[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 769 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







106th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 769

   To provide a final settlement on certain debt owed by the city of 
 Dickinson, North Dakota, for construction of the bascule gates on the 
                             Dickinson Dam.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             April 13, 1999

Mr. Conrad (for himself and Mr. Dorgan) introduced the following bill; 
   which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and 
                           Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To provide a final settlement on certain debt owed by the city of 
 Dickinson, North Dakota, for construction of the bascule gates on the 
                             Dickinson Dam.

    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 ``Dickinson Dam Bascule Gates 
Settlement Act of 1999''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds that--
            (1) in 1980 and 1981, the Bureau of Reclamation constructed 
        the bascule gates on top of the Dickinson Dam on the Heart 
        River, North Dakota, to provide additional water supply in the 
        reservoir known as Patterson Lake for the city of Dickinson, 
        North Dakota, and for additional flood control and other 
        benefits;
            (2) the gates had to be significantly modified in 1982 
        because of damage resulting from a large ice block causing 
        excessive pressure on the hydraulic system, causing the system 
        to fail;
            (3) since 1991, the City has received its water supply from 
        the Southwest Water Authority, which provides much higher 
        quality water from the Southwest Pipeline Project;
            (4) the City now receives almost no benefit from the 
        bascule gates because the City does not require the additional 
        water provided by the bascule gates for its municipal water 
        supply;
            (5) the City has repaid more than $1,200,000 to the United 
        States for the construction of the bascule gates, and has been 
        working for several years to reach an agreement with the Bureau 
        of Reclamation to alter its repayment contract;
            (6) the City has a longstanding commitment to improving the 
        water quality and recreation value of the reservoir and has 
        been working with the United States Geological Survey, the 
        North Dakota Department of Game and Fish, and the North Dakota 
        Department of Health to improve water quality; and
            (7) it is in the public interest to resolve this issue by 
        providing for a single payment to the United States in lieu of 
        the scheduled annual payments and for the termination of any 
        further repayment obligation.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Bascule gates.--The term ``bascule gates'' means the 
        structure constructed on the Dam to provide additional water 
        storage capacity in the Lake.
            (2) City.--The term ``City'' means the city of Dickinson, 
        North Dakota.
            (3) Dam.--The term ``Dam'' means Dickinson Dam on the Heart 
        River, North Dakota.
            (4) Lake.--The term ``Lake'' means the reservoir known as 
        ``Patterson Lake'' in the State of North Dakota.
            (5) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of the Interior, acting through the Commissioner of the Bureau 
        of Reclamation.

SEC. 4. FORGIVENESS OF DEBT.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary shall accept a 1-time payment of 
$300,000 in lieu of the existing repayment obligations of the City 
under the Bureau of Reclamation Contract No. 9-07-60W0384, dated 
December 19, 1988, toward which amount any payments made by the City to 
the Secretary on or after June 2, 1998, shall be credited.
    (b) Ownership.--Title to the Dam and bascule gates shall remain 
with the United States.
    (c) Costs.--
            (1) In general.--In consultation with the City and the 
        State of North Dakota, the Secretary shall reallocate 
        responsibility for the operation and maintenance costs of the 
        Dam and bascule gates.
            (2) Consideration of benefits.--The reallocation of costs 
        shall reflect the fact that the benefits of the Dam and bascule 
        gates are mainly for flood control, recreation, and fish and 
        wildlife purposes.
    (d) Water Service Contracts.--The Secretary may enter into 
appropriate water service contracts if the City or any other person or 
entity seeks to use water from the Lake for municipal water supply or 
other purposes.
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