[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1833 Introduced in House (IH)]







110th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1833

 To authorize the Secretary of the Interior to engage in a feasibility 
  study relating to long-term water needs for the area served by the 
     Fryingpan-Arkansas Project, Colorado, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 29, 2007

 Mr. Salazar introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                     Committee on Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To authorize the Secretary of the Interior to engage in a feasibility 
  study relating to long-term water needs for the area served by the 
     Fryingpan-Arkansas Project, Colorado, 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. FEASIBILITY STUDY.

    (a) Study.--Pursuant to Federal reclamation law (the Act of June 7, 
1902, and all Acts amendatory thereof or supplementary thereto), the 
Secretary, acting through the Bureau of Reclamation, is authorized to 
conduct a feasibility study to determine the most feasible method of 
meeting the present and future water supply and related storage 
requirements within the area served by the Fryingpan-Arkansas Project, 
including the potential enlargement of Fryingpan-Arkansas facilities. 
The feasibility study shall--
            (1) be conducted consistent with the document titled 
        ``Economic and Environmental Principles and Guidelines for 
        Water and Related Land Resources Implementation Studies'' 
        (United States Water Resources Council, 1983, United States 
        Government Printing Office), any subsequent modifications of 
        that document, and all applicable Federal statutes; and
            (2) include, but not be limited to, an evaluation of 
        existing and reasonably feasible and practicable potential 
        water supplies, uses, and management options as they relate to 
        meeting the document referred to in paragraph (1).
    (b) Submission of Study.--The Secretary shall submit the 
feasibility study authorized by this section to the President and the 
President Pro Tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of 
Representatives.
    (c) Use of Funds.--No Federal funds shall be expended for the 
construction of enlargements or any other alternative identified in the 
feasibility study authorized by this section for which authority does 
not before the date of the enactment of this Act, without further 
authorization by Congress.
    (d) Authorization of Appropriations; Matching Requirement.--There 
is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary $4,000,000 to conduct 
the feasibility study authorized by this section. All Federal funds 
made available to conduct that study shall be matched in equal amount 
by non-Federal funds.
    (e) Limitation on Construction.--No construction to enlarge the 
Fryingpan-Arkansas Project may be conducted until the studies referred 
to in section 3 are completed.

SEC. 2. SECRETARY AUTHORIZED TO FOLLOW ORIGINAL CONGRESSIONAL INTENT OF 
              PROJECT.

    Not withstanding other provisions of law, the Secretary shall not 
enter into any new contracts, contract extensions, or contract 
renewals--
            (1) with entities for use of excess capacity space in 
        Fryingpan-Arkansas facilities to store water or for use outside 
        of the natural basins of the Arkansas or Colorado rivers; or
            (2) that use the Fryingpan-Arkansas facilities or water 
        rights for beneficial use outside the natural Basins of the 
        Arkansas River or the Colorado River.

