Title 16 › CHAPTER 12 — FEDERAL REGULATION AND DEVELOPMENT OF POWER › SUBCHAPTER I — REGULATION OF THE DEVELOPMENT OF WATER POWER AND RESOURCES › § 809
The President can send a written order to a license holder to let the United States take over any licensed project or part of it when national safety requires. The project can be used to make nitrates, explosives, munitions, or for other safety needs, kept as long as needed, then returned to the owner. The United States must pay fair compensation set by the commission, covering a reasonable peacetime profit and the cost to restore the property, minus the value of any useful improvements the government made.
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Conservation, Source: USLM XML via OLRC
Legislative History
Reference
Citation
16 U.S.C. § 809
Title 16, Conservation
Last Updated
Aug 21, 2026
Release point: 119-102