SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 
‘‘Water Resources Development Act of 2016’’. 
(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 
this Act is as follows: 
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 
Sec. 2. Secretary defined. 
TITLE I—GENERAL PROVISIONS 
Sec. 101. Sense of Congress regarding Water Resources Development Acts. 
Sec. 102. Youth service and conservation corps organizations. 
Sec. 103. Navigation safety. 
Sec. 104. Emerging harbors. 
Sec. 105. Federal breakwaters and jetties. 
Sec. 106. Donor ports and energy transfer ports. 
Sec. 107. Remote and subsistence harbors. 
Sec. 108. Beneficial use of dredged material. 
Sec. 109. Reservoir sediment. 
Sec. 110. Contributed funds for reservoir operations. 
Sec. 111. Water supply conservation. 
Sec. 112. Interstate compacts. 
Sec. 113. Nonstructural alternatives. 
Sec. 114. Operation and maintenance of environmental protection and restora-
tion and aquatic ecosystem restoration projects. 
Sec. 115. Estuary restoration. 
Sec. 116. Great Lakes fishery and ecosystem restoration. 
Sec. 117. Agreements. 
Sec. 118. Corps of Engineers operation of unmanned aircraft systems. 
Sec. 119. Federal dredge fleet. 
Sec. 120. Corps of Engineers assets. 
Sec. 121. Funding to process permits. 
Sec. 122. Credit in lieu of reimbursement. 
Sec. 123. Clarification of contributions during emergency events. 
Sec. 124. Study of water resources development projects by non-Federal inter-
ests. 
Sec. 125. Non-Federal construction of authorized flood damage reduction 
projects. 
Sec. 126. Multistate activities. 
Sec. 127. Regional participation assurance for levee safety activities. 
Sec. 128. Participation of non-Federal interests. 
Sec. 129. Indian tribes. 
Sec. 130. Dissemination of information on the annual report process. 
Sec. 131. Scope of projects. 
Sec. 132. Preliminary feasibility study activities. 
Sec. 133. Post-authorization change reports. 
Sec. 134. Maintenance dredging data. 
Sec. 135. Electronic submission and tracking of permit applications. 
Sec. 136. Data transparency. 
Sec. 137. Backlog prevention.
Sec. 138. Quality control. 
Sec. 139. Budget development and prioritization. 
Sec. 140. Use of natural and nature-based features. 
Sec. 141. Annual report on purchase of foreign manufactured articles. 
Sec. 142. Integrated water resources planning. 
Sec. 143. Evaluation of project partnership agreements. 
Sec. 144. Additional measures at donor ports and energy transfer ports. 
Sec. 145. Arctic deep draft port development partnerships. 
Sec. 146. International outreach program. 
Sec. 147. Comprehensive study. 
Sec. 148. Alternative models for managing Inland Waterways Trust Fund. 
Sec. 149. Alternative projects to maintenance dredging. 
Sec. 150. Fish hatcheries. 
Sec. 151. Environmental banks. 
Sec. 152. Cost share requirement. 
Sec. 153. Public access. 
Sec. 154. Tribal displacement. 
Sec. 155. Drought emergencies. 
Sec. 156. GAO study. 
Sec. 157. Work defined. 
Sec. 158. Authorization of federally maintained tributary channels as part of 
channel system. 
Sec. 159. Dam safety repair projects. 
Sec. 160. Expedited completion of authorized project for flood risk manage-
ment. 
Sec. 161. Review of Benefits. 
Sec. 162. Federal cost limitation of ecosystem restoration costs for certain 
projects. 
Sec. 163. Local flood protection works. 
Sec. 164. Flood mitigation and riverine restoration program. 
Sec. 165. Table Rock Lake, Arkansas and Missouri. 
Sec. 166. Adjustment to cost benefit ratio. 
Sec. 167. Land transfer and trust land for the Muscogee (Creek) Nation. 
Sec. 168. Lake Kemp, Texas. 
Sec. 169. Coastal Texas ecosystem protection and restoration, Texas. 
Sec. 170. Corps levees that affect community-owned levees. 
Sec. 171. Corrosion prevention. 
Sec. 172. North Atlantic Coastal Region. 
Sec. 173. Acquisition of beach fill. 
Sec. 174. Prioritization of certain projects. 
Sec. 175. Watercraft Inspection Stations. 
Sec. 176. Gulf coast oyster bed recovery assessment. 
Sec. 177. Water infrastructure finance and innovation. 
Sec. 178. Flood mitigation and rierine restoration program. 