SEC. 3. STATE OF COLORADO STUDIES.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of the Interior may provide 
financial assistance to the State of Colorado, under the direction of 
the Governor of that State, to conduct a study, or choose an 
appropriate organization such as Colorado State University-Pueblo to 
conduct a study, to identify the cumulative impacts of past, current, 
or proposed transfers of water from the Arkansas and Colorado River 
basins to communities not located in the natural basins of the Arkansas 
River or the Colorado River, and from agriculturally based communities 
within the Arkansas River basin to expanding municipalities within the 
Arkansas River basin.
    (b) Study Criteria.--The study authorized under this section shall 
evaluate the following:
            (1) Environmental impacts such as impacts on water quality 
        and wildlife habitat, and water supply both for human and 
        environmental and recreational uses.
            (2) Social, cultural, recreational and economic impacts, 
        including any disproportionate impacts of minority and/or low-
        income populations that result from actual or proposed water 
        exchanges, water trades, and out-of-basin transfers from the 
        Arkansas River basin and the Colorado River basin.
            (3) The financial effects of water transfers out of the 
        Arkansas River basin and the Colorado River basin for the 
        sending and receiving communities.
            (4) The impacts, including cumulative effects, of proposed 
        water supply and storage methods on the area served by the 
        Fryingpan-Arkansas Project and the natural basins of the 
        Arkansas River and the Colorado River within Colorado that may 
        be impacted by the implementation of such water supply and 
        storage methods, taking into account the hydrologic conditions 
        during the period from 1982 to the date the study is conducted.
            (5) The impacts of return and exchange flows in the 
        Fountain Creek due to proposed and past transfers and exchanges 
        of water from the Arkansas River to municipalities and 
        entities, including the municipality of Colorado Springs, 
        including but not limited to--
                    (A) the effects on water quality and flood 
                potential; and
                    (B) mitigation alternatives for identified impacts, 
                including flood control storage facilities on the 
                Fountain Creek.
            (6) Any effect to stream flows in the Roaring Fork River 
        due to any expansions of the Fryingpan-Arkansas facilities.
            (7) Feasible options to resolve or mitigate the impacts and 
        effects evaluated in the study.
    (c) Submission of Report.--As a condition of assistance under the 
section, the Governor of Colorado shall submit a report of the results 
of the study funded under this section to the President and the 
President Pro Tempore of the United States Senate and the Speaker of 
the United States House of Representatives upon completion of the 
study.
    (d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated $10,000,000 to carry out this section.

SEC. 4. COLORADO RIVER BASIN PROTECTION.

    (a) Use of Water Storage Capacity.--Any excess water storage 
capacity of the Fryingpan-Arkansas Project to divert, store, impound, 
pump, exchange, or convey nonproject water made available under 
contracts shall not be used so as to increase diversion of nonproject 
water from the natural basin of the Colorado River within Colorado into 
another river basin for delivery or storage unless--
            (1) the diversion is the subject of a decree entered before 
        the date of the enactment of this Act for which no new 
        infrastructure or legal approvals are necessary to divert the 
        water out of the natural basin of the Colorado River;
            (2) the diversion is the subject of an agreement in 
        existence on the date of the enactment of this Act, 
        contemplating additional diversions diverted through or stored 
        in the facilities studied by this Act, between the beneficiary 
        of such transbasin diversion and the water conservation 
        district, as defined under Colorado law, from within whose 
        boundaries the waters are proposed for diversion;
            (3) the diversion is the subject of an intergovernmental 
        agreement or other contractual arrangement executed after the 
        date of the enactment of this Act, between the beneficiary of 
        such transbasin diversion and the water conservation district, 
        as defined under Colorado law, from within whose boundaries the 
        waters are proposed for diversion; or
            (4) the beneficiary of such transbasin diversion provides 
        compensatory storage or alternate water supply in an amount 
        equal to the quantity diverted out of the basin for the benefit 
        of the water conservation district, as defined under Colorado 
        law, from within whose boundaries the waters are proposed for 
        diversion.
    (b) Submission of Agreements Required.--Prior to executing any 
agreement or arrangement for provision of compensatory storage or 
alternative water supply that allows for increased diversions of 
nonproject water as described in subsection (a), the parties to such 
agreements or arrangements shall submit the agreement or arrangement to 
the Secretary of the Interior, who, within 30 days, shall submit such 
agreement or arrangement to the President Pro Tempore of the Senate and 
the Speaker of the House of Representatives for a period of not less 
than 60 days.
    (c) No Precedent.--This section shall not be considered as 
precedent for any other congressionally authorized project.

SEC. 5. CONTRACTS WITH IN-BASIN ENTITIES.

    The Secretary of the Interior is authorized to enter into contracts 
with an entity, private or public, for the use of excess capacity in 
the Fryingpan-Arkansas Project for the purpose of diverting, storing, 
impounding, pumping, exchanging, or conveying nonproject water for 
irrigation, domestic, municipal and industrial, or any other beneficial 
purpose within the natural basin of the Arkansas River within Colorado.
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