(5) MATURITY DATE.—The final maturity date 
of a secured loan under this section shall be not 
later than the earlier of— 
(A) 35 years after the date of substantial 
completion of the relevant project; and 
(B) the final day of the useful life of the 
capital asset being financed. 
(6) 
NONSUBORDINATION.—A 
secured 
loan 
under this section shall not be subordinated to the 
claims of any holder of project obligations in the 
event of bankruptcy, insolvency, or liquidation of the 
obligor. 
(7) FEES.—The Secretary may establish fees, 
as provided for in section 10(b), at a level sufficient 
to cover all or a portion of the costs to the Federal 
Government of making a secured loan under this 
section. 
(8) NON-FEDERAL SHARE.—The proceeds of a 
secured loan under this section may be used to pay 
any non-Federal share of project costs required if 
the loan is repayable from non-Federal funds. 
(9) MAXIMUM
FEDERAL
INVOLVEMENT.—For 
each project for which assistance is provided under 
this Act, the total amount of Federal assistance 
from all sources, including the assistance provided 
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under this Act, shall not exceed 80 percent of the 
total project cost. 
(c) REPAYMENT.— 
(1) SCHEDULE.—The Secretary shall establish 
a repayment schedule for each secured loan provided 
under this section, based on the projected cash flow 
from project revenues, other repayment sources, and 
the useful life of the project. 
(2) COMMENCEMENT.—Scheduled loan repay-
ment of principal or interest on a secured loan under 
this section shall commence not later than 5 years 
after the date of substantial completion of the 
project. 
(3) DEFERRED PAYMENTS.— 
(A) AUTHORIZATION.—If, at any time 
after the date of substantial completion of a 
project for which a secured loan is provided 
under this section, the project is unable to gen-
erate sufficient revenues to pay the scheduled 
loan repayments of principal and interest on the 
secured loan, the Secretary may allow the obli-
gor, subject to subparagraph (C), to add unpaid 
principal and interest to the outstanding bal-
ance of the secured loan. 
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(B) INTEREST.—Any payment deferred 
under subparagraph (A) shall— 
(i) continue to accrue interest in ac-
cordance with subsection (b)(4) until fully 
repaid; and 
(ii) be scheduled to be amortized over 
the remaining term of the secured loan. 
(C) CRITERIA.— 
(i) IN GENERAL.—Any payment defer-
ral under subparagraph (A) shall be con-
tingent on the project meeting such cri-
teria as the Secretary may establish. 
(ii) REPAYMENT
STANDARDS.—The 
criteria established under clause (i) shall 
include standards for reasonable assurance 
of repayment. 
(4) PREPAYMENT.— 
(A) USE OF EXCESS REVENUES.—Any ex-
cess revenues that remain after satisfying 
scheduled debt service requirements on the 
project obligations and secured loan and all de-
posit requirements under the terms of any trust 
agreement, bond resolution, or similar agree-
ment securing project obligations may be ap-
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plied annually to prepay a secured loan under 
this section without penalty. 
(B) 
USE
OF
PROCEEDS
OF
REFI-
NANCING.—A secured loan under this section 
may be prepaid at any time without penalty 
from the proceeds of refinancing from non-Fed-
eral funding sources. 
(d) SALE OF SECURED LOANS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), as 
soon as practicable after the date of substantial 
completion of a project and after providing a notice 
to the obligor, the Secretary may sell to another en-
tity or reoffer into the capital markets a secured 
loan for a project under this section, if the Secretary 
determines that the sale or reoffering can be made 
on favorable terms. 
(2) CONSENT OF OBLIGOR.—In making a sale 
or reoffering under paragraph (1), the Secretary 
may not change the original terms and conditions of 
the secured loan without the written consent of the 
obligor. 
(e) LOAN GUARANTEES.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may provide a 
loan guarantee to a lender in lieu of making a se-
cured loan under this section, if the Secretary deter-
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mines that the budgetary cost of the loan guarantee 
is substantially the same as that of a secured loan. 
(2) TERMS.—The terms of a loan guarantee 
provided under this subsection shall be consistent 
with the terms required under this section for a se-
cured loan, except that the rate on the guaranteed 
loan and any prepayment features shall be nego-
tiated between the obligor and the lender, with the 
consent of the Secretary. 
