1.This Act may be cited as the
Pine River Indian Irrigation Project
Act of 2009
.
2.
(a)Congress
finds that—
(1)drought,
population increases, and environmental needs are exacerbating water supply
issues across the western United States, including on the Southern Ute Indian
Reservation in southwestern Colorado;
(2)(A)a report of the
Government Accountability Office dated 2006 identified significant issues with
the Pine River Indian Irrigation Project, including the issue that, at the time
of the study, the Bureau of Indian Affairs estimated that total deferred
maintenance costs for the Project exceeded $20,000,000; and
(B)other estimates have placed those
costs at more than $60,000,000;
(3)the report of the
Government Accountability Office demonstrates that key facilities of the
Project are severely deteriorated;
(4)operations and
maintenance fees are not sufficient to address the condition of the Project,
even though the Bureau of Indian Affairs has sought to double those fees, from
$8.50 to $17, in recent years;
(5)the report of the
Government Accountability Office also notes that a prior study done by the
Bureau of Reclamation determined that water users could not afford to pay
operations and maintenance fees of $8.50 and operate a profitable farming
operation;
(6)the benefits of
rehabilitating and repairing the irrigation infrastructure of the Project
include—
(A)water
conservation;
(B)extending
available water supply;
(C)increased
agricultural production;
(D)economic
benefits;
(E)safer facilities;
and
(F)the preservation
of the culture of the Southern Ute Indian Tribe;
(7)while, as of the
date of enactment of this Act, the Project is managed by the Bureau of Indian
Affairs, the Southern Ute Indian Tribe also receives water from facilities
owned or operated by the Bureau of Reclamation; and
(8)rehabilitation and
repair of the infrastructure of the Project by the Bureau of Reclamation would
improve—
(A)overall water
management; and
(B)the ability of the
Southern Ute Indian Tribe and the Bureau of Reclamation to address potential
water conflicts.
(b)The
purpose of this Act is to require the Secretary of the Interior—
(1)to assess the
condition of infrastructure of the Pine River Indian Irrigation Project;
(2)to establish
priorities for the rehabilitation of irrigation infrastructure within the
Project according to specified criteria; and
(3)to implement
rehabilitation activities for the irrigation infrastructure of the
Project.
3.In this Act:
(1)The
term Project means the Pine River Indian Irrigation
Project.
(2)The
term Secretary means the Secretary of the Interior.
(3)The
term State means the State of Colorado.
(4)The term Tribal Council means the Southern
Ute Indian Tribal Council.
(5)The
term Tribe means the Southern Ute Indian Tribe.
4.Study of
irrigation infrastructure of Project
(a)
(1)As soon as practicable after the date of enactment of
this Act, the Secretary, in consultation with the Tribe, shall—
(A)conduct a study of
the irrigation infrastructure of the Project; and
(B)based on the
results of the study, develop a list of activities (including a cost estimate
for each activity) that are recommended to be implemented during the 10-year
period beginning on the date of completion of the study to repair,
rehabilitate, or reconstruct that irrigation infrastructure.
(2)Factors for
consideration
(A)In developing the list under paragraph (1)(B), the
Secretary shall give priority to activities based on—
(i)a
review of the priority factors described in subparagraph (B) with respect to
the activity;
(ii)recommendations
of the Tribe, if any; and
(iii)a
consideration of the projected benefits of each activity on completion of the
Project.
(B)The priority factors referred to in subparagraph (A)(i)
are—
(i)any
threat to the health and safety of—
(I)a
member of the Tribe;
(II)an employee of the
irrigation operations and maintenance program of the Bureau of Indian Affairs;
or
(III)the general
public;
(ii)the
extent of disrepair of the irrigation infrastructure of the Project and the
effect of the disrepair on the ability of users of the Project to irrigate
agricultural land using that irrigation infrastructure;
(iii)whether, and the
extent to which, the repair, rehabilitation, or reconstruction of the
irrigation infrastructure of the Project would provide an opportunity to
conserve water;
(iv)(I)the economic and
cultural impacts the irrigation infrastructure of the Project that is in
disrepair has on the Tribe; and
(II)the economic and cultural benefits that
the repair, rehabilitation, or reconstruction of that irrigation infrastructure
would have on the Tribe;
(v)the
opportunity to address water supply or environmental conflicts if the
irrigation infrastructure of the Project is repaired, rehabilitated, or
reconstructed; and
(vi)the
overall benefits of the activity to efficient water operations on the land of
the Tribe.
(3)In
carrying out the study under this subsection, the Secretary shall consult with
the Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs and other relevant Federal and local
officials to evaluate the extent to which programs under the jurisdiction of
each Federal and local agency may be used to develop—
(A)the list of
activities under paragraph (1)(B); or
(B)the report under
subsection (b).
(b)
(1)Not later than 18 months after the date of enactment of
this Act, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Energy and Natural
Resources of the Senate, the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of
Representatives, and the Tribe a report that includes—
(A)the list of
activities recommended for implementation under subsection (a)(1)(B);
and
(B)any findings of
the Secretary with respect to—
(i)the
study under subsection (a);
(ii)consideration of
the factors described in subsection (a)(2); and
(iii)any consultation
required under subsection (a)(3).
(2)Not later than 2 years after the date on which the
Secretary submits the report under paragraph (1) and every 2 years thereafter,
the Secretary, in consultation with the Tribe, shall—
(A)review the report;
and
(B)update the list of
activities under subsection (a)(1)(B) in accordance with each factor described
in subsection (a)(2), as the Secretary determines to be appropriate.
5.Irrigation
infrastructure grants and agreements
(a)Subject to subsection (b), the Secretary may provide
grants to, and enter into cooperative agreements with, the Tribe to plan,
design, construct, or otherwise implement any activity to repair, rehabilitate,
reconstruct, or replace irrigation infrastructure of the Project, if the
activity is recommended for implementation on the list under section
4(a)(1)(B).
(b)Assistance
provided under subsection (a) shall not be used for any on-farm
improvement.
(c)Consultation and
coordinationIn providing assistance under subsection (a), the
Secretary shall—
(1)consult with, and
obtain the approval of, the Tribe;
(2)consult with the
Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs; and
(3)as appropriate,
coordinate the activity with any work being conducted under the irrigation
operations and maintenance program of the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
(d)
(1)Except as provided in paragraph (2), the Federal share of
the total cost of carrying out an activity using assistance under subsection
(a) shall be not more than 75 percent.
(2)The
Secretary may waive or limit the non-Federal share required under paragraph (1)
on request of the Tribe.
6.
(a)Nothing in this Act (including the implementation of any
activity carried out in accordance with this Act) affects any right of the
Tribe to receive, divert, store, or claim a right to water, including the
priority of right and the quantity of water associated with the water right
under Federal or State law.
(b)Nothing in this Act preempts or affects—
(1)any provision of
water law of the State; or
(2)any interstate
compact governing water.
7.Authorization of
appropriations
(a)There
is authorized to be appropriated to carry out the study under section 4
$4,000,000.
(b)Irrigation
infrastructure grants and agreementsThere is authorized to be
appropriated to carry out section 5 $10,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2010
through 2015.