Yakima River Basin Water Enhancement Project Phase III Act

I 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 1048 To authorize phase III of the Yakima River Basin Water Enhancement Project, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES FEBRUARY 7, 2019 Mr. NEWHOUSE (for himself and Ms. SCHRIER) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources A BILL To authorize phase III of the Yakima River Basin Water Enhancement Project, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Yakima River Basin 4 Water Enhancement Project Phase III Act’’. 5 SEC. 2. AUTHORIZATION OF PHASE III. 6 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 7 (1) INTEGRATED PLAN.—The term ‘‘Integrated 8 Plan’’ means the Yakima River Basin Integrated 9 Water Resource Management Plan, the Federal ele- 10 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:51 Feb 20, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1048.IH H1048 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 1048 IH ments of which are known as ‘‘phase III of the Yak- 1 ima River Basin Water Enhancement Project’’, as 2 described in the Bureau of Reclamation document 3 entitled ‘‘Record of Decision for the Yakima River 4 Basin Integrated Water Resource Management Plan 5 Final Programmatic Environmental Impact State- 6 ment’’ and dated March 2, 2012. 7 (2) IRRIGATION ENTITY.—The term ‘‘irrigation 8 entity’’ means a district, project, or State-recognized 9 authority, board of control, agency, or entity located 10 in the Yakima River basin that manages and deliv- 11 ers irrigation water to farms in the Yakima River 12 basin. 13 (3) PRORATABLE IRRIGATION ENTITY.—The 14 term ‘‘proratable irrigation entity’’ means an irriga- 15 tion entity that possesses, or the members of which 16 possess, proratable water (as defined in section 1202 17 of Public Law 103–434 (108 Stat. 4551)). 18 (4) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 19 the Secretary of the Interior. 20 (5) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means the State 21 of Washington. 22 (6) TOTAL WATER SUPPLY AVAILABLE.—The 23 term ‘‘total water supply available’’ has the meaning 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:51 Feb 20, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1048.IH H1048 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 1048 IH given the term in applicable civil actions, as deter- 1 mined by the Secretary. 2 (7) YAKIMA RIVER BASIN WATER ENHANCE- 3 MENT PROJECT.—The term ‘‘Yakima River Basin 4 Water Enhancement Project’’ means the Yakima 5 River basin water enhancement project authorized 6 by Congress pursuant to title XII of Public Law 7 103–434 (108 Stat. 4550; 114 Stat. 1425) and 8 other Acts (including Public Law 96–162 (93 Stat. 9 1241), section 109 of Public Law 98–381 (16 10 U.S.C. 839b note), and Public Law 105–62 (111 11 Stat. 1320)) to promote water conservation, water 12 supply, habitat, and stream enhancement improve- 13 ments in the Yakima River basin. 14 (b) INTEGRATED PLAN.— 15 (1) INITIAL DEVELOPMENT PHASE.— 16 (A) IN GENERAL.—As the initial develop- 17 ment phase of the Integrated Plan, the Sec- 18 retary, in coordination with the State and the 19 Yakama Nation, shall identify and implement 20 projects under the Integrated Plan that are pre- 21 pared to be commenced during the 10-year pe- 22 riod beginning on the date of enactment of this 23 Act. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:51 Feb 20, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1048.IH H1048 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 1048 IH (B) REQUIREMENT.—The initial develop- 1 ment phase of the Integrated Plan under sub- 2 paragraph (A) shall be carried out in accord- 3 ance with— 4 (i) this subsection, including any re- 5 lated plans, reports, and correspondence 6 referred to in this subsection; and 7 (ii) title XII of Public Law 103–434 8 (108 Stat. 4550; 114 Stat. 1425). 9 (2) INTERMEDIATE AND FINAL DEVELOPMENT 10 PHASES.— 11 (A) PLANS.—The Secretary, in coordina- 12 tion with the State and the Yakama Nation, 13 shall develop plans for the intermediate and 14 final development phases of the Integrated Plan 15 to achieve the purposes of title XII of Public 16 Law 103–434 (108 Stat. 4550; 114 Stat. 17 1425), including conducting applicable feasi- 18 bility studies, environmental reviews, and other 19 relevant studies required to develop those plans. 20 (B) INTERMEDIATE DEVELOPMENT 21 PHASE.—The Secretary, in coordination with 22 the State and the Yakama Nation, shall develop 23 an intermediate development phase of the Inte- 24 grated Plan, to commence not earlier than the 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:51 Feb 20, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1048.IH H1048 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 1048 IH date that is 10 years after the date of enact- 1 ment of this Act. 2 (C) FINAL DEVELOPMENT PHASE.