[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 9497 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
119th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 9497
To provide for improvements to the rivers and harbors of the United
States, to provide for the conservation and development of water and
related resources, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
June 29, 2026
Mr. Graves (for himself, Mr. Larsen of Washington, Mr. Collins, and Ms.
Wilson of Florida) introduced the following bill; which was referred to
the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To provide for improvements to the rivers and harbors of the United
States, to provide for the conservation and development of water and
related resources, 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; TABLE OF CONTENTS.
(a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Water Resources
Development Act of 2026''.
(b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act is as
follows:
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Secretary defined.
TITLE I--GENERAL PROVISIONS
Sec. 101. Program Offices within the Directorate of Civil Works.
Sec. 102. Contracting efficiency.
Sec. 103. Removal or remediation of contaminated sediment.
Sec. 104. Levee owners board.
Sec. 105. Categorical permissions.
Sec. 106. Contributions by non-Federal interests.
Sec. 107. Electronic submission and tracking of permit applications.
Sec. 108. Project study schedule and cost estimate.
Sec. 109. Continuing authority programs.
Sec. 110. Dredged material management plans.
Sec. 111. Dredging coordination.
Sec. 112. Federal standard for dredged material disposal or placement.
Sec. 113. Levee certifications.
Sec. 114. Allocations from the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund.
Sec. 115. Soo Lock operator wage rates.
Sec. 116. Beneficial use of dredged material from harbors in the State
of Ohio.
Sec. 117. Minimum real estate interest.
Sec. 118. Real estate appraisal validity.
Sec. 119. Watershed and river basin assessments.
Sec. 120. Prohibition on diversion of water from Missouri River.
Sec. 121. Law enforcement at water resources development projects.
Sec. 122. Disaster debris removal.
Sec. 123. Wildfire contingency strategies.
Sec. 124. Reservoir sediment pilot program.
Sec. 125. Environmental dredging.
Sec. 126. Expenses for control of aquatic plant growths and invasive
species.
Sec. 127. Feasibility studies; review of shoreline and streambank
protection.
Sec. 128. Harmful algal bloom demonstration program.
Sec. 129. Shoreline and riverine protection and restoration.
Sec. 130. Fish and oyster habitat restoration.
Sec. 131. Benefits and costs attributable to certain measures.
Sec. 132. Policy on utilization of all Corps authorities and missions.
Sec. 133. Comprehensive feasibility studies and approaches for flood
risk management and coastal storm risk
management.
Sec. 134. Realignment of certain Corps of Engineers Districts.
Sec. 135. Update of Corps policy.
Sec. 136. Availability of project information.
Sec. 137. Fish and wildlife mitigation.
Sec. 138. Sense of Congress regarding evaluation of flood risk
management projects.
Sec. 139. Recreational access.
Sec. 140. Sense of Congress on munitions disposal.
Sec. 141. Corps of Engineers workforce.
Sec. 142. Reporting and oversight.
Sec. 143. Ability to pay.
Sec. 144. Pilot program prioritization.
TITLE II--STUDIES AND REPORTS
Sec. 201. Authorization of proposed feasibility studies.
Sec. 202. Expedited completion.
Sec. 203. Expedited modification of existing feasibility studies.
Sec. 204. Expedited completion of other feasibility studies.
Sec. 205. Corps of Engineers reports.
Sec. 206. Report on the inland waterways system.
Sec. 207. GAO studies.
Sec. 208. Inspector General reports.
Sec. 209. Acceleration of emergency inland navigation projects.
Sec. 210. Assessment of commercial fish landings data.
Sec. 211. Assessments of dryland stream technologies and shoreline
stabilization technologies.
Sec. 212. Assessment of nonstructural approaches to flood risk
management and hurricane and storm risk
reduction.
Sec. 213. Post-disaster watershed assessment for impacted areas.
Sec. 214. Updated plan on Federal hopper dredge recapitalization.
Sec. 215. Choctawhatchee and Pea River basins, Alabama and Florida.
Sec. 216. Mobile Harbor land use assessment.
Sec. 217. Honolulu Harbor, Hawaii.
Sec. 218. Chicago Area Waterway System.
Sec. 219. Great Lakes and Mississippi River Interbasin project, Brandon
Road, Will County, Illinois.
Sec. 220. Columbia Lock and Dam, Louisiana.
Sec. 221. Lower Mississippi River Comprehensive Management Study.
Sec. 222. Disposition study for Cape Cod Canal, Massachusetts.
