§508 Costs Incurred in the Modification of Structures

Summary

Repairs or changes to project structures that are needed because the structure is old or was not properly maintained must be treated as part of the project’s costs. Those costs are charged to the original project purposes and can be paid back under existing law. The $100,000,000 authorized by the Reclamation Safety of Dams Act of 1978 covers safety work driven by new hydrologic or seismic data or new safety standards; costs caused by those new data or standards are not repayable under Federal Reclamation law. For any additional money made available for these safety modifications, the law sets rules for repayment: 15% of the costs go to the structure’s original purposes (except Jackson Lake Dam, Minidoka Project, Idaho-Wyoming, which follows its usual operation and maintenance allocation); costs for irrigation that can be repaid must be paid back within 50 years after the work is mostly finished, while irrigation costs beyond users’ ability to pay follow existing law; recreation and fish-and-wildlife costs are repaid under the Federal Water Project Recreation Act; and costs for municipal, industrial, other water uses, commercial power, and the repayable part of recreation and fish-and-wildlife must be paid back within 50 years with interest. The Treasury sets the interest rate using market yields and, if more than one rate applies, a weighted average is used. The Secretary may make contracts with project beneficiaries to return reimbursable costs, and such contracts are not treated as new or changed contracts under related federal rules. While the modification is being built, the Secretary must consider cost-saving ideas from beneficiaries who choose to consult and must give those beneficiaries periodic updates on costs and the project’s status.