Acequia Communities Empowered by Qualifying Upgrades for Infrastructure Act
This bill, titled the Acequia Communities Empowered by Qualifying Upgrades for Infrastructure Act, aims to strengthen drought protections and infrastructure support for communities that rely on acequias (traditional community irrigation ditches). It expands eligibility for the USDA’s noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP) to include acequia-based producers, so they can receive disaster assistance for losses caused by drought and related conditions. It also reduces regulatory barriers by exempting routine maintenance and minor upgrades of acequias on federal land from needing a special use permit. Finally, it requires a Department of Agriculture report within two years detailing the scope of acequia reliance, the amount of NAP assistance provided, access to other USDA programs, and existing or planned USDA initiatives for acequia-based producers. In short, the bill codifies drought disaster protections for acequia-dependent producers, streamlines government permitting for essential acequia maintenance on federal lands, and improves transparency through an official reporting requirement.
Key Points
- 1Expands drought/disaster protections for acequia producers
- 2- Amends the noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP) to ensure that acequia-based producers can receive assistance for all losses caused by the drought-related event described in current law.
- 3Access to NAP for acequias
- 4- Specifically adds acequia systems to the group of producers eligible for NAP disaster assistance, ensuring coverage for losses tied to drought and related causes.
- 5Special use permits not required for routine acequia work on federal land
- 6- Exempts acequias from needing special use permits for routine maintenance and minor improvements on federal land, provided the activities are within defined limits and agreed in writing by the Secretary concerned and the acequia governing body.
- 7- Routine tasks include cleaning, maintaining or repairing infrastructure, annual ditch cleaning, and other traditional activities that preserve the acequia.
- 8Clear definitions and governance references
- 9- Uses New Mexico statute language to define “acequia” and “community user,” and designates the “Secretary concerned” as either the Secretary of Agriculture or the Secretary of the Interior, depending on land jurisdiction.
- 10Department of Agriculture reporting requirement
- 11- Within two years of enactment, USDA must report to Congress on: (a) the number of acequia-dependent producers and their drought vulnerability; (b) the amount of NAP assistance provided to acequia-related producers (by county); (c) the accessibility of FSA and NRCS programs for acequia-based producers; and (d) any USDA programs or initiatives targeted at acequia systems or similar infrastructure.