[Senate Report 105-288]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



                                                       Calendar No. 525
105th Congress                                                   Report
                                 SENATE

 2d Session                                                     105-288
_______________________________________________________________________


 
           IRRIGATION PROJECT CONTRACT EXTENSION ACT OF 1997

                                _______
                                

                August 25, 1998.--Ordered to be printed

   Filed under authority of the order of the Senate of July 31, 1998

_______________________________________________________________________


  Mr. Murkowski, from the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, 
                        submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                         [To accompany S. 1398]

    The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was 
referred the bill (S. 1398) to extend certain contracts the 
Bureau of Reclamation and irrigation water contractors in 
Wyoming and Nebraska that receive water from Glendo Reservoir, 
having considered the same, reports favorably thereon with an 
amendment, and recommends that the bill, as amended, do pass.
    The amendment is as follows:
    Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert in lieu 
thereof the following:

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

  This Act may be cited as the ``Irrigation Project Contract Extension 
Act of 1998''.

SEC. 2. EXTENSION OF CONTRACTS.

  (a) In General.--The Secretary of the Interior shall extend each of 
the water service or repayment contracts for the Glendo Unit of the 
Missouri River Basin Project identified in subsection (c) until 
December 31, 2000.
  (b) Extensions Coterminous With Cooperative Agreement.--If the 
cooperative agreement entitled ``Cooperative Agreement for Platte River 
Research and other Efforts Relating to Endangered Species Habitats 
Along the Central Platte River, Nebraska'', entered into by the 
Governors of the States of Wyoming, Nebraska, and Colorado and the 
Secretary of the Interior, is extended for a term beyond December 31, 
2000, the contracts identified in subsection (c) shall be extended for 
the same term, but not to go beyond December 31, 2001. If the 
cooperative agreement terminates prior to December 31, 2000, the 
contracts identified in subsection (c) shall be subject to renewal on 
the date that the cooperative agreement terminates.
  (c) Contracts.--The contracts identified in this subsection are--
          (1) the contract between the United States and the New 
        Grattan Ditch Company for water service from Glendo Reservoir 
        (Contract No. 14-06-700-7591), dated March 7, 1974;
          (2) the contract between the United States and Burbank Ditch 
        for water service from Glendo Reservoir (Contract No. 14-06-
        700-6614), dated May 23, 1969;
          (3) the contract between the United States and the Torrington 
        Irrigation District for water service from Glendo Reservoir 
        (Contract No. 14-06-700-1771), dated July 14, 1958;
          (4) the contract between the United States and the Lucerne 
        Canal and Power Company for water service from Glendo Reservoir 
        (Contract No. 14-06-700-1740, as amended), dated June 12, 1958, 
        and amended June 10, 1960;
          (5) the contract between the United States and the Wright and 
        Murphy Ditch Company for water service from Glendo Reservoir 
        (Contract No. 14-06-700-1741), dated June 12, 1958;
          (6) the contract between the United States and the Bridgeport 
        Irrigation District for water service from Glendo Reservoir 
        (Contract No. 14-06-700-8376, renumbered 6-07-70-W0126), dated 
        July 9, 1976;
          (7) the contract between the United States and the 
        Enterprises Irrigation District for water service from Glendo 
        Reservoir (Contract No. 14-06-700-1742), dated June 12, 1958;
          (8)(A) the contract between the United States and the 
        Mitchell Irrigation District for an increase in carryover 
        storage capacity in Glendo Reservoir (Contract No. 14-06-700-
        1743, renumbered 8-07-70-W0056 Amendment No. 1), dated March 
        22, 1985; and
          (B) the contract between the United States and the Mitchell 
        Irrigation District for water service from Glendo Reservoir 
        (Contract No. 14-06-700-1743, renumbered 8-07-70-W0056) dated 
        June 12, 1958; and
          (9) the contract between the United States and the Central 
        Nebraska Public Power and Irrigation District for repayment of 
        allocated irrigation costs of Glendo Reservoir (Contract No. 5-
        07-70-W0734), dated December 31, 1984.
  (d) Statutory Construction.--Nothing in this section precludes the 
Secretary of the Interior from making an extension under subsection (a) 
or (b) in the form of annual extensions.

