[Senate Report 106-393]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
Calendar No. 769
106th Congress Report
SENATE
2d Session 106-393
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CONVEYANCE OF SLY PARK DAM AND RESERVOIR
_______
August 25, 2000.--Ordered to be printed
Filed under authority of the order of the Senate of July 26, 2000
_______
Mr. Murkowski, from the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources,
submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany H.R. 992]
The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was
referred the Act (H.R. 992) to convey the Sly Park Dam and
Reservoir to the El Dorado Irrigation District, and for other
purposes, having considered the same, reports favorably thereon
with amendments and recommends that the Act, as amended, do
pass.
The amendments are as follows:
1. On page 2, line 21, strike ``14-06-200-949IR2,'' and
insert ``14-06-200-949IR3,''.
2. Insert the following after section 4:
``SEC. 5. COSTS.
``All costs, including interest charges, associated with
the Project that have been included as a reimbursable cost of
the Central Valley Project are declared to be nonreimbursable
and nonreturnable.''.
purpose of the measure
The purpose of the measure is to direct the Secretary of
the Interior, upon payment by the El Dorado Irrigation District
of the net present value of the remaining repayment obligation,
to convey the Sly Park Project to the District.
background and need
Construction of Sly Park Dam and Reservoir (Jenkinson Lake)
and Camino Conduit was authorized by the American River Basin
Development Act, enacted October 14, 1949. Sly Park Dam and
Reservoir are located on Sly Park Creek, a tributary of the
North Fork Cosumnes River. The Camino Conduit conveys water by
gravity from Jenkinson Lake to the El Dorado Distribution
System. A small dam and tunnel, Camp Creek Diversion Dam and
Tunnel, divert water from Camp Creek to augment the flow into
Jenkinson Lake. The costs for construction of this small dam
and tunnel are included with construction costs for Sly Park
Dam, Reservoir, and Conduit.
Sly Park Dam, Reservoir, and Conduit were financially
integrated into the Central Valley Project (CVP) by the
authorizing legislation; however, operation of these facilities
is independent from the CVP. There is no contractual
commitment, nor any physical connection, to provide either
water or power to or from the CVP. All of the Unit's output in
water services is contractually obligated to the El Dorado
Irrigation District (District), which has operated and
maintained the facilities since completion of the Unit in 1955.
The District is the major water supplier in El Dorado
County, providing service throughout a 200 square-mile area in
the western part of the county. In cooperation with the Bureau
of Reclamation (Bureau), the District operates the Sly Park
Recreation Area, which offers camping, boating, swimming,
picnicking and fishing.
One issue that was recently brought to the attention of the
Committee regarding the Sly Park transfer is the cost
allocation for this project. The Bureau is currently performing
a reallocation of CVP capital costs to comply with section 106
of the Coordinated Operation Agreement Act of 1986 (P.L. 99-
546) and to address a report issued by the General Accounting
Office in March 1992 criticizing the current cost allocation.
During a review of the Bureau's proposed allocation, released
for public review in November 1998, it was found that the costs
of constructing the Sly Park facility have been included as a
CVP capital obligation for repayment by the CVP irrigation and
municipal and industrial water users. As mentioned above, this
facility serves a single local water district and does not
contribute to the water yield or operations of the CVP.
In financially integrating the Sly Park Unit into the CVP,
the Bureau is relying on the authorizing legislation. The
authorizing Act for Sly Park directs the Secretary ``to cause
the operation of said works to be coordinated and integrated
with the operation of existing and future features of the
Central Valley project. . . .'' The Act does not refer to
financial integration. It appears that the project has not been
integrated operationally but has been integrated financially.
legislative history
H.R. 992 was introduced on March 4, 1999 by Congressman
John Doolittle of California and was referred to the Committee
on Resources. The bill passed the House by voice vote on
November 1, 1999. The measure was received by the Senate and on
November 19, 1999, was referred to the Energy and Natural
Resources Committee. The Subcommittee on Water and Power held a
hearing on the measure on March 22, 2000. At the business
meeting on July 13, 2000, the Committee on Energy and Natural
Resources ordered H.R. 992, as amended, favorably reported.
committee recommendations
The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in open
business session on July 13, 2000 by a unanimous voice vote
with a quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass H.R.
