In order to mitigate losses and damages resulting from drought conditions, the Secretary may make available, by temporary contract, project and nonproject water, and may permit the use of facilities at Federal Reclamation projects for the storage or conveyance of project or nonproject water, for use both within and outside an authorized project service area.
Each temporary contract for the supply of water entered into pursuant to this section shall terminate no later than two years from the date of execution or upon a determination by the Secretary that water supply conditions no longer warrant that such contracts remain in effect, whichever occurs first. The costs associated with any such contract shall be repaid within the term of the contract.
Lands not subject to Reclamation law that receive temporary irrigation water supplies under temporary contracts under this section shall not become subject to the ownership and acreage limitations or pricing provisions of Federal Reclamation law because of the delivery of such temporary water supplies. Lands that are subject to the ownership and acreage limitations of Federal Reclamation law shall not be exempted from those limitations because of the delivery of such temporary water supplies.
No temporary contract entered into by the Secretary under this section shall be treated as a "contract" as that term is used in sections 203(a) and 220 of the Reclamation Reform Act of 1982 (Public Law 97–293) [43 U.S.C. 390cc(a), 390tt].
Any amendment to an existing contract to allow a contractor to carry out the provisions of this subchapter shall not be considered a new and supplemental benefit for purposes of the Reclamation Reform Act of 1982 (Public Law 97–293) [43 U.S.C. 390aa et seq.].
The price for project water, other than water purchased pursuant to section 2211(c) of this title, delivered under a temporary contract entered into by the Secretary under this section shall be at least sufficient to recover all Federal operation and maintenance costs and administrative costs, and an appropriate share of capital costs, including interest on such capital costs allocated to municipal and industrial water, except that, for project water delivered to nonproject landholdings, the price shall include full cost (as defined in section 202(3) of the Reclamation Reform Act of 1982 (Public Law 97–293; 96 Stat. 1263; 43 U.S.C. 390bb) [43 U.S.C. 390bb(3)]). For all contracts entered into by the Secretary under the authority of this subchapter—
(1) the interest rate used for computing interest during construction and interest on the unpaid balance of the capital costs expended pursuant to this chapter shall be at a rate to be determined by the Secretary of the Treasury based on average market yields on outstanding marketable obligations of the United States with remaining periods to maturity of one year occurring during the last month of the fiscal year preceding the date of execution of the temporary contract; or
(2) in the case of existing facilities the rate as authorized for that Federal Reclamation project; or
(3) in the absence of such authorized rate, the interest rate as determined by the Secretary of the Treasury as of the beginning of the fiscal year in which construction was initiated on the basis of the computed average interest rate payable by the Treasury upon its outstanding marketable public obligations which were neither due nor callable for redemption for fifteen years from date of issue: Provided, That for all deliveries of water for municipal and industrial purposes from existing facilities to nonproject contractors, the rate shall be as set forth in paragraph (1) of this subsection.
The Secretary may make water from Federal Reclamation projects and nonproject water available on a nonreimbursable basis for the purposes of protecting or restoring fish and wildlife resources, including mitigation losses, that occur as a result of drought conditions or the operation of a Federal Reclamation project during drought conditions. The Secretary may store and convey project and nonproject water for fish and wildlife purposes, and may provide conveyance of any such water for both State and Federal wildlife habitat and for habitat held in private ownership. The Secretary may make available water for these purposes outside the authorized project service area. Use of the Federal storage and conveyance facilities for these purposes shall be on a nonreimbursable basis. Water made available by the Secretary in 1991 from the Central Valley Project, California, to the Grasslands Water District for the purpose of fish and wildlife shall be nonreimbursable.
The Secretary is authorized to store and convey nonproject water utilizing Federal Reclamation project facilities for use outside and inside the authorized project service area for municipal and industrial uses, fish and wildlife, and agricultural uses. Except in the case of water supplied for fish and wildlife, which shall be nonreimbursable, the Secretary shall charge the recipients of such water for such use of Federal Reclamation project facilities at a rate established pursuant to subsection (c) of this section.
The payment of capital costs attributable to the sale of project or nonproject water or the use of Federal Reclamation project facilities shall be covered into the Reclamation Fund and be placed to the credit of the project from which such water or use of such facilities is supplied.
(Pub. L. 102–250, title I, §102, Mar. 5, 1992, 106 Stat. 54.)
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Last modified: October 26, 2015