[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2309 Introduced in House (IH)]
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117th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 2309
To improve dam and hydropower safety, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
April 1, 2021
Mrs. Dingell (for herself and Mr. Moolenaar) introduced the following
bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To improve dam and hydropower safety, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``National Dam and Hydropower Safety
Improvements Act of 2021''.
SEC. 2. DAM SAFETY CONDITIONS.
Section 10 of the Federal Power Act (16 U.S.C. 803) is amended by
adding at the end the following:
``(k) That the dam and other project works meet the Commission's
dam safety requirements and that the licensee shall continue to manage,
operate, and maintain the dam and other project works in a manner that
ensures dam safety and public safety under the operating conditions of
the license.''.
SEC. 3. DAM SAFETY REQUIREMENTS.
Section 15 of the Federal Power Act (16 U.S.C. 808) is amended by
adding at the end the following:
``(g) The Commission may issue a new license under this section
only if the Commission determines that the dam and other project works
covered by the license meet the Commission's dam safety requirements
and that the licensee can continue to manage, operate, and maintain the
dam and other project works in a manner that ensures dam safety and
public safety under the operating conditions of the new license.''.
SEC. 4. VIABILITY PROCEDURES.
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission shall establish procedures
to assess the financial viability of an applicant for a license under
the Federal Power Act (16 U.S.C. 791a et seq.) to--
(1) meet applicable dam safety requirements; and
(2) operate the dam and project works under the license.
SEC. 5. FERC DAM SAFETY TECHNICAL CONFERENCE WITH STATES.
(a) Technical Conference.--Not later than April 1, 2022, the
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, acting through the Director of
the Office of Energy Projects, shall hold a technical conference with
the States to discuss and provide information on--
(1) dam maintenance and repair;
(2) Risk Informed Decision Making;
(3) climate and hydrological regional changes that may
affect the structural integrity of dams; and
(4) high hazard dams.
(b) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be
appropriated to carry out this section $1,000,000 for fiscal year 2022.
(c) State Defined.--In this section, the term ``State'' has the
meaning given such term in section 3 of the Federal Power Act (16
U.S.C. 796).
SEC. 6. REQUIRED DAM SAFETY COMMUNICATIONS BETWEEN FERC AND STATES.
(a) In General.--The Commission, acting through the Director of the
Office of Energy Projects, shall notify each State within which a
project is located when--
(1) the Commission issues a finding, following a dam safety
inspection, that requires the licensee for such project to take
actions to repair the dam and other project works that are the
subject of such finding;
(2) after a period of 5 years starting on the date a
finding under paragraph (1) is issued, the licensee has failed
to take actions to repair the dam and other project works; and
(3) the Commission initiates a non-compliance proceeding or
otherwise takes steps to revoke a license due to the failure of
a licensee to take actions to repair a dam and other project
works.
(b) Notice Upon Revocation, Surrender, or Implied Surrender of a
License.--If the Commission issues an order to revoke a license or
approve the surrender or implied surrender of a license under the
Federal Power Act (16 U.S.C. 792 et seq.), the Commission shall provide
to the State within which the project that relates to such license is
located--
(1) all records pertaining to the structure and operation
of the applicable dam and other project works, including, as
applicable, any dam safety inspection reports by independent
consultants, specifications for required repairs or maintenance
of such dam and other project works that have not been
completed, and estimates of the costs for such repairs or
maintenance;
(2) all records documenting the history of maintenance or
repair work for the applicable dam and other project works;
(3) information on the age of the dam and other project
works and the hazard classification of the dam and other
project works;
(4) the most recent assessment of the condition of the dam
and other project works by the Commission;
(5) as applicable, the most recent hydrologic information
used to determine the potential maximum flood for the dam and
other project works; and
(6) the results of the most recent risk assessment
completed on the dam and other project works.
(c) Definition.--In this section:
(1) Commission.--The term ``Commission'' means the Federal
Energy Regulatory Commission.
(2) Licensee.--The term ``licensee'' has the meaning given
such term in section 3 of the Federal Power Act (16 U.S.C.
796).
(3) Project.--The term ``project'' has the meaning given
such term in section 3 of the Federal Power Act (16 U.S.C.
796).
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