Sec. 179. Initiating work on separable elements. 
Sec. 180. Lower Bois d’Arc Creek Reservoir Project, Fannin County, Texas. 
Sec. 181. Consideration of use of natural and nature-based feature. 
Sec. 182. Recreational access. 
Sec. 183. No wake zones for vessels. 
Sec. 184. Ice jam prevention and mitigation. 
Sec. 185. Tribal consultation. 
Sec. 186. Structural health monitoring. 
Sec. 187. Expedited completion of authorized project for flood control. 
Sec. 188. Cameron County, Texas. 
Sec. 189. Great Lakes Navigation System.
Sec. 190. Kennewick Man. 
Sec. 191. Great Lakes Restoration Initiative. 
Sec. 192. Additional assistance. 
TITLE II—STUDIES 
Sec. 201. Authorization of proposed feasibility studies. 
Sec. 202. Expedited completion of reports for certain projects. 
Sec. 203. Tulsa and West Tulsa, Arkansas River, Oklahoma. 
TITLE III—DEAUTHORIZATIONS AND RELATED PROVISIONS 
Sec. 301. Deauthorization of inactive projects. 
Sec. 302. Valdez, Alaska. 
Sec. 303. Los Angeles County Drainage Area, Los Angeles County, California. 
Sec. 304. Sutter Basin, California. 
Sec. 305. Essex River, Massachusetts. 
Sec. 306. Port of Cascade Locks, Oregon. 
Sec. 307. Central Delaware River, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. 
Sec. 308. Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania. 
Sec. 309. Rivercenter, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. 
Sec. 310. Joe Pool Lake, Texas. 
Sec. 311. Salt Creek, Graham, Texas. 
Sec. 312. Texas City Ship Channel, Texas City, Texas. 
Sec. 313. Stonington Harbor, Connecticut. 
TITLE IV—WATER RESOURCES INFRASTRUCTURE 
Sec. 401. Project authorizations. 
SEC. 2. SECRETARY DEFINED. 
In this Act, the term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Sec-
retary of the Army. 
TITLE I—GENERAL PROVISIONS 
SEC. 101. SENSE OF CONGRESS REGARDING WATER RE-
SOURCES DEVELOPMENT ACTS. 
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 
(1) The Corps of Engineers constructs projects 
for the purposes of navigation, flood control, beach 
erosion control and shoreline protection, hydro-
electric power, recreation, water supply, environ-
mental protection, restoration, and enhancement, 
and fish and wildlife mitigation. 
(2) The Corps of Engineers is the primary Fed-
eral provider of outdoor recreation in the United 
States. 
(3) The Corps of Engineers owns and operates 
more than 600 dams. 
(4) The Corps of Engineers operates and main-
tains 12,000 miles of commercial inland navigation 
channels. 
(5) The Corps of Engineers manages the dredg-
ing of more than 200,000,000 cubic yards of con-
struction and maintenance dredge material annually. 
(6) The Corps of Engineers maintains 926 
coastal, Great Lakes, and inland harbors. 
(7) The Corps of Engineers restores, creates, 
enhances, or preserves tens of thousands of acres of 
wetlands annually under the Corps’ Regulatory Pro-
gram. 
(8) The Corps of Engineers provides a total 
water supply storage capacity of 329,200,000 acre- 
feet in major Corps lakes. 
(9) The Corps of Engineers owns and operates 
24 percent of United States hydropower capacity or
3 percent of the total electric capacity of the United 
States. 
(10) The Corps of Engineers supports Army 
and Air Force installations. 
(11) The Corps of Engineers provides technical 
and construction support to more than 100 coun-
tries. 
(12) The Corps of Engineers manages an Army 
military construction program that carried out ap-
proximately 
$44,600,000,000 
in 
construction 
projects (the largest construction effort since World 
War II) between 2006 and 2013. 
(13) The Corps of Engineers researches and de-
velops technologies to protect the environment and 
enhance quality of life in the United States. 
(14) The legislation for authorizing Corps of 
Engineers projects is the Water Resources Develop-
ment Act and, between 1986 and 2000, Congress 
typically enacted an authorization bill every 2 years. 
(15) Since 2000, only 3 Water Resources De-
velopment Acts have been enacted. 
(16) In 2014, the Water Resources Reform and 
Development Act of 2014 was enacted, which accel-
erated the infrastructure project delivery process, 
fostered fiscal responsibility, and strengthened water
transportation networks to promote the competitive-
ness, prosperity, and economic growth of the United 
States. 
