[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 229 (Tuesday, November 29, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 73674-73676]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-30645]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Reclamation


Status Report of Water Service, Repayment, and Other Water-
Related Contract Actions

AGENCY: Bureau of Reclamation, Interior.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given of contractual actions that have been 
proposed to the Bureau of Reclamation and are new, modified, 
discontinued, or completed since the last publication of this notice on 
September 29, 2011. From the date of this publication, future notices 
during this calendar year will be limited to new, modified, 
discontinued, or completed contract actions. This notice is one of a 
variety of means used to inform the public about proposed contractual 
actions for capital recovery and management of project resources and 
facilities consistent with section 9(f) of the Reclamation Project Act 
of 1939. Additional announcements of individual contract actions may be 
published in the Federal Register and in newspapers of general 
circulation in the areas determined by Reclamation to be affected by 
the proposed action.

ADDRESSES: The identity of the approving officer and other information 
pertaining to a specific contract proposal may be obtained by calling 
or writing the appropriate regional office at the address and telephone 
number given for each region in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Michelle Kelly, Water and 
Environmental Resources Division, Bureau of Reclamation, P.O. Box 
25007, Denver, Colorado 80225-0007; telephone (303) 445-2888.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Consistent with section 9(f) of the 
Reclamation Project Act of 1939 and the rules and regulations published 
in 52 FR 11954, April 13, 1987 (43 CFR 426.22), Reclamation will 
publish notice of proposed or amendatory contract actions for any 
contract for the delivery of project water for authorized uses in 
newspapers of general circulation in the affected area at least 60 days 
prior to contract execution. Announcements may be in the form of news 
releases, legal notices, official letters, memorandums, or other forms 
of written material. Meetings, workshops, and/or hearings may also be 
used, as appropriate, to provide local publicity. The public 
participation procedures do not apply to proposed contracts for the 
sale of surplus or interim irrigation water for a term of 1 year or 
less. Either of the contracting parties may invite the public to 
observe contract proceedings. All public participation procedures will 
be coordinated with those involved in complying with the National 
Environmental Policy Act. Pursuant to the ``Final Revised Public 
Participation Procedures'' for water resource-related contract 
negotiations, published in 47 FR 7763, February 22, 1982, a tabulation 
is provided of all proposed contractual actions in each of the five 
Reclamation regions. When contract negotiations are completed, and 
prior to execution, each proposed contract form must be approved by the 
Secretary of the Interior, or pursuant to delegated or redelegated 
authority, the Commissioner of Reclamation or one of the regional 
directors. In some instances, congressional review and approval of a 
report, water rate, or other terms and conditions of the contract may 
be involved.
    Public participation in and receipt of comments on contract 
proposals will be facilitated by adherence to the following procedures:
    1. Only persons authorized to act on behalf of the contracting 
entities may negotiate the terms and conditions of a specific contract 
proposal.
    2. Advance notice of meetings or hearings will be furnished to 
those parties that have made a timely written request for such notice 
to the appropriate regional or project office of Reclamation.
    3. Written correspondence regarding proposed contracts may be made 
available to the general public pursuant to the terms and procedures of 
the

[[Page 73675]]

Freedom of Information Act, as amended.
    4. Written comments on a proposed contract or contract action must 
be submitted to the appropriate regional officials at the locations and 
within the time limits set forth in the advance public notices.
    5. All written comments received and testimony presented at any 
public hearings will be reviewed and summarized by the appropriate 
regional office for use by the contract approving authority.
    6. Copies of specific proposed contracts may be obtained from the 
appropriate regional director or his or her designated public contact 
as they become available for review and comment.
    7. In the event modifications are made in the form of a proposed 
contract, the appropriate regional director shall determine whether 
republication of the notice and/or extension of the comment period is 
necessary.
    Factors considered in making such a determination shall include, 
but are not limited to, (i) the significance of the modification, and 
(ii) the degree of public interest which has been expressed over the 
course of the negotiations. At a minimum, the regional director will 
furnish revised contracts to all parties who requested the contract in 
response to the initial public notice.

Definitions of Abbreviations Used in This Document

ARRA--American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009
BCP--Boulder Canyon Project
Reclamation--Bureau of Reclamation
CAP--Central Arizona Project
CVP--Central Valley Project
CRSP--Colorado River Storage Project
FR--Federal Register
IDD--Irrigation and Drainage District
ID--Irrigation District
LCWSP--Lower Colorado Water Supply Project
M&I--Municipal and Industrial
NMISC--New Mexico Interstate Stream Commission
O&M--Operation and Maintenance
P-SMBP--Pick-Sloan Missouri Basin Program
PPR--Present Perfected Right
RRA--Reclamation Reform Act of 1982
SOD--Safety of Dams
SRPA--Small Reclamation Projects Act of 1956
USACE--U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
WD--Water District

    Pacific Northwest Region: Bureau of Reclamation, 1150 North Curtis 
Road, Suite 100, Boise, Idaho 83706-1234, telephone (208) 378-5344.

New Contract Actions

    20. Benton ID, Yakima Project, Washington: Amendatory contract to, 
among other things, withdraw the District from the Sunnyside Division 
Board of Control; provide for direct payment of the District's share of 
total operation, maintenance, repair, and replacement costs incurred by 
the United States in operation of storage division; and establish 
District responsibility for operation, maintenance, repair and 
replacement for irrigation distribution system.
    21. Junction City Water Control District, Willamette River Basin 
Project, Oregon: Irrigation water service contract for approximately 
8,000 acre-feet of Project water.

