Text of Senate Amendment 6447

Quick facts

Record: Senate Floor
Section type: Amendments
Chamber: Senate
Date: June 24, 2026
Congress: 119th Congress
Why this source matters: This section came from the Senate floor portion of the record.

Linked context

People mentioned: Rounds, Mike
Committees: Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, Committee on Natural Resources

Readable version of the official text

SA 6447. Mr. ROUNDS (for himself and Ms. Cortez Masto) submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by him to the bill S. 4784, to authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2027 for military activities of the Department of Defense, for military construction, and for defense activities of the Department of Energy, to prescribe military personnel strengths for such fiscal year, and for other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:

At the end of subtitle G of title X, add the following:

SEC. 1094. DAKOTA MAINSTEM WATER SUPPLY PROJECT FEASIBILITY

STUDY.

(a) Definitions.—In this section:

(1) Dakota mainstem water supply project.—The term

“Dakota Mainstem Water Supply Project” means the proposed

project to supply municipal, rural, and industrial water to

the Dakota Mainstem Regional Water System service area in the

States of South Dakota, Iowa, Nebraska, and Minnesota.

(2) Non-federal project entity.—The term “non-Federal

project entity” means the Dakota Mainstem Regional Water

System, Inc., a nonprofit corporation established and

operated substantially in accordance with the reclamation

feasibility standards to serve as a non-Federal project

entity for purposes of the cooperative agreement entered into

under subsection (b)(1).

(3) Secretary.—The term “Secretary” means the Secretary

of the Interior (acting through the Commissioner of

Reclamation).

(b) Study.—

(1) In general.—The Secretary, in coordination with the

non-Federal project entity, shall carry out a study to

determine the feasibility of constructing the Dakota Mainstem

Water Supply Project in accordance with the reclamation laws

and reclamation feasibility standards.

(2) Feasibility report.—After completion of the

feasibility study for the Dakota Mainstem Water Supply

Project under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall—

(A) develop a feasibility report that includes a

recommendation of the Secretary on—

(i) whether the Dakota Mainstem Water Supply Project is

found to be technically and financially feasible in

accordance with the reclamation laws;

(ii) whether the Dakota Mainstem Water Supply Project

should be authorized for construction; and

(iii) the appropriate non-Federal share of construction

costs for the Dakota Mainstem Water Supply Project, which

shall be at least 25 percent of the total construction costs;

(B) submit the report under subparagraph (A) to the

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate and

the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of

Representatives; and

available, along with associated feasibility study documents.

(3) Consultation and cooperation.—In addition to the non-

Federal project entity, the Secretary shall consult and

cooperate with appropriate Federal, State, Tribal, regional,

and local authorities during the conduct of the feasibility

study and development of the feasibility report under this

section.

The Secretary shall enter into a cost-sharing agreement (or

an appropriate financial assistance agreement, as determined

by the Secretary) with the non-Federal project entity to

conduct a study under subsection (b) that complies with the

reclamation feasibility standards.

(d) Federal Share of Feasibility Study Costs; Funding.—

(1) Federal share; funding.—The Federal share of the total

costs of carrying out the feasibility study under this

section—

(A) shall not exceed 50 percent; and

(B) shall be paid for by the Secretary using appropriated

funds.

(2) Identification of funds.—Not later than 90 days after

the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall

identify sources of available funds to pay the Federal share

under paragraph (1)(B).

(e) Limitation on Expenditures.—Not more than $10,000,000

of Federal funds may be expended to carry out the feasibility

study under this section.

(f) Termination of Authority.—The authority provided by

this section expires on the date that is 5 years after the

date of enactment of this Act.

SEC. 1095. WESTERN SOUTH DAKOTA WATER SUPPLY PROJECT

FEASIBILITY STUDY.

(a) Definitions.—In this section:

(1) Non-federal project entity.—The term “non-Federal

project entity” means the Western Dakota Regional Water

System, Inc., a nonprofit corporation.

(2) Western south dakota water supply project.—The term

“Western South Dakota Water Supply Project” means the

proposed project to supply municipal, rural, and industrial

water from the Missouri River to the Western Dakota Regional

Water System.

(3) Secretary.—The term “Secretary” means the Secretary

of the Interior (acting through the Commissioner of

Reclamation).

(b) Study.—

(1) In general.—The Secretary, in coordination with the

non-Federal project entity, shall carry out a study to

determine the feasibility of the Western South Dakota Water

Supply Project in accordance with the reclamation laws and

reclamation feasibility standards.