—The 3 Secretary, in coordination with the State and 4 the Yakama Nation, shall develop a final devel- 5 opment phase of the Integrated Plan, to com- 6 mence not earlier than the date that is 20 years 7 after the date of enactment of this Act. 8 (3) REQUIREMENTS.—The projects and activi- 9 ties identified by the Secretary for implementation 10 under the Integrated Plan shall be carried out 11 only— 12 (A) subject to authorization and appropria- 13 tion; 14 (B) contingent on the completion of appli- 15 cable feasibility studies, environmental reviews, 16 and cost-benefit analyses that include favorable 17 recommendations for further project develop- 18 ment; 19 (C) on public review and a determination 20 by the Secretary that design, construction, and 21 operation of a proposed project or activity is in 22 the best interest of the public; and 23 (D) in accordance with applicable laws, in- 24 cluding— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:51 Feb 20, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1048.IH H1048 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 1048 IH (i) the National Environmental Policy 1 Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.); and 2 (ii) the Endangered Species Act of 3 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). 4 (4) EFFECT OF SUBSECTION.—Nothing in this 5 subsection— 6 (A) shall be considered to be a new or sup- 7 plemental benefit for purposes of the Reclama- 8 tion Reform Act of 1982 (43 U.S.C. 390aa et 9 seq.); 10 (B) affects— 11 (i) any contract in existence on the 12 date of enactment of this Act that was exe- 13 cuted pursuant to the reclamation laws; or 14 (ii) any contract or agreement be- 15 tween the Bureau of Indian Affairs and 16 the Bureau of Reclamation; 17 (C) affects, waives, abrogates, diminishes, 18 defines, or interprets any treaty between the 19 Yakama Nation and the United States; or 20 (D) constrains the authority of the Sec- 21 retary to provide fish passage in the Yakima 22 River basin, in accordance with the Hoover 23 Power Plant Act of 1984 (43 U.S.C. 619 et 24 seq.). 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:51 Feb 20, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1048.IH H1048 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 1048 IH (5) PROGRESS REPORT.—Not later than 5 1 years after the date of enactment of this Act, the 2 Secretary, in conjunction with the State and in con- 3 sultation with the Yakama Nation, shall submit to 4 the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of 5 the Senate and the Committee on Natural Resources 6 of the House of Representatives a progress report on 7 the development and implementation of the Inte- 8 grated Plan. 9 (c) FINANCING, CONSTRUCTION, OPERATION, AND 10 MAINTENANCE OF KACHESS DROUGHT RELIEF PUMPING 11 PLANT AND KEECHELUS TO KACHESS PIPELINE.— 12 (1) LONG-TERM AGREEMENTS.— 13 (A) IN GENERAL.—A long-term agreement 14 negotiated pursuant to this section or the rec- 15 lamation laws between the Secretary and a par- 16 ticipating proratable irrigation entity in the 17 Yakima River basin for the non-Federal financ- 18 ing, construction, operation, or maintenance of 19 the Drought Relief Pumping Plant or the 20 Keechelus to Kachess Pipeline shall include pro- 21 visions regarding— 22 (i) responsibilities of each partici- 23 pating proratable irrigation entity for— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:51 Feb 20, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1048.IH H1048 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 1048 IH (I) the planning, design, and con- 1 struction of infrastructure, in con- 2 sultation and coordination with the 3 Secretary; and 4 (II) the pumping and operational 5 costs necessary to provide the total 6 water supply available that is made 7 inaccessible due to drought pumping 8 during any preceding calendar year, if 9 the Kachess Reservoir fails to refill as 10 a result of pumping drought storage 11 water during such a calendar year; 12 (ii) property titles and responsibilities 13 of each participating proratable irrigation 14 entity for the maintenance of, and liability 15 for, all infrastructure constructed under 16 title XII of Public Law 103–434 (108 17 Stat. 4550; 114 Stat. 1425); 18 (iii) operation and integration of the 19 projects by the Secretary in the operation 20 of the Yakima Project; and 21 (iv) costs associated with the design, 22 financing, construction, operation, mainte- 23 nance, and mitigation of projects, with the 24 costs of Federal oversight and review to be 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:51 Feb 20, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1048.IH H1048 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 1048 IH nonreimbursable to the participating pro- 1 ratable irrigation entities and the Yakima 2 Project. 3 (B) TREATMENT.—A facility developed or 4 operated by a participating proratable irrigation 5 entity under this subsection shall not be consid- 6 ered to be a supplemental work for purposes of 7 section 9(a) of the Reclamation Project Act of 8 1939 (43 U.S.C. 485h(a)). 9 (2) KACHESS RESERVOIR.— 10 (A) IN GENERAL.