Sec. 223. New England regional confined aquatic disposal facilities.
Sec. 224. Assateague Island, Maryland and Virginia.
Sec. 225. Big Sandy Lake, Minnesota.
Sec. 226. Upper Missouri River Basin sedimentation.
Sec. 227. Table Rock Lake disposition study, Missouri and Arkansas.
Sec. 228. Table Rock Lake, Missouri and Arkansas.
Sec. 229. Evaluation of atomic contamination at Cochiti Lake, Sandoval
County, New Mexico.
Sec. 230. National Academy of Sciences study on Upper Rio Grande Basin.
Sec. 231. Arbuckle-Timbered Hills, Oklahoma.
Sec. 232. Disposition and cost allocation study of Willamette Valley,
Oregon.
Sec. 233. Foster Joseph Sayers Reservoir and Dam, Pennsylvania.
Sec. 234. Humphreys County, Tennessee.
Sec. 235. Sam Rayburn Reservoir, Texas.
Sec. 236. Columbia River, Washington.
Sec. 237. Tri-Cities Area, Washington.
TITLE III--DEAUTHORIZATIONS AND MODIFICATIONS
Sec. 301. Deauthorization of inactive projects.
Sec. 302. General reauthorizations.
Sec. 303. Conveyances.
Sec. 304. Land exchange, Walton and Bay Counties, Florida.
Sec. 305. Port Canaveral, Florida.
Sec. 306. Specific deauthorizations.
Sec. 307. Environmental infrastructure.
Sec. 308. Forecast-informed reservoir operations.
Sec. 309. Floodplain management services.
Sec. 310. Planning assistance to States.
Sec. 311. Mendenhall Glacier outburst flooding, Alaska.
Sec. 312. Hansen Dam, Los Angeles-San Gabriel River Basin, California.
Sec. 313. Morro Bay, California.
Sec. 314. Oceanside, California.
Sec. 315. Pajaro River, California.
Sec. 316. Rio Grande Environmental Management Program, Colorado, New
Mexico, and Texas.
Sec. 317. Miami Harbor, Miami-Dade County, Florida.
Sec. 318. Mississippi River-Gulf Outlet, Louisiana.
Sec. 319. Pilottown anchorage area, Louisiana.
Sec. 320. Jack Hubbard Memorial Breakwater, Burt Township, Michigan.
Sec. 321. Sardis Lake, Panola County, Mississippi.
Sec. 322. Hydraulic evaluation of Upper Mississippi River.
Sec. 323. Lower Missouri River comprehensive flood protection.
Sec. 324. Missouri River Recovery Implementation Committee.
Sec. 325. Great Lakes Commission.
Sec. 326. Great Lakes Fishery and ecosystem restoration.
Sec. 327. Truckee River and tributaries, Nevada.
Sec. 328. Cooperative agreements, New Mexico.
Sec. 329. Kinzua Dam safety modification study, Allegheny River, New
York and Pennsylvania.
Sec. 330. Surf City and North Topsail Beach, North Carolina.
Sec. 331. Massillon Local Protection Project, Tuscarawas River, Ohio.
Sec. 332. Toussaint River Federal navigation project, Carroll Township,
Ohio.
Sec. 333. Rio Puerto Nuevo flood risk management project, San Juan,
Puerto Rico.
Sec. 334. Buffalo Bayou Tributaries and Resiliency Study, Texas.
Sec. 335. Chambers, Galveston, and Harris Counties, Texas, expedited
real estate transfers.
Sec. 336. Coastal Virginia.
Sec. 337. Norfolk Coastal Storm Risk Management, Virginia.
Sec. 338. Puget Sound and adjacent waters restoration, Washington.
Sec. 339. Lower Columbia River.
Sec. 340. Lower Columbia River Basin ecosystem restoration assessment.
Sec. 341. Puget Sound nearshore ecosystem restoration, Washington.
Sec. 342. Washington Metropolitan Area, Washington, District of
Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia.
Sec. 343. Federal Triangle Area, Washington, District of Columbia.
TITLE IV--WATER RESOURCES INFRASTRUCTURE
Sec. 401. Project authorizations.
Sec. 402. Expedited completion of projects and activities.
TITLE V--DAM SAFETY
Sec. 501. National Dam Safety Program amendments.
SEC. 2. SECRETARY DEFINED.
In this Act, the term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of the
Army.
