[House Report 106-742]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



106th Congress                                                   Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 2d Session                                                     106-742

======================================================================



 
       USE OF WEBER BASIN PROJECT FACILITIES FOR NONPROJECT WATER

                                _______
                                

 July 17, 2000.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the 
              State of the Union and ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

  Mr. Young of Alaska, from the Committee on Resources, submitted the 
                               following

                              R E P O R T

                        [To accompany H.R. 3236]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

  The Committee on Resources, to whom was referred the bill 
(H.R. 3236) to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to enter 
into contracts with the Weber Basin Water Conservancy District, 
Utah, to use Weber Basin Project facilities for the impounding, 
storage, and carriage of nonproject water for domestic, 
municipal, industrial, and other beneficial purposes, having 
considered the same, report favorably thereon with an amendment 
and recommend 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. USE OF WEBER BASIN PROJECT FACILITIES FOR NONPROJECT WATER.

  The Secretary of the Interior may enter into contracts with the Weber 
Basin Water Conservancy District or any of its member unit contractors 
under the Act of February 21, 1911 (43 U.S.C. 523), for--
          (1) the impounding, storage, and carriage of nonproject water 
        for domestic, municipal, industrial, and other beneficial 
        purposes, using facilities associated with the Weber Basin 
        Project, Utah; and
          (2) the exchange of water among Weber Basin Project 
        contractors, for the purposes set forth in paragraph (1), using 
        facilities associated with the Weber Basin Project, Utah.

                          purpose of the bill

    The purpose of H.R. 3236 is to authorize the Secretary of 
the Interior to enter into contracts with the Weber Basin Water 
Conservancy District, Utah, to use Weber Basin Project 
facilities for the impounding, storage, and carriage of 
nonproject water for domestic, municipal, industrial, and other 
beneficial purposes.

                               background

    The Smith Morehouse Dam and Reservoir was constructed by 
the Weber Basin Water Conservancy District in the early 1980s 
using local funding resources to create a supply of non-federal 
project water. There is currently a need to deliver 
approximately 5,000 acre feet of this non-federal Smith 
Morehouse water in conjunction with approximately 5,000 acre 
feet of federal Weber Basin project water to the Snyderville 
Basin area of Summit County, Utah, and to Park City, Utah. The 
transfer would involve moving non-project water through a 
federal facility. Such a practice is not allowed in many Bureau 
of Reclamation facilities when the water is not being used for 
irrigation purposes. This bill will allow this non-federal 
water to be moved through Bureau of Reclamation facilities. The 
increased growth and resulting need to use water facilities 
more efficiently in the western United States have been a basis 
for Congress to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to 
enter into this type of contracts in the past.

                            committee action

    H.R. 3236 was introduced on November 5, 1999, by 
Congressman Chris Cannon (R-UT). The bill was referred to the 
Committee on Resources, and within the Committee to the 
Subcommittee on Water and Power. On February 10, 2000, the 
Subcommittee held a hearing on the bill. On March 9, 2000, the 
Subcommittee met to mark up the bill. Congressman John T. 
Doolittle (R-CA) offered an amendment to clarify the type of 
contracts the Secretary is authorized to sign. The amendment 
was adopted by voice vote. The bill, as amended, was then 
ordered to be reported to the Full Committee by voice vote. On 
June 7, 2000, the Full Resources Committee met to consider the 
bill. No further amendments were offered and the bill was 
ordered favorably reported to the House of Representatives by 
voice vote.

                      section-by-section analysis

Section 1. Use of Weber Basin project facilities for nonproject water

    This section outlines the specific types of contracts that 
the Secretary of the Interior might enter into under this act.

            committee oversight findings and recommendations

    Regarding clause 2(b)(1) of rule X and clause 3(c)(1) of 
rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the 
Committee on Resources' oversight findings and recommendations 
are reflected in the body of this report.

                   constitutional authority statement

    Article I, section 8 of the Constitution of the United 
States grants Congress the authority to enact this bill.

