H.R. 2074

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2074 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 2074

To prohibit the breaching of federally operated dams in certain 
circumstances, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

March 11, 2025

Mr. Newhouse (for himself, Mr. Baumgartner, Mr. Fulcher, and Mr. Bentz) 
introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
Transportation and Infrastructure, and in addition to the Committee on 
Natural Resources, for a period to be subsequently determined by the 
Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall 
within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

A BILL

To prohibit the breaching of federally operated dams in certain 
circumstances, 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 ``Protecting Our Water Energy 
Resources Act'' or the ``POWER Act''.

SEC. 2. PROHIBITION ON BREACHING OF FEDERALLY OPERATED DAMS.

(a) In General.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the 
Secretary of the Army may not breach a federally operated dam--
(1) if the Secretary determines that such breach--
(A) would result in an increase in carbon emissions 
by more than 5 percent;
(B) would make the body of water impacted by the 
breach less navigable for commercial interests; or
(C) would result in increase of at least 5 percent 
of the price of any products, including agricultural 
products, shipped via the body of water impacted by the 
breach; or
(2) if the energy resource intended to replace such dam as 
a result of such breach would occupy an area of land that is 
larger in acreage than the area occupied by such dam by at 
least 5 percent.
(b) Consultation.--In making the determinations required under 
subsection (a)(1), the Secretary shall--
(1) consult with the Secretary of Energy with respect to 
the determination described in subparagraph (A) of such 
subsection;
(2) consult with the Secretary of Transportation with 
respect to the determination described subparagraph (B) of such 
subsection;
(3) consult with the Secretary of Agriculture and the 
Secretary of Commerce with respect to the determination 
described in subparagraph (C) of such subsection; and
(4) consult with the relevant agencies in the State in 
which the dam proposed to be breached is located.
(c) Study Required.--If the Secretary considers breaching a 
federally operated dam, the Secretary, in coordination with the 
Secretary of the Interior, shall conduct a study analyzing the number 
of acres of land such dam occupies.

SEC. 3. PROHIBITION ON RETIREMENT OF ENERGY GENERATION SOURCES.

(a) In General.--The Secretary shall not retire an energy 
generation source if the retirement of that energy generation source 
would--
(1) raise customer electricity rates by more than 5 
percent; or
(2) decrease energy reliability, as determined by the 
Administrator of the Bonneville Power Administration, in any 
portion of Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, and 
California by more than 5 percent of the energy reliability as 
compared to the 12 month period before the retirement.
(b) Replacement of Baseload Generation.--Not later than 30 days 
after retiring an energy generation source, the Secretary shall ensure 
that not less than 100 percent of the baseload generation of the 
retired energy generation source has been replaced.
(c) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Baseload generation.--The term ``baseload generation'' 
means the the minimum amount of electric power supplied to an 
electrical grid.
(2) Energy generation source.--The term ``energy generation 
source'' means a federally operated dam that generates 
hydropower.
(3) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means--
(A) the Secretary of the Interior, in reference to 
an energy generation source operated by the Bureau of 
Reclamation; and
(B) the Secretary of the Army, in reference to an 
energy generation source operated by the Army Corps of 
Engineers.
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