                         purpose of the measure

    The purpose of S. 1398, as reported, is to extend the term 
of eight water service and one repayment contract from the 
Glendo Unit of the Missouri River Basin Project until December 
31, 2000 and for such additional time as the cooperative 
agreement on endangered species on the Central Platte River is 
in effect, but not beyond December 31, 2001.

                          Background and need

    The Glendo Unit is a multiple-purpose project. It consists 
of Glendo Dam, Reservoir, and Powerplant; Fremont Canyon 
Powerplant; and Gray Reef Dam and its reregulating reservoir. 
The unit features are located on the North Platte River in 
eastern and central Wyoming and are adjacent to, and work in 
conjunction with, other units of the Pick-Sloan Missouri Basin 
Program and the Kendrick and North Platte Projects.
    The Glendo Unit was authorized for construction under the 
Flood Control Act of December 22, 1944. Public Law 85-534, 
which approved the general plan set forth in Senate Documents 
191 and 475, as revised and coordinated by Senate Document 78-
247. The project was reauthorized by Public Law 83-503, on July 
16, 1954. Construction of Gray Reef Dam and Reservoir was 
authorized separately by Public Law 85-695 (72 Stat. 687), 
approved August 20, 1958. Construction began December 1954 on 
the Glendo Dam, Reservoir, and Powerplant and was completed in 
1958. Construction of the Fremont Canyon Powerplant and power 
conduit was begun in 1956 and completed in 1961. Construction 
of Gray Reef Dam and Reservoir was started in 1959 and 
completed in 1961.
    The unit furnishes a maximum of 40,000 acre-feet of water 
annually from Glendo Reservoir for irrigation in Wyoming and 
Nebraska, and electrical power is supplied to Wyoming, 
Colorado, and Nebraska by the Glendo and Fremont Canyon 
Powerplants, which have installed capacities of 24,000 and 
48,000 kilowatts, respectively. The Glendo Unit provides 
irrigation, power generation, flood control, fish and wildlife 
enhancement, recreation, sediment retention, pollution 
abatement, and improvement of the quality of municipal and 
industrial water supply in the North Platte River Valley 
between Gray Reef Dam and Glendo.
    The Glendo Reservoir provides supplemental water under 
provisions of the 1945 U.S. Supreme Court Decree, as modified 
for Glendo in 1953, which allows for water from Glendo storage 
to be divided between Nebraska and Wyoming. The Bureau of 
Reclamation is authorized to contract for delivery of up to 
15,000 acre-feet of water annually for irrigation use in 
Wyoming and for up to 25,000 acre-feet annually for use in 
Nebraska. The 25,000 acre-feet for use in Nebraska and 4,400 
acre-feet of the water allotted to Wyoming are now under water 
service contracts which will expire on December 31, 1998. The 
existing Glendo water service contracts are with:
    Bridgeport Irrigation District--6-07-70-W0126 (1976) Glendo 
Unit, ``Contract Between the United States and the Bridgeport 
Irrigation District for Water Service from Glendo Reservoir.'' 
Provided for delivery of up to 2,000 acre-feet of water.
    Burbank Ditch--9-07-70-W0127 (1969) Glendo Unit, ``Contract 
Between the United States and Burbank Ditch for Water Service 
from Glendo Reservoir.'' Provides for delivery of up to 200 
acre-feet of water.
    Central Nebraska Public Power and Irrigation District--5-
07-70-W0734 (1984) Glendo Unit, ``Contract Between the United 
States and CNPPID for Repayment of Allocated Irrigation Costs 
of Glendo Reservoir.'' Provides for water service of up to 
8,000 acre-feet from Glendo Reservoir.
    Enterprise Irrigation District--8-07-70-W0055 (1958) Glendo 
Unit. ``Contract Between the United States and Enterprise 
Irrigation District for Water Service from Glendo Reservoir.'' 