(17) Section 1001 of the Water Resources Re-
form and Development Act of 2014 (33 U.S.C. 
2282c) requires typical Corps of Engineers project 
feasibility studies to be completed in 3 years. 
(18) Section 7001 of the Water Resources Re-
form and Development Act of 2014 (33 U.S.C. 
2282d) requires the Corps of Engineers to submit 
annually a Report to Congress on Future Water Re-
sources Development, which ensures projects and ac-
tivities proposed at the local, regional, and State lev-
els are considered for authorization. 
(19) Passing Water Resources Development 
Acts on a routine basis enables Congress to exercise 
oversight, ensures the Corps of Engineers maintains 
an appropriately sized portfolio, prevents project 
backlog, and keeps United States infrastructure 
competitive. 
(b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con-
gress that— 
(1) the missions and authorities of the Corps of 
Engineers are a unique function that benefits all 
Americans;
(2) water resources development projects are 
critical to maintaining economic prosperity, national 
security, and environmental protection; 
(3) Congress has required timely delivery of 
project and study authorization proposals from non- 
Federal project sponsors and the Corps of Engi-
neers; and 
(4) Congress should consider a Water Re-
sources Development Act at least once every Con-
gress. 
SEC. 102. YOUTH SERVICE AND CONSERVATION CORPS OR-
GANIZATIONS. 
Section 213 of the Water Resources Development Act 
of 2000 (33 U.S.C. 2339) is amended— 
(1) by redesignating subsection (c) as sub-
section (d); and 
(2) by inserting after subsection (b) the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(c) YOUTH SERVICE AND CONSERVATION CORPS 
ORGANIZATIONS.—The Secretary shall, to the maximum 
extent practicable, enter into cooperative agreements with 
qualified youth service and conservation corps organiza-
tions for services relating to projects under the jurisdiction 
of the Secretary and shall do so in a manner that ensures
the maximum participation and opportunities for such or-
ganizations.’’. 
SEC. 103. NAVIGATION SAFETY. 
The Secretary shall use section 5 of the Act of March 
4, 1915 (38 Stat. 1053, chapter 142; 33 U.S.C. 562), to 
carry out navigation safety activities at those projects eli-
gible for operation and maintenance under section 204(f) 
of the Water Resources Development Act of 1986 (33 
U.S.C. 2232(f)). 
SEC. 104. EMERGING HARBORS. 
Section 210 of the Water Resources Development Act 
of 1986 (33 U.S.C. 2238) is amended— 
(1) in subsection (c)(3) by striking ‘‘for each of 
fiscal years 2015 through 2022’’ and inserting ‘‘for 
each fiscal year’’; and 
(2) in subsection (d)(1)(A)— 
(A) in the matter preceding clause (i) by 
striking ‘‘For each of fiscal years 2015 through 
2024’’ and inserting ‘‘For each fiscal year’’; 
(B) in clause (i) by striking ‘‘90’’ and in-
serting ‘‘Not more than 90’’; and 
(C) in clause (ii) by striking ‘‘10’’ and in-
serting ‘‘At least 10’’.
SEC. 105. FEDERAL BREAKWATERS AND JETTIES. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall, at Federal 
expense, establish an inventory and conduct an assessment 
of the general structural condition of all Federal break-
waters and jetties protecting harbors and inland harbors 
within the United States. 
(b) CONTENTS.—The inventory and assessment car-
ried out under subsection (a) shall include— 
(1) compiling location information for all Fed-
eral breakwaters and jetties protecting harbors and 
inland harbors within the United States; 
(2) determining the general structural condition 
of each breakwater and jetty; 
(3) analyzing the potential risks to navigational 
safety, and the impact on the periodic maintenance 
dredging needs of protected harbors and inland har-
bors, resulting from the general structural condition 
of each breakwater and jetty; and 
(4) estimating the costs, for each breakwater 
and jetty, to restore or maintain the breakwater or 
jetty to authorized levels and the total of all such 
costs. 
(c) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 1 year 
after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall 
submit to Congress a report on the results of the inventory 
and assessment carried out under subsection (a).
SEC. 106. DONOR PORTS AND ENERGY TRANSFER PORTS. 
Section 2106(a)(2)(B) of the Water Resources Re-
form and Development Act of 2014 (33 U.S.C. 
2238c(a)(2)(B)) is amended by striking ‘‘$15,000,000’’ 
and inserting ‘‘$5,000,000’’. 
SEC. 107. REMOTE AND SUBSISTENCE HARBORS. 
