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<br />~ <br /> <br />i~=igators of the obligation to re?ay the Uniced States for the tt <br /> <br /> <br />costs of cons~ruction which were beyond their :inancial ability to <br /> <br />repay, the general fund of the U. S. Treasu:y did not go unrei~- <br /> <br /> <br />bursed. To the contrary, revenues generated from the sale of hydro- <br /> <br /> <br />electric power produced at reclamation projects were used to repay <br /> <br />to the federal treasurJ ~~at portion of construction costs whiCh ~~e <br /> <br />irrigator could not repay. <br />Given ~~is history of the use of power revenues to' offset <br />~~e costs of reclamation projects, the creation of the Upper Colorado <br />River Basin Fund (~~e Basin Fund) in the 1956 cas? Act was not unique <br />except for one feature: revenues which accrue to the Basin ~ur.d from <br />the generation of hydropower at the CBS? storage ~~its are not avail- <br />able for just any reclamation project, but only for "participating <br />projects" in the Upper Basin. Since the customers who jilurchase cas? <br />power are locetedalmost entirely wi~~in the four Upper Basin states <br />(the major exception be~~g the Salt River ?roject in Arizona), it ~s <br />primarily the citizens of the states benefited by participating <br />projects, not ~~e U. S. taxpayer at large, who foot ~~e bill for <br />that ?ortion of the cost of a participating project's irrigation <br />features which is beyond the ability of ~~e irrigator to repay. <br />In general, the Basin Fund works as follows: <br />(1) Construction funds for a participating project must be <br />ap?ropriated by Congress from the general fund of the U. S. <br /> <br />tt <br /> <br />Treasury, which appro~riation~ are creditec to the 3asin !~~C <br />as advances (i.e., "loans" are made from the general fund to <br /> <br />the Basin ~~~d) . <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />-2- <br />