Provides for delivery of up to 3,000 acre-feet of water.
    Lucerne Canal and Power Company--8-07-70-W0053 (1960, 1958) 
Glendo Unit. ``Contract between the United States and the 
Lucerne Canal and Power Company for Water Service from Glendo 
Reservoir.'' Provides for delivery of up to 2,500 acre-feet.
    Mitchell Irrigation District--8-07-70-W0056 (1958) Glendo 
Unit, ``Contract Between the United States and Mitchell 
Irrigation District for Water Service from Glendo Reservoir.'' 
Provides for delivery of up to 12,000 acre-feet. Amendment No. 
1 (1985) provides for an additional 5,000 acre-feet of 
carryover storage space.
    New Grattan Ditch Company--8-07-70-W0052 (1974) Glendo 
Unit, ``Contract Between the United States and the New Grattan 
Ditch Company for Water Service from Glendo Reservoir.'' 
Provides for delivery of up to 500 acre-feet of water.
    Torrington Irrigation District--9-07-70-W0062 (1958) Glendo 
Unit, ``Contract Between the United States and Torrington 
Irrigation District for Water Service from Glendo Reservoir.'' 
Provides for delivery of up to 1,000 acre-feet of water.
    Wright and Murphy Ditch Company--8-07-70-W0054 (1958) 
Glendo Unit, ``Contract Between the United States and Wright 
and Murphy Ditch Company for Water Service from Glendo 
Reservoir.'' Provides for delivery of up to 200 acre-feet of 
water.
    Glendo Dam is one of seven Reclamation dams on the North 
Platte River that is being evaluated for threatened and 
endangered species on a system-wide basis. The Department of 
the Interior has informed the Districts that contract renewals 
would involve review under the National Environmental Policy 
Act and the Endangered Species Act and that the 
Glendocontractors would be responsible for all costs of review and 
documentation. There appears to be a general consensus that those will 
be prohibitive and the review would be duplicative of the reviews 
necessary to implement any Platte River Recovery Program.
    On July 1, 1997, Wyoming, Nebraska, and Colorado entered 
into a cooperative agreement for Platte River research on 
endangered species habitat along the central Platte River in 
Nebraska with the Department of the Interior to deal with four 
threatened and endangered species (whooping crane, interior 
least tern, piping plover, and the pallid sturgeon). 
Reclamation's evaluation should be completed following the 
three-year Environmental Impact Statement process under the 
Platte River Cooperative Program. The Cooperative Program 
should lead to a Habitat Recovery Program that will serve as 
the reasonable and prudent alternative for endangered species 
consultations in the Basin. This process would also meet the 
needs for the Glendo contract consultation.
    Although the Department could provide annual extensions for 
the contract, an extension until 2000, with extensions as 
necessary to take advantage of the work being undertaken in the 
cooperative agreement, would provide some certainty to the 
water users and permit completion of environmental and other 
reviews associated with renewal of the contracts. In addition, 
extension of the contracts would also let the contractors know 
what additional conditions, if any, would be imposed on 
contract renewals and allow them to make an informed decision 
on renewal.

                          Legislative History

    S. 1398 was introduced by Senator Thomas (for himself and 
Senators Kerrey, Enzi, and Hagel) on November 7, 1997. A 
hearing was held by the Subcommittee on Water and Power on June 
16, 1998. Similar legislation (H.R. 2795) was introduced by 
Congressman Barrett on November 4, 1997 and was ordered 
reported by the House Resources Committee on May 20, 1998.
    At the business meeting on July 29, 1998, the Committee on 
Energy and Natural Resources ordered S. 1398, as amended, 
favorably reported.