Section 2006 of the Water Resources Development 
Act of 2007 (33 U.S.C. 2242) is amended— 
(1) in subsection (a)(3) by inserting ‘‘in which 
the project is located, or the long-term viability of a 
community that is located in the region that is 
served by the project and that will rely on the 
project,’’ after ‘‘community’’; and 
(2) in subsection (b)— 
(A) in paragraph (1) by inserting ‘‘and 
communities that are located in the region to be 
served by the project and that will rely on the 
project’’ after ‘‘community’’; 
(B) in paragraph (4) by striking ‘‘local 
population’’ and inserting ‘‘regional population 
to be served by the project’’; and 
(C) in paragraph (5) by striking ‘‘commu-
nity’’ and inserting ‘‘local community and com-
munities that are located in the region to be 
served by the project and that will rely on the 
project’’.
SEC. 108. BENEFICIAL USE OF DREDGED MATERIAL. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after the 
date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall establish 
a pilot program to carry out projects for the beneficial 
use of dredged material, including projects for the pur-
poses of— 
(1) reducing storm damage to property and in-
frastructure; 
(2) promoting public safety; 
(3) protecting, restoring, and creating aquatic 
ecosystem habitats; 
(4) stabilizing stream systems and enhancing 
shorelines; 
(5) promoting recreation; 
(6) supporting risk management adaptation 
strategies; and 
(7) reducing the costs of dredging and dredged 
material placement or disposal, such as projects that 
use dredged material for— 
(A) construction or fill material; 
(B) civic improvement objectives; and 
(C) other innovative uses and placement 
alternatives that produce public economic or en-
vironmental benefits. 
(b) PROJECT SELECTION.—In carrying out the pilot 
program, the Secretary shall—
(1) identify for inclusion in the pilot program 
and carry out 10 projects for the beneficial use of 
dredged material; 
(2) consult with relevant State agencies in se-
lecting projects; and 
(3) select projects solely on the basis of— 
(A) the environmental, economic, and so-
cial benefits of the projects, including monetary 
and nonmonetary benefits; and 
(B) the need for a diversity of project 
types and geographical project locations. 
(c) REGIONAL BENEFICIAL USE TEAMS.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—In carrying out the pilot 
program, the Secretary shall establish regional bene-
ficial use teams to identify and assist in the imple-
mentation of projects under the pilot program. 
(2) COMPOSITION.— 
(A) LEADERSHIP.—For each regional ben-
eficial use team established under paragraph 
(1), the Secretary shall appoint the Commander 
of the relevant division of the Corps of Engi-
neers to serve as the head of the team. 
(B) MEMBERSHIP.—The membership of 
each regional beneficial use team shall in-
clude—
(i) representatives of relevant Corps 
of Engineers districts and divisions; 
(ii) representatives of relevant State 
and local agencies; and 
(iii) representatives of Federal agen-
cies and such other entities as the Sec-
retary determines appropriate, consistent 
with the purposes of this section. 
(d) CONSIDERATIONS.—The Secretary shall carry out 
the pilot program in a manner that— 
(1) maximizes the beneficial placement of 
dredged material from Federal and non-Federal 
navigation channels; 
(2) incorporates, to the maximum extent prac-
ticable, 2 or more Federal navigation, flood control, 
storm damage reduction, or environmental restora-
tion projects; 
(3) coordinates the mobilization of dredges and 
related equipment, including through the use of such 
efficiencies in contracting and environmental permit-
ting as can be implemented under existing laws and 
regulations; 
(4) fosters Federal, State, and local collabora-
tion;
(5) implements best practices to maximize the 
beneficial use of dredged sand and other sediments; 
and 
(6) ensures that the use of dredged material is 
consistent with all applicable environmental laws. 
(e) COST SHARING.—Projects carried out under this 
section shall be subject to the cost-sharing requirements 
applicable to projects carried out under section 204 of the 
Water Resources Development Act of 1992 (33 U.S.C. 
2326). 
(f) REPORT.—Not later than 2 years after the date 
of enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the Sec-
retary shall submit to the Committee on Environment and 
Public Works of the Senate and the Committee on Trans-
portation and Infrastructure of the House of Representa-
tives a report that includes— 
(1) a description of the projects selected to be 
carried out under the pilot program; 
(2) documentation supporting each of the 
projects selected; 
(3) the findings of regional beneficial use teams 
regarding project selection; and 
(4) any recommendations of the Secretary or 
regional beneficial use teams with respect to the 
pilot program.