SEC. 9. PROGRAM ADMINISTRATION. 
(a) REQUIREMENT.—The Secretary shall establish a 
uniform system to service the Federal credit instruments 
made available under this Act. 
(b) SERVICER.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may appoint 
a financial entity to assist the Secretary in servicing 
the Federal credit instruments provided under this 
Act. 
(2) DUTIES; FEE.—A servicer appointed under 
paragraph (1) shall— 
(A) act as the agent for the Secretary; and 
(B) receive a servicing fee, subject to ap-
proval by the Secretary. 
(c) ASSISTANCE FROM EXPERTS.—The Secretary 
may retain the services, including counsel, of any organi-
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zation or entity with expertise in the field of municipal 
and project finance to assist in the underwriting and serv-
icing of Federal credit instruments provided under this 
Act. 
SEC. 10. STATE, TRIBAL, AND LOCAL PERMITS. 
The provision of financial assistance for a project 
under this Act shall not— 
(1) relieve any recipient of the assistance of any 
obligation to obtain any required State, local, or 
tribal permit or approval with respect to the project; 
(2) limit the right of any unit of State, local, 
or tribal government to approve or regulate any rate 
of return on private equity invested in the project; 
or 
(3) otherwise supersede any State, local, or 
tribal law (including any regulation) applicable to 
the construction or operation of the project. 
SEC. 11. REGULATIONS. 
The Secretary may promulgate such regulations as 
the Secretary determines to be appropriate to carry out 
this Act. 
SEC. 12. FUNDING. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be appro-
priated to each of the Secretary and the Administrator 
to carry out this Act, to remain available until expended— 
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(1) $20,000,000 for fiscal year 2017; 
(2) $25,000,000 for fiscal year 2018; 
(3) $35,000,000 for fiscal year 2019; 
(4) $45,000,000 for fiscal year 2020; and 
(5) $50,000,000 for fiscal year 2021. 
(b) ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS.—Of the funds made 
available to carry out this Act, the Secretary may use for 
the administration of this Act not more than $2,200,000 
for each of fiscal years 2017 through 2021. 
SEC. 13. REPORT TO CONGRESS ON PILOT PROJECT IMPLE-
MENTATION. 
Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment 
of this Act, and every 2 years thereafter, the Secretary 
shall submit to the Committee on Energy and Natural Re-
sources of the Senate and the Committee on Natural Re-
sources of the House of Representatives a report summa-
rizing the financial performance of the projects that are 
receiving, or have received, assistance under this Act, in-
cluding an assessment of whether the objectives of this 
Act are being met. 
SEC. 14. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
(1) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘‘eligible enti-
ty’’ means— 
(A) a corporation; 
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(B) a partnership; 
(C) a joint venture; 
(D) a trust; 
(E) a State, local or non-Federal govern-
mental entity, agency, or instrumentality; and 
(F) a conservancy district, irrigation dis-
trict, canal company, mutual water company, 
water users’ association, Indian tribe, agency 
created by interstate compact, or any other en-
tity that has the capacity to contract with the 
United States under Federal reclamation law. 
(2) ELIGIBLE PROJECT COSTS.—The term ‘‘eli-
gible project costs’’ means the total cost of activities 
deemed eligible for assistance in section 6(b) of this 
Act. 
(3) FEDERAL CREDIT INSTRUMENT.—The term 
‘‘Federal credit instrument’’ means a secured loan 
or loan guarantee authorized to be made available 
under this Act with respect to a project. 
(4) INVESTMENT-GRADE
RATING.—The term 
‘‘investment-grade rating’’ means a rating of BBB 
minus, Baa3, bbb minus, BBB (low), or higher as 
assigned by a rating agency to project obligations. 
(5) LENDER.— 
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(A) IN
GENERAL.—The term ‘‘lender’’ 
means any non-Federal qualified institutional 
buyer (as defined in section 230.144A(a) of 
title 17, Code of Federal Regulations (or a suc-
cessor regulation) (commonly known as ‘‘Rule 
144A(a) of the Securities and Exchange Com-
mission’’ and issued under the Securities Act of 
1933 (15 U.S.C. 77a et seq.))). 
