17 by an Act of Congress. 

18 (II) MAXIMUM AMOUNT.—The 

19 amount expended under subclause (I) 

20 shall not exceed $250,000,000. 

21 (iii) MONTANA SETTLEMENTS.— 

22 (I) IN GENERAL.—Subject to 

23 subclause (II), effective beginning 

24 January 1, 2009, in addition to fund25 ing made available pursuant to 


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1 clauses (i) and (ii), if in the judgment 

2 of the Secretary on an annual basis a 

3 sufficient amount of funding is not 

4 otherwise available through annual 

5 appropriations, the Secretary shall ex6 pend from the Fund such amounts on 

7 an annual basis consistent with para8 graphs (1) and (2), as are necessary 

9 to pay the Federal share of the costs 

10 of implementing Indian water rights 

11 settlement agreements entered into by 

12 the State of Montana with the Black13 feet Tribe, the Crow Tribe, or the 

14 Gros Ventre and Assiniboine Tribes of 

15 the Fort Belknap Indian Reservation 

16 in the judicial proceeding entitled ‘‘In 

17 re the General Adjudication of All the 

18 Rights to Use Surface and Ground19 water in the State of Montana’’, if a 

20 settlement or settlements are subse21 quently approved and authorized by 

22 an Act of Congress. 

23 (II) MAXIMUM AMOUNT.— 

24 (aa) IN GENERAL.—Except 

25 as provided under item (bb), the 


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1 amount expended under sub2 clause (I) shall not exceed 

3 $350,000,000 for the period of 

4 fiscal years 2009 through 2018. 

5 (bb) EXCEPTION.—The limi6 tation on the expenditure amount 

7 under item (aa) may be exceeded 

8 during the entire period in which 

9 the Fund is in existence. 

10 (cc) OTHER FUNDING.—The 

11 Secretary shall ensure that any 

12 such funding shall be provided in 

13 a manner that does not limit the 

14 funding available pursuant to 

15 clauses (i) and (ii). 

16 (iv) ARIZONA SETTLEMENT.— 

17 (I) IN GENERAL.—Subject to 

18 subclause (II), effective beginning 

19 January 1, 2009, in addition to fund20 ing made available pursuant to 

21 clauses (i), (ii), and (iii), if in the 

22 judgment of the Secretary on an an23 nual basis a sufficient amount of 

24 funding is not otherwise available 

25 through annual appropriations, the 


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1 Secretary shall expend from the Fund 

2 such amounts on an annual basis con3 sistent with paragraphs (1) and (2), 

4 as are necessary to pay the Federal 

5 share of the costs of implementing an 

6 Indian water rights settlement agree7 ment entered into by the State of Ari8 zona with the Navajo Nation to re9 solve the water rights claims of the 

10 Nation in the Lower Colorado River 

11 basin in Arizona, if a settlement is 

12 subsequently approved and authorized 

13 by an Act of Congress. 

14 (II) MAXIMUM AMOUNT.— 

15 (aa) IN GENERAL.—Except 

16 as provided under item (bb), the 

17 amount expended under sub18 clause (I) shall not exceed 

19 $100,000,000 for the period of 

20 fiscal years 2009 through 2018. 

21 (bb) EXCEPTION.—The limi22 tation on the expenditure amount 

23 under item (aa) may be exceeded 

24 during the entire period in which 

25 the Fund is in existence. 


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1 (cc) OTHER FUNDING.—The 

2 Secretary shall ensure that any 

3 such funding shall be provided in 

4 a manner that does not limit the 

5 funding available pursuant to 

6 clauses (i) and (ii). 

7 (C) REVERSION.—If the settlements de8 scribed in clauses (ii) through (iv) of subpara9 graph (B) have not been approved and author10 ized by an Act of Congress by December 31, 

11 2014, the amounts reserved for the settlements 

12 shall no longer be reserved by the Secretary 

13 pursuant to subparagraph (A)(i) and shall re14 vert to the Fund for any authorized use, as de15 termined by the Secretary. 

16 (d) INVESTMENT OF AMOUNTS.— 

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall invest 

18 such portion of the Fund as is not, in the judgment 

19 of the Secretary, required to meet current with20 drawals. 

21 (2) CREDITS TO FUND.—The interest on, and 

22 the proceeds from the sale or redemption of, any ob23 ligations held in the Fund shall be credited to, and 

24 form a part of, the Fund. 

25 (e) TRANSFERS OF AMOUNTS.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The amounts required to be 

2 transferred to the Fund under this section shall be 

3 transferred at least monthly from the general fund 

4 of the Treasury to the Fund on the basis of esti5 mates made by the Secretary of the Treasury. 

6 (2) ADJUSTMENTS.—Proper adjustment shall 

7 be made in amounts subsequently transferred to the 

8 extent prior estimates were in excess of or less than 

9 the amounts required to be transferred. 

10 (f) TERMINATION.—On September 30, 2028— 

11 (1) the Fund shall terminate; and 

12 (2) the unexpended and unobligated balance of 

13 the Fund shall be transferred to the appropriate 

14 fund of the Treasury. 

15 TITLE III—NAVAJO-GALLUP 

16 WATER SUPPLY PROJECT 

17 SEC. 301. PURPOSES. 

18 The purposes of this subtitle are— 

19 (1) to authorize the Secretary to construct, op20 erate, and maintain the Navajo-Gallup Water Supply 

21 Project; 

22 (2) to allocate the capacity of the Project 

23 among the Nation, the City, and the Jicarilla 

24 Apache Nation; and 


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1 (3) to authorize the Secretary to enter into 

2 Project repayment contracts with the City and the 

3 Jicarilla Apache Nation. 

4 SEC. 302. AUTHORIZATION OF NAVAJO-GALLUP WATER 

5 SUPPLY PROJECT. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, acting through the 

7 Commissioner of Reclamation, is authorized to design, 

8 construct, operate, and maintain the Project in substantial 

9 accordance with the preferred alternative in the Draft Im10 pact Statement. 

11 (b) PROJECT FACILITIES.—To provide for the deliv12 ery of San Juan River water to Project Participants, the 

13 Secretary may construct, operate, and maintain the 

14 Project facilities described in the preferred alternative in 

15 the Draft Impact Statement, including: 

16 (1) A pumping plant on the San Juan River in 

17 the vicinity of Kirtland, New Mexico. 

18 (2)(A) A main pipeline from the San Juan 

19 River near Kirtland, New Mexico, to Shiprock, New 

20 Mexico, and Gallup, New Mexico, which follows 

21 United States Highway 491. 

22 (B) Any pumping plants associated with the 

23 pipeline authorized under subparagraph (A). 


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1 (3)(A) A main pipeline from Cutter Reservoir 

2 to Ojo Encino, New Mexico, which follows United 

3 States Highway 550. 

4 (B) Any pumping plants associated with the 

5 pipeline authorized under subparagraph (A). 

6 (4)(A) Lateral pipelines from the main pipelines 

7 to Nation communities in the States of New Mexico 

8 and Arizona. 

9 (B) Any pumping plants associated with the 

10 pipelines authorized under subparagraph (A). 

11 (5) Any water regulation, storage or treatment 

12 facility, service connection to an existing public 

13 water supply system, power substation, power dis14 tribution works, or other appurtenant works (includ15 ing a building or access road) that is related to the 

16 Project facilities authorized by paragraphs (1) 

17 through (4), including power transmission facilities 

18 and associated wheeling services to connect Project 

19 facilities to existing high-voltage transmission facili20 ties and deliver power to the Project. 

21 (c) ACQUISITION OF LAND.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary is authorized 

23 to acquire any land or interest in land that is nec24 essary to construct, operate, and maintain the 

25 Project facilities authorized under subsection (b). 


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1 (2) LAND OF THE PROJECT PARTICIPANTS.—As 

2 a condition of construction of the facilities author3 ized under this title, the Project Participants shall 

4 provide all land or interest in land, as appropriate, 

5 that the Secretary identifies as necessary for acquisi6 tion under this subsection at no cost to the Sec7 retary. 

8 (3) LIMITATION.—The Secretary may not con9 demn water rights for purposes of the Project. 

10 (d) CONDITIONS.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para12 graph (2), the Secretary shall not commence con13 struction of the facilities authorized under sub14 section (b) until such time as— 

15 (A) the Secretary executes the Agreement 

16 and the Contract; 

17 (B) the contracts authorized under section 

18 304 are executed; 

19 (C) the Secretary— 

20 (i) completes an environmental impact 

21 statement for the Project; and 

22 (ii) has issued a record of decision 

23 that provides for a preferred alternative; 

24 and 


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1 (D) the Secretary has entered into an 

2 agreement with the State of New Mexico under 

3 which the State of New Mexico will provide a 

4 share of the construction costs of the Project of 

5 not less than $50,000,000, except that the 

6 State of New Mexico shall receive credit for 

7 funds the State has contributed to construct 

8 water conveyance facilities to the Project Par9 ticipants to the extent that the facilities reduce 

10 the cost of the Project as estimated in the 

11 Draft Impact Statement. 

12 (2) EXCEPTION.—If the Jicarilla Apache Na13 tion elects not to enter into a contract pursuant to 

14 section 304, the Secretary, after consulting with the 

15 Nation, the City, and the State of New Mexico act16 ing through the Interstate Stream Commission, may 

17 make appropriate modifications to the scope of the 

18 Project and proceed with Project construction if all 

19 other conditions for construction have been satisfied. 

