[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 9806 Introduced in House (IH)]
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119th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 9806
To amend the Federal Power Act to address certain alterations in, and
the maintenance and repair of, project works, to provide for the
licensing of micro hydrokinetic energy projects, and for other
purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
July 21, 2026
Mr. Langworthy (for himself and Ms. Schrier) introduced the following
bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Federal Power Act to address certain alterations in, and
the maintenance and repair of, project works, to provide for the
licensing of micro hydrokinetic energy projects, 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 ``Fair Licensing for Operations of
Water Structures Act'' or the ``FLOWS Act''.
SEC. 2. HYDROPOWER MAINTENANCE AND TEMPORARY ADJUSTMENTS.
(a) Alterations in Project Works.--Section 10(b) of the Federal
Power Act (16 U.S.C. 803(b)) is amended by adding at the end the
following: ``Except as previously provided in this subsection, the
Commission shall require prior approval of a `substantial alteration or
addition' to project works or to project operations consisting of any
significant modification of the project works or operation of the
project that is not in conformity with the project plans previously
approved by the Commission. The Commission shall not require approval
of any alteration or addition other than a substantial alteration or
addition as determined pursuant to regulations promulgated under
section 2(c) of the Fair Licensing for Operations of Water Structures
Act or any temporary variance to the project operations necessitated by
circumstances beyond the reasonable control of the licensee, including
extreme weather, natural disasters, equipment failures, or other
unforeseen circumstances.''.
(b) Maintenance and Repair of Project Works.--Section 10(c) of the
Federal Power Act (16 U.S.C. 803(c)) is amended by inserting after the
first sentence the following: ``The Commission shall not require
approval or an amendment to a project license for any routine
maintenance, repair, or replacement of any portion of a project works
necessary to maintain the project works in accordance with this
subsection.''.
(c) Guidance and Process.--
(1) Guidance.--Not later than 90 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
shall issue a notice of proposed rulemaking proposing a process
or considerations for determining a ``substantial alteration or
addition'', ``nonsubstantial alteration or addition'', and
``routine maintenance, repair, or replacement'' to a hydropower
project works based on the results of the Notice of Inquiry of
the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission entitled
``Authorizations for Certain Post-Licensing Activities at
Hydroelectric Projects'' (90 Fed. Reg. 53310; Docket No. RM26-
3-000) issued on November 20, 2025, initially scheduled to
close on January 26, 2026, but extended and officially closed
on February 10, 2026.
(2) Process.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
issuance of the notice of proposed rulemaking under paragraph
(1), and after public notice and opportunity for comment, the
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission shall promulgate a final
rule establishing--
(A) standards for determining a ``substantial
alteration or addition'', ``nonsubstantial alteration
or addition'', and ``routine maintenance, repair, or
replacement'' to a hydropower project works; and
(B) a formal process, as appropriate, for
determining whether a proposed alteration or addition
constitutes a ``substantial alteration or addition''
under the final rule that requires approval of the
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission under section
10(b) of the Federal Power Act (16 U.S.C. 803(b)).
(3) Effect.--The rule promulgated under paragraph (2) shall
establish a process or considerations for determining which
licensee-requested project alterations require the approval of
the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
(d) Savings Clause.--Nothing in this section or an amendment made
by this section--
(1) affects any authority of the Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission--
(A) to require notice from a licensee under
subsection (a) or (b) of section 10 of the Federal
Power Act (16 U.S.C. 803); or
(B) to enforce requirements of that section or the
terms of a license issued under part I of the Federal
Power Act (16 U.S.C. 792 et seq.) with respect to the
safety of any dam and appurtenant works and structures;
or
(2)(A) precludes any prompt, informal consultation between
the licensee and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, at
the request of the licensee or the Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission, with respect to the safety of any dam and
appurtenant works and structures in advance of work to be
undertaken under section 10 of the Federal Power Act (16 U.S.C.
