The record

LegislationLegislation· Sep 2026
HR 331 Passed House — in Senate

Sponsored by Russ Fulcher (R)

To amend the Aquifer Recharge Flexibility Act to clarify a provision relating to conveyances for aquifer recharge purposes.

Allows water-rights holders to use existing BLM permits for aquifer recharge on behalf of states and tribes.

Tradeoff

Lets existing permit holders use their authorizations for aquifer recharge without asking BLM for permission again. Exempts them from paying extra rent to BLM, except for for-profit aquifer projects.

What's in it

See official bill text

Insignificant increase in direct spending over 2025-2035, with implementation costs less than $500,000 over 2025-2030.

The $500,000 federal cost is just the administrative expense to implement the clarification — the policy's real impact is to remove a procedural requirement for public entities seeking to use existing rights-of-way for aquifer recharge, with minimal loss of federal fee revenue because public entities are mostly exempt from such fees anyway.

H.R. 331, a bill to amend the Aquifer Recharge Flexibility Act to clarify a provision relating to conveyances for aquifer recharge purposes · Mar 2025

Passed the House by on May 13, 2025 — sitting in the Senate.

  1. House

    Introduced

    (Jan 13, 2025)

  2. House

    Committee on Natural Resources(Jan 13, 2025)

  3. House

    The Committee on Natural Resources voted to send it to the floor

    Reported(Feb 12, 2025)

    Committee report H. Rept. 119-60.

  4. House

    Passage of the bill

    Passed by (May 13, 2025)

    No individual votes were recorded.

  5. Senate

    Received from the House

    on Energy and Natural Resources(May 14, 2025)

  6. Senate

    The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources voted to send it to the floor

    Reported(Sep 30, 2026)