Crow Tribe Water Rights Settlement Amendments Act of 2025
Summary
What This Bill Does
The Crow Tribe Water Rights Settlement Amendments Act updates the 2010 Crow Tribe Water Rights Settlement Act so the settlement's water infrastructure and irrigation implementation pieces work under a revised project structure. It changes the MR&I Project definition, changes references from a single system to multiple projects, repeals an outdated settlement section, and creates a nontrust Crow CIP Implementation Account managed by the Secretary of the Interior.
The new implementation account receives later appropriations and other settlement deposits, earns interest, and can be used until the funds are expended or withdrawn. The bill is meant to make the Crow Tribe settlement easier to administer and to keep water-project money available for the intended construction and implementation work.
Who Benefits and How
The Crow Tribe benefits because the amended definitions and account structure give the Tribe a clearer path for municipal, rural, industrial, irrigation, and Crow CIP water projects tied to the settlement. Crow water infrastructure users and tribal communities benefit from more flexible settlement implementation and continued availability of account balances. The Bureau of Reclamation and Interior Department benefit from clearer statutory instructions for administering project funds.
Who Bears the Burden and How
The Secretary of the Interior and Interior Department water officials must establish, manage, invest, and distribute money from the Crow CIP Implementation Account. The Bureau of Reclamation must administer the revised project definitions and settlement implementation mechanics. Federal appropriators and taxpayers remain responsible for funding the settlement amounts Congress makes available, while the account structure controls when and how money can be spent.
Key Provisions
- Amends the MR&I Project definition to point to the activities listed in Section 411(e)(3)(F).
- Changes settlement references from a single MR&I System to multiple MR&I Projects.
- Repeals outdated Section 406 of the 2010 Crow Tribe Water Rights Settlement Act.
- Creates the nontrust, interest-bearing Crow CIP Implementation Account under the Secretary of the Interior.
- Requires the Secretary to deposit later appropriations and other required settlement amounts into the account.
- Allows account funds to remain available until expended or withdrawn for settlement implementation.
Evidence Chain:
This summary is generated from the full bill text using AI analysis. Expand "Detailed Analysis" below for identified beneficiaries/burden bearers with clause-level evidence links.
At a Glance
What This Bill Does
Updates the Crow Tribe Water Rights Settlement Act of 2010 by revising MR&I project definitions, repealing obsolete implementation language, and creating a Secretary-managed Crow CIP Implementation Account for settlement funds.
Key Policy Areas
Tribal Affairs, Water Infrastructure, Public Lands
Primary Purpose
Updates the Crow Tribe Water Rights Settlement Act of 2010 by revising MR&I project definitions, repealing obsolete implementation language, and creating a Secretary-managed Crow CIP Implementation Account for settlement funds.
Policy Domains
Whole bill
Identified Gains
- Crow Tribe
- Crow water infrastructure users
- Tribal communities
- Bureau of Reclamation
- Interior Department water officials
Identified Costs
- Secretary of the Interior
- Interior Department water officials
- Bureau of Reclamation
- Federal appropriators
- Federal taxpayers
Sponsors
Steve Daines
R-MT | Primary Sponsor
Legislative Progress
Passed SenateHeld at the desk.
Received in the House.
Message on Senate action sent to the House.
Passed Senate without amendment by Unanimous Consent. (consideration: CR S8691-8692; …
Passed/agreed to in Senate: Passed Senate without amendment by Unanimous …
Committee on Indian Affairs. Reported by Senator Murkowski without amendment. …
Reported by Ms. Murkowski, without amendment
Passed Senate (inferred from es version)
Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. …
Committee on Indian Affairs. Ordered to be reported without amendment …
Stakeholder Effects
cui bono?How this legislation distributes effects. Mention counts reflect frequency, not effect magnitude.
Crow irrigation projects, Crow water infrastructure projects
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.
Learn more about our methodology