§508 Costs Incurred in the Modification of Structures

Summary

The law says how to pay for fixing or changing water structures. If the work is needed because of age, normal wear, or the operating group did not do normal maintenance, the costs count as project costs and are assigned to the original uses of the structure and paid back under current rules. For the $100,000,000 from the Reclamation Safety of Dams Act of 1978, costs caused by new hydrologic or seismic information or new safety standards are not reimbursable under Federal Reclamation law. For the extra money added by section 509, safety-related costs are handled this way: 15% of the cost goes to the structure’s original purposes (except Jackson Lake Dam, Minidoka Project, Idaho-Wyoming follows its operation and maintenance charge rules); irrigation costs that users can repay must be paid back within 50 years; irrigation costs beyond users’ ability to pay follow existing law; recreation and fish and wildlife costs follow the Federal Water Project Recreation Act; and costs for municipal, industrial, miscellaneous water service, commercial power, and the reimbursable part of recreation and fish and wildlife must be repaid within 50 years with interest set by the Secretary of the Treasury using recent market yields (weighted average if more than one rate). The Secretary may make contracts with project beneficiaries to collect reimbursable amounts, and those contracts will not count as new or changed contracts under section 390cc(a). While a modification is being built, the Secretary must consider cost-saving ideas from beneficiaries who ask to consult, and must give beneficiaries periodic notices about the costs and the project’s status.