Congressional Record, Volume 156 Issue 85 (Tuesday, June 8, 2010)

[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 85 (Tuesday, June 8, 2010)]
[House]
[Pages H4222-H4223]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

BONNEVILLE UNIT CLEAN HYDROPOWER FACILITATION ACT

Mrs. NAPOLITANO. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass
the bill (H.R. 2008) to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to
facilitate the development of hydroelectric power on the Diamond Fork
System of the Central Utah Project, as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:

H.R. 2008

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 ``Bonneville Unit Clean
Hydropower Facilitation Act''.

SEC. 2. DIAMOND FORK SYSTEM DEFINED.

For the purposes of this Act, the term ``Diamond Fork
System'' means the facilities described in chapter 4 of the
October 2004 Supplement to the 1988 Definite Plan Report for
the Bonneville Unit.

SEC. 3. COST ALLOCATIONS.

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, in order to
facilitate hydropower development on the Diamond Fork System,
the amount of reimbursable costs allocated to project power
in Chapter 6 of the Power Appendix in the October 2004
Supplement to the 1988 Bonneville Unit Definite Plan Report,
with regard to power development within the Diamond Fork
System, shall be considered final costs as well as costs in
excess of the total maximum repayment obligation as defined
in section 211 of the Central Utah Project Completion Act of
1992 (Public Law 102-575), and shall be subject to the same
terms and conditions.

SEC. 4. NO PURCHASE OR MARKET OBLIGATION; NO COSTS ASSIGNED
TO POWER.

Nothing in this Act shall obligate the Western Area Power
Administration to purchase or market any of the power
produced by the Diamond Fork power plant and none of the
costs associated with development of transmission facilities
to transmit power from the Diamond Fork power plant shall be
assigned to power for the purpose of Colorado River Storage
Project ratemaking.

SEC. 5. PROHIBITION ON TAX-EXEMPT FINANCING.

No facility for the generation or transmission of
hydroelectric power on the Diamond Fork System may be
financed or refinanced, in whole or in part, with proceeds of
any obligation--
(1) the interest on which is exempt from the tax imposed
under chapter 1 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, or
(2) with respect to which credit is allowable under subpart
I or J of part IV of subchapter A of chapter 1 of such Code.

SEC. 6. REPORTING REQUIREMENT.

If, 24 months after the date of the enactment of this Act,
hydropower production on the Diamond Fork System has not
commenced, the Secretary of the Interior shall submit a
report to the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of
Representatives and the Committee on Energy and Natural
Resources of the Senate stating this fact, the reasons such
production has not yet commenced, and a detailed timeline for
future hydropower production.

SEC. 7. PAYGO.

The budgetary effects of this Act, for the purpose of
complying with the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010, shall
be determined by reference to the latest statement titled
``Budgetary Effects of PAYGO Legislation'' for this Act,
submitted for printing in the Congressional Record by the
Chairman of the House Budget Committee, provided that such
statement has been submitted prior to the vote on passage.

The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from
California (Mrs. Napolitano) and the gentleman from Utah (Mr. Chaffetz)
each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from California.

General Leave

Mrs. NAPOLITANO. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all
Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their
remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under
consideration.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentlewoman from California?
There was no objection.
Mrs. NAPOLITANO. Madam Speaker, H.R. 2008, introduced by our
colleague Representative Jim Matheson, would declare as final the cost
allocation of $161 million to hydroelectric power generation on the
Diamond Fork System in Utah and would defer those costs indefinitely in
accordance with section 211 of the Central Utah Project Completion Act
of 1992.
H.R. 2008 is a perfect example of a win-win situation. This
legislation will facilitate the development of 50 megawatts of clean
hydroelectric power while generating revenue for the government for the
use of its water facilities. This has been another collaborative
effort, and I am very glad that we are able to bring it to the floor.
I ask my colleagues to support the bill, and I reserve the balance of
my time.
Mr. CHAFFETZ. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
I want to thank my colleague, the gentleman from Utah, Mr. Jim
Matheson, for introducing this important piece of legislation. It's
been a pleasure to work with him and his staff in moving this bill
forward as it does benefit both the districts and, truly, the
population of the State of Utah and, consequently, the United States of
America.
The facilities and beneficiaries of this bill are located, like you
said, in both districts. And we, again, appreciate Mr. Matheson and his
leadership on this issue.
The Diamond Fork System of the Bonneville Unit was constructed under
the Central Utah Project Completion Act. The Bonneville Unit is a
system of dams and pipelines and tunnels that transports water from the
eastern mountains in Utah to the Wasatch front population centers.
This legislation allows for a hydropower developer to install up to
50 megawatts of clean, renewable, and emissions-free electricity at the
existing Federal facilities in the Diamond Fork System. This will
benefit the people of my district and the U.S. taxpayers in a variety
of ways.
This legislation expands on the historical benefits of a proven green
technology. Hydropower is the original green electricity that time and
again has kept the lights on in the western United States. With an
additional 50 megawatts of hydroenergy, combined with other wind,
geothermal, and natural gas facilities, my district will again be at
the forefront of America's balanced energy future.
This bill will be paid for by the power users, not the taxpayers.
Once signed into law, this bill will generate money for the Federal
Government by allowing a non-Federal developer to pay for the right to
generate hydropower. Without passage, the Congressional Budget Office
determines the existing facilities would not be developed anytime
within the next decade because the initial investment would be
uneconomical for potential developers.
This is a good, bipartisan bill that benefits the environment, the
taxpayers, and the people of Utah. I urge my colleagues to support it.
I again appreciate the bipartisan approach in developing this piece of
legislation.
I yield back the balance of my time.
Mrs. NAPOLITANO. Madam Speaker, I certainly want to commend my
colleagues for working on this particular bill, and I thank them very
much for the bipartisan way this was carried out. Water has no
boundaries, no color, no political designation, and we need to continue
working on these issues that are going to help the American people be
able to have clean, sustainable green power.
So, with that, I want to thank the staffs on both sides for their
marvelous work.
Mr. MATHESON. Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 2008,
the Bonneville Unit Clean Hydropower Facilitation Act, bipartisan
legislation that I introduced with my colleague, Rep. Chaffetz.
The Bonneville Unit is a large system of dams, pipelines and tunnels
which bring water from the eastern mountains in Utah to the Wasatch
front population centers. It was constructed as part of the completion
of the Central Utah Project Completion Act in 1992.
One of the components of the Bonneville unit is the Diamond Fork
Project. The Diamond Fork Project has the capability to generate up to
50 megawatts of hydroelectric power. My bill removes a barrier that is
infringing on the ability to develop the hydropower.
The Congressional Budget Office estimates the Federal Government will
receive payments totaling $2 million dollars over the 2010-2019 period
as a result of the hydroelectric project.

[[Page H4223]]

The proposed hydroelectric project will be installed within existing
structures of the Diamond Fork facility.
I'd like to thank the Water and Power Subcommittee for their tireless
work on this bill and Subcommittee Chairwoman Grace Napolitano and
House Natural Resources Chairman Rahall for their commitment to moving
this bill forward.
This is common sense, bipartisan legislation that allows for
development of clean hydropower at Diamond Fork. I urge my colleagues
to support its passage.
Mrs. NAPOLITANO. I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentlewoman from California (Mrs. Napolitano) that the House suspend
the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 2008, as amended.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the
rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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