803); or
(B) affects any authority of the Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission to require changes in advance of the work described
in subparagraph (A) to protect the safety of any dam and
appurtenant works and structures.
SEC. 3. MICRO HYDROKINETIC ENERGY PROJECTS.
Part I of the Federal Power Act (16 U.S.C. 792 et seq.) is amended
by adding at the end the following:
``SEC. 37. LICENSING OF MICRO HYDROKINETIC ENERGY PROJECTS.
``(a) Definition of Micro Hydrokinetic Energy Project.--In this
section, the term `micro hydrokinetic energy project'--
``(1) means a project that--
``(A) has an installed capacity of not more than 5
megawatts; and
``(B) converts to electric energy the hydrokinetic
energy from a generator driven by a turbine from--
``(i) waves, tides, or currents in oceans,
estuaries, or tidal areas; or
``(ii) free flowing water in rivers, lakes,
streams, or man-made channels; and
``(2) does not include a project that impounds water to
generate electricity.
``(b) Authorization.--The Commission may issue a license in
accordance with this section for a term of not less than 10, and not
more than 20, years for the construction, operation, and maintenance of
project works for a micro hydrokinetic energy project.
``(c) Expedited Licensing Process.--
``(1) Notification of intent.--
``(A) Filing of notification.--An applicant for a
license under this section shall commence the licensing
process by filing a notification of intent with the
Commission.
``(B) Existing license deadline.--Notwithstanding
section 15(b)(1), an applicant for a license under this
section shall file a notification of intent under
subparagraph (A) not later than 2 years before the
expiration of an existing license, if applicable.
``(2) Filing of application.--
``(A) In general.--Except as provided in
subparagraph (B), an applicant for a license under this
section shall submit to the Commission an application
not later than 1 year after the date on which the
applicant files a notification of intent under
paragraph (1).
``(B) Existing license deadline.--Notwithstanding
section 15(c)(1), an applicant for a license under this
section shall file an application with the Commission
not later than 1 year before the date of expiration of
the term of an existing license, if applicable.
``(3) Deadline for issuance.--The Commission shall take
final action on an application for a license under this section
not later than 1 year after the date on which the application
is filed under paragraph (2).
``(4) Schedule for final action.--To the extent reasonably
practicable, the Commission and any applicable conditioning or
permitting agencies shall establish, with respect to each micro
hydrokinetic energy project that is the subject of a
notification of intent to apply for a license under this
section, a joint schedule that permits the timely completion of
decisions required to be made with respect to, and the timely
issuance of, authorizations required under Federal law by the
Commission and the conditioning or permitting agencies, subject
to the requirement that any joint schedule established under
this paragraph shall comply with the deadline for final action
established under paragraph (3).
``(d) Regulations.--
``(1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date
of enactment of this section, the Commission shall promulgate
regulations to implement this section in a manner that
expedites the deployment of micro hydrokinetic energy projects
while ensuring the safe operation of the micro hydrokinetic
energy project in compliance with applicable Federal and State
laws.
``(2) Inclusion.--The regulations promulgated under
paragraph (1) shall provide for the use of 1 or more
categorical exclusions, including allowing for extraordinary
circumstances under which the categorical exclusion shall not
be available, under the National Environmental Policy Act of
1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) for low disturbance activities
necessary for micro hydrokinetic energy projects.
``(e) Report to Congress.--The Commission shall submit to Congress
a report describing the impacts of the micro hydrokinetic energy
projects licensed under this section on the environment, the economy,
and the reliability and affordability of electricity not later than the
earlier of--
``(1) the date that is 5 years after the date of enactment
of this section; and
``(2) the date on which the first 50 micro hydrokinetic
energy projects licensed under this section have been
operational for not less than 1 year.
``(f) Savings Clause.--Nothing in this section affects any
authority of the Commission, at the election of an applicant, to
license the construction, operation, and maintenance of project works
for a micro hydrokinetic energy project under any other provision of
this part.''.
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