487 FIVE MILLION DOLLAR ADVANCE TO RECLAMATION FUND An act to authorize advances to the reclamation fund, and for other purposes. (Act of March 3, 1931, ch. 435, 46 Stat. 1507) [Sec. 1. Advance authorized from Treasury upon request of Secretary and approval of President, for projects already under way.]-The Secretary of the Treasury is authorized, upon request of the Secretary of the Interior and upon approval of the President, to transfer from time to time to the credit of the reclamation fund created by the Act of June 17, 1902 (32 Stat. L. 388), such sum or sums, not exceeding in the aggregate $5,000,000, as the Secretary of the Interior may deem necessary for the construction and operation of reclamation projects authorized under said act of June 17, 1902, and now under way, and acts amendatory thereof or supplementary thereto. (46 Stat. 1507; 43 U.S.C. § 391a) EXPLANATORY NOTE Appropriation. The Second Deficiency Appropriation Act of 1931, approved March 4, 1931, 46 Stat. 1552, appropriated the $5,000,000 authorized to be appropriated by section 1. Sec. 2. [Reimbursement of $1,000,000 annually beginning July 1, 1933.]Reimbursement of the moneys so advanced under the provisions of this act shall be made by transfer annually, of the sum of $1,000,000 from the reclamation fund to the general funds in the Treasury, beginning July 1, 1933. (46 Stat. 1507; 43 U.S.C. § 391b) EXPLANATORY NOTES 1932, 1933 and 1936 Amendments. Section 2 was amended by section 10 of the Act of April 1, 1932, 47 Stat. 78, so as to provide for repayment beginning July 1, 1934. Section 10 of the 1932 Act was in turn amended by section 2 of the Act of March 3, 1933, 47 Stat. 1427, extending the commencement of repayment to July 1, 1936. A further postponement to July 1, 1938, was granted by the act of June 22, 1936, 49 Stat. 1757, 1784. The 1932 and 1933 Acts appear herein in chronological order. Cross Reference, Suspension of Payments from Reclamation Fund. The Act of February 6, 1931, 46 Stat. 1064, 1069, provided for a two-year suspension of annual payments from the reclamation fund to the Treasury. Extracts from the Act, including the provision referred to, appear herein in chronological order. Reimbursement to the Treasury. A complete reimbursement to the Treasury of funds advanced to the Reclamation Fund under the provisions of the Act of June 25, 1910, referred to in the text, and the Act of March 3, 1931, as amended, was effected by the Act of May 9, 1938, 52 Stat. 291, 322. The 1910 and 1931 Acts and extracts from the 1938 Act, including the provision with respect to the reclamation fund, appear herein in chronological order. Legislative History. S. 6046, Public Law 822 in the 71st Congress. S. Rept. No. 1576. H.R. Rept. No. 2669. 488 SECOND DEFICIENCY APPROPRIATION ACT FOR 1931 [Extract from] An act making appropriations to supply deficiencies in certain appropriations for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1931, and prior fiscal years, to provide supplemental appropriations for the fiscal years ending June 30, 1931, and June 30, 1932, and for other purposes. (Act of March 4, 1931, ch. 522, 46 Stat. 1552) [North Platte project power transmission lines.]-North Platte project, Nebraska-Wyoming: For the purpose of enabling the Secretary of the Interior to construct rural trunk transmission lines, including necessary transformers, into farm settlements, communities, and municipalities within the North Platte irrigation project, the inhabitants of which are able to finance feeder or distribution systems and to guarantee to the power system a fair measure of profit, not to exceed $30,000 shall be available from the power revenues of the Lingle and Guernsey power plants, North Platte irrigation project. (46 Stat. 1569) EXPLANATORY NOTES Not Codified. The extract of this Act shown here is not codified in the U.S. Code. Legislative History. H.R. 17163, Public Law 869 in the 71st Congress. H.R. Rept. No. 2712. S. Rept. No. 1743. H.R. Rept. No. 2925 and H.R. Rept. No. 2943 (conference reports). 489 SMITH MEMORIAL TABLET AT ELEPHANT BUTTE DAM An act authorizing the William Robert Smith Memorial Association of El Paso, Texas, to construct a memorial in honor of William Robert Smith, former Member of Congress from the Sixteenth District of Texas. (Act of February 23, 1932, ch. 53, 47 Stat. 53) [Tablet authorized to be constructed without cost to United States.]-The William Robert Smith Memorial Association of El Paso, Texas, is hereby authorized to construct without cost to the United States a memorial tablet at or near the site of Elephant Butte Dam, New Mexico, in honor of the work of William Robert Smith, former Member of Congress from the Sixteenth District of Texas, in behalf of the Elephant Butte project and of irrigation in the Southwest. (47 Stat. 53) EXPLANATORY NOTES Not Codified. This Act is not codified in the U.S. Code. Legislative History. S. 2286, Public Law 40 in the 72nd Congress. S. Rept. No. 89. H.R. Rept. No. 271. 267-067-72—vol. I—34 490 MORATORIUM ON CONSTRUCTION CHARGES FOR 1931 AND 1932 An act for the temporary relief of water users on irrigation projects constructed and operated under the reclamation law. (Act of April 1, 1932, ch. 95, 47 Stat. 75) [Sec. 1. Construction charges for 1931 suspended; for 1932, 50 percent of amount payable suspended-Interest and penalty-Rate for sale of power, season of 1931.]