An Act to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to construct, operate and maintain the Merlin division, Rogue River Basin project, Oregon, and for other purposes
PL 91-270 (H.R.780), enacted 05/28/1970

84 STAT. ] 
PUBLIC LAW 91-270-MAY 28, 1970 
273 
Public Law 91-270 
AN ACT 
To authorize the Secretary of the Interior to constnu-t. oi)erate, and maintain 
the Merlin division, Rogue River Basin project. Oregon, and for other purposes. 
May 28, 1970 
[H. R. 780] 
Be it enactexl by tlie Senate and House of Representatives 
of the 
United States of Amerira in Congress assembled. That, for the pur-
poses of providing irrigation water for approximately nine thousand 
three hundred acres, flood control, area redevelopment, and providing 
municipal and industrial water supply, fish and wildlife enhancement, 
and recreation benefits, the Secretary of the Interior, acting pursuant 
to the Federal reclamation laws (Act of June 17, 1902 (32 Stat. 388), 
and Act amendatory thereof or supplementary thereto), is authorized 
to construct, operate, and maintain the Merlin division, Rogue River 
Basin project, Oregon. The principal works of the division shall consist 
of Sexton Dam and Reservoir, diversion and distribution facilities, 
and drainage facilities. 
SEC. 2. Irrigation repayment contracts shall provide with respect 
to any contract unit, for repayment of the irrigation construction 
costs assigned for repayment to the irrigators over a period of not 
more than fifty years, exclusive of any development period authorized 
by law. Irrigation repayment contracts shall further provide for the 
assessment and collection of a service charge of not less than $40 per 
annum for each identifiable ownership receiving irrigation ser\ice 
from and through the works of the Merlin division, such charge to 
be in addition to the repayment capacity of the lands as determined 
by the Secretary on the basis of studies of the value of water for 
full-time family-size farm operations. Construction costs allocated 
to irrigation beyond the ability of irrigators to repay shall be charged 
to and returned to the reclamation fund in accordance with the pro-
visions of section 2 of the Act of June 14, 1966 (80 Stat. 200), as 
amended by section 6 of the Act of September 7, 1966 (80 Stat. 707). 
SEC. 3. The conservation and development of the fish and wildlife 
resources and the enhancement of recreation opportunities in conne<!-
tion with the Merlin division shall be in accordance with the pro-
visions of the Federal Water Project Recreation Act (79 Stat. 213). 
SEC. 4. Before the works are transferred to an irrigation water 
user's organization for care, operation, and maintenance, the organiza-
tion shall have agreed to operate tliem in such fashion, satisfactory 
to the Secretary, as to achieve the benefits to fish and wildlife en-
liancement, and recreation on which the allocations of costs therefor 
are predicated, and to operate them in accordance with regulations 
prescribed by the Secretary of the Army to achieve the benefits to 
flood control on which the allocation of casts therefor is predicated, 
and to return the works to the Ignited States for care, operation, and 
maintenance in the event of failure to comply with the requirements 
to achieve such benefits. 
SEC. 5. Power and energy required for irrigation water pumping for 
the Merlin division shall be made available by the Secretary from the 
Federal Columbia River system at charges determined by him. 
SEC. 6. For a period of ten years from the date of enactment of 
this Act, no water from the project authorized by this Act sliall be 
delivered to any water user for the production on newly irrigated 
lands of any basic agricultural commodity, as defined in the Agri-
cultural Act of 1949, or any amendment thereof, if the total supply of 
such commodity for the marketing year in which the bulk of the crop 
would normally be marketed is in excess of the normal supply as 
Rogue River 
Basin project, Ore. 
Merlin division, 
authorization. 
43 u s e 371 note, 
391 note. 
Irrigation, repay-
ment period. 
Service charge. 
Construction 
costs. 
16 u s e 835j-
835m and notes. 
Recreation; I'ish 
and wildlife 
enhancement. 
16 u s e 460M2 
note. 
Transfer terras. 
Power and 
energy. 
Newly irrigated 
lands, use restric-
tion. 
63 Stat. 1051. 
7 u s e 1421 note, 
1428. 
274 
PUBLIC LAW 91-271-JUNE 2, 1970 
[84 STAT. 
62 Stat. 1251. 
7 u s e 1301. 
Appropriation. 
defined in section HOI (b) (10) of the Agricultural Adjustment Act 
of 1938, as amended, unless the Secretary of Agriculture calls for an 
increase in production of such commodity in the interest of national 
security. 
SFX:. 7. There is hereby authorized to be appropriated for construc-
tion of the works herein authorized the sum of $28,470,000 (July 1969 
prices), plus or minus such amounts, if any, as may be justified by 
reason of ordinary fluctuations in the costs of construction as indicated 
by engineering costs indexes applicable to the type of construction 
involved therein. There are also authorized to be appropriated such 
sums as may be required for the operation and maintenance of said 
works. 
Approved May 28 , 1970. 
June 2, 1970 
[S. 26241 
Customs courts. 
Procedural 
changes. 
Citation of title. 
Public Law 91-271 
AN ACT 
To improve the judicial machinery in customs courts by amending the statutory 
provisions relating to judicial actions and administrative proceedings in cus-
toms matters, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted hy the Senate and Ilouae of Representatives 
of the 
United /States of America !n (Congress assemhted^ 
TITLE I—JUDICIAL ACTIONS IN CUSTOMS CASES 
SHORT TITLE 
SEC. 101. This title may be cited as ''The Customs Courts Act of 
1970"'. 
62 Stat. 942. 
APPEALS FROM CUSTOMS COURT DECISIONS—JURISDICTION 
SEC. 102. Section 1541 of title 28 of the United States Code is 
amended to read as follows: