[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 142 (Tuesday, October 4, 1994)]
[Senate]
[Page S]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: October 4, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
       BUDGET OFFICE ESTIMATES ON S. 2066 AND S. 2319

  Mr. JOHNSTON. Mr. President, on September 26, the Committee on Energy 
and Natural Resources filed the reports to accompany S. 2066, the Mni 
Wiconi Act Amendments of 1994, and S. 2319, a bill to amend 
the Colorado River Basin Salinity Control Act to authorize additional 
measures to carry out the control of salinity upstream of Imperial Dam 
in a cost-effective manner.
  At the time these two reports were filed, the Congressional Budget 
Office had not submitted its budget estimates regarding these measures. 
The committee has since received these communications for the 
Congressional Budget Office, and I ask unanimous consent that they be 
printed in the Record in full at this point.
  There being no objection, the estimates were ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

                                                    U.S. Congress,


                                  Congressional Budget Office,

                               Washington, DC, September 30, 1994.
     Hon. J. Bennett Johnston,
     Chairman, Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, U.S. 
         Senate, Washington, DC.
       Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has 
     prepared the enclosed cost estimate for S. 2066, the Mni 
     Wiconi Act Amendments of 1994.
       Enactment of S. 2066 would not affect direct spending or 
     receipts. Therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures would not apply 
     to the bill.
       If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
     pleased to provide them.
           Sincerely,
                                   Robert D. Reischauer, Director.
       Enclosure.


               CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE COST ESTIMATE

       1. Bill number: S. 2066.
       2. Bill title: Mni Wiconi Act Amendments of 1994.
       3. Bill status: As reported by the Senate Committee on 
     Energy and Natural Resources on September 26, 1994.
       4. Bill purpose: S. 2066 would make a number of changes 
     affecting the construction and maintenance of the Oglala 
     Sioux, Rosebud Sioux, and Lower Brule Sioux water systems 
     projects, and the West River and Lyman-Jones rural water 
     systems projects. The bill would increase the authorization 
     of appropriations to $263 million through 2003 for this 
     purpose. It also would authorize such sums as may be 
     necessary to pay for operating and maintaining the Oglala 
     Sioux, Rosebud Sioux, and Lower Brule Sioux rural water 
     systems and to conduct feasibility studies on wastewater 
     disposal systems.
       5. Estimated cost to the Federal Government:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                        1995   1996   1997   1998   1999
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Estimated authorizations of                                             
 appropriations......................  (\1\)     20     21     21     22
Estimated outlays....................  (\1\)     17     21     21     22
------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\Less than $500,000.                                                  

       The costs of this bill fall within budget function 300.
       Basis of estimate: For the purposes of this estimate, CBO 
     assumes that the amounts authorized would be appropriated. 
     The estimated authorization level reflects the increases, 
     relative to current law, in the federal share of the amounts 
     authorized through 2003, adjusted for inflation. Outlays 
     are based on proposed spending by the Bureau of 
     Reclamation (BOR) for these activities.
       S. 2066 would amend the Mni Wiconi Project Act of 1988 by 
     increasing from $120 million to $263 million the amounts 
     authorized for planning, designing, and constructing various 
     water supply projects. It also would extend the time for 
     completing the projects through 2003. Cooperative agreements 
     with nonfederal entities require that they share in a portion 
     of these costs. S. 2066 would increase the federal share for 
     construction-related activities from 65 percent to 80 
     percent. As a result, the federal share of the authorized 
     spending would increase by about $145 million, before any 
     adjustment for inflation. CBO estimates that BOR would spend 
     about $75 million of this amount between 1995 and 1999.
       The bill also would authorize such sums as may be necessary 
     to operate and maintain the water supply systems and to 
     conduct feasibility studies on waste water disposal systems. 
     Based on information from the BOR, we estimate that the 
     studies would cost approximately $250,000 in 1995 and that 
     the annual operating costs would total about $1.9 million. S. 
     2066 would require that nonfederal entities begin to pay a 
     portion of the operating expenses, which would vary each year 
     based on water usage, but are expected to represent about 30 
     percent of the total annual cost. On this basis, CBO 
     estimates that the federal share of operating and maintenance 
     costs would total about $5 million over the 1995-1999 period.
       6. Pay-as-you-go considerations: None.
       7. Estimated cost to State and local governments: As part 
     of a cooperative agreement, the state of South Dakota is 
     expected to advance about $18 million over the life of the 
     Mni Wiconi project for constructing and maintaining the West 
     River and Lyman-Jones Rural Water systems. These monies will 
     be paid back to the state over time from fees charged to 
     water users.
       8. Estimate comparison: None.
       9. Previous CBO estimate: None.
       10. Estimate prepared by: Mary Maginniss.
       11. Estimate approved by: C.G. Nuckols, Assistant Director 
     for Budget Analysis.
                                  ____

