I 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 4659 

To amend the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009 to establish 

an Aging Infrastructure Account, to amend the Reclamation Safety of 

Dams Act of 1978 to provide additional funds under that Act, to establish a review of flood control rule curves pilot project within the Bureau 

of Reclamation, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

OCTOBER 11, 2019 

Mr. NEWHOUSE (for himself, Mr. AMODEI, and Ms. SCHRIER) introduced the 

following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources, 

and in addition to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, 

for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case 

for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the 

committee concerned 

A BILL 

To amend the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 

2009 to establish an Aging Infrastructure Account, to 

amend the Reclamation Safety of Dams Act of 1978 

to provide additional funds under that Act, to establish 

a review of flood control rule curves pilot project within 

the Bureau of Reclamation, 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. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Water Supply Infra3 structure Rehabilitation and Utilization Act’’. 

4 SEC. 2. AGING INFRASTRUCTURE ACCOUNT. 

5 Section 9603 of the Omnibus Public Land Manage6 ment Act of 2009 (43 U.S.C. 510b) is amended by adding 

7 at the end the following: 

8 ‘‘(d) AGING INFRASTRUCTURE ACCOUNT.— 

9 ‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in 

10 the general fund of the Treasury a special account, 

11 to be known as the ‘Aging Infrastructure Account’ 

12 (referred to in this subsection as the ‘Account’), to 

13 provide funds to, and provide for the extended re14 payment of the funds by, a transferred works oper15 ating entity or project beneficiary responsible for re16 payment of reimbursable costs for the conduct of ex17 traordinary operation and maintenance work at a 

18 project facility, which shall consist of— 

19 ‘‘(A) any amounts that are specifically ap20 propriated to the Account under section 9605; 

21 and 

22 ‘‘(B) any amounts deposited in the Ac23 count under paragraph (3)(B). 

24 ‘‘(2) EXPENDITURES.—Subject to appropria25 tions and paragraph (3), the Secretary may expend 

26 amounts in the Account to fund and provide for exVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:08 Oct 12, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4659.IH H4659

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1 tended repayment of the funds for eligible projects 

2 identified in a report submitted under paragraph 

3 (5)(A). 

4 ‘‘(3) REPAYMENT CONTRACT.— 

5 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may 

6 not expend amounts under paragraph (2) with 

7 respect to an eligible project described in that 

8 paragraph unless the transferred works oper9 ating entity or project beneficiary responsible 

10 for repayment of reimbursable costs has entered 

11 into a contract to repay the amounts under sub12 section (b)(2). 

13 ‘‘(B) DEPOSIT OF REPAID FUNDS.— 

14 Amounts repaid by a transferred works oper15 ating entity or project beneficiary responsible 

16 for repayment of reimbursable costs receiving 

17 funds under a repayment contract entered into 

18 under this subsection shall be deposited in the 

19 Account and shall be available to the Secretary 

20 for expenditure in accordance with this sub21 section without further appropriation. 

22 ‘‘(4) APPLICATION FOR FUNDING.— 

23 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not less than once per 

24 fiscal year, the Secretary shall accept, during 

25 an application period established by the SecVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:08 Oct 12, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4659.IH H4659

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1 retary, applications from transferred works op2 erating entities or project beneficiaries respon3 sible for payment of reimbursable costs for 

4 funds and extended repayment for eligible 

5 projects. 

6 ‘‘(B) ELIGIBLE PROJECT.—A project eligi7 ble for funding and extended repayment under 

8 this subsection is a project that— 

9 ‘‘(i) qualifies as an extraordinary op10 eration and maintenance work under this 

11 section; 

12 ‘‘(ii) is for the major, non-recurring 

13 maintenance of a mission-critical asset; 

14 and 

15 ‘‘(iii) is not eligible to be carried out 

16 or funded under the repayment provisions 

17 of section 4(c) of the Reclamation Safety 

18 of Dams Act of 1978 (43 U.S.C. 508(c)). 

19 ‘‘(C) GUIDELINES FOR APPLICATIONS.— 

20 Not later than 60 days after the date of enact21 ment of this subsection, the Secretary shall 

22 issue guidelines describing the information re23 quired to be provided in an application for 

24 funding and extended repayment under this 

25 subsection that require, at a minimum— 


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1 ‘‘(i) a description of the project for 

2 which the funds are requested; 

3 ‘‘(ii) the amount of funds requested; 

4 ‘‘(iii) the repayment period requested 

5 by the transferred works operating entity 

6 or project beneficiary responsible for re7 payment of reimbursable costs; 

8 ‘‘(iv) alternative non-Federal funding 

9 options that have been evaluated; 

10 ‘‘(v) the financial justification for re11 questing an extended repayment period; 

12 and 

13 ‘‘(vi) the financial records of the 

14 transferred works operating entity or 

15 project beneficiary responsible for repay16 ment of reimbursable costs. 

