Title 43 — Public LandsRelease 119-73
§620d Upper Colorado River Basin Fund
Title 43 › Chapter CHAPTER 12B— - COLORADO RIVER STORAGE PROJECT › § 620d
Summary
Creates a special Treasury account called the Upper Colorado River Basin Fund to pay for most activities under this chapter (except section 620g). Money Congress appropriates for these activities is put into the Basin Fund as advances from the general fund. All revenues from running the Colorado River storage project and participating projects also go into the Basin Fund. Those revenues can be used without another appropriation to run, maintain, replace, and fix emergency problems for the projects (and each participating project’s operating costs must be paid from its own revenues). The Basin Fund money cannot be used to build the project units. Any money left after operating needs must be sent each year to the Treasury general fund to repay project costs and interest. Repayment covers costs allocated to power, municipal water, irrigation, salinity control, fish and wildlife replacement, and on-farm measures, and must be repaid within 50 years after a unit’s completion. Interest is set by the Secretary of the Treasury at the start of the fiscal year when construction begins, based on certain Treasury securities with 15 years until maturity, and interest is paid first. After those repayments, remaining revenues are split among the Upper Division States — Colorado 46 percent; Utah 21.5 percent; Wyoming 15.5 percent; New Mexico 17 percent — with project-specific revenues first going to the State where the project is located. State shares may be used only to repay construction costs in that State unless the State agrees otherwise. Costs for the Paonia and Eden projects are handled as set by the Acts of June 25, 1947 (61 Stat. 181) and June 28, 1949 (63 Stat. 277). Annual business-style budgets for Basin Fund operations must be sent to Congress.
Full Legal Text
Title 43, §620d
Public Lands — Source: USLM XML via OLRC
(a)There is authorized a separate fund in the Treasury of the United States to be known as the Upper Colorado River Basin Fund (hereinafter referred to as the Basin Fund), which shall remain available until expended, as hereafter provided, for carrying out provisions of this chapter other than section 620g of this title.
(b)All appropriations made for the purpose of carrying out the provisions of this chapter, other than section 620g of this title shall be credited to the Basin Fund as advances from the general fund of the Treasury.
(c)All revenues collected in connection with the operation of the Colorado River storage project and participating projects shall be credited to the Basin Fund, and shall be available, without further appropriation, for (1) defraying the costs of operation, maintenance, and replacements of, and emergency expenditures for, all facilities of the Colorado River storage project and participating projects, within such separate limitations as may be included in annual appropriation acts: Provided, That with respect to each participating project, such costs shall be paid from revenues received from each such project; (2) payment as required by subsection (d) of this section; and (3) payment as required by subsection (e) of this section. Revenues credited to the Basin Fund shall not be available for appropriation for construction of the units and participating projects authorized by or pursuant to this chapter.
(d)Revenues in the Basin Fund in excess of operating needs shall be paid annually to the general fund of the Treasury to return—
(1)the costs of each unit, participating project, or any separable feature thereof which are allocated to power pursuant to section 620e of this title, within a period not exceeding fifty years from the date of completion of such unit, participating project, or separable feature thereof;
(2)the costs of each unit, participating project, or any separable feature thereof which are allocated to municipal water supply pursuant to section 620e of this title, within a period not exceeding fifty years from the date of completion of such unit, participating project, or separable feature thereof;
(3)interest on the unamortized balance of the investment (including interest during construction) in the power and municipal water supply features of each unit, participating project, or any separable feature thereof, at a rate determined by the Secretary of the Treasury as provided in subsection (f), and interest due shall be a first charge;
(4)the costs of each storage unit which are allocated to irrigation pursuant to section 620e of this title within a period not exceeding fifty years; and
(5)the costs of each salinity control unit or separable feature thereof, the costs of measures to replace incidental fish and wildlife values foregone, and the costs of the on-farm measures payable from the Upper Colorado River Basin Fund in accordance with section 1595(a)(2), 1595(a)(3), and 1595(c) of this title.
