43 U.S.C. § 502 — Emergency fund to assure continuous oper-

Page 175 TITLE 43—PUBLIC LANDS § 502 sources may be used by the water users to be credited annually, first, on account of project construction charge, second, on account of project operation and maintenance charge, and third, as the water users may direct. No dis- tribution to individual water users shall be made out of any such profits before all obliga- tions to the Government shall have been fully paid. (Dec. 5, 1924, ch. 4, § 4, subsec. I, 43 Stat. 703.) Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries DEFINITIONS The definitions in section 371 of this title apply to this section. § 502. Emergency fund to assure continuous oper- ation of projects and project facilities gov- erned by Federal reclamation law In order to assure continuous operation of all projects and project facilities governed by the Federal reclamation law (Act of June 17, 1902, 32 Stat. 388, and Acts amendatory thereof or sup- plementary thereto), including any project and facilities constructed with funds provided by the Small Reclamation Projects Act (Act of August 6, 1956, 70 Stat. 1044, and Acts amendatory there- of or supplementary thereto) [43 U.S.C. 422a et seq.] or with funds provided by the Distribution System Loans Act (Act of May 14, 1956, 69 Stat. 244, and Acts amendatory thereof or supple- mentary thereto), there is hereby authorized to be appropriated from the reclamation fund an emergency fund which shall be available for de- fraying expenses which the Commissioner of Reclamation determines are required to be in- curred because of unusual or emergency condi- tions. (June 26, 1948, ch. 676, § 1, 62 Stat. 1052; Pub. L. 97–275, Oct. 1, 1982, 96 Stat. 1185.) Editorial Notes REFERENCES IN TEXT Act of June 17, 1902, referred to in text, is popularly known as the Reclamation Act, which is classified gen- erally to this chapter. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Short Title note set out under section 371 of this title and Tables. The Small Reclamation Projects Act, referred to in text, probably means the Small Reclamation Projects Act of 1956, act Aug. 6, 1956, ch. 972, 70 Stat. 1044, which is classified generally to subchapter IV (§ 422a et seq.) of this chapter. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see section 422k of this title and Tables. The Distribution System Loans Act (Act of May 14, 1956, 69 Stat. 244, and Acts amendatory thereof or sup- plementary thereto), referred to in text, probably means act July 4, 1955, ch. 271, 69 Stat. 244, which is classified generally to sections 421a to 421h of this title. Act May 14, 1956, ch. 268, 70 Stat. 155, amended section 421c of this title. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Tables. AMENDMENTS 1982—Pub. L. 97–275 substituted ‘‘all projects and project facilities governed by the Federal reclamation law (Act of June 17, 1902, 32 Stat. 388, and Acts amend- atory thereof or supplementary thereto), including any project and facilities constructed with funds provided by the Small Reclamation Projects Act (Act of August 6, 1956, 70 Stat. 1044, and Acts amendatory thereof or supplementary thereto) or with funds provided by the Distribution System Loans Act (Act of May 14, 1956, 69 Stat. 244, and Acts amendatory thereof or supple- mentary thereto)’’ for ‘‘irrigation or power systems op- erated and maintained by the Bureau of Reclamation, Department of the Interior’’. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EMERGENCY DROUGHT AUTHORITY Pub. L. 100–387, title IV, subtitle B, Aug. 11, 1988, 102 Stat. 957, provided that: ‘‘PART 1—RECLAMATION STATES DROUGHT ASSISTANCE ‘‘SEC. 411. SHORT TITLE. ‘‘This part may be cited as the ‘Reclamation States Drought Assistance Act of 1988’. ‘‘SEC. 412. ASSISTANCE DURING DROUGHT. ‘‘The Secretary of the Interior, acting under the au- thorities of the Federal reclamation laws (the Act of June 17, 1902 (32 Stat. 388) [see Short Title note under section 371 of this title], and Acts supplementary there- to and amendatory thereof) and other appropriate au- thorities of the Secretary