Fall River Water Users District Rural Water System Act of 1998
PL 105-352 (S.744), enacted 11/03/1998

112 STAT. 3222 
PUBLIC LAW 105-352—NOV. 3, 1998 
Public Law 105-352 
105th Congress 
An Act 
Nov. 3, 1998 
[S. 744] 
Fall River Water 
Users District 
Rural Water 
System Act of 
1998. 
South Dakota. 
To authorize the construction of the Fall River Water Users District Rural Water 
System and authorize financial assistance to the Fall River Water Users District, 
a nonprofit corporation, in the planning and construction of the water supply 
system, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives 
of 
the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the "Fall River Water Users District 
Rural Water System Act of 1998". 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES. 
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that— 
(1) there are insufficient water supplies of reasonable qual-
ity available to the members of the Fall River Water Users 
District Rural Water System located in Fall River County, 
South Dakota, and the water supplies that are available are 
of poor quality and do not meet minimum health and safety 
standards, thereby posing a threat to public health and safety; 
(2) past cycles of severe drought in the southeastern area 
of Fall River County have left residents without a satisfactory 
water supply, and, during 1990, many home owners eind ranch-
ers were forced to haul water to sustain their water needs; 
(3) because of the poor quality of water supplies, most 
members of the Fall River Water Users District are forced 
to either haul bottled water for human consumption or use 
distillers; 
(4) the Fall River Water Users District Rural Water System 
has been recognized by the State of South Dakota; and 
(5) the best available, reliable, and safe rural and municipal 
water supply to serve the needs of the Fall River Water Users 
District Rural Water System members consists of a Madison 
Aquifer well, 3 separate water storage reservoirs, 3 pumping 
stations, and approximately 200 miles of pipeline. 
(b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are— 
(1) to ensure a safe and adequate municipal, rural, and 
industrial water supply for the members of the Fall River 
Water Users District Rural Water System in Fall River County, 
South Dakota; 
(2) to assist the members of the Fall River Water Users 
District in developing safe and adequate municipal, rural, and 
industrial water supplies; and 
PUBLIC LAW 105-352—NOV. 3, 1998 
112 STAT. 3223 
(3) to promote the implementation of water conservation 
programs by the Fall River Water Users District Rural Water 
System. 
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
(1) ENGINEERING REPORT.—^The term "engineering report" 
means the study entitled "Supplemental Preliminary Engineer-
ing Report for Fall River Water Users District" published in 
August 1995. 
(2) PROJECT CONSTRUCTION BUDGET.—The term "project 
construction budget" means the description of the total amount 
of funds that are needed for the construction of the water 
supply system, as described in the engineering report. 
(3) 
PUMPING 
AND INCIDENTAL 
OPERATIONAL 
REQUIRE-
MENTS.—^The term "pumping and incidental operational require-
ments" means all power requirements that are incidental to 
the operation of intake facilities, pumping stations, water treat-
ment facilities, cooling facilities, reservoirs, and pipelines to 
the point of delivery of water by the Fall River Water Users 
District Rural Water System to each entity that distributes 
water at retail to individual users. 
(4) SECRETARY.—^The term "Secretary" means the Secretary 
of Agriculture. 
(5) WATER SUPPLY SYSTEM.—The term "water supply sys-
tem" means the Fall River Water Users District Rural Water 
System, a nonprofit corporation, established and operated 
substantially in accordance with the engineering report. 
SEC. 4. FEDERAL ASSISTANCE FOR WATER SUPPLY SYSTEM. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—^The Secretary shall make grants to the water 
supply system for the Federal share of the costs of the planning 
and construction of the water supply system. 
(b) SERVICE AREA.—The water supply system shall provide 
for safe and adequate municipal, rural, and industrial water sup-
plies, mitigation of wetlands areas, and water conservation within 
the boundaries of the Fall River Water Users District, described 
as follows: bounded on the north by the Angostura Reservoir, the 
Cheyenne River, and the line between Fall River and Custer Coun-
ties, bounded on the east by the line between Fall River and 
Shannon Counties, bounded on the south by the line between South 
Dakota and Nebraska, and bounded on the west by the Igloo-
Provo Water Project District. 
(c) AMOUNT OF GRANTS.—Grants made available under sub-
section (a) to the water supply system shall not exceed the Federal 
share under section 9. 
(d) LIMITATION ON AVAILABILITY OP CONSTRUCTION FUNDS.— 
The Secretary shall not obligate funds for the construction of the 
water supply system until— 
(1) the requirements of the National Environmental Policy 
Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) are met with respect 
to the water supply system; and 
(2) a final engineering report and plan for a water conserva-
tion program have been prepared and submitted to Congress 
for a period of not less than 90 days before the commencement 
of construction of the system. 
Grants. 
South Dakota. 
