S 1254

Introduced

A bill to amend the Aquifer Recharge Flexibility Act to clarify a provision relating to conveyances for aquifer recharge purposes.

To amend the Aquifer Recharge Flexibility Act to clarify a provision relating to conveyances for aquifer recharge purposes.

Introduced Apr 2, 2025

Latest action (Sep 30, 2026) Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Ordered to be reported with an amendment in the nature of a substitute favorably.

Referred to

Energy and Natural Resources Committee

Policy area

Water Resources Development

Summary

Allows holders of existing rights-of-way, easements, permits, or other authorizations to use them for aquifer recharge purposes without requiring additional authorization from the Secretary of the Interior.
Clarifies that using existing authorizations for aquifer recharge does not count as an expansion, modification, major Federal action, or substantial deviation of the original use.
Requires 30 days' notice to the Bureau of Land Management before using an existing authorization for aquifer recharge, including identification of the entity using it and details on intended use.
Exempts non-profit uses of existing authorizations for aquifer recharge from additional rent payments to the Bureau of Land Management, though for-profit uses and entities remain subject to rent payments.
Clarifies that the amendments do not waive obligations under the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, Endangered Species Act, or Wild and Scenic Rivers Act, or provide authority to construct or expand infrastructure.

AI-generated plain-language summary of the bill text — neutral, and may be imperfect. See the full text below for the exact wording.

Sponsor (1)

Sen. Risch, James E. (R-ID)

1 cosponsor

Sen. Crapo, Mike (R-ID)

Actions (3)

Sep 30, 2026 Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Ordered to be reported with an amendment in the nature of a substitute favorably. · senate
Apr 2, 2025 Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. · senate
Apr 2, 2025 Introduced in Senate

Similar bills (6)

Bills with similar text or summary — includes reintroductions across Congresses. Ranked by semantic similarity of the bill text (computed locally); a neutral discovery aid, not a claim the bills are duplicates.

Text versions (1)

Introduced in Senate · Apr 2, 2025

Only one text version is on file, so there’s no earlier version to compare against yet.

Committee action

What happened to this bill in committee — the meetings where it was considered and every recorded vote taken on it.

Meetings where this bill was on the agenda

Business meeting to consider S.365 and H.R.1729, bills to amend the John D. Dingell, Jr. Conservation, Management, and Recreation Act to allow for additional entities to be eligible to complete the maintenance work on Bolts Ditch and the Bolts Ditch Headgate within the Holy Cross Wilderness, Colorado, S.462, to provide for economic development and conservation in Washoe County, Nevada, S.465, to require the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to reform the interconnection queue process for the prioritization and approval of certain projects, S.730, to direct the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a study to assess the suitability and feasibility of establishing the African Burial Ground International Memorial Museum and Educational Center at the African Burial Ground National Monument, S.764, to provide for the designation of certain wilderness areas, recreation management areas, and conservation areas in the State of Colorado, S.791, to establish the Justice Thurgood Marshall National Historic Site in the State of Maryland as an affiliated area of the National Park System, S.888, to designate certain land administered by the Bureau of Land Management and the Forest Service in the State of Oregon as wilderness and national recreation areas, to withdraw certain land located in Curry County and Josephine County, Oregon, from all forms of entry, appropriation, or disposal under the public land laws, location, entry, and patent under the mining laws, and operation under the mineral leasing and geothermal leasing laws, S.945, to amend the Smith River National Recreation Area Act to include certain additions to the Smith River National Recreation Area, to amend the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act to designate certain wild rivers in the State of Oregon, S.1005, to provide for conservation and economic development in the State of Nevada, S.1088, to provide that the memorial to commemorate the sacrifice and service of the women who worked on the home front to support the efforts of the United States military during World War II may be located on the National Mall, S.1195, to promote conservation, improve public land management, and provide for sensible development in Pershing County, Nevada, S.1254 and H.R.331, bills to amend the Aquifer Recharge Flexibility Act to clarify a provision relating to conveyances for aquifer recharge purposes, S.1341, to amend the Colorado Wilderness Act of 1993 to add certain land to the Sarvis Creek Wilderness, S.1342, to amend the Energy Conservation and Production Act to improve the weatherization assistance program, S.1349, to withdraw the National Forest System land in the Ruby Mountains subdistrict of the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest and the National Wildlife Refuge System land in Ruby Lake National Wildlife Refuge, Elko and White Pine Counties, Nevada, from operation under the mineral leasing laws, S.1476, to amend the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act to designate certain segments of the Gila River system in the State of New Mexico as components of the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System, to provide for the transfer of administrative jurisdiction over certain Federal land in the State of New Mexico, S.1568, to amend the Energy Policy and Conservation Act to modify standards for general service lamps, S.1737, to designate and expand wilderness areas in Olympic National Forest in the State of Washington, and to designate certain rivers in Olympic National Forest and Olympic National Park as wild and scenic rivers, S.1777, to amend the California Desert Protection Act of 1994 to expand the boundary of Joshua Tree National Park, to redesignate the Cottonwood Visitor Center at Joshua Tree National Park as the "Dianne Feinstein Visitor Center", S.1870, to adjust the boundary of the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area to include the Rim of the Valley Corridor, S.2570, to amend the Energy Conservation and Production Act to reauthorize the weatherization assistance program, S.2970, to authorize the use of off-highway vehicles in certain areas of the Capitol Reef National Park, Utah, S.3371, to designate the Museum of the Blind People's Movement in Baltimore, Maryland, as the "National Museum of the Blind People's Movement", S.3499 and H.R.3638, bills to direct the Secretary of Energy to prepare periodic assessments and submit reports on the supply chain for the generation and transmission of electricity, S.3524 and H.R.7618, bills to amend title 54, United States Code, to modify certain cost-sharing requirements for grant programs under the American Battlefield Protection Program, S.3526, to provide for the protection of and investment in certain Federal land in the State of California, S.3542, to amend the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act to designate the Upper Raritan River Watershed in the State of New Jersey for study for potential addition to the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System, S.3695, to amend Public Law 96-586 to modernize the authority of the Forest Service to acquireEnergy and Natural Resources CommitteeSep 30, 2026Business meeting

