HR7250-119

What This Bill Does

H.R.7250 changes two dates in the Fort Peck Reservation Rural Water System Act of 2000. It extends section9(a)(1) and section9(b) construction-funding authorizations through fiscal year2028 instead of fiscal year2026. The first supports the Assiniboine and Sioux Rural Water System on the Fort Peck Indian Reservation in Montana; the second supports the Dry Prairie Rural Water System outside the reservation in Roosevelt, Sheridan, Daniels and Valley Counties. The newly enrolled text has the same operative language as the introduced and House-passed versions. Enrollment is not, by itself, proof of presidential approval.

The underlying authorizations are $124million for planning, design and construction of the reservation system and $51million for planning, design and construction of Dry Prairie, subject to the existing construction-cost indexing provision. These are project authorization amounts, not annual awards, and the bill does not add a fresh $175million appropriation or reset the amounts already spent. It leaves the separate authorization of such sums as necessary for reservation-system operation and maintenance unchanged.

Who Benefits and How

The Fort Peck Tribal Executive Board and residents served by the reservation water system benefit from a longer window for authorized federal construction funding. Dry Prairie Rural Water Association Incorporated and off-reservation users gain the same two-year extension for their linked system. Water construction service providers may obtain work if appropriations and project agreements support further construction, but the bill guarantees no contract or household connection. The practical benefit is continued eligibility for funding under the existing project framework, not a new service territory or newly awarded water right.

Who Bears the Burden and How

The Department of the Interior, particularly the Bureau of Reclamation for construction support, would continue administering the existing authorizations for two additional fiscal years. Any federal spending still requires appropriations. Existing cost allocation is not changed: reservation-system construction is federally funded, while the federal share of Dry Prairie planning, design and construction may not exceed76%. Dry Prairie remains responsible for its operation, maintenance and replacement rather than gaining federal operating support. The Bureau of Indian Affairs continues its separate reservation-system operation and maintenance role under unchanged law. The bill imposes no new fee schedule, regulatory mandate on households or change to tribal or state water rights.

Key Provisions

• Amends section9(a)(1) to extend the reservation-system construction authorization from FY2026 through FY2028, leaving its $124million indexed project amount unchanged.
• Amends section9(b) to extend the separate Dry Prairie construction authorization through FY2028, leaving its $51million indexed project amount unchanged; neither amendment creates an annual appropriation.
• Preserves the existing cooperative-agreement, environmental-review and cost-sharing conditions rather than waiving them to accelerate construction.
• Leaves the separate reservation-system operation and maintenance authorization, Dry Prairie operating-cost responsibility and existing water-rights protections unchanged.