992, if amended as described herein.
committee amendment
During the consideration of H.R. 992, the Committee adopted
an amendment to make all costs, including interest charges,
associated with the Project that have been included as a
reimbursable cost of the Central Valley Project,
nonreimbursable and nonreturnable.
section-by-section
Section 1 provides definitions of key terms.
Section 2 provides that the Secretary of the Interior
shall, as soon as practicable after date of enactment, transfer
the Sly Park Unit to the District. The Secretary is authorized
to receive a total of $11,500,000 to extinguish debt under
specified contracts. Amounts paid shall be credited toward
repayment of capital costs of the Central Valley Project.
Section 3 provides that, upon payment described in section
2, the Sly Park Unit shall no longer be a Federal reclamation
project or a unit of the CVP, nor shall the District be
entitled to receive any further reclamation benefits.
Section 4 describes the extent of the liability retained by
the United States after conveyance.
Section 5 provides that all costs, including interest
charges, associated with the Project that have been included as
a reimbursable cost of the Central Valley Project, are declared
to be nonreimbursable and nonreturnable.
cost and budgetary considerations
The following estimate of costs of this measure has been
provided by the Congressional Budget Office.
H.R. 992--An act to convey the Sly Park Dam and Reservoir to the El
Dorado Irrigation District, and for other purposes
Summary: H.R. 992 would direct the Secretary of the
Interior to convey the Sly Park Dam and Reservoir, the Camp
Creek Diversion Dam and Tunnel, and certain conduits and canals
to the El Dorado Irrigation District. These water facilities
are part of the Central Valley Project in California. The
district would pay $11.5 million to the federal government for
these facilities.
CBO estimates that enacting H.R. 992 would decrease net
direct spending by about $11 million in fiscal year 2001, and
that this near-term cash savings would be offset by the loss of
about $1 million in receipts annually over the 2002-2028
period. Because the legislation would affect direct spending,
pay-as-you-go procedures would apply.
H.R. 992 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA).
Local governments would incur some costs as a result of the
legislation's enactment, but these costs would be voluntary.
Estimated cost to the Federal Government: The estimated
budgetary impact of H.R. 992 is shown in the following table.
The costs of this legislation fall within budget function 300
(natural resources and environment).
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
By fiscal year, in millions of dollars--
-----------------------------------------------------------
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
CHANGES IN DIRECT SPENDING \1\
Estimated Budget Authority.......................... 0 -11 1 1 1 1
Estimated Outlays................................... 0 -11 1 1 1 1
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ Implementing the conveyance of property under H.R. 992 would cost about $50,000, assuming the availability
of appropriated funds.
Basis of estimate: For this estimate, CBO assumes that the
conveyance of water facilities under H.R. 992 will occur in
early fiscal year 2001. CBO estimates that it will cost about
$50,000 to administer the conveyance.
The El Dorado Irrigation District would pay $11.5 million
to the federal government for the conveyance. In return, the
legislation would cancel all repayment obligations and interest
charges associated with the conveyed water facilities. As a
result of these provisions, receipts to the federal government
would be offset by the loss of currently scheduled repayments
of about $1 million each year over the 2001-2008 period.
Pay-as-you-go considerations: The Balanced Budget and
Emergency Deficit Control Act sets up pay-as-you-go procedures
for legislation affecting direct spending or receipts. The net
changes in outlays that are subject to pay-as-you-go procedures
are shown in the following table. For the purposes of enforcing
pay-as-you-go procedures, only the effects in the current year,
the budget year, and the succeeding four years are counted.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
By fiscal year, in millions of dollars--
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Changes in outlays................ 0 -11 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
Changes in receipts............... (\1\) (\1\) (\1\) (\1\) (\1\) (\1\) (\1\) (\1\) (\1\) (\1\) (\1\)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ Not applicable.
Intergovernmental and private-sector impact: H.R. 992
contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as
defined in UMRA. The conveyance authorized by this bill would
be voluntary on the part of the district, and any costs
incurred by it as a result of the conveyance would be accepted
on that basis. The bill would allow the district to prepay
certain outstanding obligations to the federal government.
Previous CBO estimate: On March 19, 1999, CBO transmitted a
cost estimate for H.R. 992, the Sly Park Unit Conveyance Act,
as ordered reported by the House Committee on Resources on
March 11, 1999. The House version of H.R. 992 would direct the
Secretary of the Interior to convey some but not all of the
water facilities that are included in the Senate version. The
House version also contains a different set of conditions for
the conveyance. The two estimates reflect those differences.