                                                    U.S. Congress,


                                  Congressional Budget Office,

                               Washington, DC, September 28, 1994.
     Hon. J. Bennett Johnston,
     Chairman, Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, U.S. 
         Senate, Washington, DC.
       Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has 
     prepared the enclosed cost estimate for S. 2319, a bill to 
     amend the Colorado River Basin Salinity Control Act to 
     authorize additional measures to carry out the control of 
     salinity upstream of Imperial Dam in a cost-effective manner.
       Enactment of S. 2319 would not affect direct spending or 
     receipts. Therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures would not apply 
     to the bill.
       If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
     pleased to provide them.
           Sincerely,
                                                     James L. Blum
                             (For Robert D. Reischauer, Director).
       Enclosure.


               CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE COST ESTIMATE

       1. Bill number: S. 2319.
       2. Bill title: A bill to amend the Colorado River Basin 
     Salinity Control Act to authorize additional measures to 
     carry out the control of salinity upstream of Imperial Dam in 
     a cost-effective manner.
       3. Bill status: As reported by the Senate Committee on 
     Energy and Natural Resources on September 26, 1994.
       4. Bill purpose: S. 2319 would authorize appropriations of 
     $75 million for the Bureau of Reclamation to develop a new 
     program to reduce salinity in the Colorado River basin from 
     saline springs, leaking wells, irrigation sources, industrial 
     sources, erosion of public and private land, or other 
     sources. This appropriation also could be used to cover costs 
     associated with ongoing salinity control projects. The 
     federal government would be reimbursed over time for 30 
     percent of this appropriation through the Upper Colorado 
     River Basin Fund (UCRBF) and the Lower Colorado River Basin 
     Development Fund (LCRBDF), which collect surcharges from 
     power users through the Western Area Power Administration.
       5. Estimated cost to the Federal Government:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                      1994     1995     1996     1997     1998     1999 
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Authorization of                                                        
 appropriations...        0        0        7        7       10       15
Estimated outlays.        0        0        6        7        9       15
------------------------------------------------------------------------

       The costs of this bill fall within budget function 300.
       Basis of estimate: Based on information from the Department 
     of the Interior, CBO estimates that the $75 million in 
     appropriations would be used entirely for new salinity 
     control projects. We expect that funding for these new 
     projects would be required beginning in fiscal year 1996 and 
     that outlays would reflect historical spending patterns for 
     similar construction projects. We estimate that outlays for 
     these projects would total $37 million over the 1996-1999 
     period.
       The reimbursement requirements would not affect outlays 
     over the 1994-1999 period. Fifteen percent of the 
     reimbursable portion of the appropriation would be paid from 
     collections to the UCRBF within 50 years after a project 
     becomes operational, and the remaining 85 percent of the 
     reimbursable costs would be paid from collections to the 
     LCRBDF as costs for construction are incurred. To cover the 
     reimbursable costs allocated to the UCRBF, CBO expects that 
     the Federal government would increase its power surcharge 
     rate beginning in fiscal year 2002. We expect that no rate 
     change would be made to cover costs allocated to the LCRBDF.
       6. Pay-as-you-go considerations: None.
       7. Estimated cost to State and local governments: None.
       8. Estimate comparison: None.
       9. Previous CBO estimate: None.
       10. Estimate prepared by: Susanne S. Mehlman.
       11. Estimate approved by: C.G. Nuckols, Assistant Director 
     for Budget Analysis.

                          ____________________