§2267a Watershed and River Basin Assessments

Summary

May assess water resource needs for U.S. river basins and watersheds. The assessments cover nine areas, including ecosystem protection and restoration; flood damage reduction; navigation and ports; watershed protection; water supply and drought preparedness; sea level rise; coastal storm damage; and streambank and shoreline protection. The Secretary must work with the Secretaries of the Interior, Agriculture, Commerce, the EPA Administrator, and other federal agencies, and must consult with tribal, State, interstate, and local governments. The Secretary may take cash or in-kind help from those governments. For assessments done on or after December 11, 2000, non‑Federal partners must pay 25 percent of the cost. The Secretary can count services or supplies they provide toward that 25 percent, but the credit cannot exceed 25 percent of the assessment cost. When picking places to assess, the Secretary must give priority to 18 named basins, including the Delaware, Kentucky, Potomac, Susquehanna, Willamette, Mississippi River watershed, San Francisco Bay, New York–New Jersey watershed (Hudson, Mohawk, Raritan, Passaic, Hackensack, Bronx, and Hudson River Estuary), and others listed. If a non‑Federal group asks, the Secretary may prepare a feasibility report for a project to fix a need found in an assessment, following the rules in section 2282. Priority for those reports includes the watersheds on the island of Maui (Wahikuli, Honokowai, Kahana, Honokahua, Honolua and nearby coral reef) and the watersheds of the Northern Mariana Islands, American Samoa, and Guam.