(e)Revenues in the Basin Fund in excess of the amounts needed to meet the requirements of clause (1) of subsection (c) of this section, and to return to the general fund of the Treasury the costs set out in subsection (d) of this section, shall be apportioned among the States of the Upper Division in the following percentages: Colorado, 46 per centum; Utah, 21.5 per centum; Wyoming, 15.5 per centum; and New Mexico, 17 per centum: Provided, That prior to the application of such percentages, all revenues remaining in the Basin Fund from each participating project (or part thereof), herein or hereafter authorized, after payments, where applicable, with respect to such projects, to the general fund of the Treasury under subparagraphs (1), (2), and (3) of subsection (d) of this section shall be apportioned to the State in which such participating project, or part thereof, is located. Revenues so apportioned to each State shall be used only for the repayment of construction costs of participating projects or parts of such projects in the State to which such revenues are apportioned and shall not be used for such purpose in any other State without the consent, as expressed through its legally constituted authority, of the State to which such revenues are apportioned. Subject to such requirement, there shall be paid annually into the general fund of the Treasury from the revenues apportioned to each State (1) the costs of each participating project herein authorized (except Paonia) or any separable feature thereof, which are allocated to irrigation pursuant to section 620e of this title, within a period not exceeding fifty years, in addition to any development period authorized by law, from the date of completion of such participating project or separable feature thereof, or, in the case of Indian lands, payment in accordance with section 620c of this title; (2) costs of the Paonia project, which are beyond the ability of the water users to repay, within a period prescribed in the Act of June 25, 1947 (61 Stat. 181); and (3) costs in connection with the irrigation features of the Eden project as specified in the Act of June 28, 1949 (63 Stat. 277).
(f)The interest rate applicable to each unit of the storage project and each participating project for purposes of computing interest during construction and interest on the unpaid balance shall be determined by the Secretary of the Treasury, as of the beginning of the fiscal year in which construction is initiated, on the basis of the computed average interest rate payable by the Treasury upon its outstanding marketable public obligations, which are neither due nor callable for redemption for fifteen years from the date of issue.
(g)Business-type budgets shall be submitted to the Congress annually for all operations financed by the Basin Fund.
Legislative History
Notes & Related Subsidiaries
Editorial Notes
References in Text
Act of
June 25, 1947, referred to in subsec. (e), is act
June 25, 1947, ch. 148, 61 Stat. 181, which authorized the
Construction
, operation, and maintenance of the Paonia Federal reclamation project, Colorado, and which is not classified to the Code. Act of
June 28, 1949, referred to in subsec. (e), is act
June 28, 1949, ch. 255, 63 Stat. 277, which authorized the completion of
Construction
and development of the Eden project, Wyoming, and which is not classified to the Code.
Amendments
1984—Subsec. (d)(5). Pub. L. 98–569 inserted “, the costs of measures to replace incidental fish and wildlife values foregone, and the costs of the on-farm measures” before “payable”. 1974—Subsec. (d)(5). Pub. L. 93–320 added par. (5). 1962—Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 87–483 substituted “hereafter” for “hereinafter” in proviso in first par. 1960—Subsec. (f). Pub. L. 86–529 required Secretary, for purposes of computing interest during
Construction
and interest on unpaid balance, to determine interest rate as of beginning of fiscal year in which
Construction
is initiated, on basis of computed average interest rate payable by the Treasury upon its outstanding marketable public obligations, which are neither due nor callable for redemption for fifteen years from date of issue.
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
Effective Date
of 1984 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 98–569 effective Oct. 30, 1984, see section 6 of Pub. L. 98–569, set out as a note under section 1591 of this title.
Effective Date
of 1960 Amendment Pub. L. 86–529, § 9,
June 27, 1960, 74 Stat. 227, provided that the amendment made by section 9 is effective
June 1, 1960. Termination of Reporting RequirementsFor termination, effective
May 15, 2000, of provisions of law requiring submittal to Congress of any annual, semiannual, or other regular periodic report listed in House Document No. 103–7 (in which a report required under subsec. (g) of this section is listed as the 8th item on page 114), see section 3003 of Pub. L. 104–66, as amended, and section 1(a)(4) [div. A, § 1402(1)] of Pub. L. 106–554, set out as notes under section 1113 of Title 31, Money and Finance.
Reference
Citations & Metadata
Citation
43 U.S.C. § 620d
Title 43 — Public Lands
Last Updated
Apr 6, 2026
Release point: 119-73