Nebraska. 
112 STAT. 3224 
PUBLIC LAW 105-352—NOV. 3, 1998 
SEC. 5. MITIGATION OF FISH AND WILDLIFE LOSSES. 
Mitigation of fish and wildlife losses incurred as a result of 
the construction and operation of the water supply system shall 
be on an acre-for-acre basis, based on ecological equivalency, concur-
rent with project construction, as provided in the engineering report. 
SEC. 6. USE OF PICK-SLOAN POWER. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—From power designated for future irrigation 
and drainage pumping for the Pick-Sloan Missouri River Basin 
Program, the Western Area Power Administration shall make avail-
able the capacity and energy required to meet the pumping and 
incidental operational requirements of the water supply system 
during the period beginning May 1 and ending October 31 of each 
year. 
(b) CONDITIONS.—The capacity and energy described in sub-
section (a) shall be made available on the following conditions: 
(1) The water supply system shall be operated on a not-
for-profit basis. 
(2) The water supply system shall contract to purchase 
its entire electric service requirements, including the capacity 
and energy made available under subsection (a), from a quali-
fied preference power supplier that itself purchases power from 
the Western Area Power Administration. 
(3) The rate schedule applicable to the capacity and energy 
made available under subsection (a) shall be the firm power 
rate schedule of the Pick-Sloan Eastern Division of the Western 
Area Power Administration in effect when the power is deliv-
ered by the Administration. 
(4) It shall be agreed by contract among— 
(A) the Western Area Power Administration; 
(B) the power supplier with which the water supply 
system contracts under paragraph (2); 
(C) the power supplier of the entity described in 
subparagraph (B); and 
(D) the Fall River Water Users District; 
that in the case of the capacity and energy made available 
under subsection (a), the benefit of the rate schedule described 
in paragraph (3) shall be passed through to the water supply 
system, except that the power supplier of the water supply 
system shall not be precluded from including, in the charges 
of the supplier to the water system for the electric service, 
the other usual and customary charges of the supplier. 
SEC. 7. NO LIMITATION ON WATER PROJECTS IN STATE. 
This Act does not limit the authorization for water projects 
in South Dakota under law in effect on or after the date of enact-
ment of this Act. 
SEC. 8. WATER RIGHTS. 
Nothing in this Act— 
(1) invalidates or preempts State water law or an interstate 
compact governing water; 
(2) alters the rights of any State to any appropriated share 
of the waters of any body of surface or ground water, whether 
determined by past or ftiture interstate compacts or by past 
or future legislative or final judicial allocations; 
(3) preempts or modifies any Federal or State law, or 
interstate compact, dealing with water quality or disposal; or 
PUBLIC LAW 105-352—NOV. 3, 1998 
112 STAT. 3225 
(4) confers on any non-Federal entity the ability to exercise 
any Federal right to the waters of any stream or to any ground 
water resource. 
SEC. 9. FEDERAL SHAKE. 
The Federal share under section 4 shall be 70 percent of— 
(1) the amount allocated in the total project construction 
budget for the planning and construction of the water supply 
system under section 4; and 
(2) such sums as are necessary to defray increases in 
development costs reflected in appropriate engineering cost 
indices after August 1,1995. 
SEC. 10. NON-FEDERAL SHARE. 
The non-Federal share under section 4 shall be 30 percent 
of— 
(1) the amount allocated in the total project construction 
budget for the planning and construction of the water supply 
system under section 4; and 
(2) such sums as are necessary to defray increases in 
development costs reflected in appropriate engineering cost 
indices after August 1,1995. 
SEC. 11. CONSTRUCTION OVERSIGHT. 
(a) AUTHORIZATION.—The Secretary of the Interior, acting 
through the Director of the Bureau of Reclamation, may provide 
construction oversight to the water supply system for areas of 
the water supply system. 
(b) PROJECT OVERSIGHT ADMINISTRATION.—The amount of funds 
used by the Secretary for planning and construction of the water 
supply system may not exceed an amount equal to 3 percent of 
the amount provided in the total project construction budget for 
the portion of the project to be constructed in Fall River County, 
South Dakota. 
SEC. 12. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 
There are authorized to be appropriated— 
(1) $3,600,000 for the planning and construction of the 
water system under section 4; and 
112 STAT. 3226 
PUBLIC LAW 105-352—NOV. 3, 1998 
(2) such sums as are necessary to defray increases in 
development costs reflected in appropriate engineering cost 
indices after August 1, 1995. 
Approved November 3, 1998. 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY—S. 744: 
SENATE REPORTS: No. 105-369 (Comm. on Energy and Natural Resources). 
CONGRESSIONAL RECORD, Vol. 144 (1998): 
Oct. 7, considered and passed Senate. 
Oct. 12, considered and passed House.