§485h. New projects; sale of water and electric power; lease of power privileges — Inbound Citations
43 U.S.C. § 485h
Cited by 22 provisions in release 119-102.
Citations to 43 U.S.C. § 485h as a whole
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(b) For any project, division of a project, development unit of a project, or supplemental works on a project, under construction on August 4, 1939, or for which appropriations had been made, and in connection with which a repayment contract had not been executed, allocations of costs may be made in accordance with the provisions of section 485h of this title and a repayment contract may be negotiated, in the discretion of the Secretary, (1) pursuant to the authority of subsection (a) of this section or (2) in accordance, as near as may be, with the provisions in section 485h(d) or 485h(e) of this title. In connection with any such project, division, or development unit, on which the majority of the lands involved are public lands of the United States, the Secretary, prior to entering into a repayment contract, may fix a development period for each irrigation block, if any, of not to exceed ten years from and including the first year in which water is delivered for the lands in said block: Provided, That in the event a development period is fixed prior to execution of a repayment contract, execution thereof shall be a condition precedent to delivery of water after the close of the development period. During any such development period water shall be delivered to the lands in the irrigation block involved only on a toll-charge basis, at a charge per annum per acre-foot to be fixed by the Secretary each year and to be collected in advance of delivery of water. Pending negotiation and execution of a repayment contract for any other such project, division, or development unit, water may be delivered for a period of not more than five years from August 4, 1939, on the same toll-charge basis. Any such toll charges collected and which the Secretary determines to be in excess of the cost of operation and maintenance during the toll-charge period shall be credited to the construction cost of the project in the manner determined by the Secretary.
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In administering subsections (d) and (e) of section 485h of this title, the Secretary of the Interior shall—
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(1) include in any long-term contract hereafter entered into under subsection (e) of section 485h of this title provision, if the other contracting party so requests, for renewal thereof under stated terms and conditions mutually agreeable to the parties. Such terms and conditions shall provide for an increase or decrease in the charges set forth in the contract to reflect, among other things, increases or decreases in construction, operation, and maintenance costs and improvement or deterioration in the party’s repayment capacity. Any right of renewal shall be exercised within such reasonable time prior to the expiration of the contract as the parties shall have agreed upon and set forth therein;
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(2) include in any long-term contract hereafter entered into under subsection (e) of section 485h of this title with a contracting organization provision, if the organization so requests, for conversion of said contract, under stated terms and conditions mutually agreeable to the parties, to a contract under subsection (d) of section 485h of this title at such time as, account being taken of the amount credited to return by the organization as hereinafter provided, the remaining amount of construction cost which is properly assignable for ultimate return by it can probably be repaid to the United States within the term of a contract under subsection (d) of section 485h of this title;
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(3) credit each year to every party which has entered into or which shall enter into a long-term contract pursuant to subsection (e) of section 485h of this title so much of the amount paid by said party on or before the due date as is in excess of the share of the operation and maintenance costs of the project which the Secretary finds is properly chargeable to that party. Credit for payments heretofore made under any such contract shall be established by the Secretary as soon after July 2, 1956 as it is feasible for him to do so. After the sum of such credits is equal to the amount which would have been for repayment by the party if a repayment contract under subsection (d) of section 485h of this title had been entered into, which amount shall be established by the Secretary upon completion of the project concerned or as far in advance thereof as is feasible, no construction component shall be included in any charges made for the furnishing of water to the contracting party and any charges theretofore fixed by contract or otherwise shall be reduced accordingly;
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(4) provide that the other party to any contract entered into pursuant to subsection (d) of section 485h of this title or to any long-term contract entered into pursuant to subsection (e) of section 485h of this title shall, during the term of the contract and of any renewal thereof and subject to fulfillment of all obligations thereunder, have a first right (to which right the rights of the holders of any other type of irrigation water contract shall be subordinate) to a stated share or quantity of the project’s available water supply for beneficial use on the irrigable lands within the boundaries of, or owned by, the party and a permanent right to such share or quantity upon completion of payment of the amount assigned for ultimate return by the party subject to payment of an appropriate share of such costs, if any, as may thereafter be incurred by the United States in its operation and maintenance of the project works; and1
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(6) include a reasonable construction component in the rates set out in any long-term contract hereafter entered into under subsection (e) of section 485h of this title prior to amortization of that part of the cost of constructing the project which is assigned to be repaid by the contracting party.