(g) TERMINATION.—The pilot program shall termi-
nate after completion of the 10 projects carried out pursu-
ant to subsection (b)(1). 
(h) EXEMPTION FROM OTHER STANDARDS.—The 
projects carried out under this section shall be carried out 
notwithstanding the definition of the term ‘‘Federal stand-
ard’’ in section 335.7 of title 33, Code of Federal Regula-
tions. 
(i) CLARIFICATION.—Section 156(e) of the Water 
Resources Development Act of 1976 (42 U.S.C. 1962d– 
5f(e)) is amended by striking ‘‘3’’ and inserting ‘‘6’’. 
SEC. 109. RESERVOIR SEDIMENT. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 215 of the Water Re-
sources Development Act of 2000 (33 U.S.C. 2326c) is 
amended to read as follows: 
‘‘SEC. 215. RESERVOIR SEDIMENT. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after 
the date of enactment of the Water Resources Develop-
ment Act of 2016 and after providing public notice, the 
Secretary shall establish, using available funds, a pilot 
program to accept services provided by a non-Federal in-
terest or commercial entity for removal of sediment cap-
tured behind a dam owned or operated by the United 
States and under the jurisdiction of the Secretary for the
purpose of restoring the authorized storage capacity of the 
project concerned. 
‘‘(b) REQUIREMENTS.—In carrying out this section, 
the Secretary shall— 
‘‘(1) review the services of the non-Federal in-
terest or commercial entity to ensure that the serv-
ices are consistent with the authorized purposes of 
the project concerned; 
‘‘(2) ensure that the non-Federal interest or 
commercial entity will indemnify the United States 
for, or has entered into an agreement approved by 
the Secretary to address, any adverse impact to the 
dam as a result of such services; 
‘‘(3) require the non-Federal interest or com-
mercial entity, prior to initiating the services and 
upon completion of the services, to conduct sediment 
surveys to determine the pre- and post-services sedi-
ment profile and sediment quality; and 
‘‘(4) limit the number of dams for which serv-
ices are accepted to 10. 
‘‘(c) LIMITATION.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may not ac-
cept services under subsection (a) if the Secretary, 
after consultation with the Chief of Engineers, de-
termines that accepting the services is not advan-
tageous to the United States. 
‘‘(2) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—If the Secretary 
makes a determination under paragraph (1), the 
Secretary shall provide to the Committee on Trans-
portation and Infrastructure of the House of Rep-
resentatives and the Committee on Environment and 
Public Works of the Senate written notice describing 
the reasoning for the determination. 
‘‘(d) DISPOSITION OF REMOVED SEDIMENT.—In ex-
change for providing services under subsection (a), a non- 
Federal interest or commercial entity is authorized to re-
tain, use, recycle, sell, or otherwise dispose of any sedi-
ment removed in connection with the services and the 
Corps of Engineers may not seek any compensation for 
the value of the sediment. 
‘‘(e) CONGRESSIONAL NOTIFICATION.—Prior to ac-
cepting services provided by a non-Federal interest or 
commercial entity under this section, the Secretary shall 
provide to the Committee on Transportation and Infra-
structure of the House of Representatives and the Com-
mittee on Environment and Public Works of the Senate 
written notice of the acceptance of the services. 
‘‘(f) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Upon completion of 
services at the 10 dams allowed under subsection (b)(4),
the Secretary shall make publicly available and submit to 
the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of 
the House of Representatives and the Committee on Envi-
ronment and Public Works of the Senate a report docu-
menting the results of the services.’’. 
(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 
in section 1(b) of the Water Resources Development Act 
of 2000 is amended by striking the item relating to section 
215 and inserting the following: 
‘‘Sec. 215. Reservoir sediment.’’. 
SEC. 110. CONTRIBUTED FUNDS FOR RESERVOIR OPER-
ATIONS. 
Section 5 of the Act of June 22, 1936 (49 Stat. 1572, 
chapter 688; 33 U.S.C. 701h), is amended by inserting 
after ‘‘authorized purposes of the project:’’ the following: 
‘‘Provided further, That the Secretary is authorized to re-
ceive and expend funds from a State or a political subdivi-
sion thereof, and other non-Federal interests, to formu-
late, review, or revise operational documents for any res-
ervoir for which the Secretary is authorized to prescribe 
regulations for the use of storage allocated for flood risk 
management or navigation pursuant to section 7 of the 
Act of December 22, 1944 (58 Stat. 890, chapter 665; 
33 U.S.C. 709):’’.