17 ‘‘(D) REVIEW BY THE SECRETARY.—The 

18 Secretary shall review each application sub19 mitted under subparagraph (A)— 

20 ‘‘(i) to determine whether the project 

21 is eligible for funds and an extended repay22 ment period under this subsection; 

23 ‘‘(ii) to determine if the project has 

24 been identified by the Bureau of ReclamaVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:08 Oct 12, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4659.IH H4659

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1 tion as part of the major rehabilitation and 

2 replacement of a project facility; and 

3 ‘‘(iii) to conduct a financial analysis 

4 of— 

5 ‘‘(I) the project; and 

6 ‘‘(II) the transferred works oper7 ating entity or project beneficiary re8 sponsible for repayment of reimburs9 able costs. 

10 ‘‘(5) REPORT.—Not later than 90 days after 

11 the date on which an application period closes under 

12 paragraph (4)(A), the Secretary shall submit to the 

13 Committees on Energy and Natural Resources and 

14 Appropriations of the Senate and the Committees on 

15 Natural Resources and Appropriations of the House 

16 of Representatives a report that— 

17 ‘‘(A) identifies each project eligible for 

18 funding and extended repayment under this 

19 subsection; 

20 ‘‘(B) with respect to each eligible project 

21 identified under subparagraph (A), includes— 

22 ‘‘(i) a description of— 

23 ‘‘(I) the eligible project; 

24 ‘‘(II) the anticipated cost and du25 ration of the eligible project; and 


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1 ‘‘(III) any remaining engineering 

2 or environmental compliance that is 

3 required before the eligible project 

4 commences; 

5 ‘‘(ii) an analysis of— 

6 ‘‘(I) the repayment period pro7 posed in the application; and 

8 ‘‘(II) if the Secretary rec9 ommends a minimum necessary repay10 ment period that is different than the 

11 repayment period proposed in the ap12 plication, the minimum necessary re13 payment period recommended by the 

14 Secretary; and 

15 ‘‘(iii) an analysis of alternative non16 Federal funding options; and 

17 ‘‘(C) describes the balance of funds in the 

18 Account as of the date of the report. 

19 ‘‘(6) EFFECT OF SUBSECTION.—Nothing in this 

20 subsection affects— 

21 ‘‘(A) any funding provided, or contracts 

22 entered into, under subsection (a) before the 

23 date of enactment of this subsection; or 


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1 ‘‘(B) the use of funds otherwise made 

2 available to the Secretary to carry out sub3 section (a).’’. 

4 SEC. 3. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR THE 

5 RECLAMATION SAFETY OF DAMS ACT OF 1978. 

6 Section 5 of the Reclamation Safety of Dams Act of 

7 1978 (43 U.S.C. 509) is amended, in the first sentence, 

8 by inserting ‘‘, and, effective October 1, 2019, not to ex9 ceed an additional $550,000,000 (October 1, 2019, price 

10 levels)’’ before ‘‘, plus or minus’’. 

11 SEC. 4. REVIEW OF FLOOD CONTROL RULE CURVES PILOT 

12 PROJECT. 

13 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

14 (1) BUREAU.—The term ‘‘Bureau’’ means the 

15 Bureau of Reclamation. 

16 (2) ELIGIBLE WORKS.— 

17 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘eligible 

18 works’’ means a reserved works, or a trans19 ferred works for which— 

20 (i) the flood control rule curve has not 

21 been substantially adjusted during the 10- 

22 year period ending on the date of enact23 ment of this Act; and 

24 (ii) the Secretary receives a request in 

25 accordance with subsection (c)(1)(A). 


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1 (B) EXCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘eligible 

2 works’’ does not include— 

3 (i) any project authorized by the 

4 Boulder Canyon Project Act (43 U.S.C. 

5 617 et seq.); 

6 (ii) any project authorized by the Act 

7 of April 11, 1956 (commonly known as the 

8 ‘‘Colorado River Storage Project Act’’) (43 

9 U.S.C. 620 et seq.); or 

10 (iii) any project of the Pick-Sloan 

11 Missouri River Basin Program (authorized 

12 by section 9 of the Act of December 22, 

13 1944 (commonly known as the ‘‘Flood 

14 Control Act of 1944’’) (58 Stat. 891, chap15 ter 665)). 

16 (3) PILOT PROJECT.—The term ‘‘pilot project’’ 

17 means the pilot project established under subsection 

18 (b). 

19 (4) RESPONSIBLE PARTY.—The term ‘‘respon20 sible party’’ means— 

21 (A) with respect to a reserved works— 

22 (i) a non-Federal water user or power 

23 contractor that has an active repayment, 

24 water service, or power service contract 

25 with the Bureau; 


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1 (ii) a power contractor that has an ac2 tive contract with a Federal power mar3 keting administration for energy, capacity, 

4 or energy and capacity, from a hydropower 

5 facility owned by the Bureau; or 

6 (iii) a non-Federal operating entity, 

7 including a joint powers authority or board 

8 of control, that has assumed responsibility 

9 on behalf of multiple water users, through 

10 a contract with the Bureau, for the oper11 ation and maintenance of the reserved 

12 works; and 

13 (B) with respect to a transferred works, 

14 the operating entity of the transferred works. 

