H.R. 9022 — Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2027

This section limits reprogramming of funds appropriated in title I for fiscal year 2027 by prohibiting creation or elimination of programs, increases for activities denied or restricted by the Act, or shifts to different purposes without prior approval from the House and Senate Appropriations Committees. It sets specific thresholds including 25 percent of base up to $150,000 for investigations projects over $100,000, 15 percent up to $3 million for construction projects over $2 million, unlimited authority for operation and maintenance emergencies, and 15 percent for formerly utilized sites projects; exempts the continuing authorities program and de minimis changes below $50,000; and requires the Secretary to submit a baseline report with budget tables within 60 days of enactment.

This section directs the Secretary to allocate all funds made available in this Act solely according to the Act's provisions and the accompanying report, including the determination and designation of new starts.

This section prohibits the use of funds to award or modify any contract that commits amounts beyond the unobligated appropriations for that program, project, or activity, except for funds made available through reprogramming under section 101.

This section authorizes the Secretary of the Army to transfer up to $8,733,000 from Operation and Maintenance funds to the Fish and Wildlife Service, which may accept and expend the funds to mitigate fisheries losses caused by Corps of Engineers projects.

This section prohibits the use of funds for open lake placement of dredged material from Lake Erie or its tributaries unless the placement receives state water quality certification under section 401 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act. It requires the Corps of Engineers to continue upland placement of the material until such certification is obtained.

This section prohibits the use of any funds made available by this Act for a water supply reallocation study under the Wolf Creek Dam, Lake Cumberland, Kentucky project authorized by the Act of July 24, 1946.

This section prohibits the Secretary of the Army from promulgating or enforcing any regulation that bars an individual from possessing a firearm at a water resources development project covered by 36 CFR 327.0 (as in effect on the date of enactment), provided the individual is not otherwise prohibited by law from possessing a firearm and the possession complies with the law of the state where the project is located.

This section prohibits the use of funds made available by the Act to prevent Congress from accessing basic factual information in a timely fashion, including project schedule statuses, budget justification materials, statutorily required execution reports, damage repair estimates, project capabilities, and other budgetary and nonbudgetary project information.

This section limits reprogramming of funds for Water and Related Resources in fiscal year 2027 by prohibiting new or eliminated programs, projects, or activities; increases to denied or restricted items; restarts of unfunded activities; transfers above 15 percent (or $400,000) without prior approval from the House and Senate Appropriations Committees; transfers exceeding $500,000 between the Facilities Operation, Maintenance, and Rehabilitation category and the Resources Management and Development category; and transfers above $5 million for contractor claims or judgments. It requires the Bureau of Reclamation to expend funds only as specified in the House Recommended columns of the accompanying report and to submit quarterly reports on all reprogrammed amounts, with the first report due within 60 days of enactment.

This section prohibits the use of funds to determine the final discharge point for the San Luis Unit interceptor drain until the Secretary of the Interior and California develop a plan to minimize detrimental effects of San Luis drainage waters that conforms to state water quality standards approved by the EPA. It classifies Kesterson Reservoir Cleanup Program and San Joaquin Valley Drainage Program costs as reimbursable or nonreimbursable for collection until fully repaid under the February 1995 Repayment Report plans, and requires all future San Luis Unit drainage service or studies to be fully reimbursable by beneficiaries under federal reclamation law.

This section extends the authorization period for certain water storage projects under the WIIN Act through 2027 (from 2021). It extends the expiration date for authority under section 4004 to December 16, 2034, and limits proposals under section 4009(c) to those submitted on or before December 16, 2026. It increases the authorization of appropriations for the reclamation and reuse of municipal, industrial, domestic, and agricultural wastewater and impaired waters to $177.5 million (from $50 million). It increases the authorization of appropriations for desalination research, development, and demonstration projects to $106.5 million (from $30 million).

This section extends the authorization of the CALFED Bay-Delta program through 2027 (from 2022). It increases the annual authorization of appropriations to $40 million (from $32.6 million).

This section increases the authorized funding level for the Northwestern New Mexico Rural Water Projects to $1,970,000,000 (from $1,815,000,000) and extends the authorization through 2027 (from 2024).

This section extends the authorization for the Fort Peck Reservation Rural Water System through 2028 (from 2026).

This section prohibits the Department of Energy from using funds made available in this title for any program, project, or activity not funded by Congress. It bars obligation of funds for grants, contracts, or awards of $1,000,000 or more (or $25,000,000 or more to a National Laboratory) without 3 business days' advance notice to the House and Senate Appropriations Committees, requires quarterly reports on smaller awards, and mandates prior approval for reprogramming that would alter any line by more than $5,000,000 or 10 percent. The section also bars multiyear obligations unless fully funded or conditioned on future appropriations, prohibits reprogramming to create or eliminate programs or to restore denied funding, and authorizes the Secretary to waive these restrictions when necessary to address risks to health, safety, or national security.

