Securing America's Water Supply Act

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 4962 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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119th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 4962

To establish an Office of Water Supply, Water Conservation, and Drought
   Resiliency within the Directorate of Civil Works in the Corps of
                   Engineers, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 14, 2026

Mr. Warnock (for himself and Mr. Moran) introduced the following bill;
 which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and
                              Public Works

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

To establish an Office of Water Supply, Water Conservation, and Drought
   Resiliency within the Directorate of Civil Works in the Corps of
                   Engineers, 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 ``Securing America's Water Supply
Act''.

SEC. 2. OFFICE OF WATER SUPPLY, WATER CONSERVATION, AND DROUGHT
              RESILIENCY.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Army (referred to in this
section as the ``Secretary'') shall establish within the Directorate of
Civil Works an office to be known as the ``Office of Water Supply,
Water Conservation, and Drought Resiliency''.
    (b) Administration.--In carrying out subsection (a), the Secretary
shall--
            (1) designate a Water Supply, Water Conservation, and
        Drought Resiliency Program Manager, who shall head the office
        established under that subsection and report directly to the
        Deputy Commanding General for Civil Works and Emergency
        Operations;
            (2) staff the office with personnel who may reside in any
        district or division of the Corps of Engineers; and
            (3) provide the office with sufficient administrative,
        technical, and budgetary support to direct, perform, and
        coordinate the tasks described in subsection (c).
    (c) Tasks.--The office established under subsection (a) shall carry
out the following tasks related to the water supply mission of the
Corps of Engineers:
            (1) Identify and evaluate opportunities using authorities
        of the Corps of Engineers to promote water supply, water
        conservation, and drought resiliency at water resource
        development projects.
            (2) Provide to the Corps of Engineers, States, and non-
        Federal interests information on existing policies and guidance
        documents of the Corps of Engineers related to, and make
        recommendations on new policies and guidance documents to
        improve, water supply, water conservation, and drought
        resiliency, including--
                    (A) the implementation of subtitle B of title I of
                the Water Resources Development Act of 2024 (138 Stat.
                3046);
                    (B) the method for the accounting of storage use
                under water supply storage agreements at Corps of
                Engineers reservoirs;
                    (C) the reallocation of storage space at Corps of
                Engineers reservoirs to water supply;
                    (D) the interpretation and implementation of
                section 301 of the Water Supply Act of 1958 (43 U.S.C.
                390b); and
                    (E) the interpretation and implementation of
                section 6 of the Act of December 22, 1944 (commonly
                known as the ``Flood Control Act of 1944'') (58 Stat.
                890, chapter 665; 33 U.S.C. 708).
            (3) Assist and provide guidance to States and non-Federal
        interests on accessing programs, services, and other technical
        and financial assistance made available by the Corps of
        Engineers for water supply, water conservation, and drought
        resiliency efforts related to water resources development
        projects.
            (4) Coordinate the review and completion of water supply
        reallocation studies and reports to clear backlogs and ensure
        new studies and reports are completed in a timely manner.
            (5) Act as a liaison between the Corps of Engineers and
        non-Federal interests for studies, projects, and agreements for
        water supply, water conservation, and drought resiliency
        efforts related to water resources development projects,
        including efforts--
                    (A) to reallocate storage space in projects to
                store water for municipal and industrial water supply
                purposes pursuant to section 301 of the Water Supply
                Act of 1958 (43 U.S.C. 390b);
                    (B) to enter into surplus water contracts pursuant
                to section 6 of the Act of December 22, 1944 (commonly
                known as the ``Flood Control Act of 1944'') (58 Stat.
                890, chapter 665; 33 U.S.C. 708); and
                    (C) modify the operation of projects under other
                authorities to produce water supply benefits incidental
                to and consistent with authorized purposes, including
                by--
                            (i) adjusting the timing of releases for
                        other authorized purposes to create
                        opportunities for water supply conservation,
                        use, and storage;
                            (ii) capturing stormwater;
                            (iii) releasing water from storage to
                        replenish aquifer storage and recovery;
                            (iv) releasing water from storage to
                        augment storage at another Federal or non-
                        Federal storage facility; and
                            (v) other conservation measures that
                        enhance the use of a Corps of Engineers project
                        for water supply.
            (6) Conduct outreach and workshops for potential non-
        Federal interests to provide information on the authorities
        described in paragraph (1).
            (7) Evaluate budget requests to ensure sufficient resources
        are requested and allocated by the Directorate of Civil Works
        to fulfill the tasks described in this subsection.
            (8) Cooperate with State, regional, and local government
        and planning authorities to identify strategies to augment
        water supplies, enhance drought resiliency, promote contingency
        planning, and assist in the planning and development of
        alternative water sources.
            (9) Other tasks in furtherance of the water supply mission,
        as determined by the Secretary.
    (d) Report Required.--Not later than 2 years after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on
Environment and Public Works of the Senate and the Committee on
Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives a
report that describes--
            (1) the progress of the Secretary in establishing the
        Office of Water Supply, Water Conservation, and Drought
        Resiliency, including a description of the status of
        implementing subsection (b)(3);
            (2) the number of staff assigned to the office; and
            (3) for each water supply study or project being conducted
        or implemented by the Corps of Engineers as of the date on
        which the report is submitted--
                    (A) the status of the study or project;
                    (B) the date on which the study or project
                commenced;
                    (C) the estimated date of completion of the study
                or project; and
                    (D) any significant impediments or obstacles that
                may reasonably affect the timeline to complete the
                study or project.
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