TITLE I--GENERAL PROVISIONS
SEC. 101. PROGRAM OFFICES WITHIN THE DIRECTORATE OF CIVIL WORKS.
(a) Office of Inland Navigation Construction Management.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall establish within the
Directorate of Civil Works an office to be known as the
``Office of Inland Navigation Construction Management''.
(2) Administration.--In establishing the office under this
subsection, the Secretary shall--
(A) designate an Inland Program Manager, who shall
head the office and report directly to the Deputy
Commanding General for Civil Works and Emergency
Operations; and
(B) provide the office with sufficient
administrative, technical, and budgetary support to
direct, perform, and coordinate the following tasks
related to the inland waterways navigation mission of
the Corps of Engineers:
(i) Develop and maintain an inland waterway
program management plan.
(ii) Oversee inland waterways construction
projects and major rehabilitation projects
along the inland and intracoastal waterways of
the United States, as described in section 206
of the Inland Waterways Revenue Act of 1978 (33
U.S.C. 1804).
(iii) Coordinate, validate, and oversee
funding for the projects described in clause
(ii), including the transactions of the Inland
Waterway Trust Fund.
(iv) Conduct in-progress reviews for
individual project designs and construction.
(v) Provide updates at every meeting of the
Inland Waterways Users Board established under
section 302 of the Water Resources Development
Act of 1986 (33 U.S.C. 2251).
(vi) Develop and annually update the
projects described in clause (ii) in accordance
with the capital investment strategy authorized
by section 302(d) of the Water Resources
Development Act of 1986 (33 U.S.C. 2251).
(3) Report.--Not later than 2 years after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to the
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of
Representatives and the Committee on Environment and Public
Works of the Senate, and make publicly available (including on
a publicly available website), a report detailing the results
of the status of the implementation of this subsection,
including--
(A) the progress of the Secretary in establishing
the Office of Inland Navigation Construction
Management;
(B) the status of every inland waterway
construction project and major rehabilitation project
in the most recent capital investment strategy,
including any issues related to delays or cost
overruns; and
(C) any recommendations related to the operational
improvement of the Office of Inland Navigation
Construction Management.
(b) Office of Water Supply, Water Conservation, and Drought
Resiliency.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, 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''.
(2) Administration.--In establishing the office under this
subsection, the Secretary shall--
(A) designate a Water Supply, Water Conservation,
and Drought Resiliency Program Manager, who shall head
the office and report directly to the Deputy Commanding
General for Civil Works and Emergency Operations;
(B) staff the office with personnel who may reside
in any district or division of the Corps of Engineers;
and
(C) provide the office with sufficient
administrative, technical, and budgetary support to
direct, perform, and coordinate the following tasks
related to the water supply mission of the Corps of
Engineers:
(i) 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.
(ii) 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--
(I) implementation of subtitle B of
title I of the Water Resources
Development Act of 2024;
(II) the method for the accounting
of storage use under water supply
storage agreements at Corps of
Engineers reservoirs;
(III) the reallocation of storage
space at Corps of Engineers reservoirs
to water supply;
(IV) the interpretation and
implementation of the Water Supply Act
of 1958 (43 U.S.C. 390b); and
(V) the interpretation and
implementation of section 6 of the Act
of December 22, 1944 (33 U.S.C. 708).
(iii) 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 related to water supply,
water conservation, and drought resiliency
efforts related to water resources development
projects.
(iv) 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.
(v) 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 to--
(I) reallocate storage space in
projects to store water for municipal
and industrial water supply purposes
pursuant to the Water Supply Act of
1958 (43 U.S.C. 390b);
(II) enter into surplus water
contracts pursuant to section 6 of the
Act of December 22, 1944 (33 U.S.C.
708); and
(III) modify the operation of
projects under other authorities to
produce water supply benefits
incidental to and consistent with
authorized purposes, including by--
(aa) adjusting the timing
of releases for other
authorized purposes to create
opportunities for water supply
conservation, use, and storage;
(bb) capturing stormwater;
(cc) releasing water from
storage to replenish aquifer
storage and recovery;
(dd) releasing water from
storage to augment storage at
another Federal or non-Federal
storage facility; and
(ee) other conservation
measures that enhance the use
of a Corps of Engineers project
for water supply.
(vi) Conduct outreach and workshops for
potential non-Federal interests to provide
information on the authorities described in
clause (i).
(vii) Evaluate budget requests to ensure
sufficient resources are requested and
allocated by the Directorate to fulf