(2) Feasibility report.—After completion of the

feasibility study for the Western South Dakota Water Supply

Project under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall—

(A) develop a feasibility report that includes a

recommendation of the Secretary on—

(i) whether the Western South Dakota Water Supply Project

is found to be technically and financially feasible in

accordance with the reclamation laws;

(ii) whether the Western South Dakota Water Supply Project

should be authorized for construction; and

(iii) the appropriate non-Federal share of construction

costs, which shall be at least 25 percent of the total

construction costs;

(B) submit the report under subparagraph (A) to the

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate and

the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of

Representatives; and

available, along with associated feasibility study documents.

(3) Consultation and cooperation.—In addition to the non-

Federal project entity, the Secretary shall consult and

cooperate with appropriate Federal, State, Tribal, regional,

and local authorities during the conduct of the feasibility

study and development of the feasibility report under this

subsection.

The Secretary shall enter into a cost-sharing agreement (or

an appropriate financial assistance agreement, as determined

by the Secretary) with the non-Federal project entity to

conduct a study under subsection (b) that complies with the

reclamation feasibility standards.

(d) Federal Share of Feasibility Study Costs; Funding.—

(1) Federal share; funding.—The Federal share of the total

costs of carrying out the feasibility study under subsection

(b)—

(A) shall not exceed 50 percent; and

(B) shall be paid for by the Secretary using appropriated

funds.

(2) Identification of funds.—Not later than 90 days after

the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall

identify sources of available funds to pay the Federal share

under paragraph (1)(B).

(e) Limitation on Expenditures.—Not more than $10,000,000

of Federal funds may be expended to carry out the feasibility

study under subsection (b).

(f) Termination of Authority.—The authority provided by

this section expires on the date that is 5 years after the

date of enactment of this Act.

SEC. 1096. SNOW WATER SUPPLY FORECASTING PROGRAM.

The Snow Water Supply Forecasting Program Authorization Act

(43 U.S.C. 1477) is amended—

(1) in subsection (c)(2)—

(A) in subparagraph (A)—

(i) by striking “develop” and inserting “continue

developing”; and

(ii) by striking “culminating in the report required under

subsection (d)(3)” and inserting “with an emphasis on

development and deployment of more accurate, timely, and

cost-effective snow monitoring technologies and water supply

forecasting, including technologies that integrate snowpack

measuring and modeling”; and

(B) in subparagraph (B)—

(i) by striking “after submitting the report required by

subsection (d)(3),”; and

(ii) by inserting “and to improve water supply

forecasting” after “watersheds”;

(2) in subsection (d)—

(A) in paragraph (1)—

(i) in the paragraph heading, by inserting “and water

supply forecasting” after “data”;

(ii) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by striking

“emerging technologies for snowpack measurement, such as”

and inserting “technologies for snowpack measurements and

methods to forecast water supply, including”;

(iii) in subparagraph (B), by striking “and” at the end;

and

(iv) by striking subparagraph (C) and inserting the

following:

“(C) imaging spectroscopy;

“(D) machine learning;

“(E) snowpack and hydrologic modeling; and

“(F) other technologies that the Secretary determines are

likely to provide more accurate or timely snowpack

measurement data or analytical methods utilizing snowpack

data that can improve water supply forecasting to inform

water management and reservoir operations.”;

(B) in paragraph (2), by striking “emerging technologies

for snowpack measurement” and inserting “technologies for

snowpack measurement and models, including the Department of

Agriculture and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration”; and

(3) in subsection (e)—

(A) in paragraph (1)—

(i) by striking “After submitting the report required

under subsection (d)(3), the” and inserting “The”; and

(ii) by striking “in particular watersheds” and inserting

“and water supply forecasts in particular watersheds and to

explore new statistical, machine learning, or physical models

to generate improved water supply forecasts utilizing

snowpack data”; and

(B) by striking paragraph (2) and inserting the following:

“(2) Focus.—The program shall focus on activities that

will maintain, establish, expand, or advance snowpack

measurement and modeling projected water supply, with an

emphasis on—

“(A) enhancing activities to achieve improved snow and

water supply forecasting results that are more responsive to

changing weather and watershed conditions;

“(B) activities in river basins where activities described

in this section relating to snowpack measurement and water

supply forecasting can inform water management decisions or

models at a multi-water user, multi-basin, or multi-State

scale, including interstate water management decisions; and

“(C) building the capacity of program partners to

implement and adapt to the new measurement and forecasting

capabilities enabled under the program.”;

(4) in subsection (f)—

(A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by striking

“this Act” and inserting “the National Defense

Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2027”;

(B) in paragraph (2), by striking “or sub-basin”;

(D) by striking paragraph (1) and inserting the following:

“(1) a list of basins for which snowpack measurement and

integrated modeling technologies are being used under the

program, including a description of each application,

outcome, and data resource used;

“(2) an assessment of which technologies best inform water

supply forecasting for multiple water districts, communities,

or States;

“(3) an assessment of forecasts generated using new

technologies authorized under this Act compared against water

supply forecast benchmarks from the Department of Agriculture

and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration;

and”; and

(5) in subsection (g), by striking “$15,000,000, in the

aggregate, for fiscal years 2022 through 2026” and inserting

“$3,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2027 through 2031”.