shall— ‘‘(1)(A) perform studies to identify opportunities to augment, make use of, or conserve water supplies available to Federal reclamation projects and Indian water resource developments, which studies shall be completed no later than March 1, 1990; and ‘‘(B) consistent with existing contractual arrange- ments and State law, and without further authoriza- tion, undertake construction, management, and con- servation activities that will mitigate or can be ex- pected to have an effect in mitigating losses and damages resulting from drought conditions in 1987, 1988, or 1989, which construction shall be completed by December 31, 1989; and ‘‘(2) assist willing buyers in their purchase of avail- able water supplies from willing sellers and redis- tribute such water based upon priorities to be deter- mined by the Secretary consistent with State law, with the objective of minimizing losses and damages resulting from drought conditions in 1987, 1988, and 1989. ‘‘SEC. 413. AVAILABILITY OF WATER ON A TEM- PORARY BASIS. ‘‘(a) GENERAL AUTHORITY.—The Secretary of the Inte- rior may make available, by contract, consistent with existing contracts or agreements and State law, water or canal capacity at existing Federal reclamation projects to water users and others, on a temporary basis to mitigate losses and damages resulting from drought conditions in 1987, 1988, and 1989. ‘‘(b) CONTRACTS.—Any contract signed under this sec- tion shall provide that— ‘‘(1) the price for the use of such water shall be at least sufficient to recover all Federal operation and maintenance costs, and an appropriate share of cap- ital costs, except that, for water delivered to a land- holding in excess of 960 acres of class I lands or the equivalent thereof for a qualified recipient and 320 acres of class I lands or the equivalent thereof for a limited recipient, the cost of such water shall be full cost (as defined in section 202(3)(A) of Public Law 97–293, 43 U.S.C. 390bb) for those acres in excess of 960 acres or 320 acres, as appropriate; ‘‘(2) the lands not now subject to reclamation law that receive temporary irrigation water supplies under this section shall not become subject to the ownership limitations of Federal reclamation law be- cause of the delivery of such temporary water sup- plies; ‘‘(3) the lands that are subject to the ownership limitations of Federal reclamation law shall not be exempted from those limitations because of the deliv- ery of such temporary water supplies; and ‘‘(4) the contract shall terminate no later than De- cember 31, 1989. Page 176 TITLE 43—PUBLIC LANDS § 502 ‘‘(c) FISH AND WILDLIFE.—The Secretary may make available water for the purposes of protecting fish and wildlife resources, including mitigating losses that occur as a result of drought conditions. ‘‘SEC. 414. EMERGENCY LOAN PROGRAM. ‘‘The Secretary of the Interior may make loans to water users for the purposes of undertaking manage- ment, conservation activities, or the acquisition and transportation of water consistent with State law, that can be expected to have an effect in mitigating losses and damages resulting from drought conditions in 1987, 1988, and 1989. Such loans shall be made available under such terms and conditions as the Secretary deems ap- propriate. Section 203(a) of the Reclamation Reform Act of 1982 (Public Law 97–293; 43 U.S.C. 390cc) shall not apply to any contract to repay such loan. ‘‘SEC. 415. INTERAGENCY COORDINATION. ‘‘The program established by this part, to the extent practicable, shall be coordinated with emergency and disaster relief operations conducted by other Federal and State agencies under other provisions of law. The Secretary of the Interior shall consult such other Fed- eral and State agencies as he deems necessary. Other Federal agencies performing relief functions under other Federal authorities shall provide the Secretary with information and records that the Secretary deems necessary for the administration of this part. ‘‘SEC. 416. REPORT. ‘‘Not later than March 1, 1990, the Secretary of the Interior shall submit a report and recommendations to the