                    compliance with house rule xiii

    1. Cost of Legislation. Clause 3(d)(2) of rule XIII of the 
Rules of the House of Representatives requires an estimate and 
a comparison by the Committee of the costs which would be 
incurred in carrying out this bill. However, clause 3(d)(3)(B) 
of that rule provides that this requirement does not apply when 
the Committee has included in its report a timely submitted 
cost estimate of the bill prepared by the Director of the 
Congressional Budget Office under section 402 of the 
Congressional Budget Act of 1974.
    2. Congressional Budget Act. As required by clause 3(c)(2) 
of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and 
section 308(a) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, this 
bill does not contain any new budget authority, spending 
authority, credit authority, or an increase or decrease in tax 
expenditures. According to the Congressional Budget Office, 
enactment of this bill could result in increased payments to 
the federal government (of less than $500,000 each year) in the 
form of reimbursements from the Weber Basin Water Conservancy 
District for the costs of handling nonproject water.
    3. Government Reform Oversight Findings. Under clause 
3(c)(4) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives, the Committee has received no report of 
oversight findings and recommendations from the Committee on 
Government Reform on this bill.
    4. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate. Under clause 
3(c)(3) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives and section 403 of the Congressional Budget Act 
of 1974, the Committee has received the following cost estimate 
for this bill from the Director of the Congressional Budget 
Office:

                                     U.S. Congress,
                               Congressional Budget Office,
                                     Washington, DC, June 23, 2000.
Hon. Don Young,
Chairman, Committee on Resources,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has 
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 3236, a bill to 
authorize the Secretary of the Interior to enter into contracts 
with the Weber Basin Water Conservancy District, Utah, to use 
Weber Basin Project facilities for the impounding, storage, and 
carriage of nonproject water for domestic, municipal, 
industrial, and other beneficial purposes.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contacts are Rachel 
Applebaum (for federal costs), who can be reached at 226-2860, 
and Marjorie Miller (for the state and local impact), who can 
be reached 225-3220.
            Sincerely,
                                          Barry B. Anderson
                                    (For Dan L. Crippen, Director).
    Enclosure.

H.R. 3236--A bill to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to enter 
        into contracts with the Weber Basin Water Conservancy District, 
        Utah, to use Weber Basin Project facilities for the impounding, 
        storage, and carriage of nonproject water for domestic, 
        municipal, industrial, and other beneficial purposes

    H.R. 3236 would allow the Secretary of the Interior to 
enter into contracts with the Weber Basin Water Conservancy 
District for impounding, storing, or carrying nonproject water 
using the facilities of the federally operated Weber Basin 
Project in Utah. the bill also would allow the Secretary to 
enter into contracts for using facilities at the Weber Basin 
Project to exchange water among project contractors. Under 
current law, the federal government may not use its facilities 
to move nonproject water for nonproject purposes.
    H.R. 3236 would not require the Weber Basin Water 
Conservancy District to reimburse the federal government for 
the full cost of handling nonproject water. Based on 
information from the Bureau of Reclamation, however, CBO 
expects that the Secretary of the Interior would only use the 
new authority to enter into contracts with the district that 
would fully reimburse the government. Under H.R. 3236, the 
federal government would receive reimbursement from the 
district, and would incur the costs of handling the nonproject 
water. CBO estimates that the costs of handling the nonproject 
water would be less than $500,000 each year. Because H.R. 3236 
would affect direct spending, pay-as-you-go procedures would 
apply.
    H.R. 3236 contains no private-sector or intergovernmental 
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and 
would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments. 
Enacting this legislation would benefit the Weber Basin Water 
Conservancy District, Summit County, and Park City, Utah, by 
facilitating water delivery agreements between these 
governments. The district might incur some costs under the 
contracts authorized by this bill, but these costs would be 
voluntary.
    The CBO staff contracts for this estimate are Rachel 
Applebaum (for federal costs), and Marjorie Miller (for the 
state and local impact). This estimate was approved by Peter H. 
Fontaine, Deputy Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.

                    compliance with public law 104-4

    This bill contains no unfunded mandates.

                preemption of state, local or tribal law

    This bill is not intended to preempt any State, local or 
tribal law.

                        changes in existing law

    If enacted, this bill would make no changes in existing 
law.

                                
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