Estimate prepared by: Federal Costs: Rachel Applebaum.
Impact on State, Local, and Tribal Governments: Majorie Miller.
Impact on the Private Sector: Sarah Sitarek.
Estimate approved by: Peter H. Fontaine, 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 H.R. 992. The bill is not a regulatory measure in
the sense of imposing Government-established standards or
significant economic responsibilities on private individuals
and business.
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 H.R. 992, as ordered reported.
Executive Communications
The pertinent legislative report received by the Committee
from the Department of the Interior setting forth Executive
agency recommendation relating to H.R. 992 is set forth below:
U.S. Department of the Interior,
Office of the Secretary,
Washington, DC, June 5, 2000.
Hon. Frank H. Murkowski,
Chairman, Committee on Energy and Natural Resources,
U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: This letter responds to your request for
the views of this Department on H.R. 992, to convey the Sly
Park Dam and Reservoir to the El Dorado Irrigation District, as
adopted by the House of Representatives.
The Administration supports H.R. 992, with the inclusion of
the technical modification recommended below. The bill as
originally introduced was amended at the request of the
Administration in the House of Representatives so that we
believe it now protects the interests of the United States, the
citizens of El Dorado County and the El Dorado Irrigation
District. As such, and we look forward to working with the
Committee, the California delegation, and the District to move
this legislation forward.
There is a minor technical amendment that recently became
necessary. On February 29, 2000, Reclamation and the El Dorado
Irrigation District renewed the interim water service contract
pursuant to the Central Valley Project Improvement Act. To
accurately identify the contract that is being extinguished by
the payments authorized in H.R. 992, the contract number that
is referenced needs to be changed. Therefore in Section 2(b),
line 20, the contract number should be 14-06-200-949IR3.
recent activities in title transfer
We would like to provide the Subcommittee a brief status
report on some recent activities with Reclamation's Title
Transfer initiative.
At the end of the 105th Congress, two proposals were signed
into law, enabling the Secretary of the Interior to transfer
title to Reclamation facilities. The first, P.L. 105-316,
authorized the prepayment and subsequent conveyance of the
Canadian River Pipeline in Texas to the Canadian River
Authority. This facility was transferred in May, 1999.
The second, P.L. 105-351, enabled Reclamation to convey the
distribution facilities associated with the Southside Pumping
Division of the Minidoka Project in Idaho. We are pleased to
report that just a few weeks ago, these facilities were
transferred to the Burley Irrigation District (BID).
P.L. 105-316 required that several steps be taken before
title could be transferred--including completion of the process
under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the
negotiation and the development of an agreement between BID,
the Secretary and the neighboring Minidoka Irrigation District
(MID) on the distribution and management of the natural flow
water rights, part of which would be transferred to BID but
which that had been managed together with those of MID. We
worked diligently with BID, other federal agencies, and the
State to get this process completed in a timely fashion. Since
BID began the environmental review prior to the legislation's
passage, the NEPA process was completed, including the full
public review, and a finding of no significant impact (FONSI)
was issued on February 18, 2000. The water rights agreement was
negotiated in December, 1999 and signed by all parties in
February, 2000. The Quit Claim Deed for the water rights
transfer was negotiated in December, 1999 and signed in
February 2000 and the Quit Claim Deed Real Property was
negotiated in February, 2000 and signed on February 24, 2000.
As such, the facilities were transferred to Burley Irrigation
District on February 24, 2000--more than two months ahead of
schedule.
While completing this is a credit to the hard work and
cooperation of both Reclamation staff and to the Burley
Irrigation District, we remain convinced that rather than
negotiating the details in Washington, which in this case took
several Congresses, then doing NEPA, the water rights agreement
and other local consultations, and risk finding unanticipated
problems through that process that may delay or require
additional legislation before the transfer, had we gone through
Reclamation's Framework process where we work through NEPA, the
water rights agreement and negotiate all of the details prior
to the legislative process, we would likely have completed the
transfer more quickly and probably cheaper.
In addition to these completed transfers, a significant
amount of work has been going-on throughout the western United
States to move other projects and facilities toward possible
title transfers. Memoranda of Agreement have been negotiated
and signed between Reclamation and numerous water districts
across the west including districts in Idaho, Nevada, Colorado,
Montana, Arizona and Texas. These memoranda establish roles and
responsibilities, and in some cases, identify goals and
objectives, for completing a fair and open title transfer
process. In addition, we are working with numerous other
entities that are just now coming forward with an interest in
title transfer.
