I

106TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 244

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

JANUARY 27, 2000

Referred to the Committee on Resources

AN ACT

To authorize the construction of the Lewis and Clark Rural

Water System and to authorize assistance to the Lewis

and Clark Rural Water System, Inc., a nonprofit corporation, for the planning and construction of the water

supply system, and for other purposes.

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

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Lewis and Clark Rural

5 Water System Act of 1999’’.
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1 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

2 In this Act:

3 (1) ENVIRONMENTAL ENHANCEMENT.—The

4 term ‘‘environmental enhancement’’ means the wet5 land and wildlife enhancement activities that are

6 carried out substantially in accordance with the envi7 ronmental enhancement component of the feasibility

8 study.

9 (2) ENVIRONMENTAL ENHANCEMENT COMPO10 NENT.—The term ‘‘environmental enhancement

11 component’’ means the proposals described in the re12 port entitled ‘‘Wetlands and Wildlife Enhancement

13 for the Lewis and Clark Rural Water System’’,

14 dated December 1994.

15 (3) FEASIBILITY STUDY.—The term ‘‘feasibility

16 study’’ means the study entitled ‘‘Feasibility Level

17 Evaluation of a Missouri River Regional Water Sup18 ply for South Dakota, Iowa and Minnesota’’, dated

19 September 1993, that includes a water conservation

20 plan, environmental report, and environmental en21 hancement component.

22 (4) INCREMENTAL COST.—The term ‘‘incre23 mental cost’’ means the cost of the savings to the

24 project were the city of Sioux Falls not to partici25 pate in the water supply system.
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1 (5) MEMBER ENTITY.—The term ‘‘member en2 tity’’ means a rural water system or municipality

3 that meets the requirements for membership as de4 fined by the Lewis and Clark Rural Water System,

5 Inc. bylaws, dated September 6, 1990.

6 (6) PROJECT CONSTRUCTION BUDGET.—The

7 term ‘‘project construction budget’’ means the de8 scription of the total amount of funds needed for the

9 construction of the water supply project, as con10 tained in the feasibility study.

11 (7) PUMPING AND INCIDENTAL OPERATIONAL

12 REQUIREMENTS.—The term ‘‘pumping and inci13 dental operational requirements’’ means all power

14 requirements that are necessary for the operation of

15 intake facilities, pumping stations, water treatment

16 facilities, reservoirs, and pipelines up to the point of

17 delivery of water by the water supply system to each

18 member entity that distributes water at retail to in19 dividual users.

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

21 the Secretary of the Interior.

22 (9) WATER SUPPLY PROJECT.—

23 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘water sup24 ply project’’ means the physical components of

25 the Lewis and Clark Rural Water Project.
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1 (B) INCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘water supply

2 project’’ includes—

3 (i) necessary pumping, treatment, and

4 distribution facilities;

5 (ii) pipelines;

6 (iii) appurtenant buildings and prop7 erty rights;

8 (iv) electrical power transmission and

9 distribution facilities necessary for services

10 to water systems facilities; and

11 (v) such other pipelines, pumping

12 plants, and facilities as the Secretary con13 siders necessary and appropriate to meet

14 the water supply, economic, public health,

15 and environment needs of the member en16 tities (including water storage tanks, water

17 lines, and other facilities for the member

18 entities).

19 (10) WATER SUPPLY SYSTEM.—The term

20 ‘‘water supply system’’ means the Lewis and Clark

21 Rural Water System, Inc., a nonprofit corporation

22 established and operated substantially in accordance

23 with the feasibility study.
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1 SEC. 3. FEDERAL ASSISTANCE FOR THE WATER SUPPLY

2 SYSTEM.

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall make grants

4 to the water supply system for the planning and construc5 tion of the water supply project.

6 (b) SERVICE AREA.—The water supply system shall

7 provide for the member entities safe and adequate munic8 ipal, rural, and industrial water supplies, environmental

9 enhancement, mitigation of wetland areas, and water con10 servation in—

11 (1) Lake County, McCook County, Minnehaha

12 County, Turner County, Lincoln County, Clay Coun13 ty, and Union County, in southeastern South Da14 kota;

15 (2) Rock County and Nobles County, in south16 western Minnesota; and

17 (3) Lyon County, Sioux County, Osceola Coun18 ty, O’Brien County, Dickinson County, and Clay

19 County, in northwestern Iowa.

20 (c) AMOUNT OF GRANTS.—Grants made available

21 under subsection (a) to the water supply system shall not

22 exceed the amount of funds authorized under section 9.

23 (d) LIMITATION ON AVAILABILITY OF CONSTRUC24 TION FUNDS.—The Secretary shall not obligate funds for

25 the construction of the water supply project until—
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1 (1) the requirements of the National Environ2 mental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.)

3 are met; and

4 (2) a final engineering report and a plan for a

5 water conservation program are prepared and sub6 mitted to Congress not less than 90 days before the

7 commencement of construction of the water supply

8 project.

9 SEC. 4. FEDERAL ASSISTANCE FOR THE ENVIRONMENTAL

10 ENHANCEMENT COMPONENT.

11 (a) INITIAL DEVELOPMENT.—The Secretary shall

12 make grants and other funds available to the water supply

13 system and other private, State, and Federal entities, for

14 the initial development of the environmental enhancement

15 component.