20 (3) EFFECT OF INDIAN SELF-DETERMINATION

21 AND EDUCATION ASSISTANCE ACT.—The Indian 

22 Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act 

23 (25 U.S.C. 450 et seq.) shall not apply to the de24 sign, construction, operation, maintenance, or re25 placement of the Project. 


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1 (e) POWER.—The Secretary shall reserve, from exist2 ing reservations of Colorado River Storage Project power 

3 for Bureau of Reclamation projects, up to 26 megawatts 

4 of power for use by the Project. 

5 (f) CONVEYANCE OF TITLE TO PROJECT FACILI6 TIES.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary is authorized 

8 to enter into separate agreements with the City and 

9 the Nation and, on entering into the agreements, 

10 shall convey title to each Project facility or section 

11 of a Project facility authorized under subsection (b) 

12 (including any appropriate interests in land) to the 

13 City and the Nation after— 

14 (A) completion of construction of a Project 

15 facility or a section of a Project facility that is 

16 operating and delivering water; and 

17 (B) execution of a Project operations 

18 agreement approved by the Secretary and the 

19 Project Participants that sets forth— 

20 (i) any terms and conditions that the 

21 Secretary determines are necessary— 

22 (I) to ensure the continuation of 

23 the intended benefits of the Project; 

24 and 


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1 (II) to fulfill the purposes of this 

2 subtitle; 

3 (ii) requirements acceptable to the 

4 Secretary and the Project Participants 

5 for— 

6 (I) the distribution of water 

7 under the Project or section of a 

8 Project facility; and 

9 (II) the allocation and payment 

10 of annual operation, maintenance, and 

11 replacement costs of the Project or 

12 section of a Project facility based on 

13 the proportionate uses of Project fa14 cilities; and 

15 (iii) conditions and requirements ac16 ceptable to the Secretary and the Project 

17 Participants for operating and maintaining 

18 each Project facility on completion of the 

19 conveyance of title, including the require20 ment that the City and the Nation shall— 

21 (I) comply with— 

22 (aa) the Compact; and 

23 (bb) other applicable law; 

24 and 

25 (II) be responsible for— 


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1 (aa) the operation, mainte2 nance, and replacement of each 

3 Project facility; and 

4 (bb) the accounting and 

5 management of water conveyance 

6 and Project finances, as nec7 essary to administer and fulfill 

8 the conditions of the Contract ex9 ecuted under section 

10 304(a)(2)(B). 

11 (2) EFFECT OF CONVEYANCE.—The conveyance 

12 of title to each Project facility shall not affect the 

13 application of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 

14 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) relating to the use of the 

15 water associated with the Project. 

16 (3) LIABILITY.— 

17 (A) IN GENERAL.—Effective on the date of 

18 the conveyance authorized by this subsection, 

19 the United States shall not be held liable by 

20 any court for damages of any kind arising out 

21 of any act, omission, or occurrence relating to 

22 the land, buildings, or facilities conveyed under 

23 this subsection, other than damages caused by 

24 acts of negligence committed by the United 


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1 States, or by employees or agents of the United 

2 States, prior to the date of conveyance. 

3 (B) TORT CLAIMS.—Nothing in this sec4 tion increases the liability of the United States 

5 beyond the liability provided in chapter 171 of 

6 title 28, United States Code (commonly known 

7 as the ‘‘Federal Tort Claims Act’’). 

8 (4) NOTICE OF PROPOSED CONVEYANCE.—Not 

9 later than 45 days before the date of a proposed 

10 conveyance of title to any Project facility, the Sec11 retary shall submit to the Committee on Resources 

12 of the House of Representatives and to the Com13 mittee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Sen14 ate notice of the conveyance of each Project facility. 

15 (g) COLORADO RIVER STORAGE PROJECT POWER.— 

16 The conveyance of Project facilities under subsection (f) 

17 shall not affect the availability of Colorado River Storage 

18 Project power to the Project under subsection (e). 

19 (h) REGIONAL USE OF PROJECT FACILITIES.— 

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

21 Project facilities constructed under subsection (b) 

22 may be used to treat and convey non-Project water 

23 or water that is not allocated by subsection 303(b) 

24 if— 


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1 (A) capacity is available without impairing 

2 any water delivery to a Project Participant; and 

3 (B) the unallocated or non-Project water 

4 beneficiary— 

5 (i) has the right to use the water; 

6 (ii) agrees to pay the operation, main7 tenance, and replacement costs assignable 

8 to the beneficiary for the use of the Project 

9 facilities; and 

10 (iii) agrees to pay an appropriate fee 

11 that may be established by the Secretary 

12 to assist in the recovery of any capital cost 

13 allocable to that use. 

14 (2) EFFECT OF PAYMENTS.—Any payments to 

15 the United States or the Nation for the use of un16 used capacity under this subsection or for water 

17 under any subcontract with the Nation or the 

18 Jicarilla Apache Nation shall not alter the construc19 tion repayment requirements or the operation, main20 tenance, and replacement payment requirements of 

21 the Project Participants. 

22 SEC. 303. DELIVERY AND USE OF NAVAJO-GALLUP WATER 

23 SUPPLY PROJECT WATER. 

24 (a) USE OF PROJECT WATER.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—In accordance with this Act 

2 and other applicable law, water supply from the 

3 Project shall be used for municipal, industrial, com4 mercial, domestic, and stock watering purposes. 

5 (2) USE ON CERTAIN LAND.— 

6 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara7 graph (B), the Nation may use Project water 

8 allocations on— 

9 (i) land held by the United States in 

10 trust for the Nation and members of the 

11 Nation; and 

12 (ii) land held in fee by the Nation. 

13 (B) TRANSFER.—The Nation may transfer 

14 the purposes and places of use of the allocated 

15 water in accordance with the Agreement and 

16 applicable law. 

17 (3) HYDROELECTRIC POWER.— 

18 (A) IN GENERAL.—Hydroelectric power 

19 may be generated as an incident to the delivery 

20 of Project water for authorized purposes under 

21 paragraph (1). 

22 (B) ADMINISTRATION.—Notwithstanding 

23 any other provision of law— 


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1 (i) any hydroelectric power generated 

2 under this paragraph shall be used or mar3 keted by the Nation; 

4 (ii) the Nation shall retain any reve5 nues from the sale of the hydroelectric 

6 power; and 

7 (iii) the United States shall have no 

8 trust obligation or other obligation to mon9 itor, administer, or account for the reve10 nues received by the Nation, or the ex11 penditure of the revenues. 

12 (4) STORAGE.— 

13 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara14 graph (B), any water contracted for delivery 

15 under paragraph (1) that is not needed for cur16 rent water demands or uses may be delivered by 

17 the Project for placement in underground stor18 age in the State of New Mexico for future re19 covery and use. 

20 (B) STATE APPROVAL.—Delivery of water 

21 under subparagraph (A) is subject to— 

22 (i) approval by the State of New Mex23 ico under applicable provisions of State law 

24 relating to aquifer storage and recovery; 

25 and 


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1 (ii) the provisions of the Agreement 

2 and this Act. 

3 (b) PROJECT WATER AND CAPACITY ALLOCA4 TIONS.— 

5 (1) DIVERSION.—Subject to availability and 

6 consistent with Federal and State law, the Project 

7 may divert from the Navajo Reservoir and the San 

8 Juan River a quantity of water to be allocated and 

9 used consistent with the Agreement and this Act, 

10 that does not exceed in any 1 year, the lesser of— 

11 (A) 37,760 acre-feet of water; or 

12 (B) the quantity of water necessary to sup13 ply a depletion from the San Juan River of 

14 35,890 acre-feet. 

15 (2) PROJECT DELIVERY CAPACITY ALLOCA16 TIONS.— 

17 (A) IN GENERAL.—The capacity of the 

18 Project shall be allocated to the Project Partici19 pants in accordance with subparagraphs (B) 

20 through (E), other provisions of this Act, and 

21 other applicable law. 

22 (B) DELIVERY CAPACITY ALLOCATION TO

23 THE CITY.—The Project may deliver at the 

24 point of diversion from the San Juan River not 

25 more than 7,500 acre-feet of water in any 1 


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1 year for which the City has secured rights for 

2 the use of the City. 

3 (C) DELIVERY CAPACITY ALLOCATION TO

4 NAVAJO NATION COMMUNITIES IN NEW MEX5 ICO.—For use by the Nation in the State of 

6 New Mexico, the Project may deliver water out 

7 of the water rights held by the Secretary for the 

8 Nation and confirmed under this Act, at the 

9 points of diversion from the San Juan River or 

10 at Navajo Reservoir in any 1 year, the lesser 

11 of— 

12 (i) 22,650 acre-feet of water; or 

13 (ii) the quantity of water necessary to 

14 supply a depletion from the San Juan 

15 River of 20,780 acre-feet of water. 

16 (D) DELIVERY CAPACITY ALLOCATION TO

17 NAVAJO NATION COMMUNITIES IN ARIZONA.— 

18 Subject to subsection (c), the Project may de19 liver at the point of diversion from the San 

20 Juan River not more than 6,411 acre-feet of 

21 water in any 1 year for use by the Nation in 

22 the State of Arizona. 

23 (E) DELIVERY CAPACITY ALLOCATION TO

24 JICARILLA APACHE NATION.—The Project may 

25 deliver at Navajo Reservoir not more than 


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1 1,200 acre-feet of water in any 1 year of the 

2 water rights of the Jicarilla Apache Nation, 

3 held by the Secretary and confirmed by the 

4 Jicarilla Apache Tribe Water Rights Settlement 

5 Act (Public Law 102–441; 106 Stat. 2237), for 

6 use by the Jicarilla Apache Nation in the south7 ern portion of the Jicarilla Apache Nation Res8 ervation in the State of New Mexico. 

