PRIA Logo™
119-s-5352119th CongressWALLET

Desalination Reauthorization Act

Sponsored By: Senator Padilla, Alex [D-CA]

In Committee

Summary

This bill targets an expansion of federal support for desalination by authorizing broader project eligibility and new pilot grants to validate technologies. It aims to speed demonstrations and let the federal government share a portion of costs while requiring real-world cost analyses.

Show full summary
  • State, Tribal, and local water authorities in Reclamation States gain clearer eligibility for projects that mainly benefit them, including ocean and brackish facilities and projects sponsored or funded by public entities that contribute at least 25% of planning, design, and construction costs.
  • Researchers and technology developers get a new Advanced Pilot Technology Grants program for competitive demonstration projects and first-of-a-kind systems; each awarded project must include a technoeconomic analysis that estimates the levelized cost of water at full scale.
  • Project sponsors see federal finance rules that let the Secretary participate up to 25% of total project costs with no dollar cap, and the cost-sharing rules are amended to explicitly cover advanced pilot activities. Projects authorized under the specified demonstration authority expire 15 years after enactment.

Personalized for You

How does this bill affect your finances?

Personalize government policy and PRIA will tell you what this bill means for your household, plus every other piece of legislation we track. PRIA reads each provision against your financial profile to show you exactly what matters to your wallet.

Free to download

Bill Overview

Analyzed Economic Effects

3 provisions identified: 2 benefits, 1 costs, 0 mixed.

More federal help for desalination

If enacted, the bill would let the federal government pay up to 25% of an eligible desalination project's total cost. The bill would remove any per-project dollar cap on that federal share. It would also expand which projects count as "eligible desalination projects" to include projects in Reclamation States or those that primarily benefit entities in Reclamation States. Eligible projects must provide a Federal benefit under reclamation laws and meet certain state sponsorship or funding rules.

New advanced desalination pilot grants

If enacted, the bill would create competitive Advanced Pilot Technology Grants for real-world desalination pilot systems and first-of-a-kind plants. Grants would fund testing of technical performance and require rigorous technoeconomic analyses to estimate levelized cost of water at full scale. The bill would also make existing grant rules apply to these pilots and add "advanced pilot" to the law's cost-sharing rules.

15-year deadline for demonstration projects

If enacted, the bill would make desalination demonstration and development projects under paragraph (2) of section 4(a) expire 15 years after enactment. State and local water providers, Indian Tribes, irrigation and water districts, project sponsors, and host communities would lose the authority for those demonstration projects after that date.

Sponsors & CoSponsors

Sponsor

Padilla, Alex [D-CA]

CA • D

Cosponsors

  • Sen. Cornyn, John [R-TX]

    TX • R

    Sponsored 8/6/2026

Roll Call Votes

No roll call votes available for this bill.

View on Congress.gov
Back to Legislation