43 U.S.C. § 390h — Program to investigate reclamation and reuse of wastewater and groundwater; general authority

(a) Program established: The Secretary of the Interior, acting under the Reclamation Act of 1902 and its amendments ("federal reclamation laws"), must run a program to find opportunities to reclaim and reuse municipal, industrial, domestic, and agricultural wastewater, plus naturally impaired ground and surface water. The program covers designing and building demonstration and permanent reclaim-and-reuse facilities, and doing research — including desalting — on reclaiming wastewater and impaired water. (b) States included: The program only covers the states and areas named in section 1 of the Reclamation Act of 1902, plus Hawaii. (c) Agreements and regulations: The Secretary may sign agreements and issue regulations needed to carry out sections 390h through 390h–39. (d) San Luis Unit of Central Valley Project, California: The Secretary may not investigate, promote, or carry out any project to reclaim and reuse agricultural wastewater from the San Luis Unit's service area — except for measures the San Joaquin Valley Drainage Program recommended in its September 1990 report, "A Management Plan for Agricultural Subsurface Drainage and Related Problems on the Westside San Joaquin Valley." (e) Authorization of new water recycling and reuse projects: (1) Submission to the Secretary. (A) Non-federal groups may submit proposals for projects, in the form of completed feasibility studies. (B) A project is eligible if it reclaims and reuses (i) municipal, industrial, domestic, or agricultural wastewater, or (ii) impaired ground or surface water. (C) Within 60 days after this Act became law, the Secretary must issue guidelines for these feasibility studies. (2) Review by the Secretary: The Secretary reviews each feasibility study to determine (A) whether the study and how it was made follow federal laws and regulations for such studies, and (B) whether the project is technically and financially workable and gives a federal benefit under reclamation law. (3) Submission to Congress: Within 180 days of getting a feasibility study, the Secretary must send Congress a report describing (A) the review's results, including whether the project is workable; (B) any recommendations on the project's plan or design; and (C) any conditions required before construction. (4) Eligibility for funding: A project's non-federal sponsor, once the Secretary finds the project workable under (3)(A), may apply for federal funding toward planning, design, and construction costs under (f). (f) Competitive grant program for water recycling and reuse projects: (1) Establishment: The Secretary must set up a competitive grant program so non-federal sponsors of projects found workable under (e)(3)(A) can apply for funding for planning, design, and construction, subject to (g)(2). (2) Priority: The Secretary gives funding priority to projects that meet one or more of the (3) criteria and sit in an area that (A) the U.S. Drought Monitor listed as severely, extremely, or exceptionally in drought at any point in the past 4 years, or (B) a state declared a disaster area during the past 4 years. (3) Criteria: (A) projects likely to give a more reliable water supply for states and local governments; (B) projects likely to boost water-management flexibility and cut harm to the environment from projects run by federal and state agencies; (C) regional projects; (D) projects with multiple stakeholders; (E) projects giving multiple benefits — like reliable water supply, ecosystem benefits, groundwater management, and better water quality. (g) Authorization of appropriations: (1) Congress may appropriate an extra $50,000,000, available until spent. (2) A project can only get funding if a specific appropriations law names it by name, after the Secretary recommends it under (f) and sends that recommendation to the right congressional committees.