9 (3) USE IN EXCESS OF DELIVERY CAPACITY AL10 LOCATION QUANTITY.—Notwithstanding each deliv11 ery capacity allocation quantity limit described in 

12 subparagraphs (B), (C), and (E) of paragraph (2), 

13 the Secretary may authorize a Project Participant to 

14 exceed the delivery capacity allocation quantity limit 

15 of that Project Participant if— 

16 (A) delivery capacity is available without 

17 impairing any water delivery to any other 

18 Project Participant; and 

19 (B) the Project Participant benefitting 

20 from the increased allocation of delivery capac21 ity— 

22 (i) has the right under applicable law 

23 to use the additional water; 

24 (ii) agrees to pay the operation, main25 tenance, and replacement costs relating to 


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1 the additional use of any Project facility; 

2 and 

3 (iii) agrees, if the Project title is held 

4 by the Secretary, to pay a fee established 

5 by the Secretary to assist in recovering 

6 capital costs relating to that additional 

7 use. 

8 (c) CONDITIONS FOR USE IN ARIZONA.— 

9 (1) REQUIREMENTS.—Project water shall not 

10 be delivered for use by any community of the Nation 

11 located in the State of Arizona under subsection 

12 (b)(2)(D) until— 

13 (A) the Nation and the State of Arizona 

14 have entered into a water rights settlement 

15 agreement approved by an Act of Congress that 

16 specifies the allocation of Colorado River Sys17 tem water to which the use in Arizona will be 

18 charged; and 

19 (B) the Secretary has determined by hy20 drologic investigation that sufficient water is 

21 reasonably likely to be available to supply the 

22 use in the State of Arizona from water of the 

23 Colorado River system allocated to the State. 

24 (2) ACCOUNTING OF USES IN ARIZONA.—Pursu25 ant to paragraph (1), any depletion of water from 


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1 the San Juan River stream system in the State of 

2 New Mexico that results from the diversion of water 

3 by the Project for uses within the State of Arizona 

4 (including depletion incidental to the diversion, im5 pounding, or conveyance of water in the State of 

6 New Mexico for uses in the State of Arizona)— 

7 (A) shall be accounted for as a part of the 

8 Colorado River System apportionments to the 

9 State of Arizona; and 

10 (B) shall not increase the total quantity of 

11 water to which the State of Arizona is entitled 

12 to use under any compact, statute, or court de13 cree. 

14 (d) FORBEARANCE.— 

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

16 and (3), during any year in which a shortage to the 

17 normal diversion requirement for any use relating to 

18 the Project within the State of Arizona occurs (as 

19 determined under section 11 of Public Law 87–483 

20 (76 Stat. 99)), the Nation may temporarily forbear 

21 the delivery of the water supply of the Navajo Res22 ervoir for uses in the State of New Mexico under the 

23 apportionments of water to the Navajo Indian Irri24 gation Project and the normal diversion require25 ments of the Project to allow an equivalent quantity 


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1 of water to be delivered from the Navajo Reservoir 

2 water supply for municipal and domestic uses of the 

3 Nation in the State of Arizona under the Project. 

4 (2) LIMITATION OF FORBEARANCE.—The Na5 tion may forebear the delivery of water under para6 graph (1) of a quantity not exceeding the quantity 

7 of the shortage to the normal diversion requirement 

8 for any use relating to the Project within the State 

9 of Arizona. 

10 (3) EFFECT.—The forbearance of the delivery 

11 of water under paragraph (1) shall be subject to the 

12 requirements in subsection (c). 

13 (e) EFFECT.—Nothing in this Act— 

14 (1) authorizes the marketing, leasing, or trans15 fer of the water supplies made available to the Na16 tion under the Contract to non-Navajo water users 

17 in States other than the State of New Mexico; or 

18 (2) authorizes the forbearance of water uses in 

19 the State of New Mexico to allow uses of water in 

20 other States other than as authorized under sub21 section (d). 

22 (f) COLORADO RIVER COMPACTS.—Notwithstanding 

23 any other provision of law— 

24 (1) water may be diverted by the Project from 

25 the San Juan River in the State of New Mexico for 


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1 use within New Mexico in the lower basin, as that 

2 term is used in the Colorado River Compact; 

3 (2) any water diverted under paragraph (1) 

4 shall be a part of, and charged against, the con5 sumptive use apportionment made to the State of 

6 New Mexico by article III(a) of the Compact and to 

7 the upper basin by article III(a) of the Colorado 

8 River Compact; and 

9 (3) any water so diverted by the Project into 

10 the lower basin within the State of New Mexico shall 

11 not be credited as water reaching Lee Ferry pursu12 ant to articles III(c) and III(d) of the Colorado 

13 River Compact. 

14 (g) PAYMENT OF OPERATION, MAINTENANCE, AND

15 REPLACEMENT COSTS.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary is authorized 

17 to pay the operation, maintenance, and replacement 

18 costs of the Project allocable to the Project Partici19 pants under section 304 until the date on which the 

20 Secretary declares any section of the Project to be 

21 substantially complete and delivery of water gen22 erated by, and through, that section of the Project 

23 can be made to a Project participant. 

24 (2) PROJECT PARTICIPANT PAYMENTS.—Begin25 ning on the date described in paragraph (1), each 


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1 Project Participant shall pay all allocated operation, 

2 maintenance, and replacement costs for that sub3 stantially completed section of the Project, in ac4 cordance with contracts entered into pursuant to 

5 section 304, except as provided in section 304(f). 

6 SEC. 304. PROJECT CONTRACTS. 

7 (a) NAVAJO NATION CONTRACT.— 

8 (1) HYDROLOGIC DETERMINATION.—Congress 

9 recognizes that the Hydrologic Determination nec10 essary to support approval of the Contract has been 

11 completed. 

12 (2) CONTRACT APPROVAL.— 

13 (A) APPROVAL.— 

14 (i) IN GENERAL.—Except to the ex15 tent that any provision of the Contract 

16 conflicts with this Act, Congress approves, 

17 ratifies, and confirms the Contract. 

18 (ii) AMENDMENTS.—To the extent 

19 any amendment is executed to make the 

20 Contract consistent with this Act, that 

21 amendment is authorized, ratified, and 

22 confirmed. 

23 (B) EXECUTION OF CONTRACT.—The Sec24 retary, acting on behalf of the United States, 

25 shall enter into the Contract to the extent that 


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1 the Contract does not conflict with this Act (in2 cluding any amendment that is required to 

3 make the Contract consistent with this Act). 

4 (3) NONREIMBURSABILITY OF ALLOCATED

5 COSTS.—The following costs shall be nonreimburs6 able and not subject to repayment by the Nation or 

7 any other Project beneficiary: 

8 (A) Any share of the construction costs of 

9 the Nation relating to the Project authorized by 

10 section 302(a). 

11 (B) Any costs relating to the construction 

12 of the Navajo Indian Irrigation Project that 

13 may otherwise be allocable to the Nation for 

14 use of any facility of the Navajo Indian Irriga15 tion Project to convey water to each Navajo 

16 community under the Project. 

17 (C) Any costs relating to the construction 

18 of Navajo Dam that may otherwise be allocable 

19 to the Nation for water deliveries under the 

20 Contract. 

21 (4) OPERATION, MAINTENANCE, AND REPLACE22 MENT OBLIGATION.—Subject to subsection (f), the 

23 Contract shall include provisions under which the 

24 Nation shall pay any costs relating to the operation, 


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1 maintenance, and replacement of each facility of the 

2 Project that are allocable to the Nation. 

3 (5) LIMITATION, CANCELLATION, TERMINATION, 

4 AND RESCISSION.—The Contract may be limited by 

5 a term of years, canceled, terminated, or rescinded 

6 only by an Act of Congress. 

7 (b) CITY OF GALLUP CONTRACT.— 

8 (1) CONTRACT AUTHORIZATION.—Consistent 

9 with this Act, the Secretary is authorized to enter 

10 into a repayment contract with the City that re11 quires the City— 

12 (A) to repay, within a 50-year period, the 

13 share of the construction costs of the City relat14 ing to the Project, with interest as provided 

15 under section 5; and 

16 (B) consistent with section 303(g), to pay 

17 the operation, maintenance, and replacement 

18 costs of the Project that are allocable to the 

19 City. 

20 (2) CONTRACT PREPAYMENT.— 

21 (A) IN GENERAL.—The contract author22 ized under paragraph (1) may allow the City to 

23 satisfy the repayment obligation of the City for 

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1 ment of the share of the City prior to the initi2 ation of construction. 

3 (B) AMOUNT.—The amount of the share 

4 of the City described in subparagraph (A) shall 

5 be determined by agreement between the Sec6 retary and the City. 

7 (C) REPAYMENT OBLIGATION.—Any repay8 ment obligation established by the Secretary 

9 and the City pursuant to subparagraph (A) 

10 shall be subject to a final cost allocation by the 

11 Secretary on project completion and to the limi12 tations set forth in paragraph (3). 

13 (3) SHARE OF CONSTRUCTION COSTS.— 

14 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara15 graph (B), the Secretary shall determine the 

16 share of the construction costs of the Project 

17 allocable to the City and establish the percent18 age of the allocated construction costs that the 

19 City shall be required to repay pursuant to the 

20 contract entered into under paragraph (1), 

21 based on the ability of the City to pay. 