The process for completing title transfer, even for
relatively ``uncomplicated'' projects, is not simple. Each
project has unique authorities, characteristics and
circumstances that need to be analyzed and worked through to
avoid serious unintended consequences. Given the significant
progress that we have made, we continue to believe that title
transfer, and the process envisioned in the Framework, is an
important and worthwhile initiative that continues to be a
priority for this Administration.
Given that background, we turn to the Administration's
views on H.R. 992.
h.r. 992 convey sly park unit of central valley project
H.R. 992 would enable the Secretary of the Interior to
transfer all right, title and interest in the Sly Park Unit of
the Central Valley Project (CVP) to the El Dorado Irrigation
District (District) in California. This legislation has been
the subject of a great deal of negotiation in the House of
Representatives and the bill before the Subcommittee today
represents a reasonable and fair compromise. As such, with one
further technical amendment, the Department supports H.R. 992
as it is now under consideration by this Committee.
background
The Sly Park Unit of the Central Valley Project (CVP),
while hydrologically isolated from the rest of the CVP, was
authorized under the American River Act of October 14, 1949 (63
Stat. 853) and includes the Sly Park Dam and Jenkinson Lake,
Camp Creek Diversion and the Camino Conduit, and Camino and Cap
Creek Tunnels which were built by the Bureau of Reclamation.
Upon completion of construction in 1955, the operations,
maintenance and replacement responsibility for these facilities
was transferred to the District.
The Project also includes water treatment facilities and a
distribution system for irrigation and municipal purposes in
western El Dorado County, which was built by Reclamationand is
also operated and maintained by the District. The distribution system
consists of three pipelines which extend a total of 46.3 miles from the
vicinity of Sly Park Dam to the community of Placerville, California.
H.R. 992
As amended and passed by the House of Representatives, H.R.
992 would enable the Secretary of the Interior to transfer all
rights, title and interest in the Sly Park Unit. In exchange,
the District is required to make a lump-sum payment
extinguishing all debt associated with related water service
and repayment contracts between the District and the United
States. However, the District would still be required to make
payments into the Central Valley Project Restoration Fund,
established by Section 3407(c) of the Central Valley Project
Improvement Act.
Once the facilities are transferred, the District would
assume all liability for the Project. In addition, the Sly Park
Unit would no longer be a Federal reclamation project or a unit
of the CVP, and the District would no longer be eligible to
receive any further reclamation benefits.
During discussions of this bill in the House and of many
others in both the House and Senate, the Administration has
insisted that title transfers comply with all applicable laws
including NEPA and the Endangered Species Act (ESA) prior to
transfer and to ensure that whatever mitigation for the impacts
of the title transfer, that is identified as necessary, is
carried out. We believe that H.R. 992 does this.
Compliance with the process under NEPA will enable all
interested stakeholders to have an opportunity to voice their
concerns and have them addressed. Furthermore, compliance with
NEPA and ESA will enable the Fish and Wildlife Service to
evaluate the impacts of the transfer and further activities on
species that may be threatened or endangered. Six such species
of plants, the gabbro soil plants of the Central Sierra Nevada
Foothills, are present in El Dorado County. The Fish and
Wildlife Service is currently developing a recovery plan for
these species in hopes of being able to delist them in the
future. It is the Department's expectation that this will be an
integral part of the NEPA and ESA compliance processes as this
title transfer moves forward.
Technical Modification
As mentioned earlier, there is a minor technical amendment
that recently became necessary. On February 29, 2000,
Reclamation and the El Dorado Irrigation District renewed the
interim water service contract pursuant to the Central Valley
Project Improvement Act. To accurately identify the contract
that is being extinguished by the payments authorized in H.R.
992, the contract number that is referenced needs to be
changed. Therefore in Section 2(b), line 20, the contract
number should be 14-06-200-949IR3. With this amendment, we
support the bill.
The Office of Management and Budget advises that there is
no objection to the presentation of this report from the
standpoint of the Administration's program.
Sincerely,
E.L. Martinez,
Commissioner, Bureau of Reclamation.
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 Act H.R. 992, as
ordered reported.