President and Congress on— ‘‘(1) expenditures and accomplishments under this part; ‘‘(2) legislative and administrative recommenda- tions for responding to droughts and drought related problems in the Reclamation States; and ‘‘(3) structural and non-structural measures to mitigate the effects of droughts. ‘‘SEC. 417. CARRYOVER STORAGE AND WATER, NEW MELONES UNIT, CENTRAL VALLEY PROJECT, CALIFORNIA. ‘‘The first undesignated paragraph under the heading ‘San Joaquin River Basin’ in section 203 of the Flood Control Act of 1962 (Public Law 87–874, 76 Stat. 1191) is amended by inserting before the last period the fol- lowing: ‘: And provided further, That the Secretary of the Interior is authorized to make available to the Oakdale and South San Joaquin irrigation districts, at the current contract rate, unallocated storage of such districts carried over from the previous year’. ‘‘SEC. 418. INITIATION AND DEADLINE OF EMER- GENCY DROUGHT PROGRAM. ‘‘(a) LIMITATION.—The programs and authorities es- tablished under this part shall become operative in any Reclamation State only after— ‘‘(1) the Governor of that State has declared a drought emergency; and ‘‘(2) the affected area is declared eligible for Fed- eral disaster relief under applicable rules and regula- tions. ‘‘(b) TERMINATION.—The programs and authorities es- tablished under this part shall terminate on December 31, 1989, unless otherwise specifically stated. ‘‘PART 2—WATER PROJECT ‘‘SEC. 421. CENTRAL VALLEY PROJECT WATER RE- LEASES. ‘‘The Secretary of the Interior is authorized to install a temperature control curtain as a demonstration project at Shasta Dam, Central Valley project, Cali- fornia, at a cost not to exceed $5,500,000. The purpose of the demonstration project is to determine the effec- tiveness of the temperature control curtain in control- ling the temperature of water releases from Shasta Dam, so as to protect and enhance anadromous fish- eries in the Sacramento River and San Francisco Bay/ Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and Estuary[.] ‘‘PART 3—AUTHORIZATION AND SAVINGS CLAUSE ‘‘SEC. 431. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. ‘‘(a) There are authorized to be appropriated a total amount not to exceed $25,000,000 for section 412(1)(B) and section 414 of this subtitle. ‘‘(b) Unless otherwise specified, there are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary to carry out the remaining provisions of this subtitle. ‘‘SEC. 432. SAVINGS CLAUSE. ‘‘Nothing in this subtitle shall be construed as lim- iting or restricting the power and authority of the United States or— ‘‘(1) as affecting in any way any law governing ap- propriation or use of, or Federal right to, water on public lands; ‘‘(2) as expanding or diminishing Federal or State jurisdiction, responsibility, interests, or rights in water resources development or control; ‘‘(3) as displacing, superseding, limiting, or modi- fying any interstate compact or the jurisdiction or responsibility of any legally established joint or com- mon agency of two or more States or of two States and the Federal Government; ‘‘(4) as superseding, modifying, or repealing, except as specifically set forth in this subtitle, existing law applicable to the various Federal agencies; or ‘‘(5) as modifying the terms of any interstate com- pact.’’ USE OF WESTERN AREA POWER ADMINISTRATION CON- TINUING FUND TO PAY FOR PURCHASE POWER AND WHEELING EXPENSES TO MEET CONTRACTUAL OBLIGA- TIONS DURING PERIODS OF BELOW-AVERAGE HYDRO- POWER GENERATION Pub. L. 101–101, title III, Sept. 29, 1989, 103 Stat. 661, provided: ‘‘That, the continuing fund established in Public Law 98–50 [July 14, 1983, 97 Stat. 247, 257] shall also be available on an ongoing basis for paying for pur- chase power and wheeling expenses when the Adminis- trator determines that such expenditures are necessary to meet contractual obligations for the sale and deliv- ery of power during periods of below-normal hydro- power generation. Payments from the continuing fund shall be limited to the amount required to replace the generation deficiency, and only for the project where the deficiency occurred. Replenishment of the con- tinuing fund shall occur within twelve months of the month in which the funds were first expended.’’ EMERGENCY FUND Provisions relating to appropriations for the emer- gency fund to assure continuous operation of projects and project facilities governed by Federal reclamation law were contained in the following appropriation acts: Pub. L. 103–316, title II, Aug. 26, 1994, 108 Stat. 1714. Pub. L. 103–126, title II, Oct. 28, 1993, 107 Stat. 1324. Pub. L. 102–377, title II, Oct. 2, 1992, 106 Stat. 1329. Pub. L. 102–104, title II, Aug. 17, 1991, 105 Stat. 524. Pub. L. 101–514, title II, Nov. 5, 1990, 104 Stat. 2085. Pub. L. 101–101, title II, Sept. 29, 1989, 103 Stat. 654. Pub. L. 100–371, title II, July 19, 1988, 102 Stat. 864. Pub. L. 100–202, § 101(d) [title II], Dec. 22, 1987, 101 Stat. 1329–104, 1329–116. Pub. L. 99–500, § 101(e) [title II], Oct. 18, 1986, 100 Stat. 1783–194, 1783–202, and Pub. L. 99–591, § 101(e) [title II], Oct. 30, 1986, 100 Stat. 3341–194, 3341–202. Pub. L. 99–141, title II, title III, Nov. 1, 1985, 99 Stat. 569, 575. Pub. L. 98–360, title II, title III, July 16, 1984, 98 Stat. 409, 416. Pub. L. 98–50, title II, title III, July 14, 1983, 97 Stat. 252, 257. Pub. L. 97–88, title III, Dec. 4, 1981, 95 Stat. 1145. Pub. L. 96–367, title I, Oct. 1, 1980, 94 Stat. 1335. Pub. L. 96–69, title I, Sept. 25, 1979, 93 Stat. 440. Pub. L. 94–355, title III, July 12, 1976, 89 Stat. 895. Pub. L. 93–393, title III, Aug. 28, 1974, 88 Stat. 787. Pub. L. 93–97, title III, Aug. 16, 1973, 87 Stat. 321. Page 177 TITLE 43—PUBLIC LANDS § 504 Pub. L. 92–134, title III, Oct. 5, 1971, 85 Stat. 370. Pub. L. 91–144, title III, Dec. 11, 1969, 83 Stat. 331. Pub. L. 89–689, title II, Oct. 15, 1966, 80 Stat. 1008. Pub. L. 88–511, title II, Aug. 30, 1964, 78 Stat. 687. Pub. L. 87–880, title II, Oct. 24, 1962, 76 Stat. 1221. TEMPORARY AUTHORITY OF SECRETARY OF THE INTE- RIOR TO FACILITATE EMERGENCY ACTIONS WITH RE- GARD TO 1976–1977 DROUGHT Pub. L. 95–18, Apr. 7, 1977, 91 Stat. 36, as amended by Pub. L. 95–107, Aug. 17, 1977, 91 Stat. 870; Pub. L. 95–226, Feb. 7, 1978, 92 Stat. 10, directed Secretary of the Inte- rior to undertake construction, management and con- servation activities designed to mitigate losses and damages to Federal reclamation projects and Indian ir- rigation projects resulting from 1976–1977 drought, to assist willing buyers in purchasing available water sup- plies from willing sellers, and to undertake studies of potential facilities to mitigate effects of a recurrence of drought and make recommendations to President and Congress evaluating potential undertakings, au- thorized Secretary to defer, without penalty, the 1977 installment payments on charges owed the United States and to make loans to irrigators for construc- tion, management, conservation activities, or acquisi- tion and transportation of water, appropriated $100,000,000 to carry out provisions of this Act and spec- ified the availability of such funds for expenditures, di- rected Secretary, not later than May 1, 1978, to provide President and Congress a complete report on expendi- tures and accomplishments, and provided that authori- ties conferred by this Act terminate on Nov. 30, 1977. Executive Documents TRANSFER OF FUNCTIONS For transfer of functions of other officers, employees, and agencies of Department of the Interior, with cer- tain exceptions, to Secretary of the Interior, with power to delegate, see Reorg. Plan No. 3 of 1950, §§ 1, 2, eff. May 24, 1950, 15 F.R. 3174, 64 Stat. 1262, set out under section 1451 of this title. § 503. ‘‘Unusual or emergency conditions’’ defined The term ‘‘unusual or emergency conditions’’, as used in section 502 of this title, shall be con- strued to mean canal bank failures, generator failures, damage to transmission lines; or other physical failures or damage, or acts of God, or of the public enemy, fires, floods, drought, epidemics, strikes, or freight embargoes, or con- ditions, causing or threatening to cause inter- ruption in water or power service. (June 26, 1948, ch. 676, § 