§485a — Title 43 Public Lands | U.S. Code

Summary

Defines the key words used for federal reclamation projects and related contracts. Federal reclamation laws — the Act of June 17, 1902 (32 Stat. 388) and any laws that change or add to it. Secretary — the Secretary of the Interior. Project — any reclamation or irrigation project (and its related parts) that is authorized by those laws, built by the United States under those laws, tied to a repayment contract made under those laws, or run by the Secretary through the Bureau of Reclamation to reclaim arid lands or for other purposes. Construction charges — the principal amounts owed to the United States under water-right applications, repayment contracts, Secretary’s orders, or other obligations under those laws, but not water rental, power charges, yearly operation and maintenance charges, or other operation, maintenance, interest, or charges that are not added into the Bureau of Reclamation’s construction account principals. Repayment contract — any contract to pay construction charges to the United States. Project contract unit — a project or a major part of it covered or proposed to be covered by a repayment contract; overlapping contracts make separate units for each area, and units or contracts can be merged if the Secretary agrees. Organization — a conservancy district, irrigation district, water users’ association, or other State-created entity that can contract with the United States under those laws. Division of a project — any part a Secretary’s order names as a division for orderly administration. Development unit — any part a Secretary’s order names as a development unit for engineering or reclamation work. Irrigation block — an area of arid or semiarid lands in a project that the Secretary decides should be reclaimed and irrigated at about the same time and so designates.

Title 43, §485a

Public Lands — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

As used in this subchapter—

(a)The term “Federal reclamation laws” shall mean the Act of June 17, 1902 (32 Stat. 388), and all Acts amendatory thereof or supplementary thereto.

(b)The term “Secretary” shall mean the Secretary of the Interior.

(c)The term “project” shall mean any reclamation or irrigation project, including incidental features thereof, authorized by the Federal reclamation laws, or constructed by the United States pursuant to said laws, or in connection with which there is a repayment contract executed by the United States, pursuant to said laws, or any project constructed or operated and maintained by the Secretary through the Bureau of Reclamation for the reclamation of arid lands or other purposes.

(d)The term “construction charges” shall mean the amounts of principal obligations payable to the United States under water-right applications, repayment contracts, orders of the Secretary, or other forms of obligation entered into pursuant to the Federal reclamation laws, excepting amounts payable for water rental or power charges, operation and maintenance and other yearly service charges, and excepting also any other operation and maintenance, interest, or other charges which are not covered into the principal sums of the construction accounts of the Bureau of Reclamation.

(e)The term “repayment contract” shall mean any contract providing for payment of construction charges to the United States.

(f)The term “project contract unit” shall mean a project or any substantial area of a project which is covered or is proposed to be covered by a repayment contract. On any project where two or more repayment contracts in part cover the same area and in part different areas, the area covered by each such repayment contract shall be a separate project contract unit. On any project where there are either two or more repayment contracts on a single project contract unit or two or more project contract units, the repayment contracts or project contract units may be merged by agreements in form satisfactory to the Secretary.

(g)The term “organization” shall mean any conservancy district, irrigation district, water users’ association, or other organization, which is organized under State law and which has capacity to enter into contracts with the United States pursuant to the Federal reclamation laws.

(h)The term “division of a project” shall mean any part of a project designated as a division by order of the Secretary or any phase or feature of project operations given a separate designation as a division by order of the Secretary for the purposes of orderly and efficient administration.

(i)The term “development unit” shall mean a part of a project which, for purposes of orderly engineering or reclamation development, is designated as a development unit by order of the Secretary.

(j)The term “irrigation block” shall mean an area of arid or semiarid lands in a project in which, in the judgment of the Secretary, the irrigable lands should be reclaimed and put under irrigation at substantially the same time, and which is designated as an irrigation block by order of the Secretary.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

References in Text

This subchapter, referred to in text, was in the original “this Act”, meaning act Aug. 4, 1939, ch. 418, 53 Stat. 1187, known as the Reclamation Project Act of 1939, which enacted this subchapter, section 375a, 380a, and 387 to 389 of this title and section 16d of former Title 41, Public Contracts, and enacted provision set out as a note under section 485j of this title. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see section 485k of this title and Tables. Act of June 17, 1902, referred to in subsec. (a), is popularly known as the Reclamation Act, which is classified generally to this chapter. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see

Short Title

note set out under section 371 of this title and Tables.

Amendments

1958—Subsecs. (h) to (k). Pub. L. 85–611 repealed subsec. (h) which defined “annual returns” and “normal returns”, and redesignated subsecs. (i) to (k) as (h) to (j), respectively.

§485a Definitions