22 (B) MINIMUM PERCENTAGE.—Notwith23 standing subparagraph (A), the repayment obli24 gation of the City shall be at least 25 percent 

25 of the construction costs of the Project that are 


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1 allocable to the City, but shall in no event ex2 ceed 35 percent. 

3 (4) EXCESS CONSTRUCTION COSTS.—Any con4 struction costs of the Project allocable to the City in 

5 excess of the repayment obligation of the City, as 

6 determined under paragraph (3), shall be nonreim7 bursable. 

8 (5) GRANT FUNDS.—A grant from any other 

9 Federal source shall not be credited toward the 

10 amount required to be repaid by the City under a 

11 repayment contract. 

12 (6) TITLE TRANSFER.—If title is transferred to 

13 the City prior to repayment under section 302(f), 

14 the City shall be required to provide assurances sat15 isfactory to the Secretary of fulfillment of the re16 maining repayment obligation of the City. 

17 (7) WATER DELIVERY SUBCONTRACT.—The 

18 Secretary shall not enter into a contract under para19 graph (1) with the City until the City has secured 

20 a water supply for the City’s portion of the Project 

21 described in section 303(b)(2)(B), by entering into, 

22 as approved by the Secretary, a water delivery sub23 contract for a period of not less than 40 years begin24 ning on the date on which the construction of any 


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1 facility of the Project serving the City is completed, 

2 with— 

3 (A) the Nation, as authorized by the Con4 tract; 

5 (B) the Jicarilla Apache Nation, as author6 ized by the settlement contract between the 

7 United States and the Jicarilla Apache Tribe, 

8 authorized by the Jicarilla Apache Tribe Water 

9 Rights Settlement Act (Public Law 102–441; 

10 106 Stat. 2237); or 

11 (C) an acquired alternate source of water, 

12 subject to approval of the Secretary and the 

13 State of New Mexico, acting through the New 

14 Mexico Interstate Stream Commission and the 

15 New Mexico State Engineer. 

16 (c) JICARILLA APACHE NATION CONTRACT.— 

17 (1) CONTRACT AUTHORIZATION.—Consistent 

18 with this Act, the Secretary is authorized to enter 

19 into a repayment contract with the Jicarilla Apache 

20 Nation that requires the Jicarilla Apache Nation— 

21 (A) to repay, within a 50-year period, the 

22 share of any construction cost of the Jicarilla 

23 Apache Nation relating to the Project, with in24 terest as provided under section 5; and 


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1 (B) consistent with section 303(g), to pay 

2 the operation, maintenance, and replacement 

3 costs of the Project that are allocable to the 

4 Jicarilla Apache Nation. 

5 (2) CONTRACT PREPAYMENT.— 

6 (A) IN GENERAL.—The contract author7 ized under paragraph (1) may allow the 

8 Jicarilla Apache Nation to satisfy the repay9 ment obligation of the Jicarilla Apache Nation 

10 for construction costs of the Project on the pay11 ment of the share of the Jicarilla Apache Na12 tion prior to the initiation of construction. 

13 (B) AMOUNT.—The amount of the share 

14 of Jicarilla Apache Nation described in sub15 paragraph (A) shall be determined by agree16 ment between the Secretary and the Jicarilla 

17 Apache Nation. 

18 (C) REPAYMENT OBLIGATION.—Any repay19 ment obligation established by the Secretary 

20 and the Jicarilla Apache Nation pursuant to 

21 subparagraph (A) shall be subject to a final 

22 cost allocation by the Secretary on project com23 pletion and to the limitations set forth in para24 graph (3). 

25 (3) SHARE OF CONSTRUCTION COSTS.— 


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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara2 graph (B), the Secretary shall determine the 

3 share of the construction costs of the Project 

4 allocable to the Jicarilla Apache Nation and es5 tablish the percentage of the allocated construc6 tion costs of the Jicarilla Apache Nation that 

7 the Jicarilla Apache Nation shall be required to 

8 repay based on the ability of the Jicarilla 

9 Apache Nation to pay. 

10 (B) MINIMUM PERCENTAGE.—Notwith11 standing subparagraph (A), the repayment obli12 gation of the Jicarilla Apache Nation shall be 

13 at least 25 percent of the construction costs of 

14 the Project that are allocable to the Jicarilla 

15 Apache Nation, but shall in no event exceed 35 

16 percent. 

17 (4) EXCESS CONSTRUCTION COSTS.—Any con18 struction costs of the Project allocable to the 

19 Jicarilla Apache Nation in excess of the repayment 

20 obligation of the Jicarilla Apache Nation as deter21 mined under paragraph (3), shall be nonreimburs22 able. 

23 (5) GRANT FUNDS.—A grant from any other 

24 Federal source shall not be credited toward the 


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1 share of the Jicarilla Apache Nation of construction 

2 costs. 

3 (6) NAVAJO INDIAN IRRIGATION PROJECT

4 COSTS.—The Jicarilla Apache Nation shall have no 

5 obligation to repay any Navajo Indian Irrigation 

6 Project construction costs that might otherwise be 

7 allocable to the Jicarilla Apache Nation for use of 

8 the Navajo Indian Irrigation Project facilities to 

9 convey water to the Jicarilla Apache Nation, and 

10 any such costs shall be nonreimbursable. 

11 (d) CAPITAL COST ALLOCATIONS.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of estimating 

13 the capital repayment requirements of the Project 

14 Participants under this section, the Secretary shall 

15 review and, as appropriate, update the Draft Impact 

16 Statement allocating capital construction costs for 

17 the Project. 

18 (2) FINAL COST ALLOCATION.—The repayment 

19 contracts entered into with Project Participants 

20 under this section shall require that the Secretary 

21 perform a final cost allocation when construction of 

22 the Project is determined to be substantially com23 plete. 

24 (3) REPAYMENT OBLIGATION.—The Secretary 

25 shall determine the repayment obligation of the 


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1 Project Participants based on the final cost alloca2 tion identifying reimbursable and nonreimbursable 

3 capital costs of the Project consistent with this Act. 

4 (e) OPERATION, MAINTENANCE, AND REPLACEMENT

5 COST ALLOCATIONS.—For purposes of determining the 

6 operation, maintenance, and replacement obligations of 

7 the Project Participants under this section, the Secretary 

8 shall review and, as appropriate, update the Draft Impact 

9 Statement that allocates operation, maintenance, and re10 placement costs for the Project. 

11 (f) TEMPORARY WAIVERS OF PAYMENTS.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—On the date on which the 

13 Secretary declares a section of the Project to be sub14 stantially complete and delivery of water generated 

15 by and through that section of the Project can be 

16 made to the Nation, the Secretary may waive, for a 

17 period of not more than 10 years, the operation, 

18 maintenance, and replacement costs allocable to the 

19 Nation for that section of the Project that the Sec20 retary determines are in excess of the ability of the 

21 Nation to pay. 

22 (2) SUBSEQUENT PAYMENT BY NATION.—After 

23 a waiver under paragraph (1), the Nation shall pay 

24 all allocated operation, maintenance, and replace25 ment costs of that section of the Project. 


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1 (3) PAYMENT BY UNITED STATES.—Any oper2 ation, maintenance, or replacement costs waived by 

3 the Secretary under paragraph (1) shall be paid by 

4 the United States and shall be nonreimbursable. 

5 (4) EFFECT ON CONTRACTS.—Failure of the 

6 Secretary to waive costs under paragraph (1) be7 cause of a lack of availability of Federal funding to 

8 pay the costs under paragraph (3) shall not alter the 

9 obligations of the Nation or the United States under 

10 a repayment contract. 

11 (5) TERMINATION OF AUTHORITY.—The au12 thority of the Secretary to waive costs under para13 graph (1) with respect to a Project facility trans14 ferred to the Nation under section 302(f) shall ter15 minate on the date on which the Project facility is 

16 transferred. 

17 (g) PROJECT CONSTRUCTION COMMITTEE.—The 

18 Secretary shall facilitate the formation of a project con19 struction committee with the Project Participants and the 

20 State of New Mexico— 

21 (1) to review cost factors and budgets for con22 struction and operation and maintenance activities; 

23 (2) to improve construction management 

24 through enhanced communication; and 


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1 (3) to seek additional ways to reduce overall 

2 Project costs. 

3 SEC. 305. NAVAJO NATION MUNICIPAL PIPELINE. 

4 (a) USE OF NAVAJO NATION PIPELINE.—In addition 

5 to use of the Navajo Nation Municipal Pipeline to convey 

6 the Animas-La Plata Project water of the Nation, the Na7 tion may use the Navajo Nation Municipal Pipeline to con8 vey non-Animas La Plata Project water for municipal and 

9 industrial purposes. 

10 (b) CONVEYANCE OF TITLE TO PIPELINE.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—On completion of the Navajo 

12 Nation Municipal Pipeline, the Secretary may enter 

13 into separate agreements with the City of Farm14 ington, New Mexico and the Nation to convey title 

15 to each portion of the Navajo Nation Municipal 

16 Pipeline facility or section of the Pipeline to the City 

17 of Farmington and the Nation after execution of a 

18 Project operations agreement approved by the Sec19 retary, the Nation, and the City of Farmington that 

20 sets forth any terms and conditions that the Sec21 retary determines are necessary. 