2, 62 Stat. 1052.) § 504. Rehabilitation and betterment of Federal reclamation projects, including small rec- lamation projects; return of costs; interest; definitions; performance of work Expenditures of funds hereafter specifically appropriated for rehabilitation and betterment of any project constructed under authority of the Small Reclamation Projects Act (Act of Au- gust 6, 1956, 70 Stat. 1044, and Acts amendatory thereof and supplementary thereto) [43 U.S.C. 422a et seq.] and of irrigation systems on projects governed by the Federal reclamation laws (Act of June 17, 1902, 32 Stat. 388, and Acts amendatory thereof or supplementary thereto), shall be made only after the organizations con- cerned shall have obligated themselves for the return thereof, in installments fixed in accord- ance with their ability to pay, as determined by the Secretary of the Interior in the light of their outstanding repayment obligations, and which shall, to the fullest practicable extent, be sched- uled for return with their construction charge installments or otherwise scheduled as he shall determine: Provided, That repayment of such loans made for small reclamation projects shall include interest in accordance with the provi- sions of said Small Reclamation Projects Act. No such determination of the Secretary of the Interior shall become effective until the expira- tion of sixty days after it has been submitted to the Committee on Energy and Natural Re- sources of the Senate and the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of Representa- tives; except that, any such determination may become effective prior to the expiration of such sixty days in any case in which each such com- mittee approves an earlier date and notifies the Secretary in writing, of such approval: Provided, That when Congress is not in session the Sec- retary’s determination, if accompanied by a finding by the Secretary that substantial hard- ship to the water users concerned or substantial further injury to the project works will result, shall become effective when the chairman and ranking minority member of each such com- mittee shall file with the Secretary their writ- ten approval of said findings. The term ‘‘reha- bilitation and betterment’’, as used in this sec- tion, shall mean maintenance, including re- placements, which cannot be financed currently, as otherwise contemplated by the Federal rec- lamation laws in the case of operation and maintenance costs, but shall not include con- struction, the costs of which are returnable, in whole or in part, through ‘‘construction charges’’ as that term is defined in section 485a(d) of this title. Such rehabilitation and bet- terment work may be performed by contract, by force-account, or, notwithstanding any other law and subject to such reasonable terms and conditions as the Secretary of the Interior shall deem appropriate for the protection of the United States, by contract entered into with the organization concerned whereby such organiza- tion shall perform such work. (Oct. 7, 1949, ch. 650, § 1, 63 Stat. 724; Mar. 3, 1950, ch. 47, 64 Stat. 11; Pub. L. 94–102, Oct. 3, 1975, 89 Stat. 485; Pub. L. 103–437, § 16(c), Nov. 2, 1994, 108 Stat. 4594.) Editorial Notes REFERENCES IN TEXT The Small Reclamation Projects Act, referred to in text, probably means the Small Reclamation Projects Act of 1956, act Aug. 6, 1956, ch. 972, 70 Stat. 1044, which is classified generally to subchapter IV (§ 422a et seq.) of this chapter. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see section 422k of this title and Tables. Act of June 17, 1902, referred to in text, is popularly known as the Reclamation Act, which is classified gen- erally to this chapter. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Short Title note set out under section 371 of this title and Tables. AMENDMENTS 1994—Pub. L. 103–437 substituted ‘‘Committee on En- ergy and Natural Resources of the Senate and the Com- mittee on Natural Resources of the House’’ for ‘‘Com- mittee on Interior and Insular Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Public Lands of the House’’.