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1 [1] (July 17, 2025)

handle is hein.crs/hgsoo0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Congressional Research Service Inforrning the legislative debate since 1914 July 17, 2025 Bureau of Reclamation: FY2026 Budget and Appropriations The Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation), part of the Department of the Interior, is primarily responsible for the construction and operation of hundreds of large dams and water diversion structures in the 17 western Reclamation States, as designated in statute (43 U.S.C. §391). Reclamation is the largest wholesale supplier of water in these 17 states and the second-largest hydroelectric power producer in the nation. Reclamation's mission areas and geographic scope are narrower than those of the other principal federal water resource agency, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Reclamation's Water and Related Resources account funds most agency activities, including construction, operations and maintenance, dam safety, and Indian water rights settlements, as well as the agency's programmatic and grant authorities. These authorities cover water reuse and recycling, desalination, conservation and efficiency, and aquatic ecosystem restoration, among other purposes. Reclamation typically also receives funding for three smaller accounts: California Bay-Delta Restoration, the Central Valley Project Restoration Fund (which is offset by customer receipts), and Policy and Administration. FY2026 Budget and Appropriations The Administration usually requests a lower amount for Reclamation than the final enacted total of annual appropriations. For FY2026, President Trump requested the lowest funding level for Reclamation since the FY2017 budget request. The FY2026 budget proposes $1.273 billion in current budget authority for Reclamation, or $587 million (32%) less than the $1.860 billion Congress approved for FY2025 in the Full-Year Continuing Appropriations and Extensions Act, 2025 (P.L. 119-4, also referred to as the full-year continuing resolution [CR]). In addition to regular annual appropriations, Congress has provided Reclamation with supplemental appropriations in three separate bills over the past five years, all of which would augment discretionary funding in FY2026. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (P.L. 117-58) included $8.30 billion total, to be made available in equal installments from FY2022 to FY2026 (i.e., $1.660 billion per year). Separately, P.L. 117-169 (popularly known as the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, or IRA) provided Reclamation with $4.590 billion in funding, including $4.0 billion for western drought mitigation. IRA funding is to remain available until FY2026 or FY2031, depending on the provision, and is being obligated on a rolling basis. Most recently, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (P.L. 119-21) appropriated another $1.0 billion to Reclamation for FY2025 (available through FY2034) for projects that increase the capacity of Reclamation surface water storage projects. Figure I. Reclamation Annual Appropriations, FY20 16-FY2026 Budget Request B All Other Water & Related - Inflation-Adjusted Accounts ResourcesAccount Total $ in mrillions $2,000 $1,500 $1,000 $500 09 Source: CRS, based on FY2017-FY2025 enacted appropriations and FY2026 budget request. Inflation adjustment to FY2024 dollars based on Office of Management and Budget (OMB) FY2026 Budget, Historical Table 10.1. Notes: Amounts do not reflect supplemental funding or offsetting receipts. CR = P.L. 119-4. Additional Funding and Earmarks Reclamation's Water and Related Resources account consists largely of individual project funding lines. During the 112th1 116th Congresses, Reclamation appropriations were subject to general earmark moratoriums that restricted Congress from funding geographically specific project line items not requested by the Administration. Instead, Congress included Additional Funding amounts for selected categories of Reclamation projects, typically in five categories: Rural Water, Water Conservation and Delivery, Environmental Restoration and Compliance, Fish Passage/Fish Screens, and Facilities Maintenance and Rehabilitation. The Administration allocated these funds for specific projects in spend plans made available several months after enactment of the appropriations bills. In the 117th and 118th Congresses, appropriations recommendations included earmarks (now categorized as community projectfunding [CPF] or congressionally directed spending [CDS] in the House and Senate, respectively). Congress has recommended funding CPF/CDS items in Reclamation's Water and Related Resources account, in addition to amounts designated as Additional Funding. For FY2025 appropriations, H.R. 8997 recommended $279 million for Additional Funding and $9 million in CPF, while S. 4927 recommended $287 million in Additional Funding and $63 million for CDS. P.L. 119-4 approved no new CPF/CDS projects for FY2025 and ttps://crsrepo rtscong rossqgo