           Committee Recommendations and Tabulation of Votes

    The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in open 
business session on July 29, 1998, by a unanimous voice vote of 
a quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass S. 1398, if 
amended as described herein.

                          Committee Amendment

    During the consideration of S. 1398, the Committee adopted 
an amendment to address concerns raised by the Administration 
over the length of the contract extension.

                      Section-By-Section Analysis

    Section 1 provides a short title.
    Section 2 requires the Secretary of the Interior to extend 
certain contracts identified in subsection (c) until December 
21, 2000 with an additional extension to December 31, 2001 if 
the cooperative agreement between Colorado, Wyoming, Nebraska 
and the Secretary on the Central Platte is also extended. The 
section also provides that the contracts would become subject 
to renewal whenever the cooperative agreement terminates. 
Subsection (d) clarifies that these provisions to not affect 
the Secretary's authority under existing law to provide annual 
extensions. If the cooperative agreement continues beyond 
December 31, 2001, or if there are other reasons that the 
Secretary believes warrant an extension, this legislation does 
not limit his ability to use the other authorities to provide 
extensions.

                   Cost and Budgetary considerations

    The following estimate of the cost of this measure has been 
provided by the Congressional Budget Office:

S. 1398--Irrigation Project Contract Extension Act of 1998

    CBO estimates that enacting S. 1398 would not have a 
significant impact on the federal budget. Enacting S. 1398 
would affect direct spending by reducing offsetting receipts; 
therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures would apply, but the 
amounts involved would be insignificant.
    S. 1398 would extend--for up to three years--contracts 
between the Bureau of Reclamation and purchasers of irrigation 
water in Wyoming and Nebraska that receive water from the 
Glendo Reservoir. The existing contracts will expire on 
December 31, 1998, but the Secretary of the Interior has the 
authority under current law to renew these contracts on an 
annual basis. Such annual renewals require the Secretary to 
prepare an environmental impact statement and carry out 
mitigation efforts that are in addition to an ongoing study 
involving uses of water in the area. Based on information 
provided by the Bureau of Reclamation, CBO estimates that 
enacting S. 1398 would allow the bureau to avoid costs of about 
$200,000 in 1999 and small amounts in future years. Those costs 
are subject to the availability of appropriated funds, but the 
agency is reimbursed by individuals contracting for water and 
the reimbursements are deposited in the Treasury as offsetting 
receipts (a form of direct spending). The potential loss of 
offsetting receipts would match the potential reduction in 
spending subject to appropriation, and both would be 
insignificant.
    S. 1398 contains no intergovernmental mandates as defined 
in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and would impose no costs 
on state, local, or tribal governments. The contractors 
affected by this bill generally are governmental entities. 
Under current law, these contractors would be required to 
reimburse the Bureau of Reclamation for some of the costs 
associated with the annual renewal of their contracts, 
including preparation of environmental impact statements. By 
extending the contracts for up to three years, this bill would 
allow the contractors to avoid these costs. As noted above, CBO 
estimates that the avoided costs would total about $200,000 in 
the first year, and less thereafter.
    On June 19, 1998, CBO prepared a cost estimate for H.R. 
2795, the Irrigation Project Contract Extension Act of 1997, as 
ordered reported by the House Committee on Resources on May 20, 
1998. The two bills are nearly identical, and the cost 
estimates are identical.
    The CBO staff contacts for the estimate of federal costs 
are Joanna Wilson and Gary Brown. The contact for the impact on 
state and local governments is Marjorie Miller. This estimate 
was approved by Robert A. Sunshine, Deputy Assistant Director 
for Budget Analysis.

                      regulatory impact evaluation

    In compliance with paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of the 
Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee makes the following 
evaluation of the regulatory impact which would be incurred in 
carrying out S. 1398. The bill is not a regulatory measure in 
the sense of imposing Government-established standards or 
significant economic responsibilities on private individuals 
and businesses.
    No personal information would be collected in administering 
the program. Therefore, there would be no impact on personal 
privacy.
    Little, if any, additional paperwork would result from the 
enactment of S. 1398, as ordered reported.