(B) INCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘lender’’ in-
cludes— 
(i) a qualified retirement plan (as de-
fined in section 4974 of the Internal Rev-
enue Code of 1986) that is a qualified in-
stitutional buyer; and 
(ii) a governmental plan (as defined in 
section 414 of the Internal Revenue Code 
of 1986) that is a qualified institutional 
buyer. 
(6) LOAN GUARANTEE.—The term ‘‘loan guar-
antee’’ means any guarantee or other pledge by the 
Secretary to pay all or part of the principal of, and 
interest on, a loan or other debt obligation issued by 
an obligor and funded by a lender. 
(7) MASTER CREDIT AGREEMENT.—The term 
‘‘master credit agreement’’ means an Agreement to 
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extend credit assistance for one or more projects se-
cured by a common security pledge (which shall re-
ceive an investment-grade rating from a rating agen-
cy), or for a single project that would— 
(A) make contingent commitments of one 
or more secured loans or other Federal credit 
instruments at future dates, subject to the 
availability of future funds being made available 
to carry out this Act; 
(B) establish the maximum amounts and 
general terms and conditions of the secured 
loans or other Federal credit instruments; 
(C) identify the one or more dedicated 
non-Federal revenue sources that will secure 
the repayment of the secured loans or secured 
Federal credit instruments; 
(D) provide for the obligation of funds for 
the secured loans or secured Federal credit in-
struments after all requirements have been met 
for the projects subject to the master credit 
agreement, including— 
(i) completion of an environmental im-
pact statement or similar analysis required 
under the National Environmental Policy 
Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.); 
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(ii) compliance with such other re-
quirements as are specified in this Act, 
and 
(iii) the availability of funds to carry 
out this Act; and 
(E) require that contingent commitments 
result in a financial close and obligation of 
credit assistance not later than 3 years after 
the date of entry into the master credit agree-
ment, or release of the commitment, unless oth-
erwise extended by the Secretary. 
(8) OBLIGOR.—The term ‘‘obligor’’ means an 
eligible entity that is primarily liable for payment of 
the principal of, or interest on, a Federal credit in-
strument. 
(9) PROJECT OBLIGATION.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘project obli-
gation’’ means any note, bond, debenture, or 
other debt obligation issued by an obligor in 
connection with the financing of a project. 
(B) EXCLUSION.—The term ‘‘project obli-
gation’’ does not include a Federal credit in-
strument. 
(10) RATING AGENCY.—The term ‘‘rating agen-
cy’’ means a credit rating agency registered with the 
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Securities and Exchange Commission as a nationally 
recognized statistical rating organization (as defined 
in section 3(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 
1934 (15 U.S.C. 78c(a))). 
(11) RECLAMATION
STATE.—The term ‘‘Rec-
lamation State’’ means any of the following States: 
(A) Arizona; 
(B) California; 
(C) Colorado; 
(D) Idaho; 
(E) Kansas; 
(F) Montana; 
(G) Nebraska; 
(H) Nevada; 
(I) New Mexico; 
(J) North Dakota; 
(K) Oklahoma; 
(L) Oregon; 
(M) South Dakota; 
(N) Texas; 
(O) Utah; 
(P) Washington; and 
(Q) Wyoming. 
(12) 
SECRETARY.—The 
term 
‘‘Secretary’’ 
means the Secretary of the Interior. 
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(13) SECURED
LOAN.—The term ‘‘secured 
loan’’ means a direct loan or other debt obligation 
issued by an obligor and funded by the Secretary in 
connection with the financing of a project under this 
Act. 
(14) SUBSIDY
AMOUNT.—The term ‘‘subsidy 
amount’’ means the amount of budget authority suf-
ficient to cover the estimated long-term cost to the 
Federal Government of a Federal credit instrument, 
as calculated on a net present value basis, excluding 
administrative costs and any incidental effects on 
Governmental receipts or outlays in accordance with 
the Federal Credit Reform Act of 1990 (2 U.S.C. 
661 et seq.). 
(15) SUBSTANTIAL
COMPLETION.—The term 
‘‘substantial completion’’, with respect to a project, 
means— 
(A) the initial operation of a project (after 
completion of any startup tests), resulting in 
producing, storage, delivery, receiving, or con-
serving water; or 
(B) a comparable event, as determined by 
the Secretary and specified in the master credit 
agreement. 
Æ 
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