[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 307 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







110th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 307

 To establish a minimum rate of release for water from the Yellowtail 
                             Dam, Montana.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            January 16, 2007

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

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To establish a minimum rate of release for water from the Yellowtail 
                             Dam, Montana.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. YELLOWTAIL DAM, MONTANA.

    (a) In General.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law and 
except as provided in subsection (b), the preferred rate of release of 
water from Yellowtail Dam, located in Big Horn County, Montana, shall 
be not less than 2,500 cubic feet of water per second, with a minimum 
rate of release of 1,500 cubic feet of water per second.
    (b) Exceptions.--The minimum rate of release established under 
subsection (a) may be waived by the Secretary of the Interior, acting 
through the Commissioner of Reclamation (referred to in this Act as the 
``Secretary'')--
            (1) in the event of an emergency, as determined by the 
        Secretary; or
            (2) if, for any reason, water levels in Bighorn Lake 
        imminently preclude power generation at Yellowtail Dam, as 
        determined by the Secretary.
    (c) Purpose.--The purposes for which the Yellowtail Unit of the 
Pick-Sloan Missouri River Basin Program (authorized by section 9 of the 
Act of December 22, 1944 (commonly known as the ``Flood Control Act of 
1944'') (58 Stat. 891)) is authorized shall include the maintenance of 
a healthy fishery on the portion of the Bighorn River, Montana, that is 
located downstream from the Yellowtail Dam.
    (d) Coordination.--The Secretary shall ensure that any reclamation 
project carried out within the Bighorn River watershed shall be 
coordinated with other Reclamation projects within the watershed, 
including any projects overseen by the Montana Area Office or Wyoming 
Area Office of the Bureau of Reclamation.
                                 <all>