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The Secretary is authorized to negotiate amendments to existing contracts entered into pursuant to subsection (e) of section 485h of this title to conform said contracts to the provisions of sections 485h–1 to 485h–5 of this title.
Citations to §485h(a)
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In connection with the exercise of jurisdiction over the rivers of the Nation through the construction of works of improvement, for navigation or flood control, as herein authorized, it is declared to be the policy of the Congress to recognize the interests and rights of the States in determining the development of the watersheds within their borders and likewise their interests and rights in water utilization and control, as herein authorized to preserve and protect to the fullest possible extent established and potential uses, for all purposes, of the waters of the Nation’s rivers; to facilitate the consideration of projects on a basis of comprehensive and coordinated development; and to limit the authorization and construction of navigation works to those in which a substantial benefit to navigation will be realized therefrom and which can be operated consistently with appropriate and economic use of the waters of such rivers by other users.
Citations to §485h(b)
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(1) In addition to the nonreimbursable allocation to flood control or navigation which may be made by the Secretary of the Interior under section 485h(b) of title 43, the President, after consultation with the Secretary of State and the Secretary of the Interior, shall allocate such part of the total estimated cost of the project as he deems proper to the protection of American interests from drought hazards resulting from the uncontrolled and unregulated flow of the international portion of the Rio Grande below Old Fort Quitman, Texas. Provisions of law applicable with respect to allocations to flood control under section 485h(b) of title 43, shall, insofar as they are not inconsistent with the foregoing provisions, be applicable in like manner with respect to any allocation made under this subparagraph; and
Citations to §485h(c)
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(2) In entering into a lease of power privileges under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall use the processes, terms, and conditions applicable to a lease under section 485h(c) of title 43.
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(f) provisions conforming to the preference requirements contained in the proviso to section 485h(c) of this title, if the project produces electric power for sale.
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Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, in constructing, operating, and maintaining the units of the Colorado River storage project and the participating projects listed in section 620 of this title, the Secretary shall be governed by the Federal reclamation laws (Act of June 17, 1902, 32 Stat. 388, and Acts amendatory thereof or supplementary thereto): Provided, That (a) irrigation repayment contracts shall be entered into which, except as otherwise provided for the Paonia and Eden projects, provide for repayment of the obligation assumed thereunder with respect to any project contract unit over a period of not more than fifty years exclusive of any development period authorized by law; (b) prior to construction of irrigation distribution facilities, repayment contracts shall be made with an “organization” as defined in section 485a(g) of this title which has the capacity to levy assessments upon all taxable real property located within its boundaries to assist in making repayments, except where a substantial proportion of the lands to be served are owned by the United States; (c) contracts relating to municipal water supply may be made without regard to the limitations of the last sentence of section 485h(c) of this title; and (d), as to Indian lands within, under or served by any participating project, payment of construction costs within the capability of the land to repay shall be subject to section 386a of title 25: Provided further, That for a period of ten years from April 11, 1956, no water from any participating project authorized by this chapter shall be delivered to any water user for the production on newly irrigated lands of any basic agricultural commodity, as defined in the Agricultural Act of 1949 [7 U.S.C. 1421 et seq.], or any amendment thereof, if the total supply of such commodity for the marketing year in which the bulk of the crop would normally be marketed is in excess of the normal supply as defined in section 1301(b)(10) of title 7 unless the Secretary of Agriculture calls for an increase in production of such commodity in the interest of national security. All units and participating projects shall be subject to the apportionments of the use of water between the Upper and Lower Basins of the Colorado River and among the States of the Upper Basin fixed in the Colorado River Compact and the Upper Colorado River Basin Compact, respectively, and to the terms of the treaty with the United Mexican States (Treaty Series 994).