Full text

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

April 2, 2025

Mr. Risch (for himself and Mr. Crapo) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

A BILL

To amend the Aquifer Recharge Flexibility Act to clarify a provision relating to conveyances for aquifer recharge purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. CONVEYANCE FOR AQUIFER RECHARGE PURPOSES.

(a) In General.—Subsection (c)(3) of the Aquifer Recharge Flexibility Act (43 U.S.C. 390g-9) is amended—

(1) by striking “The holder” and inserting the following:

“(A) In general.—The holder”;

(2) in subparagraph (A) (as so designated), by striking “may transport water for aquifer recharge purposes without requiring additional authorization from the Secretary where the use does not expand or modify the operation” and inserting “may, acting for the holder or on behalf of a State, political subdivision of a State, Indian Tribe, or public entity and subject to subparagraphs (B) and (C), use the existing right- of-way, easement, permit, or other authorization for the purpose of aquifer recharge and the transport and use of water rights for aquifer recharge without requiring additional authorization from the Secretary, which use shall not be considered an expansion, modification, major Federal action, or substantial deviation”; and

(3) by adding at the end the following:

“(B) Notice required.—

“(i) In general.—Not less than 30 days before using an existing right-of-way, easement, permit, or other authorization for the purpose of aquifer recharge under subparagraph (A), the holder of the right-of- way, easement, permit, or other authorization shall submit to the Bureau of Land Management notice of the intended use, in accordance with clause (ii).

“(ii) Requirements.—A notice submitted under clause (i) shall—

“(I) identify the State, political subdivision of the State, Indian Tribe, or public entity intending to use the existing right-of-way, easement, permit, or other authorization for the purpose of aquifer recharge;

“(II) identify the existing right- of-way, easement, permit, other authorization, or recognized authorized use for ditches and canals constructed on public land before or on October 21, 1976, under the authority of sections 2339 and 2340 of the Revised Statutes (43 U.S.C. 661) intended to be used;

“(III) provide details on the intended use and scope of use for the purpose of aquifer recharge of the existing right-of-way, easement, permit, or other authorization; and

“(IV) provide a copy of the agreement between the State, political subdivision of the State, Indian Tribe, or public entity and the holder of the right-of-way, easement, permit, or other authorization to use the existing right-of-way, easement, permit, or other authorization for the purpose of aquifer recharge.

“(C) Exemption from payment of additional rent.—

“(i) In general.—Except as provided in clause (ii), any use of an existing right-of- way, easement, permit, or other authorization for the purpose of aquifer recharge under subparagraph (A) shall be exempt from the payment of additional rent to the Bureau of Land Management.

“(ii) For-profit uses and entities.— Clause (i) shall not apply to—

“(I) any for-profit uses of aquifer recharge; or

“(II) any for-profit entities.”.

(b) Effect.—Subsection (c)(4) of the Aquifer Recharge Flexibility Act (43 U.S.C. 390g-9) is amended—

(1) by striking “Act creates” and inserting “section—

“(A) creates”;

(2) in subparagraph (A) (as so designated), by striking the period at the end and inserting a semicolon; and

(3) by adding at the end of the following:

“(B) waives the obligation of the holder of a right-of-way, easement, permit, or other authorization described in paragraph (3)(A) to comply with—

“(i) the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.);

“(ii) the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.); or

“(iii) the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act (16 U.S.C. 1271 et seq.); or

“(C) provides authority to construct, modify, or expand any existing infrastructure covered under paragraph (3).”.

(1) in subsection (b), in the matter preceding paragraph

(1), by striking “Act” and inserting “section”; and

(2) in subsection (c)(5), by striking “Act” and inserting “section”. <all>

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Sponsor (1)

Money behind the sponsor

Actions (3)

Related bills (1)

Similar bills (6)

Text versions (1)

Committee action

Meetings where this bill was on the agenda

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