22 (2) CONVEYANCE TO THE CITY OF FARMINGTON

23 OR NAVAJO NATION.—In conveying title to the Nav24 ajo Nation Municipal Pipeline under this subsection, 

25 the Secretary shall convey— 


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1 (A) to the City of Farmington, the facili2 ties and any land or interest in land acquired 

3 by the United States for the construction, oper4 ation, and maintenance of the Pipeline that are 

5 located within the corporate boundaries of the 

6 City; and 

7 (B) to the Nation, the facilities and any 

8 land or interests in land acquired by the United 

9 States for the construction, operation, and 

10 maintenance of the Pipeline that are located 

11 outside the corporate boundaries of the City of 

12 Farmington. 

13 (3) EFFECT OF CONVEYANCE.—The conveyance 

14 of title to the Pipeline shall not affect the applica15 tion of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 

16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) relating to the use of water as17 sociated with the Animas-La Plata Project. 

18 (4) LIABILITY.— 

19 (A) IN GENERAL.—Effective on the date of 

20 the conveyance authorized by this subsection, 

21 the United States shall not be held liable by 

22 any court for damages of any kind arising out 

23 of any act, omission, or occurrence relating to 

24 the land, buildings, or facilities conveyed under 

25 this subsection, other than damages caused by 


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1 acts of negligence committed by the United 

2 States or by employees or agents of the United 

3 States prior to the date of conveyance. 

4 (B) TORT CLAIMS.—Nothing in this sub5 section increases the liability of the United 

6 States beyond the liability provided under chap7 ter 171 of title 28, United States Code (com8 monly known as the ‘‘Federal Tort Claims 

9 Act’’). 

10 (5) NOTICE OF PROPOSED CONVEYANCE.—Not 

11 later than 45 days before the date of a proposed 

12 conveyance of title to the Pipeline, the Secretary 

13 shall submit to the Committee on Natural Resources 

14 of the House of Representatives and the Committee 

15 on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate, no16 tice of the conveyance of the Pipeline. 

17 SEC. 306. AUTHORIZATION OF CONJUNCTIVE USE WELLS. 

18 (a) CONJUNCTIVE GROUNDWATER DEVELOPMENT

19 PLAN.—Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment 

20 of this Act, the Nation, in consultation with the Secretary, 

21 shall complete a conjunctive groundwater development 

22 plan for the wells described in subsections (b) and (c). 

23 (b) WELLS IN THE SAN JUAN RIVER BASIN.—In ac24 cordance with the conjunctive groundwater development 

25 plan, the Secretary may construct or rehabilitate wells and 


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1 related pipeline facilities to provide capacity for the diver2 sion and distribution of not more than 1,670 acre-feet of 

3 groundwater in the San Juan River Basin in the State 

4 of New Mexico for municipal and domestic uses. 

5 (c) WELLS IN THE LITTLE COLORADO AND RIO

6 GRANDE BASINS.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—In accordance with the 

8 Project and conjunctive groundwater development 

9 plan for the Nation, the Secretary may construct or 

10 rehabilitate wells and related pipeline facilities to 

11 provide capacity for the diversion and distribution 

12 of— 

13 (A) not more than 680 acre-feet of ground14 water in the Little Colorado River Basin in the 

15 State of New Mexico; 

16 (B) not more than 80 acre-feet of ground17 water in the Rio Grande Basin in the State of 

18 New Mexico; and 

19 (C) not more than 770 acre-feet of ground20 water in the Little Colorado River Basin in the 

21 State of Arizona. 

22 (2) USE.—Groundwater diverted and distrib23 uted under paragraph (1) shall be used for munic24 ipal and domestic uses. 

25 (d) ACQUISITION OF LAND.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para2 graph (2), the Secretary may acquire any land or in3 terest in land that is necessary for the construction, 

4 operation, and maintenance of the wells and related 

5 pipeline facilities authorized under subsections (b) 

6 and (c). 

7 (2) LIMITATION.—Nothing in this subsection 

8 authorizes the Secretary to condemn water rights for 

9 the purposes described in paragraph (1). 

10 (e) CONDITION.—The Secretary shall not commence 

11 any construction activity relating to the wells described in 

12 subsections (b) and (c) until the Secretary executes the 

13 Agreement. 

14 (f) CONVEYANCE OF WELLS.— 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—On the determination of the 

16 Secretary that the wells and related facilities are 

17 substantially complete and delivery of water gen18 erated by the wells can be made to the Nation, an 

19 agreement with the Nation shall be entered into, to 

20 convey to the Nation title to— 

21 (A) any well or related pipeline facility 

22 constructed or rehabilitated under subsections 

23 (a) and (b) after the wells and related facilities 

24 have been completed; and 


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1 (B) any land or interest in land acquired 

2 by the United States for the construction, oper3 ation, and maintenance of the well or related 

4 pipeline facility. 

5 (2) OPERATION, MAINTENANCE, AND REPLACE6 MENT.— 

7 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary is au8 thorized to pay operation and maintenance 

9 costs for the wells and related pipeline facilities 

10 authorized under this subsection until title to 

11 the facilities is conveyed to the Nation. 

12 (B) SUBSEQUENT ASSUMPTION BY NA13 TION.—On completion of a conveyance of title 

14 under paragraph (1), the Nation shall assume 

15 all responsibility for the operation and mainte16 nance of the well or related pipeline facility con17 veyed. 

18 (3) EFFECT OF CONVEYANCE.—The conveyance 

19 of title to the Nation of the conjunctive use wells 

20 under paragraph (1) shall not affect the application 

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

22 1531 et seq.). 

23 (g) USE OF PROJECT FACILITIES.—The capacities of 

24 the treatment facilities, main pipelines, and lateral pipe25 lines of the Project authorized by section 302(b) may be 


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1 used to treat and convey groundwater to Nation commu2 nities if the Nation provides for payment of the operation, 

3 maintenance, and replacement costs associated with the 

4 use of the facilities or pipelines. 

5 (h) LIMITATIONS.—The diversion and use of ground6 water by wells constructed or rehabilitated under this sec7 tion shall be made in a manner consistent with applicable 

8 Federal and State law. 

9 SEC. 307. SAN JUAN RIVER NAVAJO IRRIGATION PROJECTS. 

10 (a) REHABILITATION.—Subject to subsection (b), the 

11 Secretary shall rehabilitate— 

12 (1) the Fruitland-Cambridge Irrigation Project 

13 to serve not more than 3,335 acres of land, which 

14 shall be considered to be the total serviceable area 

15 of the project; and 

16 (2) the Hogback-Cudei Irrigation Project to 

17 serve not more than 8,830 acres of land, which shall 

18 be considered to be the total serviceable area of the 

19 project. 

20 (b) CONDITION.—The Secretary shall not commence 

21 any construction activity relating to the rehabilitation of 

22 the Fruitland-Cambridge Irrigation Project or the Hog23 back-Cudei Irrigation Project under subsection (a) until 

24 the Secretary executes the Agreement. 


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1 (c) OPERATION, MAINTENANCE, AND REPLACEMENT

2 OBLIGATION.—The Nation shall continue to be respon3 sible for the operation, maintenance, and replacement of 

4 each facility rehabilitated under this section. 

5 SEC. 308. OTHER IRRIGATION PROJECTS. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 2 years after the 

7 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary, in consulta8 tion with the State of New Mexico (acting through the 

9 Interstate Stream Commission) and the Non-Navajo Irri10 gation Districts that elect to participate, shall— 

11 (1) conduct a study of Non-Navajo Irrigation 

12 District diversion and ditch facilities; and 

13 (2) based on the study, identify and prioritize 

14 a list of projects, with associated cost estimates, that 

15 are recommended to be implemented to repair, reha16 bilitate, or reconstruct irrigation diversion and ditch 

17 facilities to improve water use efficiency. 

18 (b) GRANTS.—The Secretary may provide grants to, 

19 and enter into cooperative agreements with, the Non-Nav20 ajo Irrigation Districts to plan, design, or otherwise imple21 ment the projects identified under subsection (a)(2). 

22 (c) COST-SHARING.— 

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

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1 section (b) shall be not more than 50 percent, and 

2 shall be nonreimbursable. 

3 (2) FORM.—The non-Federal share required 

4 under paragraph (1) may be in the form of in-kind 

5 contributions, including the contribution of any valu6 able asset or service that the Secretary determines 

7 would substantially contribute to a project carried 

8 out under subsection (b). 

9 (3) STATE CONTRIBUTION.—The Secretary may 

10 accept from the State of New Mexico a partial or 

11 total contribution toward the non-Federal share for 

12 a project carried out under subsection (b). 

13 SEC. 309. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

14 (a) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR NAV15 AJO-GALLUP WATER SUPPLY PROJECT.— 

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

17 appropriated to the Secretary to plan, design, and 

18 construct the Project $870,000,000 for the period of 

19 fiscal years 2009 through 2024, to remain available 

20 until expended. 

21 (2) ADJUSTMENTS.—The amount under para22 graph (1) shall be adjusted by such amounts as may 

23 be required by reason of changes since 2007 in con24 struction costs, as indicated by engineering cost indi25 ces applicable to the types of construction involved. 


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1 (3) USE.—In addition to the uses authorized 

2 under paragraph (1), amounts made available under 

3 that paragraph may be used for the conduct of re4 lated activities to comply with Federal environmental 

5 laws. 

6 (4) OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE.— 

7 (A) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to 

8 be appropriated such sums as are necessary to 

9 operate and maintain the Project consistent 

10 with this Act. 

11 (B) EXPIRATION.—The authorization 

12 under subparagraph (A) shall expire 10 years 

13 after the year the Secretary declares the Project 

14 to be substantially complete. 