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(3) Contracts relating to municipal and industrial water supply under the Central Arizona Project may be made without regard to the limitations of the last sentence of section 485h(c) of this title; may provide for the delivery of such water at an identical price per acre-foot for water of the same class at the several points of delivery from the main canals and conduits; and may provide for repayment over a period of fifty years if made pursuant to clause (1) of said section and for the delivery of water over a period of fifty years if made pursuant to clause (2) thereof.
Citations to §485h(c)(1)
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(4) Effective October 1, 1979, and to such extent and in such amounts as are provided in advance in appropriation Acts, enter into contracts under the terms and conditions of the Act of June 17, 1902 (43 U.S.C. 371 et seq.) as amended and supplemented for the delivery of water from said well field to entities within the United States for municipal and industrial or irrigation purposes: Provided, That such contracts for municipal and industrial purposes shall contain terms and conditions as substantially provided in section 485h(c)(1) of this title, and that contracts for replacement irrigation water supplies to prevent damage to existing water users on privately developed lands include water charges no greater than if such water users had continued to pump their own wells without the United States lowering the water table and that the acreage limitation and related provisions of the Reclamation Law will not be applicable to such privately developed lands: Provided further, That no contract shall be entered which will impair the ability of the United States to continue to deliver to Mexico on the land boundary at San Luis and in the Limitrophe Section of the Colorado River downstream from Morelos Dam approximately one hundred and forty thousand acre-feet annually, consistent with the terms contained in Minute No. 242 of the IBWC.
Citations to §485h(d)
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To assist financially in the construction of the aforesaid local distribution and drainage systems by irrigation districts and other public agencies the Secretary is authorized, on application therefor by such irrigation districts or other public agencies, to make funds available on a loan basis from moneys appropriated for the construction of such distribution and drainage systems to any irrigation district or other public agency in an amount equal to the estimated construction cost of such system, contingent upon a finding by the Secretary that the loan can be returned to the United States in accordance with the general repayment provisions of sections 485a(d) and 485h(d) of this title and upon a showing that such district or agency already holds or can acquire all lands and interests in land (except public and other lands or interests in land owned by the United States which are within the administrative jurisdiction of the Secretary and subject to disposition by him) necessary for the construction, operation, and maintenance of the project. The Secretary shall, upon approval of a loan, including any loan for a distribution and drainage system receiving water from the San Luis unit, Central Valley project, authorized by the Act of June 3, 1960 (74 Stat. 156), enter into a repayment contract which includes such provisions as the Secretary shall deem necessary and proper to provide assurance of prompt repayment of the loan within not to exceed forty years plus a development period not to exceed ten years. The term “irrigation district or other public agency” shall for the purposes of sections 421a to 421h of this title mean any conservancy district, irrigation district, water users’ organization, or other organization, which is organized under State law and which has capacity to enter into contracts with the United States pursuant to the Federal reclamation laws.
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(b) For any project, division of a project, development unit of a project, or supplemental works on a project, under construction on August 4, 1939, or for which appropriations had been made, and in connection with which a repayment contract had not been executed, allocations of costs may be made in accordance with the provisions of section 485h of this title and a repayment contract may be negotiated, in the discretion of the Secretary, (1) pursuant to the authority of subsection (a) of this section or (2) in accordance, as near as may be, with the provisions in section 485h(d) or 485h(e) of this title. In connection with any such project, division, or development unit, on which the majority of the lands involved are public lands of the United States, the Secretary, prior to entering into a repayment contract, may fix a development period for each irrigation block, if any, of not to exceed ten years from and including the first year in which water is delivered for the lands in said block: Provided, That in the event a development period is fixed prior to execution of a repayment contract, execution thereof shall be a condition precedent to delivery of water after the close of the development period. During any such development period water shall be delivered to the lands in the irrigation block involved only on a toll-charge basis, at a charge per annum per acre-foot to be fixed by the Secretary each year and to be collected in advance of delivery of water. Pending negotiation and execution of a repayment contract for any other such project, division, or development unit, water may be delivered for a period of not more than five years from August 4, 1939, on the same toll-charge basis. Any such toll charges collected and which the Secretary determines to be in excess of the cost of operation and maintenance during the toll-charge period shall be credited to the construction cost of the project in the manner determined by the Secretary.
