Clean Water for Rural Communities Act

Bill: 115-s-685
Sponsor: Sen. Daines, Steve [R-MT]
Introduced: 2017-03-21 in the Senate
Policy area: Water Resources Development
Subjects: Electric power generation and transmission
Montana
North Dakota
Rural conditions and development
Water resources funding
Water storage
Water use and supply

Summary:
action_date: 2017-03-21
text: 

Clean Water for Rural Communities Act

 
 This bill authorizes the Department of the Interior to carry out the projects entitled: (1) the &quot;Dry-Redwater Regional Water Authority System&quot; in accordance with the Dry-Redwater Regional Water System Feasibility Study, which received funding from the Bureau of Reclamation on September 1, 2010; and (2) the &quot;Musselshell-Judith Rural Water System&quot; in accordance with the Musselshell-Judith Rural Water System Feasibility Report. The bill defines the service areas of such projects in North Dakota and Montana.
 
Interior must enter into a cooperative agreement with the Dry-Redwater Regional Water Authority and the Central Montana Regional Water Authority to provide federal assistance for the planning, design, and construction of such water systems. The bill sets forth the federal share of such costs and the authorized uses of federal funds, which exclude operation, maintenance, or replacement of the water systems.
 
The Western Area Power Administration must make available to the Dry-Redwater System a quantity of power (up to one and a half megawatt capacity) required to meet the system's pumping and incidental operation requirements between May 1 and October 31 of each year: (1) from the water intake facilities; and (2) through all pumping stations, water treatment facilities, reservoirs, storage tanks, and pipelines up to the point of delivery of water to all storage reservoirs and tanks and each entity that distributes water at retail to individual users.
 
The system is eligible to receive such power only if it: (1) operates on a nonprofit basis, and (2) is constructed pursuant to the cooperative agreement with the Dry-Redwater Regional Water Authority. The bill provides for the purchase of additional power.
 
The authority is responsible for: (1) charges for such additional power, (2) the costs of non-federal transmission and distribution system delivery and service arrangements, and (3) funding any upgrades to the transmission system owned by the Western Area Power Administration Basin Electric Power District and the Heartland Consumers Power District required to deliver power to the system.
 
The bill authorizes appropriations and adjustments in authorized amounts in accordance with ordinary fluctuations in development costs.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2018-11-15
text: Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 659.
action_date: 2018-11-15
text: Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Reported by Senator Murkowski with an amendment in the nature of a substitute and an amendment to the title. With written report No. 115-373.
action_date: 2018-11-15
text: Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Reported by Senator Murkowski with an amendment in the nature of a substitute and an amendment to the title. With written report No. 115-373.
action_date: 2018-10-02
text: Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Ordered to be reported with an amendment in the nature of a substitute favorably.
action_date: 2017-06-14
text: Committee on Energy and Natural Resources Subcommittee on Water and Power. Hearings held. With printed Hearing: S.Hrg. 115-38.
action_date: 2017-03-21
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. (Sponsor introductory remarks on measure: CR S1893; text of measure as introduced: CR S1893-1895)
action_date: 2017-03-21
text: Introduced in Senate