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1 [1] (February 12, 2026)

handle is hein.crs/govetki0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Congressional Research Sentce I orrning th legi alive deL ate i ce 191 Updated February 12, 2026 Bureau of Reclamation WaterSMART Program The Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) funds programs promoting water conservation into a single program-the WaterSMART (Sustain and Manage American Resources for Tomorrow) program. The program was formally established in 2010 under Department of the Interior Secretarial Order 3297. As of 2026, WaterSMART regularly encompasses seven subprograms: WaterSMART Grants, the Title XVI Water Reclamation and Reuse (Title XVI Program), the Drought Response Program (DRP), the Basin Studies Program, the Cooperative Watershed Management Program, Water Conservation Field Services, and Aquatic Ecosystem Restoration. Unlike most traditional Reclamation projects, which are geographically specific authorizations, WaterSMART funding is awarded on a competitive basis, in many cases as grants. Reclamation reported that from 2010 to 2025, it had funded $3.86 billion in federal funding for 2,379 WaterSMART projects. In recent years Congress provided supplemental funding for several WaterSMART subprograms (Figure 1), including $1.85 billion in FY2022-FY2026 funding in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA; P.L. 117-58). At the same time, regular discretionary funding for WaterSMART programs has decreased. In FY2026, the Administration requested no funding for WaterSMART, and FY2026 enacted appropriations for the program were the lowest since the program was initiated. At issue for Congress is the status of authorities and funding for WaterSMART as individual program authorities lapse and IIJA appropriations lapse. Figure I. WaterSMART Program, Regular and Supplemental Appropriations, FY20 I 2-FY2026 Source: Congressional Research Service, based on enacted appropriations data. Notes: IIJA = Infrastructure Investment and jobs Act (P.L. 117-58); WCFS = Water Conservation Field Services. Inflation adjustment based on FY2026 budget request, Historical Table 10.1. e~~l T[V XVIatrSMR E Hf Aiauai cssten Restoration nam ~ WACFSR onl seeSARNtre&e '> liA WatrSMAR g& ~ g& 4A~ .g& yAXS ~ ~At $200