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(2) Any obligation assumed pursuant to section 485h(d) of this title with respect to any project contract unit or irrigation block shall be repaid over a basic period of not more than fifty years; any water service provided pursuant to section 485h(e) of this title may be on the basis of delivery of water for a period of fifty years and for the delivery of such water at an identical price per acre-foot for water of the same class at the several points of delivery from the main canals and conduits and from such other points of delivery as the Secretary may designate; and long-term contracts relating to irrigation water supply shall provide that water made available thereunder may be made available by the Secretary for municipal or industrial purposes if and to the extent that such water is not required by the contractor for irrigation purposes.
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(E) to pay to the general fund of the Treasury the annual installment on any debt relating to the Central Arizona Project under section 485h(d) of this title, made nonreimbursable under section 106(b) of the Arizona Water Settlements Act;
Citations to §485h(d)(1)
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After the execution of a contract pursuant to the authority of section 9(d)(1) of the Reclamation Project Act of 1939 [43 U.S.C. 485h(d)(1)] and prior to the commencement of the development period provided thereunder, the Secretary of the Interior is authorized to amend such contract to provide for irrigation blocks, or if such are already provided, to add to or modify such irrigation blocks, as he shall deem desirable to carry out the purposes of that Act.
Citations to §485h(e)
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(b) For any project, division of a project, development unit of a project, or supplemental works on a project, under construction on August 4, 1939, or for which appropriations had been made, and in connection with which a repayment contract had not been executed, allocations of costs may be made in accordance with the provisions of section 485h of this title and a repayment contract may be negotiated, in the discretion of the Secretary, (1) pursuant to the authority of subsection (a) of this section or (2) in accordance, as near as may be, with the provisions in section 485h(d) or 485h(e) of this title. In connection with any such project, division, or development unit, on which the majority of the lands involved are public lands of the United States, the Secretary, prior to entering into a repayment contract, may fix a development period for each irrigation block, if any, of not to exceed ten years from and including the first year in which water is delivered for the lands in said block: Provided, That in the event a development period is fixed prior to execution of a repayment contract, execution thereof shall be a condition precedent to delivery of water after the close of the development period. During any such development period water shall be delivered to the lands in the irrigation block involved only on a toll-charge basis, at a charge per annum per acre-foot to be fixed by the Secretary each year and to be collected in advance of delivery of water. Pending negotiation and execution of a repayment contract for any other such project, division, or development unit, water may be delivered for a period of not more than five years from August 4, 1939, on the same toll-charge basis. Any such toll charges collected and which the Secretary determines to be in excess of the cost of operation and maintenance during the toll-charge period shall be credited to the construction cost of the project in the manner determined by the Secretary.
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(2) Any obligation assumed pursuant to section 485h(d) of this title with respect to any project contract unit or irrigation block shall be repaid over a basic period of not more than fifty years; any water service provided pursuant to section 485h(e) of this title may be on the basis of delivery of water for a period of fifty years and for the delivery of such water at an identical price per acre-foot for water of the same class at the several points of delivery from the main canals and conduits and from such other points of delivery as the Secretary may designate; and long-term contracts relating to irrigation water supply shall provide that water made available thereunder may be made available by the Secretary for municipal or industrial purposes if and to the extent that such water is not required by the contractor for irrigation purposes.