Sec. 449. State water project offset and water rights protections

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The Secretary of the Interior shall confer with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife in connection with the implementation of this section on potential impacts to any consistency determination for operations of the State Water Project issued pursuant to California Fish and Game Code section 2080.1. If, as a result of the application of this section, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife— determines that operations of the State Water Project are inconsistent with the consistency determinations issued pursuant to California Fish and Game Code section 2080.1 for operations of the State Water Project; or requires take authorization under California Fish and Game Code section 2081 for operation of the State Water Project in a manner that directly or indirectly results in reduced water supply to the State Water Project as compared with the water supply available under the smelt biological opinion and the salmonid biological opinion; and as a result, Central Valley Project yield is greater than it otherwise would have been, then that additional yield shall be made available to the State Water Project for delivery to State Water Project contractors to offset that reduced water supply.

The Secretary of the Interior and Secretary of Commerce shall— notify the Director of the California Department of Fish and Wildlife regarding any changes in the manner in which the smelt biological opinion or the salmonid biological opinion is implemented; and confirm that those changes are consistent with the Endangered Species Act of 1973 ( 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq. ). The Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Commerce, in carrying out the mandates of this section, shall take no action that— diminishes, impairs, or otherwise affects in any manner any area of origin, watershed of origin, county of origin, or any other water rights protection, including rights to water appropriated before December 19, 1914, provided under State law; limits, expands or otherwise affects the application of section 10505, 10505.5, 11128, 11460, 11461, 11462, 11463 or 12200 through 12220 of the California Water Code or any other provision of State water rights law, without respect to whether such a provision is specifically referred to in this section; or diminishes, impairs, or otherwise affects in any manner any water rights or water rights priorities under applicable law.

Any action proposed to be undertaken by the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Commerce pursuant to both this section and section 7 of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 ( 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq. ) shall be undertaken in a manner that does not alter water rights or water rights priorities established by California law or it shall not be undertaken at all. Nothing in this subsection affects the obligations of the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Commerce under section 7 of the Endangered Species Act of 1973.

Nothing in this section affects or modifies any obligation of the Secretary of the Interior under section 8 of the Act of June 17, 1902 (32 Stat. 390, chapter 1093). Nothing in this section diminishes, impairs, or otherwise affects in any manner any Project purposes or priorities for the allocation, delivery or use of water under applicable law, including the Project purposes and priorities established under section 3402 and section 3406 of the Central Valley Project Improvement Act ( Public Law 102–575 ; 106 Stat. 4706).

The Secretary of the Interior and Secretary of Commerce shall not carry out any specific action authorized under this section that will directly or through State agency action indirectly result in the involuntary reduction of water supply to an individual, district, or agency that has in effect a contract for water with the State Water Project or the Central Valley Project, including Settlement and Exchange contracts, refuge contracts, and Friant Division contracts, as compared to the water supply that would be provided in the absence of action under this section, and nothing in this section is intended to modify, amend or affect any of the rights and obligations of the parties to such contracts.

If, after exploring all options, the Secretary of the Interior or the Secretary of Commerce makes a final determination that a proposed action under this section cannot be carried out in accordance with paragraph (1), that Secretary— shall document that determination in writing for that action, including a statement of the facts relied on, and an explanation of the basis, for the decision; may exercise the Secretary’s existing authority, including authority to undertake the drought-related actions otherwise addressed in this title, or to otherwise comply with other applicable law, including the Endangered Species Act of 1973 ( 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq. ); and shall comply with subsection (a).

In this subsection: The term existing Central Valley Project agricultural water service contractor within the Sacramento River Watershed means any water service contractor within the Shasta, Trinity, or Sacramento River division of the Central Valley Project that has in effect a water service contract on the date of enactment of this section that provides water for irrigation. The terms Above Normal , Below Normal , Dry , and Wet , with respect to a year, have the meanings given those terms in the Sacramento Valley Water Year Type (40–30–30) Index.

Subject to subsection (c), the Secretary of the Interior shall make every reasonable effort in the operation of the Central Valley Project to allocate water provided for irrigation purposes to each existing Central Valley Project agricultural water service contractor within the Sacramento River Watershed in accordance with the following: Not less than 100 percent of the contract quantity of the existing Central Valley Project agricultural water service contractor within the Sacramento River Watershed in a Wet year.

Not less than 100 percent of the contract quantity of the existing Central Valley Project agricultural water service Contractor within the Sacramento River Watershed in an Above Normal year. Not less than 100 percent of the contract quantity of the existing Central Valley Project agricultural water service contractor within the Sacramento River Watershed in a Below Normal year that is preceded by an Above Normal or Wet year. Not less than 50 percent of the contract quantity of the existing Central Valley Project agricultural water service contractor within the Sacramento River Watershed in a Dry year that is preceded by a Below Normal , Above Normal , or Wet year.

Subject to clause (ii), in any other year not identified in any of clauses

(i)through (iv), not less than twice the allocation percentage to south-of-Delta Central Valley Project agricultural water service contractors, up to 100 percent. Nothing in clause (A)(v) precludes an allocation to an existing Central Valley Project agricultural water service contractor within the Sacramento River Watershed that is greater than twice the allocation percentage to a south-of-Delta Central Valley Project agricultural water service contractor. Nothing in paragraph

(2)shall adversely affect— the cold water pool behind Shasta Dam; the obligation of the Secretary of the Interior to make water available to managed wetlands pursuant to section 3406(d) of the Central Valley Project Improvement Act ( Public Law 102–575 ; 106 Stat. 4722); or any obligation— of the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Commerce under the smelt biological opinion, the salmonid biological opinion, or any other applicable biological opinion; or under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 ( 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq. ) or any other applicable law (including regulations). Nothing in paragraph (2)— modifies any provision of a water Service contract that addresses municipal or industrial water shortage policies of the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Commerce; affects or limits the authority of the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Commerce to adopt or modify municipal and industrial water shortage policies; affects or limits the authority of the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Commerce to implement a municipal or industrial water shortage policy; constrains, governs, or affects, directly or indirectly, the operations of the American River division of the Central Valley Project or any deliveries from that division or a unit or facility of that division; or affects any allocation to a Central Valley Project municipal or industrial water service contractor by increasing or decreasing allocations to the contractor, as compared to the allocation the contractor would have received absent paragraph (2). Nothing in subsection (b)— affects the priority of any individual or entity with Sacramento River water rights, including an individual or entity with a Sacramento River settlement contract, that has priority to the diversion and use of Sacramento River water over water rights held by the United States for operations of the Central Valley Project; affects the obligation of the United States to make a substitute supply of water available to the San Joaquin River exchange contractors; affects the allocation of water to Friant division contractors of the Central Valley Project; results in the involuntary reduction in contract water allocations to individuals or entities with contracts to receive water from the Friant division; or authorizes any actions inconsistent with State water rights law.

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