This section deems funds appropriated or transferred for intelligence activities to be specifically authorized by Congress under section 504 of the National Security Act of 1947 during fiscal year 2027 until enactment of the Intelligence Authorization Act for fiscal year 2027.

This section prohibits the use of funds made available in this title for construction of high-hazard nuclear facilities under 10 CFR Part 830 unless the Office of Enterprise Assessments conducts independent oversight to ensure compliance with nuclear safety requirements.

This section prohibits the use of funds made available in this title to approve critical decision-2 or critical decision-3 under Department of Energy Order 413.3B for any construction project with a total cost exceeding $100 million, until a separate independent cost estimate has been developed for that decision.

This section prohibits the use of funds made available in the title for any grant allocation award, discretionary grant award, or cooperative agreement exceeding $100,000,000 in Federal funding unless the project uses internal independent project management procedures.

This section prohibits the direct transfer of funds from the Colorado River Basins Power Marketing Fund, Western Area Power Administration, to the general fund of the Treasury in the current fiscal year.

This section prohibits the use of funds made available by this Act to draw down and sell petroleum products from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to any entity under the ownership, control, or influence of the Chinese Communist Party, or on the condition that the products will not be exported to the People’s Republic of China.

This section prohibits the Secretary of Energy from using funds made available by this Act to award any grant, contract, cooperative agreement, or loan of $10,000,000 or greater to an entity of concern. It requires implementation through a risk-based approach and analytical tools, authorizes collection of necessary documentation, exempts the requirements from the Paperwork Reduction Act, directs interagency coordination, and mandates consistency with U.S. obligations under international agreements.

This section prohibits the use of funds appropriated by this Act to admit non-U.S. citizens from Russia or China to nuclear weapons production facilities, other than public areas, unless the Department of Energy provides 30 days' prior notification to the Committees on Appropriations and Armed Services of both Houses of Congress.

This section authorizes reprogramming of funds allocated for Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer activities under section 9 of the Small Business Act or for Technology Commercialization Fund activities under section 1001 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 within the “Critical Minerals and Energy Innovation,” “Electricity,” “Hydrocarbons and Geothermal Energy,” “Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response,” and “Science” accounts without being subject to the restrictions in section 301 of this title, provided that award administration and selection occur in coordination with the offices overseeing the original appropriations accounts.

This section prohibits the use of funds made available by this Act to finalize, administer, implement, or enforce the Department of Energy final rule entitled “Clean Energy for New Federal Buildings and Major Renovations of Federal Buildings,” published on May 1, 2024.

This section requires the Department of Energy to continue applying indirect cost rates for Federal financial assistance, including negotiated rates and deviations under 2 CFR 200.414, in the same manner as in fiscal year 2024, and prohibits the use of any appropriated or available funds to develop, modify, or implement changes to those rates.

This section transfers $2.675 billion in unobligated balances from the Carbon Dioxide Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Program Account, Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations, and Fossil Energy and Carbon Management to the Nuclear Energy account. It limits the funds to not more than two Generation 3+ small modular reactor deployment awards and existing advanced reactor demonstration projects, transfers $100 million to the Title 17 Innovative Technology Loan Guarantee Program, and requires the Secretary of Energy to report the transfers by source and destination to the appropriations committees within 15 days.

This section requires the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to follow the July 5, 2011, version of Chapter VI of its Internal Commission Procedures when responding to Congressional requests for information, consistent with Department of Justice guidance applicable to all federal agencies.

This section limits reprogramming of Nuclear Regulatory Commission funds by requiring at least 30 days' prior notice to the Appropriations Committees of both Houses for any change exceeding $500,000 or 10 percent, whichever is less. It permits waivers of the notice requirement for substantial risks to human health, the environment, welfare, or national security, with notice and a detailed report due within 3 days; prohibits reprogramming to increase funding or personnel for denied or restricted programs; and requires monthly reports on total budget authority, unobligated balances, and unliquidated obligations for each program, project, or activity.

This section prohibits the use of funds appropriated by this Act to influence congressional action on any legislation or appropriation matters pending before Congress, except for communications to Members of Congress permitted under 18 U.S.C. 1913.

This section limits transfers of funds made available in title III of this Act to or from any department, agency, or instrumentality of the United States Government except under transfer authority provided in this Act, any other appropriations Act, the accompanying report, or interagency goods-and-services authorities. It also requires the head of any relevant department or agency to submit semiannual reports to the House and Senate Appropriations Committees detailing amounts transferred and the purposes of those transfers.

This section prohibits the use of any funds made available in this Act to maintain or establish a computer network unless the network blocks the viewing, downloading, and exchanging of pornography. It exempts funds used by Federal, State, Tribal, or local law enforcement agencies or other entities for criminal investigations, prosecutions, or adjudications.

This section prohibits federal funding for any agreement among private entities for consolidated interim storage of spent nuclear fuel unless specifically authorized by federal law and until host state and local governments and affected Indian tribes consent. The prohibition does not apply to facilities already storing commercial spent nuclear fuel under a Nuclear Regulatory Commission license as of the date of enactment.