SEC. 1097. REAUTHORIZATION OF COMPETITIVE GRANT PROGRAM FOR

LARGE-SCALE WATER RECYCLING AND REUSE PROGRAM.

Section 40905 of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act

(43 U.S.C. 3205) is amended—

(1) in subsection (b), by inserting “feasibility studies

and” before “the planning”;

(2) in subsection (d)—

(A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by inserting

“for a feasibility study for the eligible project or”

before “to an eligible project”; and

(B) in paragraph (4), by striking “30” and inserting

“60”; and

(3) in subsection (k)—

(A) by striking “5 years” and inserting “10 years”; and

(B) by inserting “, except for any project under

construction as of that termination date” before the period

at the end.

SEC. 1098. GLEN CANYON DAM FEASIBILITY STUDY.

(a) In General.—The Secretary of the Interior (acting

through the Commissioner of Reclamation) (referred to in this

section as the “Secretary”), in consultation with the

Secretary of Energy, the Director of the United States Fish

and Wildlife Service, the Director of the United States

Geological Survey, the Colorado River Basin States, and

Colorado River Storage Project power contractors, shall carry

out a feasibility study (including all hydrological modeling)

to analyze alternatives (including infrastructure upgrades)

to address downstream invasive species at Glen Canyon Dam.

(b) Included Alternatives.—The alternatives analyzed under

subsection (a) may include a thermal curtain or a selective

water withdrawal system at Glen Canyon Dam to optimize

hydropower generation when releasing cold water from Glen

Canyon Dam, while also preventing entrainment of invasive

species, pursuant to the 2016 Long-Term Experimental and

Management Plan Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement

and Record of Decision and section 1802 of the Grand Canyon

Protection Act of 1992 (Public Law 102-575; 106 Stat. 4669).

that an alternative studied under subsection (a) is feasible

under the reclamation laws, the Secretary may initiate

design, construction, and associated activities of, as

applicable, the recommended alternative, including any

necessary policy actions allowable under the reclamation

laws.

(d) Feasibility Report.—After completion of the

feasibility study required under subsection (a), the

Secretary shall develop a summarized feasibility study report

that includes, at a minimum—

(1) an analysis of the alternatives analyzed and

identification of the recommended alternative;

(2) an allocation of the construction, operation,

maintenance, and replacement costs of the recommended

alternative to the authorized purposes of the Colorado River

Storage Project;

(3) the major structural features and nonstructural

features of the recommended alternative, any special

considerations for implementation of the recommended

alternative, and the estimated cost of implementation of the

recommended alternative;

(4) an analysis of the effects of the recommended

alternative on hydropower production and rates, which shall

be developed in consultation with the Western Area Power

Administration;

(5) a recommendation of the Secretary on whether—

(A) the recommended alternative is found to be technically

and financially feasible in accordance with the reclamation

laws; and

(B) the recommended alternative should be authorized for

construction; and

(6) any other recommendations determined to be necessary by

the Secretary.

(e) Feasibility Study and Feasibility Report Deadlines.—

The Secretary shall—

(1) not later than 18 months after the date of enactment of

this Act, complete the feasibility study required under

subsection (a); and

(2) not later than 90 days after the date on which the

Secretary completes the feasibility report required under

subsection (d), submit to the Committee on Energy and Natural

Resources of the Senate and the Committee on Natural

Resources of the House of Representatives the feasibility

report required under that subsection.

(f) Funding.—

(1) In general.—The costs of the feasibility study

required under subsection (a) shall be paid for by the

Secretary using appropriated funds.

(2) Treatment of funds.—Any Federal funds made available

to carry out this section shall be nonreimbursable and

nonreturnable to the United States.

(3) Identification of funds.—Not later than 90 days after

the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary, in

consultation with the Secretary of Energy and Colorado River

Storage Project power contractors, shall identify sources of

available funds to carry out this section.

(g) Effect.—Nothing in this section affects the criteria

for the coordinated long-range operations of Colorado River

reservoirs pursuant to section 602 of the Colorado River

Basin Project Act (Public Law 90-537; 82 Stat. 900).

(h) Termination of Authority.—The authority provided by

this section expires on the date that is 5 years after the

date of enactment of this Act.

SEC. 1099. COOPERATIVE WATERSHED MANAGEMENT PROGRAM.

(a) Definitions.—Section 6001 of the Omnibus Public Land

Management Act of 2009 (16 U.S.C. 1015) is amended—

(1) by redesignating paragraphs (4) through (7) as

paragraphs (5) through (8), respectively;

(2) by inserting after paragraph (3) the following:

“(4) Indian tribe.—The term `Indian tribe' has the

meaning given the term in section 4 of the Indian Self-

Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C.