15 (b) APPROPRIATIONS FOR CONJUNCTIVE USE

16 WELLS.— 

17 (1) SAN JUAN WELLS.—There is authorized to 

18 be appropriated to the Secretary for the construction 

19 or rehabilitation and operation and maintenance of 

20 conjunctive use wells under section 306(b) 

21 $30,000,000, as adjusted under paragraph (3), for 

22 the period of fiscal years 2009 through 2019. 

23 (2) WELLS IN THE LITTLE COLORADO AND RIO

24 GRANDE BASINS.—There are authorized to be appro25 priated to the Secretary for the construction or rehaVerDate Nov 24 2008 21:55 Feb 10, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00071 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H925.IH H925

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1 bilitation and operation and maintenance of conjunc2 tive use wells under section 306(c) such sums as are 

3 necessary for the period of fiscal years 2009 through 

4 2024. 

5 (3) ADJUSTMENTS.—The amount under para6 graph (1) shall be adjusted by such amounts as may 

7 be required by reason of changes since 2008 in con8 struction costs, as indicated by engineering cost indi9 ces applicable to the types of construction or reha10 bilitation involved. 

11 (4) NONREIMBURSABLE EXPENDITURES.— 

12 Amounts made available under paragraphs (1) and 

13 (2) shall be nonreimbursable to the United States. 

14 (5) USE.—In addition to the uses authorized 

15 under paragraphs (1) and (2), amounts made avail16 able under that paragraph may be used for the con17 duct of related activities to comply with Federal en18 vironmental laws. 

19 (6) LIMITATION.—Appropriations authorized 

20 under paragraph (1) shall not be used for operation 

21 or maintenance of any conjunctive use wells at a 

22 time in excess of 3 years after the well is declared 

23 substantially complete. 

24 (c) SAN JUAN RIVER IRRIGATION PROJECTS.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be 

2 appropriated to the Secretary— 

3 (A) to carry out section 307(a)(1), not 

4 more than $7,700,000, as adjusted under para5 graph (2), for the period of fiscal years 2009 

6 through 2015, to remain available until ex7 pended; and 

8 (B) to carry out section 307(a)(2), not 

9 more than $15,400,000, as adjusted under 

10 paragraph (2), for the period of fiscal years 

11 2009 through 2018, to remain available until 

12 expended. 

13 (2) ADJUSTMENT.—The amounts made avail14 able under paragraph (1) shall be adjusted by such 

15 amounts as may be required by reason of changes 

16 since January 1, 2004, in construction costs, as in17 dicated by engineering cost indices applicable to the 

18 types of construction involved in the rehabilitation. 

19 (3) NONREIMBURSABLE EXPENDITURES.— 

20 Amounts made available under this subsection shall 

21 be nonreimbursable to the United States. 

22 (d) OTHER IRRIGATION PROJECTS.—There are au23 thorized to be appropriated to the Secretary to carry out 

24 section 308 $11,000,000 for the period of fiscal years 

25 2009 through 2018. 


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1 (e) CULTURAL RESOURCES.— 

2 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may use not 

3 more than 2 percent of amounts made available 

4 under subsections (a), (b), and (c) for the survey, re5 covery, protection, preservation, and display of ar6 chaeological resources in the area of a Project facil7 ity or conjunctive use well. 

8 (2) NONREIMBURSABLE EXPENDITURES.—Any 

9 amounts made available under paragraph (1) shall 

10 be nonreimbursable. 

11 (f) FISH AND WILDLIFE FACILITIES.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—In association with the de13 velopment of the Project, the Secretary may use not 

14 more than 4 percent of amounts made available 

15 under subsections (a), (b), and (c) to purchase land 

16 and construct and maintain facilities to mitigate the 

17 loss of, and improve conditions for the propagation 

18 of, fish and wildlife if any such purchase, construc19 tion, or maintenance will not affect the operation of 

20 any water project or use of water. 

21 (2) NONREIMBURSABLE EXPENDITURES.—Any 

22 amounts expended under paragraph (1) shall be 

23 nonreimbursable. 


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1 TITLE IV—NAVAJO NATION 

2 WATER RIGHTS 

3 SEC. 401. AGREEMENT. 

4 (a) AGREEMENT APPROVAL.— 

5 (1) APPROVAL BY CONGRESS.—Except to the 

6 extent that any provision of the Agreement conflicts 

7 with this Act, Congress approves, ratifies, and con8 firms the Agreement (including any amendments to 

9 the Agreement that are executed to make the Agree10 ment consistent with this Act). 

11 (2) EXECUTION BY SECRETARY.—The Sec12 retary shall enter into the Agreement to the extent 

13 that the Agreement does not conflict with this Act, 

14 including— 

15 (A) any exhibits to the Agreement requir16 ing the signature of the Secretary; and 

17 (B) any amendments to the Agreement 

18 necessary to make the Agreement consistent 

19 with this Act. 

20 (3) AUTHORITY OF SECRETARY.—The Sec21 retary may carry out any action that the Secretary 

22 determines is necessary or appropriate to implement 

23 the Agreement, the Contract, and this section. 

24 (4) ADMINISTRATION OF NAVAJO RESERVOIR

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1 ister water that has been released from storage in 

2 Navajo Reservoir in accordance with subparagraph 

3 9.1 of the Agreement. 

4 (b) WATER AVAILABLE UNDER CONTRACT.— 

5 (1) QUANTITIES OF WATER AVAILABLE.— 

6 (A) IN GENERAL.—Water shall be made 

7 available annually under the Contract for 

8 projects in the State of New Mexico supplied 

9 from the Navajo Reservoir and the San Juan 

10 River (including tributaries of the River) under 

11 New Mexico State Engineer File Numbers 

12 2849, 2883, and 3215 in the quantities de13 scribed in subparagraph (B). 

14 (B) WATER QUANTITIES.—The quantities 

15 of water referred to in subparagraph (A) are as 

16 follows: 

Diversion 

(acrefeet/ 

year) 

Depletion 

(acrefeet/ 

year) 

Navajo Indian Irrigation Project 508,000 270,000 

Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project 22,650 20,780 

Animas-La Plata Project 4,680 2,340 

Total 535,330 293,120 

17 (C) MAXIMUM QUANTITY.—A diversion of 

18 water to the Nation under the Contract for a 

19 project described in subparagraph (B) shall not 


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1 exceed the quantity of water necessary to sup2 ply the amount of depletion for the project. 

3 (D) TERMS, CONDITIONS, AND LIMITA4 TIONS.—The diversion and use of water under 

5 the Contract shall be subject to and consistent 

6 with the terms, conditions, and limitations of 

7 the Agreement, this Act, and any other applica8 ble law. 

9 (2) AMENDMENTS TO CONTRACT.—The Sec10 retary, with the consent of the Nation, may amend 

11 the Contract if the Secretary determines that the 

12 amendment is— 

13 (A) consistent with the Agreement; and 

14 (B) in the interest of conserving water or 

15 facilitating beneficial use by the Nation or a 

16 subcontractor of the Nation. 

17 (3) RIGHTS OF THE NATION.—The Nation may, 

18 under the Contract— 

19 (A) use tail water, wastewater, and return 

20 flows attributable to a use of the water by the 

21 Nation or a subcontractor of the Nation if— 

22 (i) the depletion of water does not ex23 ceed the quantities described in paragraph 

24 (1); and 


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1 (ii) the use of tail water, wastewater, 

2 or return flows is consistent with the 

3 terms, conditions, and limitations of the 

4 Agreement, and any other applicable law; 

5 and 

6 (B) change a point of diversion, change a 

7 purpose or place of use, and transfer a right for 

8 depletion under this Act (except for a point of 

9 diversion, purpose or place of use, or right for 

10 depletion for use in the State of Arizona under 

11 section 303(b)(2)(D)), to another use, purpose, 

12 place, or depletion in the State of New Mexico 

13 to meet a water resource or economic need of 

14 the Nation if— 

15 (i) the change or transfer is subject to 

16 and consistent with the terms of the 

17 Agreement, the Partial Final Decree de18 scribed in paragraph 3.0 of the Agreement, 

19 the Contract, and any other applicable law; 

20 and 

21 (ii) a change or transfer of water use 

22 by the Nation does not alter any obligation 

23 of the United States, the Nation, or an24 other party to pay or repay project con25 struction, operation, maintenance, or reVerDate Nov 24 2008 21:55 Feb 10, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00078 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H925.IH H925

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1 placement costs under this Act and the 

2 Contract. 

3 (c) SUBCONTRACTS.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.— 

5 (A) SUBCONTRACTS BETWEEN NATION

6 AND THIRD PARTIES.—The Nation may enter 

7 into subcontracts for the delivery of Project 

8 water under the Contract to third parties for 

9 any beneficial use in the State of New Mexico 

10 (on or off land held by the United States in 

11 trust for the Nation or a member of the Nation 

12 or land held in fee by the Nation). 

13 (B) APPROVAL REQUIRED.—A subcontract 

14 entered into under subparagraph (A) shall not 

15 be effective until approved by the Secretary in 

16 accordance with this subsection and the Con17 tract. 

18 (C) SUBMITTAL.—The Nation shall submit 

19 to the Secretary for approval or disapproval any 

20 subcontract entered into under this subsection. 

