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COLORADO RIVER STORAGE PROJECT 31 power portion of constJ;Uction costs of the Glen Canyon and Flaming Gorge units of the Storage Project, and the 3X percent interest rate was similarly established for the Vemal Unit, Actual interest rates to be applied to power, and to municipal and industrial water con- struction costs of other units and projects will be establisbed by the Secretary of the Treasury at the time the first advance is made for such units or projects in accordance with the specific provisions of the Colorado River Storage Project Act, Federal Power Commission apprawal of engineering and hydraulic criteria used in repayment analyses to estimate firm power capabilities and anticipated power revenues During our examination, we were provided copies of a study entitled "Repayment Analysis, Colorado River Storage Project, May 1959," and advised that the study had been prepared by the Colorado River Board of Califomia (Board), The Board's study indicated that the Bureau of Redi!-mation, in its financial and economic analysis, dated December 1958, ,had overestimated the power capability and repayment ability of the Colorado River Storage Project, Our comparison of tbe study prepared by the Board with that prepared by the Bureawshowed that the principal differences resulted from the use of different engineering and hydraulic criteria, Since evaluation of the reasonableness of these criteria requires technical engineering knowledge, not available to the General Accounting Office, on J'une 26, 1959; we requested the Federal Power Commission to review the two studies to determine the reasonableness of the engineering and hydraulic criteria used in each study to estimate the firm power capabilities and anticipated power revenues of the Colorado River Storage Project. ' On November 10, 1959, the Federal Power Commission trans- mitted its report on thereview. The FPC report concludes with the statement "* * · The time that will be required for the repayment of a water resources development as large and com)!lex as the 'Colo- rado River Storage Project and Participating ProJects' is not sus- ceptible of precise determination, Understandably, judgments will vary with resl?ect to estimates of what, flows will occur over the repayment penod, including the amounts available for power produc.- tion, However, it appears that the repayment analysis made by the Bureau of Reclamation is reasonably realistic," 'rhe complete text of the FPC report is included as appendix A, pages 69 through 79. FINANCING PROJECT CONSTRUCTION' AND OPERA'l'ION AND MAINTENANCE COSTS The Colorado River Storage Project Act established a special fund to be known as the Upper Colorado River Basin Fund and directed the Secretary of the Treasury to credit all appropriations made for purposes of carrying out the act to this fund as advances from the general fund of the Tl;easury, The act further provided that all revenues from operation of the Colorado River Storage Project and participa ting proj ects shall be credited to the Basin Fund and are