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

16 Secretary of the Interior. 

17 (b) ESTABLISHMENT OF PILOT PROJECT.—The Sec18 retary, in consultation with the Secretary of the Army, 

19 shall establish within the Bureau a pilot project to adjust 

20 flood control rule curves in accordance with subsection (d). 

21 (c) SELECTION OF ELIGIBLE WORKS.— 

22 (1) REQUEST.— 

23 (A) IN GENERAL.—In order for an eligible 

24 works to be selected for inclusion in the pilot 

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1 ten request to the Secretary seeking a flood 

2 control rule curve adjustment. 

3 (B) NOTICE.—Not later than 30 days 

4 after the date on which the Secretary receives 

5 a request under subparagraph (A), the Sec6 retary shall notify— 

7 (i) each responsible party of that re8 quest, using lists maintained by the Bu9 reau; and 

10 (ii) if applicable, the appropriate Fed11 eral power marketing administration. 

12 (2) SELECTION.—Each year, the Secretary 

13 shall— 

14 (A) select 1 or more eligible works for in15 clusion in the pilot project; and 

16 (B) submit a list of those eligible works 

17 to— 

18 (i) the Secretary of the Army; 

19 (ii) the Committee on Natural Re20 sources of the House of Representatives; 

21 and 

22 (iii) the Committee on Energy and 

23 Natural Resources of the Senate. 

24 (3) EXCLUSION.—The Secretary shall not select 

25 an eligible works for inclusion in the pilot project 


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1 under paragraph (2)(A) if, not later than 60 days 

2 after the date on which the notice is provided to 

3 each responsible party under paragraph (1)(B)(i), a 

4 majority of the responsible parties submit to the 

5 Secretary an objection to the inclusion of the eligible 

6 works in the pilot project. 

7 (d) ADJUSTMENT OF A FLOOD CONTROL RULE.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—The flood control rule curve 

9 of an eligible works shall be adjusted pursuant to 

10 section 7 of the Act of December 22, 1944 (33 

11 U.S.C. 709), if the Secretary of the Army deter12 mines that the adjustment would enhance the au13 thorized purposes of the eligible works. 

14 (2) CONSIDERATIONS.—In the adjustment of a 

15 flood control rule curve under paragraph (1), the fol16 lowing factors shall be considered: 

17 (A) Forecast-informed reservoir operations. 

18 (B) Improved hydrologic forecasting for— 

19 (i) precipitation; 

20 (ii) snowpack; 

21 (iii) runoff; and 

22 (iv) soil moisture conditions. 

23 (C) Any new watershed data, including 

24 data provided by a responsible party for the eli25 gible works. 


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1 (3) CONSULTATION.—In the adjustment of a 

2 flood control rule curve under paragraph (1), the fol3 lowing entities shall be consulted: 

4 (A) Each responsible party for the eligible 

5 works. 

6 (B) In the case of an eligible works that 

7 produces power marketed by the Federal Gov8 ernment, the Federal power marketing adminis9 tration that markets the power. 

10 (C) The Secretary. 

11 (e) CONSULTATION.—The Secretary shall consult 

12 with the Secretary of the Army with respect to any action 

13 taken by the Secretary of the Army— 

14 (1) pursuant to section 7 of the Act of Decem15 ber 22, 1944 (33 U.S.C. 709); and 

16 (2) that relates to the pilot project. 

17 (f) FUNDING.—The Secretary or the Secretary of the 

18 Army, as appropriate, may accept amounts from respon19 sible parties for eligible works to fund all or a portion of 

20 the cost of carrying out an adjustment of a flood control 

21 rule under subsection (d), including a review or revision 

22 of operational documents (including water control plans, 

23 water control manuals, water control diagrams, release 

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1 Federal entities, and any associated environmental docu2 mentation). 

3 (g) EFFECT.—Nothing in this section— 

4 (1) affects or modifies any existing authority to 

5 review or modify— 

6 (A) reservoir operations, including any ex7 isting forecast-informed reservoir operations at 

8 a facility of the Corps of Engineers, such as 

9 Coyote Dam; and 

10 (B) flood control operations; or 

11 (2) affects or modifies any authorized purpose 

12 of any project carried out by the Secretary. 

13 (h) TERMINATION.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—The pilot project shall termi15 nate on the date that is 15 years after the date of 

16 enactment of this Act. 

17 (2) EFFECT.—Termination of the pilot project 

18 under paragraph (1) shall not affect any flood con19 trol rule curve developed as part of the pilot project. 

Æ 


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