21 (D) DEADLINE.—The Secretary shall ap22 prove or disapprove a subcontract submitted to 

23 the Secretary under subparagraph (C) not later 

24 than the later of— 


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1 (i) the date that is 180 days after the 

2 date on which the subcontract is submitted 

3 to the Secretary; and 

4 (ii) the date that is 60 days after the 

5 date on which a subcontractor complies 

6 with— 

7 (I) section 102(2)(C) of the Na8 tional Environmental Policy Act of 

9 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4332(2)(C)); and 

10 (II) any other requirement of 

11 Federal law. 

12 (E) ENFORCEMENT.—A party to a sub13 contract may enforce the deadline described in 

14 subparagraph (D) under section 1361 of title 

15 28, United States Code. 

16 (F) COMPLIANCE WITH OTHER LAW.—A 

17 subcontract described in subparagraph (A) shall 

18 comply with the Agreement, the Partial Final 

19 Decree described in paragraph 3.0 of the Agree20 ment, and any other applicable law. 

21 (G) NO LIABILITY.—The Secretary shall 

22 not be liable to any party, including the Nation, 

23 for any term of, or any loss or other detriment 

24 resulting from, a lease, contract, or other agree25 ment entered into pursuant to this subsection. 


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1 (2) ALIENATION.— 

2 (A) PERMANENT ALIENATION.—The Na3 tion shall not permanently alienate any right 

4 granted to the Nation under the Contract. 

5 (B) MAXIMUM TERM.—The term of any 

6 water use subcontract (including a renewal) 

7 under this subsection shall be not more than 99 

8 years. 

9 (3) NONINTERCOURSE ACT COMPLIANCE.—This 

10 subsection— 

11 (A) provides congressional authorization 

12 for the subcontracting rights of the Nation; and 

13 (B) is deemed to fulfill any requirement 

14 that may be imposed by section 2116 of the Re15 vised Statutes (25 U.S.C. 177). 

16 (4) FORFEITURE.—The nonuse of the water 

17 supply secured by a subcontractor of the Nation 

18 under this subsection shall not result in forfeiture, 

19 abandonment, relinquishment, or other loss of any 

20 part of a right decreed to the Nation under the Con21 tract or this section. 

22 (5) NO PER CAPITA PAYMENTS.—No part of 

23 the revenue from a water use subcontract under this 

24 subsection shall be distributed to any member of the 

25 Nation on a per capita basis. 


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1 (d) WATER LEASES NOT REQUIRING SUB2 CONTRACTS.— 

3 (1) AUTHORITY OF NATION.— 

4 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Nation may lease, 

5 contract, or otherwise transfer to another party 

6 or to another purpose or place of use in the 

7 State of New Mexico (on or off land that is held 

8 by the United States in trust for the Nation or 

9 a member of the Nation or held in fee by the 

10 Nation) a water right that— 

11 (i) is decreed to the Nation under the 

12 Agreement; and 

13 (ii) is not subject to the Contract. 

14 (B) COMPLIANCE WITH OTHER LAW.—In 

15 carrying out an action under this subsection, 

16 the Nation shall comply with the Agreement, 

17 the Partial Final Decree described in paragraph 

18 3.0 of the Agreement, the Supplemental Partial 

19 Final Decree described in paragraph 4.0 of the 

20 Agreement, and any other applicable law. 

21 (2) ALIENATION; MAXIMUM TERM.— 

22 (A) ALIENATION.—The Nation shall not 

23 permanently alienate any right granted to the 

24 Nation under the Agreement. 


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1 (B) MAXIMUM TERM.—The term of any 

2 water use lease, contract, or other arrangement 

3 (including a renewal) under this subsection 

4 shall be not more than 99 years. 

5 (3) NO LIABILITY.—The Secretary shall not be 

6 liable to any party, including the Nation, for any 

7 term of, or any loss or other detriment resulting 

8 from, a lease, contract, or other agreement entered 

9 into pursuant to this subsection. 

10 (4) NONINTERCOURSE ACT COMPLIANCE.—This 

11 subsection— 

12 (A) provides congressional authorization 

13 for the lease, contracting, and transfer of any 

14 water right described in paragraph (1)(A); and 

15 (B) is deemed to fulfill any requirement 

16 that may be imposed by the provisions of sec17 tion 2116 of the Revised Statutes (25 U.S.C. 

18 177). 

19 (5) FORFEITURE.—The nonuse of a water right 

20 of the Nation by a lessee or contractor to the Nation 

21 under this subsection shall not result in forfeiture, 

22 abandonment, relinquishment, or other loss of any 

23 part of a right decreed to the Nation under the Con24 tract or this section. 

25 (e) NULLIFICATION.— 


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1 (1) DEADLINES.— 

2 (A) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out this 

3 section, the following deadlines apply with re4 spect to implementation of the Agreement: 

5 (i) AGREEMENT.—Not later than De6 cember 31, 2009, the Secretary shall exe7 cute the Agreement. 

8 (ii) CONTRACT.—Not later than De9 cember 31, 2009, the Secretary and the 

10 Nation shall execute the Contract. 

11 (iii) PARTIAL FINAL DECREE.—Not 

12 later than December 31, 2012, the court in 

13 the stream adjudication shall have entered 

14 the Partial Final Decree described in para15 graph 3.0 of the Agreement. 

16 (iv) FRUITLAND-CAMBRIDGE IRRIGA17 TION PROJECT.—Not later than December 

18 31, 2015, the rehabilitation construction of 

19 the Fruitland-Cambridge Irrigation Project 

20 authorized under section 307(a)(1) shall be 

21 completed. 

22 (v) SUPPLEMENTAL PARTIAL FINAL

23 DECREE.—Not later than December 31, 

24 2015, the court in the stream adjudication 

25 shall enter the Supplemental Partial Final 


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1 Decree described in subparagraph 4.0 of 

2 the Agreement. 

3 (vi) HOGBACK-CUDEI IRRIGATION

4 PROJECT.—Not later than December 31, 

5 2018, the rehabilitation construction of the 

6 Hogback-Cudei Irrigation Project author7 ized under section 307(a)(2) shall be com8 pleted. 

9 (vii) TRUST FUND.—Not later than 

10 December 31, 2019, the United States 

11 shall make all deposits into the Trust 

12 Fund under section 402. 

13 (viii) CONJUNCTIVE WELLS.—Not 

14 later than December 31, 2019, the funds 

15 authorized to be appropriated under sec16 tion 309(b)(1) for the conjunctive use wells 

17 authorized under section 306(b) should be 

18 appropriated. 

19 (ix) NAVAJO-GALLUP WATER SUPPLY

20 PROJECT.—Not later than December 31, 

21 2024, the construction of all Project facili22 ties shall be completed. 

23 (B) EXTENSION.—A deadline described in 

24 subparagraph (A) may be extended if the Na25 tion, the United States (acting through the SecVerDate Nov 24 2008 21:55 Feb 10, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00085 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H925.IH H925

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1 retary), and the State of New Mexico (acting 

2 through the New Mexico Interstate Stream 

3 Commission) agree that an extension is reason4 ably necessary. 

5 (2) REVOCABILITY OF AGREEMENT, CONTRACT

6 AND AUTHORIZATIONS.— 

7 (A) PETITION.—If the Nation determines 

8 that a deadline described in paragraph (1)(A) is 

9 not substantially met, the Nation may submit 

10 to the court in the stream adjudication a peti11 tion to enter an order terminating the Agree12 ment and Contract. 

13 (B) TERMINATION.—On issuance of an 

14 order to terminate the Agreement and Contract 

15 under subparagraph (A)— 

16 (i) the Trust Fund shall be termi17 nated; 

18 (ii) the balance of the Trust Fund 

19 shall be deposited in the general fund of 

20 the Treasury; 

21 (iii) the authorizations for construc22 tion and rehabilitation of water projects 

23 under this Act shall be revoked and any 

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1 tion and rehabilitation shall be suspended; 

2 and 

3 (iv) this title and titles I and III shall 

4 be null and void. 

5 (3) CONDITIONS NOT CAUSING NULLIFICATION

6 OF SETTLEMENT.— 

7 (A) IN GENERAL.—If a condition described 

8 in subparagraph (B) occurs, the Agreement and 

9 Contract shall not be nullified or terminated. 

10 (B) CONDITIONS.—The conditions referred 

11 to in subparagraph (A) are as follows: 

12 (i) A lack of right to divert at the ca13 pacities of conjunctive use wells con14 structed or rehabilitated under section 

15 306. 

16 (ii) A failure— 

17 (I) to determine or resolve an ac18 counting of the use of water under 

19 this Act in the State of Arizona; 

20 (II) to obtain a necessary water 

21 right for the consumptive use of water 

22 in Arizona; 

23 (III) to contract for the delivery 

24 of water for use in Arizona; or 


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1 (IV) to construct and operate a 

2 lateral facility to deliver water to a 

3 community of the Nation in Arizona, 

4 under the Project. 

5 (f) EFFECT ON RIGHTS OF INDIAN TRIBES.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para7 graph (2), nothing in the Agreement, the Contract, 

8 or this section quantifies or adversely affects the 

9 land and water rights, or claims or entitlements to 

10 water, of any Indian tribe or community other than 

11 the rights, claims, or entitlements of the Nation in, 

12 to, and from the San Juan River Basin in the State 

13 of New Mexico. 

14 (2) EXCEPTION.—The right of the Nation to 

15 use water under water rights the Nation has in 

16 other river basins in the State of New Mexico shall 

17 be forborne to the extent that the Nation supplies 

18 the uses for which the water rights exist by diver19 sions of water from the San Juan River Basin under 

20 the Project consistent with subparagraph 9.13 of the 

21 Agreement. 

22 SEC. 402. TRUST FUND. 

23 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the 

24 Treasury a fund to be known as the ‘‘Navajo Nation 


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1 Water Resources Development Trust Fund’’, consisting 

2 of— 

3 (1) such amounts as are appropriated to the 

4 Trust Fund under subsection (f); and 

5 (2) any interest earned on investment of 

6 amounts in the Trust Fund under subsection (d). 