                        executive communications

    On June 5, 1998, the Committee on Energy and Natural 
Resources requested legislative reports from the Department of 
the Interior and the Office of Management and Budget setting 
forth Executive agency recommendations on S. 1398. These 
reports had not been received at the time the report on S. 1398 
was filed. When the reports become available, the Chairman will 
request that they be printed in the Congressional Record for 
the advice of the Senate. The relevant testimony provided by 
the Bureau of Reclamation at the Subcommittee hearing follows:

     Statement of Eluid L. Martinez, Commissioner, U.S. Bureau of 
                Reclamation, Department of the Interior

    Thank you for the opportunity to appear today to provide 
the Administration's views on S. 1398.
    S. 1398 requires that the Secretary of the Interior extend 
the terms of each of the water service or repayment contracts 
for the Glendo Unit of the Missouri River Basin Project for a 
period of 3 years until December 31, 2001.
    Mr. Chairman, the Department supports the purpose of S. 
1398, but cannot support this bill as drafted. However, the 
Department could support S. 1398 subject to technical 
modifications recommended in this statement.
    Glendo Dam and Reservoir is one of several Bureau of 
Reclamation dams and reservoirs on the North Platte River. S. 
1398 directs the Secretary of the Interior to extend for three 
years water service or repayment contracts for the Glendo Unit 
of the Pick Sloan Missouri Basin Program scheduled to expire on 
December 31, 1998. The legislation would extend the contracts 
until December 31, 2001, or for the term of the cooperative 
agreement entered into by the states of Wyoming, Nebraska, 
Colorado and the Secretary of the Interior.
    On July 1, 1997, the states of Wyoming, Nebraska, and 
Colorado entered into a cooperative agreement with the 
Department of the Interior for Platte River research and other 
efforts relating to endangered species habitats along the 
central Platte River in Nebraska. The purpose of the 
cooperative agreement is to jointly undertake a basin-wide 
effort to improve the habitat of four threatened and endangered 
species that use the Platte River. In the event that the 
cooperative agreement is extended beyond December 31, 2001, S. 
1398 would extend the water service contracts for the Glendo 
Unit coterminous with the cooperative agreement.
    By extending the contracts, S. 1398 will improve the 
Department's ability to complete the environmental impact 
statement on a plan to provide additional river flow and 
improve the habitat for the benefit of the whooping crane, 
interior least tern, piping plover and the pallid sturgeon in 
the Central Platte region in Nebraska. In addition, contract 
extension will enable appropriate consultation to take place 
consistent with the Endangered Species Act.
    The Department does not support S. 1398 as drafted because 
it could enable the contracts to be perpetually extended. To 
correct this problem, the Department recommends the bill be 
amended as follows:
          1. Change the date in Section 2(a) from December 31, 
        2001 to December 31, 2000; and,
          2. Change Section 2(b) to read ``If the cooperative 
        agreement entitled ``Cooperative Agreement for Platte 
        River Research and other efforts Relating to Endangered 
        Species Habitat Along the Central Platte River, 
        Nebraska'', entered into by the Governors of the states 
        of Wyoming, Nebraska, and Colorado and the Secretary of 
        the Interior, is extended for a term beyond December 
        31, 2000, the contracts identified in subsection (c) 
        shall be extended for the same term, but not beyond 
        December 31, 2001. If the cooperative agreement 
        terminates prior to December 31, 2000, the contracts 
        identified in subsection (c) shall be subject to 
        renewal on the date that the cooperative agreement 
        terminates.
    Again, Mr. Chairman, the Department supports the intent of 
this legislation and with the above technical modifications, we 
could support S. 1398.

                        changes in existing law

    In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the 
Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee notes that no 
changes in existing law are made by the bill S. 1398, as 
ordered reported.