5304).”; and

(3) in paragraph (7) (as so redesignated), in subparagraph

(B)(v)—

(A) in subclause (I), by striking “or” at the end;

(B) in subclause (II), by inserting “or” after the

semicolon; and

“(III) has ancestral lands within the watershed;”.

(b) Program.—Section 6002 of the Omnibus Public Land

Management Act of 2009 (16 U.S.C. 1015a) is amended—

(1) in subsection (c)—

(A) in paragraph (1)(B)—

(i) in clause (i), by striking “interests; or” and

inserting “interests, including Indian tribes;”;

(ii) by redesignating clause (ii) as clause (iii); and

(iii) by inserting after clause (i) the following:

“(ii) demonstrate significant need due to drought,

wildfire, or other natural disaster; or”;

(B) in paragraph (2)—

(i) in subparagraph (A)(i), by striking “$100,000” and

all that follows through the period at the end and inserting

“$150,000 each year for a period of not less than 3 years,

subject to the sufficiency of applications submitted and the

availability of appropriations.”;

(ii) by striking clause (iii);

(iii) by redesignating clauses (iv) and (v) as clauses

(iii) and (iv), respectively; and

(iv) by adding at the end the following:

“(v) Continuation and extension.—

“(I) In general.—The Secretary may, at the discretion of

the Secretary, issue a continuation of the first-phase grant

for not more than 2 additional years if the recipient of the

first-phase grant has demonstrated

satisfactory performance with implementation of the proposal

under the initial grant, as determined by the Secretary.

“(II) Amounts.—A grant continued pursuant to subclause

(I) shall be in an amount not greater than $150,000 each

year, as determined to be appropriate by the Secretary.”;

inserting the following: “quantity, including—

“(I) grant writing;

“(II) project management; and

“(III) technical assistance, such as feasibility, design,

preliminary environmental review, and engineering.”; and

(D) by adding at the end the following:

“(4) Continuous enrollment.—The Secretary shall—

“(A) make funding opportunities for the program available

on a regular basis; and

“(B) allow applications for grants under the program to be

submitted and evaluated multiple times during a calendar

year.”;

(2) in subsection (f), in the matter preceding paragraph

(1), by inserting “, and make available to the public,”

after “House of Representatives”; and

(3) by striking subsection (g) and inserting the following:

“(g) Authorization of Appropriations.—There is authorized

to be appropriated to carry out this section $40,000,000 for

each of fiscal years 2027 through 2031.”.

SEC. 1099A. ANNUAL LICENSING STATUS REPORT.

Part I of the Federal Power Act (16 U.S.C. 792 et seq.) is

amended by adding at the end the following:

“SEC. 37. ANNUAL LICENSING STATUS REPORT.

“(a) In General.—Not later than 180 days after the date

of enactment of this section, and annually thereafter, the

Commission shall submit to Congress a report on the status

of—

“(1) the licensing process for each new license, and for

each subsequent license for which sections 14 and 15 have

been waived, for which the existing licensee has notified the

Commission under section 15(b)(1) at least 3 years prior to

submission of the report that the existing licensee intends

to file an application for the new license or subsequent

license, but the new license or subsequent license has not

yet been issued under section 15; and

“(2) the licensing process for each original license under

section 4(e) for which a citizen, association, corporation,

State, Indian Tribe, or municipality has notified the

Commission, pursuant to applicable regulations, at least 3

years prior to submission of the report that the citizen,

association, corporation, State, Indian Tribe, or

municipality intends to file an application for the original

license, but the original license has not yet been issued

under section 4(e).

“(b) Inclusions.—Each report submitted under subsection

(a) shall include, with respect to the licensing process for

each new license and subsequent license described in that

subsection and the licensing process for each original

license described in that subsection—

“(1) the date the notice of intent described in that

subsection was provided to the Commission;

“(2) any docket number assigned with respect to the

licensing process;

“(3) whether any application for the new license,

subsequent license, or original license, as applicable, has

been filed;

“(4) information regarding the status of the application,

including the date the Commission anticipates the Commission

will issue the original license, subsequent license, or new

license, as applicable;

“(5) the date of any upcoming proceeding or other meeting

relating to the original license, subsequent license, or new

license, as applicable; and

“(6) a description of any ongoing or completed actions

required of the existing licensee, citizen, association,

corporation, State, Indian Tribe, municipality, Commission,

any fish and wildlife agency referred to in section 15(b)(3),

and any other applicable agency.

“(c) Disaggregation of Information by License Type.—The

information included in each report submitted under

subsection (a) shall be disaggregated by whether the

information relates to a new license, or a subsequent

license, issued under section 15 or an original license

issued under section 4(e).”.

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