BOARD01693

• Board Meeting Date: 7/26/1999
• Description: Colorado River Basin Issues - Long-Term Funding Legislation
• Board Meetings - Doc Type: Memo

.

.

.

The Proposed Legislation

The bill authorizes the appropriation of up to $46 million to the Bureau of
Reclamation and the Bureau ofIndian Affairs for capital projects under the Upper
Colorado Endangered Fish Recovery Program and the San Juan Recovery
Implementation Program capital projects. Appropriations are authorized for the Upper
Colorado River Program through the year 2005, and for the San Juan River Program
through the year 2007.

The bill contemplates cost sharing among program participants. The Bureau of
Reclamation has been funding most of the capital cost of the projects to implement the
Upper Colorado River program, like building fish ladders and acquiring flooded
bottomlands and other habitats where the fish thrive. Due to the heavy impact on Indian
water development and Indian trust lands, the Bureau of Indian Affairs has shared the
funding of the recovery efforts in the San Juan River Basin and would likely have
responsibility for some of the construction of capital projects in the future.

If the proposed legislation is enacted, non-federal participants, like the states and
those who purchase power from federal hydroelectric projects, will also help pay for
capital projects. This cost sharing will be in cash, the value of water dedicated from a
reservoir in Colorado and the cost l\Ssociated with re-operating the Flaming Gorge Dam.

The bill also authorizes base funding for the basic operating expenses of the two
recovery programs in addition to the amount authorized for capital projects.

Explanation of Cost Sharing Proposal Contemplated in the Bill

The estimated capital cost for the two programs is $100 million, $82 million for the
Upper Colorado River Program and $ I 8 million for the San Juan River Program. This
money will be used for genetic diversity and conservation projects, the propagation of
endangered fish species, for the restoration of floodplain habitat and fish passage, for
regulation and/or supply of instream habitat flows, for preventing fish entrapment in
canals and for the removal or relocation of non-native fishes. While the total estimated
cost of $1 00 million will be shared by program participants, the actual cost of anyone
capital project will depend on final planning, design and budgeting.

Several capital construction activities are already underway or are being planned
which have or will benefit the fish species. These activities include the dedication of
flows from the Flaming Gorge Dam which is estimated to cost $15 million for the period
1999-2005; and the dedication of$5 million worth of water from the 'Colorado Water
Conservation District's Wolford Mountain Reservoir, for a total of$20 million.

If one deducts these expenses from the total estimated cost of $1 00 million, along
with the federal share of $46 million, non-federal parties must still pay $34 million. This
amount will be provided through two primary mechanisms:

I. Upper Basin states will contribute a total of $17 million, with an appropriate
amount apportioned to each state.