Completed Contract Actions

    5. Palmer Creek Water District Improvement Company, Willamette 
River Basin Project, Oregon: Irrigation water service contract for 
approximately 13,000 acre-feet. Contract executed September 9, 2011.
    11. State of Washington, Columbia Basin Project, Washington: Long-
term contract for up to 25,000 acre-feet of project water to substitute 
for State-issued permits for M&I purposes with an additional 12,500 
acre-feet of project water to be made available to benefit stream flows 
and fish in the Columbia River under this contract or a separate 
operating agreement. Contract executed August 2, 2011.
    Mid-Pacific Region: Bureau of Reclamation, 2800 Cottage Way, 
Sacramento, California 95825-1898, telephone (916) 978-5250.

New Contract Actions

    55. Sacramento River Division, CVP, California: Administrative 
assignments of various Sacramento River Settlement Contracts.
    56. Conaway Preservation Group, LLC, Sacramento River Division, 
CVP, California: Proposed assignment of 10,000 acre-feet of water under 
an existing Sacramento River Settlement Contract.
    57. California Department of Fish and Game, CVP, California: To 
extend the term of and amend the existing water service contract for 
the Department's San Joaquin Fish Hatchery to allow an increase from 35 
cubic feet per second to 60 cubic feet per second of continuous flow to 
pass through the Hatchery prior to it returning to the San Joaquin 
River.
    Lower Colorado Region: Bureau of Reclamation, P.O. Box 61470 
(Nevada Highway and Park Street), Boulder City, Nevada 89006-1470, 
telephone (702) 293-8192.

New Contract Actions

    19. Alderwoods (Arizona), Inc. and the City of Phoenix, CAP, 
Arizona: Proposed assignment of 84 acre-feet per year of CAP M&I water 
from Alderwoods (Arizona), Inc. to the City of Phoenix.
    20. Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation and the Town of Gilbert, CAP, 
Arizona: Execute a Lease Amendment No. 1 to extend the 1-year lease 
that was executed December 14, 2010, for the delivery of up to 13,683 
acre-feet of CAP water from the Nation to Gilbert, for another year.

Completed Contract Actions

    4. White Mountain Apache Tribe, Miner Flat Project, Arizona: 
Execution of a contract to repay any amounts loaned to the Tribe 
pursuant to Section 3 of Pub. L. 110-390. Contract executed September 
9, 2011.
    15. Arizona Water Company (Superstition System), CAP, Arizona: 
Proposed transfer of Town of Superior's 285 acre-feet and proposed 
Amendment No. 1 to Arizona Water Company's subcontract to allow for the 
annual delivery of up to 6,285 acre-feet (6,000 acre-feet prior and 285 
transferred) of CAP water for M&I purposes within its Superstition 
System. Contract executed September 12, 2011.
    Upper Colorado Region: Bureau of Reclamation, 125 South State 
Street, Room 6107, Salt Lake City, Utah 84138-1102, telephone (801) 
524-3864.
    The Upper Colorado Region has no updates to report for this 
quarter.
    Great Plains Region: Bureau of Reclamation, P.O. Box 36900, Federal 
Building, 316 North 26th Street, Billings, Montana 59101, telephone 
(406) 247-7752.

New Contract Actions

    52. City of Loveland, Colorado-Big Thompson Project, Colorado: 
Consideration of amendment to Contract No. 01WR6C0252, Article 5, 
regarding crediting excess capacity service charge.
    53. Town of Berthoud, Colorado-Big Thompson Project, Colorado: 
Consideration of amendment to Contract No. 06XX6C0122, Article 5, 
regarding crediting of excess capacity service charge.
    54. City of Rifle, Ruedi Reservoir, Fryingpan-Arkansas Project, 
Colorado: Consideration of a repayment contract for 200 acre-feet of 
water.
    55. Huntley Project ID, Huntley Project, Montana: Consideration of 
a supplemental contract for repayment of extraordinary maintenance work 
on the main canal, in accordance with Section 9603 of Public Law 111-
11.

[[Page 73676]]

Completed Contract Actions

    31. Individual irrigators, Cambridge Unit, Frenchman-Cambridge 
Division, P-SMBP, Nebraska: Consideration of a request for a long-term 
excess capacity conveyance contract for transporting nonproject 
irrigation water. Contract executed September 22, 2011.
    39. Frenchman-Cambridge ID, P-SMBP, Nebraska: Proposed contract for 
SOD repairs to Red Willow Dam. Contract executed September 14, 2011.
    44. Frenchman-Cambridge ID, P-SMBP, Nebraska: Consideration of a 
request to amend the repayment contract to change the irrigation season 
start date from May 1 to April 15. Contract executed August 9, 2011.
    51. Kensington Partners, Green Mountain Reservoir, Colorado-Big 
Thompson Project, Colorado: Consideration of an amendment to the 
existing contract to reduce the amount of water service by 225 acre-
feet of municipal/domestic water and assign the water to the Upper 
Eagle Regional Water Authority. Contract executed September 2, 2011.

Modified Contract Action

    46. Tom Green County Water Control and Improvement District No. 1, 
San Angelo Project, Texas: Consideration to amend Contract No. 14-06-
500-369 to change the irrigation season definition to year-round usage 
and recognize agreements between the City of San Angelo and the 
District for putting treated wastewater to beneficial use in accordance 
with the State of Texas requirements for wastewater re-use.

    Dated: October 18, 2011.
Roseann Gonzales,
Director, Policy and Administration.
[FR Doc. 2011-30645 Filed 11-28-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-MN-P