Freshman Congressman Heck Introduces First Bill
Today, newly elected Congressman Joe Heck introduced legislation to further allocate and expand the availability of hydroelectric power generated at Hoover Dam.
This bill would allocate Hoover power beginning in 2017 for a period of 50 years. Entities receiving power in present-day Schedules A and B still would continue to receive Hoover power.
In addition, each of the existing Hoover contractors would contribute 5% of their power to a pool that would be distributed under a new Schedule D. Schedule D power would be set aside for federally-recognized Indian Tribes, irrigation districts, rural electric cooperatives, military installations and other eligible entities.
“Certainty about the future is what our economy needs right now in order to get people back to work,” said Heck. “This bipartisan bill ensures Nevada’s businesses and individuals have a reliable and clean energy source for years to come.”
Heck also gave credit to Congresswoman Napolitano and her staff for the work they put into this same legislation last year.
The Boulder Canyon Project Act of 1928 authorized the construction of what is now called Hoover Dam and allocated power to an original pool of customers which included public and private entities in the lower Colorado Basin states of Arizona, Nevada, and California.
The original contracts for power were executed in 1937 and were valid for a 50-year time period. As the original contracts were set to expire, Congress reviewed the original act and provided guidance on the revised allocation of Hoover Dam power through the Hoover Power Plant Act of 1984 (HPPA).