-Any irrigation district, water-users' association, or other waterusers organization under contract with the United States for payment of construction charges under the act of June 17, 1902 (32 Stat. 388), or acts amendatory thereof or supplementary thereto, including the act of February 21, 1911 (36 Stat. 925) (upon acceptance of this act by resolution of its board of directors or corresponding body), shall be required to make no payment on the regular construction charge for the calendar year 1931, and in lieu of the regular installment of construction charge provided for under existing contracts, may pay for the calendar year 1932 on the basis of 50 per centum of the amount which, but for this act, would be payable under said contracts such amount to be computed and determined for that year in the manner provided in said contracts and the law applicable thereto. Interest and penalty as now provided by law and contracts for nonpayments when due shall apply on all charges for 1932 adjusted as herein authorized; and otherwise the deferred payments herein authorized shall bear interest until paid at such rate, and shall be paid at such times, as the Secretary of the Interior shall determine: Provided, That in determining the rate for the sale of power during the irrigation season of 1931 to irrigation districts from any power plant operated by the Bureau of Reclamation, interest on the cost of the power system shall not be included as an element, but interest at the rate of 22 per centum per annum shall be included as an element of such rate for the sale of power to such districts during the irrigation season of 1932: And provided further, That the payments for construction charges and interest payments on the cost of the power systems referred to in this Act shall not be deemed waived, but only deferred, and shall be paid as provided in this Act. (47 Stat. 75) EXPLANATORY NOTES Supplemental Provision: Interest on Deferred Payments. Section 1 of the Act of March 3, 1933, which appears herein in chronological order, provides that deferred charges under the Act of April 1, 1932, shall bear interest at the rate of 3 percent per annum, which shall be paid at the same time as the principal is paid. The Secretary originally had fixed the interest rate at 5 percent. C.L. 1995; Assistant Secretary Edwards Opinion, 54 I.D. 86 (1932). References in the Text. The Act of June 17, 1902 (32 Stat. 388), referred to in the text, is the Reclamation Act. The Act of February 21, 1911 (36 Stat. 925), also referred to in the text, is the Warren Act, which authorizes the Government to contract for impounding, storing and carrying water, and in cooperation with water users' associations, irrigation districts, etc., to construct and use reservoirs, canals, etc., when advantageous to the Government and the water users' associations, irrigation districts, and other entities. Both Acts appear herein in chronological order. MORATORIUM FOR 1931 AND 1932 Power revenues 1. Application NOTES OF OPINIONS Under its contract of October 23, 1918 with the United States, the Imperial irrigation district received the right to use the Laguna Dam constructed with the Yuma project, agreeing to pay therefor the sum of $1,600,000. The Department held that this was a construction charge to which the 1932 Relief Act is applicable. Letter from Secretary to Hon. L. W. Douglas, M.C., April 15, 1932. The Secretary is without legal authority to grant the request of the Westland irrigation district, McKay Reservoir, Umatilla project that the payment made by the district for water rental during 1931 be considered a construction charge payment made for 1931 within the meaning of section 1 of the 1932 Relief Act. Memorandum of July 15, 1932, to Commissioner, in re Westland District, Umatilla project. 2. Time of payment 491 of the cost of the project, and ruled that the deferred charges shall be paid over a term of 5 years after the last installment shall become due under the existing contract for furnishing electrical energy. Memorandum of July 25, 1932 to Commissioner. On June 1, 1933, the Salt River Valley Water Users' Association was notified that pursuant to the Acts of Congress of April 1, 1932 and March 3, 1933, and their acceptance of the provisions of these Acts by resolution dated April, 1, 1933, the Association's regular construction charges for the years 1931, 1932, and 1933 were extended to the years 1952, 1953 and 1954. 3. Power revenues Under the provisions of sections 1 and 8, there must be a determination of the new power revenues obtained by the Salt River Valley Water Users' Association from the operation of the power plants constructed by the United States and turned over to the association in 1917. If an estimate of net power revenues from the Governmentconstructed plants can be made that is satisfactory to the association and to the Secretary of the Interior, the extension can be granted. If this cannot be accomplished, the application must be rejected on the theory that the act involves conditions impossible of performance. Solicitor's Opinions, M-27184 (August 29, 1932). The Department denied the petition of the Gem irrigation district, Owyhee project, that the charges to be deferred under the act be set over for repayment at the end of the 40-year period provided in the contract of October 14, 1926, relative to repayment of the district's proportionate share Sec. 2. [Individuals granted same relief as organizations, where no organization on project.]—On projects or divisions of projects where no irrigation district, water-users' association, or other water-users' organization has assumed joint obligation for payment of construction charges individual water-right applicants or entrymen upon acceptance of this act in a manner satisfactory to the Secretary of the Interior, shall be required to make no payment on the regular construction charge for the calendar year 1931, and in lieu of the installments payable under existing contracts, may pay their regular installments of construction charges for the calendar year 1932 on the same basis as that authorized in section 1 hereof for districts, associations, and other water-users' organizations. (47 Stat. 76) 1. Nonconsenting landowners NOTE OF OPINION The benefits of the 1932 moratorium act should be extended to nonconsenting landowners and entrymen, such as those on the Garland division of the Shoshone project, who elect to remain under their individual water-right applications rather than consenting to the contract with the irrigation district. Solicitor Finney Opinion, 54 I.D. 13 (1932). Sec. 3. [Uncompahgre project relief act of 1931, and Grand Valley project 1931 act relating to development of power amended.]-The act of Congress approved January 31, 1931, entitled “An act for the relief of the Uncompahgre |