7 (b) USE OF FUNDS.—The Nation may use amounts 

8 in the Trust Fund— 

9 (1) to investigate, construct, operate, maintain, 

10 or replace water project facilities, including facilities 

11 conveyed to the Nation under this Act and facilities 

12 owned by the United States for which the Nation is 

13 responsible for operation, maintenance, and replace14 ment costs; and 

15 (2) to investigate, implement, or improve a 

16 water conservation measure (including a metering or 

17 monitoring activity) necessary for the Nation to 

18 make use of a water right of the Nation under the 

19 Agreement. 

20 (c) MANAGEMENT.—The Secretary shall manage the 

21 Trust Fund, invest amounts in the Trust Fund, and make 

22 amounts available from the Trust Fund for distribution 

23 to the Nation in accordance with the American Indian 

24 Trust Fund Management Reform Act of 1994 (25 U.S.C. 

25 4001 et seq.). 


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1 (d) INVESTMENT OF THE TRUST FUND.—The Sec2 retary shall invest amounts in the Trust Fund in accord3 ance with— 

4 (1) the Act of April 1, 1880 (25 U.S.C. 161); 

5 (2) the first section of the Act of June 24, 

6 1938 (25 U.S.C. 162a); and 

7 (3) the American Indian Trust Fund Manage8 ment Reform Act of 1994 (25 U.S.C. 4001 et seq.). 

9 (e) CONDITIONS FOR EXPENDITURES AND WITH10 DRAWALS.— 

11 (1) TRIBAL MANAGEMENT PLAN.— 

12 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph 

13 (7), on approval by the Secretary of a tribal 

14 management plan in accordance with the Amer15 ican Indian Trust Fund Management Reform 

16 Act of 1994 (25 U.S.C. 4001 et seq.), the Na17 tion may withdraw all or a portion of the 

18 amounts in the Trust Fund. 

19 (B) REQUIREMENTS.—In addition to any 

20 requirements under the American Indian Trust 

21 Fund Management Reform Act of 1994 (25 

22 U.S.C. 4001 et seq.), the tribal management 

23 plan shall require that the Nation only use 

24 amounts in the Trust Fund for the purposes 

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1 fication of water conservation measures to be 

2 implemented in association with the agricultural 

3 water use of the Nation. 

4 (2) ENFORCEMENT.—The Secretary may take 

5 judicial or administrative action to enforce the provi6 sions of any tribal management plan to ensure that 

7 any amounts withdrawn from the Trust Fund are 

8 used in accordance with this Act. 

9 (3) NO LIABILITY.—Neither the Secretary nor 

10 the Secretary of the Treasury shall be liable for the 

11 expenditure or investment of any amounts with12 drawn from the Trust Fund by the Nation. 

13 (4) EXPENDITURE PLAN.— 

14 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Nation shall sub15 mit to the Secretary for approval an expendi16 ture plan for any portion of the amounts in the 

17 Trust Fund made available under this section 

18 that the Nation does not withdraw under this 

19 subsection. 

20 (B) DESCRIPTION.—The expenditure plan 

21 shall describe the manner in which, and the 

22 purposes for which, funds of the Nation remain23 ing in the Trust Fund will be used. 

24 (C) APPROVAL.—On receipt of an expendi25 ture plan under subparagraph (A), the SecVerDate Nov 24 2008 21:55 Feb 10, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00091 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H925.IH H925

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1 retary shall approve the plan if the Secretary 

2 determines that the plan is reasonable and con3 sistent with this Act. 

4 (5) ANNUAL REPORT.—The Nation shall sub5 mit to the Secretary an annual report that describes 

6 any expenditures from the Trust Fund during the 

7 year covered by the report. 

8 (6) LIMITATION.—No portion of the amounts in 

9 the Trust Fund shall be distributed to any Nation 

10 member on a per capita basis. 

11 (7) CONDITIONS.—Any amount authorized to 

12 be appropriated to the Trust Fund under subsection 

13 (f) shall not be available for expenditure or with14 drawal— 

15 (A) before December 31, 2019; and 

16 (B) until the date on which the court in 

17 the stream adjudication has entered— 

18 (i) the Partial Final Decree; and 

19 (ii) the Supplemental Partial Final 

20 Decree. 

21 (f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

22 are authorized to be appropriated for deposit in the Trust 

23 Fund— 

24 (1) $6,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2009 

25 through 2013; and 


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1 (2) $4,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2014 

2 through 2018. 

3 SEC. 403. WAIVERS AND RELEASES. 

4 (a) CLAIMS BY THE NATION AND THE UNITED

5 STATES.—The Nation, on behalf of itself and members of 

6 the Nation (other than members in the capacity of the 

7 members as allottees), and the United States, acting 

8 through the Secretary and in the capacity of the United 

9 States as trustee for the Nation, shall each execute a waiv10 er and release of— 

11 (1) all claims for water rights in, or for waters 

12 of, the San Juan River Basin in the State of New 

13 Mexico that the Nation, or the United States as 

14 trustee for the Nation, asserted, or could have as15 serted, in the San Juan River adjudication or in any 

16 other court proceeding; 

17 (2) all claims that the Nation, or the United 

18 States as trustee for the Nation, has asserted or 

19 could assert for any damage, loss, or injury to water 

20 rights or claims of interference, diversion, or taking 

21 of water in the San Juan Basin in the State of New 

22 Mexico that, regardless of whether the damage, loss, 

23 or injury is unanticipated, unexpected, or un24 known— 


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1 (A) accrued at any time before or on the 

2 effective date of the waiver and release under 

3 subsection (d); and 

4 (B) may or may not be more numerous or 

5 more serious than is understood or expected; 

6 and 

7 (3) all claims of any damage, loss, or injury or 

8 for injunctive or other relief because of the condition 

9 of or changes in water quality related to, or arising 

10 out of, the exercise of water rights. 

11 (b) CLAIMS BY THE NATION AGAINST THE UNITED

12 STATES.—The Nation, on behalf of itself and its members 

13 (other than members in the capacity of the members as 

14 allottees), shall execute a waiver and release of— 

15 (1) all causes of action that the Nation or the 

16 members of the Nation (other than members in the 

17 capacity of the members as allottees) may have 

18 against the United States or any agencies or employ19 ees of the United States, arising out of claims for 

20 water rights in, or waters of, the San Juan River 

21 Basin in the State of New Mexico that the United 

22 States asserted, or could have asserted, in the 

23 stream adjudication or other court proceeding; 

24 (2) all claims for any damage, loss, or injury to 

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1 ing of water, or failure to protect, acquire, or de2 velop water or water rights for land within the San 

3 Juan Basin in the State of New Mexico that, re4 gardless whether the damage, loss, or injury is unan5 ticipated, unexpected, or unknown— 

6 (A) accrued at any time before or on the 

7 effective date of the waiver and release under 

8 subsection (d); and 

9 (B) may or may not be more numerous or 

10 more serious than is understood or expected; 

11 and 

12 (3) all claims arising out of, resulting from, or 

13 relating in any manner to the negotiation, execution 

14 or adoption of the Agreement, the Contract, or this 

15 Act (including any specific terms and provisions of 

16 the Agreement, the Contract, or this Act) that the 

17 Nation may have against the United States or any 

18 agencies or employees of the United States. 

19 (c) RESERVATION OF CLAIMS.—Notwithstanding 

20 subsections (a) and (b), the Nation and the members of 

21 the Nation (including members in the capacity of the 

22 members as allottees) and the United States, as trustee 

23 for the Nation and allottees, shall retain— 

24 (1) all claims for water rights or injuries to 

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1 side the San Juan River Basin in the State of New 

2 Mexico, subject to paragraphs 8.0, 9.3, 9.12, 9.13, 

3 and 13.9 of the Agreement; 

4 (2) all claims for enforcement of the Agree5 ment, the Contract, the Partial Final Decree, the 

6 Supplemental Partial Final Decree, or this Act, 

7 through any legal and equitable remedies available 

8 in any court of competent jurisdiction; 

9 (3) all rights to use and protect water rights ac10 quired pursuant to State law after the effective date 

11 of the waivers and releases described in subsection 

12 (d); 

13 (4) all claims relating to activities affecting the 

14 quality of water not related to the exercise of water 

15 rights; and 

16 (5) all rights, remedies, privileges, immunities, 

17 and powers not specifically waived and released 

18 under the terms of the Agreement or this Act. 

19 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—The waivers and releases de21 scribed in subsection (a) shall be effective on the 

22 date on which the Secretary publishes in the Federal 

23 Register a statement of findings documenting that 

24 each of the deadlines described in section 401(e)(1) 

25 have been met. 


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1 (2) DEADLINE.—If the deadlines in section 

2 401(e)(1)(A) have not been met by the later of 

3 March 1, 2025, or the date of any extension under 

4 section 401(e)(1)(B)— 

5 (A) the waivers and releases described in 

6 subsection (a) shall be of no effect; and 

7 (B) section 401(e)(2)(B) shall apply. 

8 SEC. 404. WATER RIGHTS HELD IN TRUST. 

9 A tribal water right adjudicated and described in 

10 paragraph 3.0 of the Partial Final Decree and in para11 graph 3.0 of the Supplemental Partial Final Decree shall 

12 be held in trust by the United States on behalf of the Na13 tion. 

Æ 


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