16 (b) NONREIMBURSEMENT.—Funds provided under

17 subsection (a) shall be nonreimbursable and nonreturn18 able.

19 SEC. 5. MITIGATION OF FISH AND WILDLIFE LOSSES.

20 Mitigation for fish and wildlife losses incurred as a

21 result of the construction and operation of the water sup22 ply project shall be on an acre-for-acre basis, based on

23 ecological equivalency, concurrent with project construc24 tion, as provided in the feasibility study.
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1 SEC. 6. USE OF PICK–SLOAN POWER.

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—From power designated for future

3 irrigation and drainage pumping for the Pick-Sloan Mis4 souri River Basin Program, the Western Area Power Ad5 ministration shall make available the capacity and energy

6 required to meet the pumping and incidental operational

7 requirements of the water supply project during the period

8 beginning May 1 and ending October 31 of each year.

9 (b) CONDITIONS.—The capacity and energy described

10 in subsection (a) shall be made available on the following

11 conditions:

12 (1) The water supply system shall be operated

13 on a not-for-profit basis.

14 (2) The water supply system shall contract to

15 purchase the entire electric service requirements of

16 the project, including the capacity and energy made

17 available under subsection (a), from a qualified pref18 erence power supplier that itself purchases power

19 from the Western Area Power Administration.

20 (3) The rate schedule applicable to the capacity

21 and energy made available under subsection (a) shall

22 be the firm power rate schedule of the Pick-Sloan

23 Eastern Division of the Western Area Power Admin24 istration in effect when the power is delivered by the

25 Administration to the qualified preference power

26 supplier.
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1 (4) It is agreed by contract among—

2 (A) the Western Area Power Administra3 tion;

4 (B) the power supplier with which the

5 water supply system contracts under paragraph

6 (2);

7 (C) the power supplier of the entity de8 scribed in subparagraph (B); and

9 (D) the water supply system;

10 that in the case of the capacity and energy made

11 available under subsection (a), the benefit of the

12 rate schedule described in paragraph (3) shall be

13 passed through to the water supply system, except

14 that the power supplier of the water supply system

15 shall not be precluded from including, in the charges

16 of the supplier to the water system for the electric

17 service, the other usual and customary charges of

18 the supplier.

19 SEC. 7. NO LIMITATION ON WATER PROJECTS IN STATES.

20 This Act does not limit the authorization for water

21 projects in the States of South Dakota, Iowa, and Min22 nesota under law in effect on or after the date of enact23 ment of this Act.

24 SEC. 8. WATER RIGHTS.

25 Nothing in this Act—
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1 (1) invalidates or preempts State water law or

2 an interstate compact governing water;

3 (2) alters the rights of any State to any appro4 priated share of the waters of any body of surface

5 or ground water, whether determined by past or fu6 ture interstate compacts or by past or future legisla7 tive or final judicial allocations;

8 (3) preempts or modifies any Federal or State

9 law, or interstate compact, governing water quality

10 or disposal; or

11 (4) confers on any non-Federal entity the abil12 ity to exercise any Federal right to the waters of any

13 stream or to any ground water resource.

14 SEC. 9. COST SHARING.

15 (a) FEDERAL COST SHARE.—

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para17 graph (2), the Secretary shall provide funds equal to

18 80 percent of—

19 (A) the amount allocated in the total

20 project construction budget for planning and

21 construction of the water supply project under

22 section 3; and

23 (B) such amounts as are necessary to de24 fray increases in development costs reflected in
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1 appropriate engineering cost indices after Sep2 tember 1, 1993.

3 (2) SIOUX FALLS.—The Secretary shall provide

4 funds for the city of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, in

5 an amount equal to 50 percent of the incremental

6 cost to the city of participation in the project.

7 (b) NON-FEDERAL COST SHARE.—

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para9 graph (2), the non-Federal share of the costs allo10 cated to the water supply system shall be 20 percent

11 of the amounts described in subsection (a)(1).

12 (2) SIOUX FALLS.—The non-Federal cost-share

13 for the city of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, shall be

14 50 percent of the incremental cost to the city of par15 ticipation in the project.

16 SEC. 10. BUREAU OF RECLAMATION.

17 (a) AUTHORIZATION.—At the request of the water

18 supply system, the Secretary may allow the Commissioner

19 of Reclamation to provide project construction oversight

20 to the water supply project and environmental enhance21 ment component for the service area of the water supply

22 system described in section 3(b).

23 (b) PROJECT OVERSIGHT ADMINISTRATION.—The

24 amount of funds used by the Commissioner of Reclama25 tion for oversight described in subsection (a) shall not ex-
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1 ceed the amount that is equal to 1 percent of the amount

2 provided in the total project construction budget for the

3 entire project construction period.

4 (c) OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE.—The water

5 supply system shall be responsible for annual operation

6 and maintenance of the project.

7 SEC. 11. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

8 There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out

9 this Act $223,987,700, to remain available until expended,

10 of which not more than $10,100,000 shall be used for the

11 initial development of the environmental enhancement

12 component under section 4.

Passed the Senate November 19, 1999.

Attest: GARY SISCO,

Secretary.