—Any additional stored 11 water made available by the construction of a 12 facility to access and deliver inactive and nat- 13 ural storage in Kachess Lake and Reservoir 14 under this subsection— 15 (i) shall be considered to be Yakima 16 Project water; 17 (ii) shall be used exclusively by the 18 Secretary to enhance the water supply dur- 19 ing years for which the total water supply 20 available is not sufficient to provide a per- 21 centage of proratable entitlements in order 22 to make that additional water available, in 23 a quantity representing not more than 70 24 percent of proratable entitlements to the 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:51 Feb 20, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1048.IH H1048 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 1048 IH Kittitas Reclamation District, the Roza Ir- 1 rigation District, or any other proratable 2 irrigation entity participating in the con- 3 struction, operation, or maintenance costs 4 of a facility under this section, in accord- 5 ance with such terms and conditions as the 6 districts may agree, subject to the condi- 7 tions that— 8 (I) the Bureau of Indian Affairs, 9 the Wapato Irrigation Project, and 10 the Yakama Nation, on an election to 11 participate, may also obtain water 12 from Kachess Reservoir inactive stor- 13 age to enhance applicable existing irri- 14 gation water supply in accordance 15 with such terms and conditions as the 16 Bureau of Indian Affairs and the 17 Yakama Nation may agree; and 18 (II) the additional supply made 19 available under this clause shall be 20 available to participating individuals 21 and entities based on— 22 (aa) the proportion that— 23 (AA) the proratable en- 24 titlement of each partici- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:51 Feb 20, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1048.IH H1048 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 1048 IH pating individual or entity; 1 bears to 2 (BB) the proratable en- 3 titlements of all partici- 4 pating individuals and enti- 5 ties; or 6 (bb) such other proportion 7 as the participating entities may 8 agree; and 9 (iii) shall not be any portion of the 10 total water supply available. 11 (B) EFFECT OF PARAGRAPH.—Nothing in 12 this paragraph affects, as in existence on the 13 date of enactment of this Act, any— 14 (i) contract; 15 (ii) law (including regulations) relat- 16 ing to repayment costs; 17 (iii) water rights; or 18 (iv) treaty right of the Yakama Na- 19 tion. 20 (3) PROJECT POWER FOR KACHESS PUMPING 21 PLANT.— 22 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara- 23 graphs (B) through (D), the Administrator of 24 the Bonneville Power Administration, pursuant 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:51 Feb 20, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1048.IH H1048 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 12 •HR 1048 IH to the Pacific Northwest Electric Power Plan- 1 ning and Conservation Act (16 U.S.C. 839 et 2 seq.), shall provide to the Secretary project 3 power to operate the Kachess Pumping Plant 4 constructed under this section if inactive stor- 5 age in the Kachess Reservoir is needed to pro- 6 vide drought relief for irrigation. 7 (B) DETERMINATIONS BY SECRETARY.— 8 The project power described in subparagraph 9 (A) may be provided only if the Secretary deter- 10 mines that— 11 (i) there are in effect— 12 (I) a drought declaration issued 13 by the State; and 14 (II) conditions that have led to 15 70 percent or lower water delivery to 16 proratable irrigation districts; and 17 (ii) it is appropriate to provide the 18 power under that subparagraph. 19 (C) PERIOD OF AVAILABILITY.—The power 20 described in subparagraph (A) shall be provided 21 during the period— 22 (i) beginning on the date on which the 23 Secretary makes the determinations de- 24 scribed in subparagraph (B); and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:51 Feb 20, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1048.IH H1048 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 13 •HR 1048 IH (ii) ending on the earlier of— 1 (I) the date that is 1 year after 2 that date; and 3 (II) the date on which the Sec- 4 retary determines that— 5 (aa) drought mitigation 6 measures are still necessary in 7 the Yakima River basin; or 8 (bb) the power should no 9 longer be provided for any other 10 reason. 11 (D) RATE.— 12 (i) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator 13 of the Bonneville Power Administration 14 shall provide project power under subpara- 15 graph (A) at the then-applicable lowest 16 Bonneville Power Administration rate for 17 public body, cooperative, and Federal agen- 18 cy customer firm obligations on the date 19 on which the authority is provided. 20 (ii) NO DISCOUNTS.—The rate under 21 clause (i) shall not include any irrigation 22 discount. 23 (E) LOCAL PROVIDER.—During any period 24 for which project power is not p [Text truncated for display. 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