[Report No. 119–775]
February 11, 2026
Ms. Boebert (for herself and Mr. Gray) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources
August 27, 2026
Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed
Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic
For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on February 11, 2026
To amend the Reclamation Project Act of 1939 to encourage non-Federal hydropower development with respect to Bureau of Reclamation projects.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
Section 1. Short title
This Act may be cited as the Rural Jobs and Hydropower Expansion Act
.
Sec. 2. Amendments to Reclamation Project Act
Section 9(c) of the Reclamation Project Act of 1939 (43 U.S.C. 485h(c); 53 Stat. 1194) is amended—
(1)
by striking the subsection designation and inserting the following:
;(c) Furnishing water to municipalities; sale of electric power; lease of power privileges
(2)
in paragraph (1), by striking small conduit hydropower using Bureau of Reclamation facilities and pumped storage hydropower exclusively using Bureau of Reclamation reservoirs
and inserting hydropower using all Bureau of Reclamation facilities
;
(3)
in paragraph (2)(A)—
(A)
by striking applicable transferred conduit
and inserting applicable transferred works facility
;
(B)
by striking applicable reserved conduit
and inserting applicable reserved works facility
; and
(C)
by striking power privilege offer for a small conduit
and inserting power privilege offer for the
;
(4)
in paragraph (3), by striking small conduit
and inserting applicable
;
(5)
in paragraph (4), by striking small conduit hydropower
;
(6)
in paragraph (6)—
(A)
by inserting , or the management of Bureau of Reclamation facilities specially authorized for hydropower generation
before , as water used
;
(B)
by striking conduit
before hydropower generation
;
(C)
by striking shall be deemed incidental to
inserting shall be deemed secondary to
; and
(D)
by striking transferred conduit
and inserting transferred works facility
;
(7)
in paragraph (7), by striking conduit
;
(8)
in paragraph (8)—
(A)
by inserting (referred to in this section as an
before authorization
)issued by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
;
(B)
by striking August 9, 2013,
and inserting the date of the enactment of the Rural Jobs and Hydropower Expansion Act
; and
(C)
by adding at the end Any authorization issued by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission with respect to a project shall remain in place until such authorization becomes inactive. As allowed by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, an authorization may be renewed and remain active. Once the authorization becomes inactive, project site jurisdiction shall shift to the Bureau of Reclamation exclusively.
;
(9)
by redesignating paragraph (9) as paragraph (10);
(10)
by inserting after paragraph (8) the following:
(9)
Nothing in this section shall expand or otherwise amend the Bureau of Reclamation lease of power privilege authorities outside the project boundary.; and
(11)
in paragraph (10), as so redesignated—
(A)
by striking subparagraphs (A), (C), (D), and (E);
(B)
by redesignating subparagraph (B) as subparagraph (A); and
(C)
by adding at the end the following:
(B) Reserved works facility
The term reserved works facility means those facilities owned by the Bureau of Reclamation where the Bureau of Reclamation has retained responsibility for carrying out operation and maintenance activities.
(C) Transferred works facility
The term transferred works facility means a project facility where the operations and maintenance of that facility is carried out by a non-Federal entity under the provisions of a formal operations and maintenance transfer contract.