Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2026
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Would provide FY2026 appropriations totaling well over $60 billion for Army Corps of Engineers civil works projects, Bureau of Reclamation water programs, Department of Energy activities (including nuclear weapons, scientific research, and energy programs), and related independent agencies such as FERC and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
The bill also redirects roughly $5.1 billion in unobligated Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act funds toward nuclear energy programs, and includes policy riders banning DEI initiatives, restricting Strategic Petroleum Reserve oil sales linked to China, blocking a DOE clean-energy building rule, and prohibiting COVID-19 mask or vaccine mandates.
What this bill would do
What it would do
The bill would fund energy and water development programs for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2026. For the Army Corps of Engineers, it would provide $2.56 billion for construction, $6.14 billion for operation and maintenance, and $490 million for Mississippi River and Tributaries flood control. For the Bureau of Reclamation, it would provide $1.71 billion for water and related resources. For the Department of Energy, major lines include $8.4 billion for science, $20.66 billion for nuclear weapons activities through the National Nuclear Security Administration, $6.52 billion for defense environmental cleanup, $1.83 billion for energy efficiency and renewable energy, $1.8 billion for nuclear energy, and $687.5 million for fossil energy research. It would fund FERC and the NRC largely through fee offsets.
Beyond appropriations, the bill would transfer roughly $5.1 billion in unobligated Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act balances into nuclear energy programs, primarily for advanced reactor and small modular reactor deployment. General provisions would prohibit using funds for DEI programs or Critical Race Theory, block sales of Strategic Petroleum Reserve oil to Chinese Communist Party-controlled entities, bar DOE from enforcing a 2024 clean-energy rule for federal buildings, and restrict new consolidated interim storage of spent nuclear fuel without host-state consent.
Key provisions
- 1Would appropriate $2.56 billion for Army Corps of Engineers construction and $6.14 billion for operation and maintenance of river, harbor, flood-control, and ecosystem projects.
- 2Would appropriate $1.71 billion to the Bureau of Reclamation for water and related natural resources management, including Native American and state partnerships.
- 3Would appropriate $20.66 billion for NNSA nuclear weapons activities and $1.99 billion for defense nuclear nonproliferation programs.
- 4Would transfer roughly $5.1 billion in unobligated Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act balances from renewable energy, fossil energy, and related programs into DOE nuclear energy accounts for advanced reactor and small modular reactor deployment.
- 5Would prohibit using SPR petroleum products to sell to any entity under Chinese Communist Party control or for export to the People's Republic of China.
- 6Would ban the use of any funds in the Act for DEI initiatives, training, offices, or programs, and prohibit activities promoting Critical Race Theory.
- 7Would block DOE from enforcing its May 2024 final rule requiring clean energy standards for new and renovated federal buildings.
Who would be affected
Federal agencies receiving appropriations — especially the Department of Energy (including the National Nuclear Security Administration), Army Corps of Engineers, and Bureau of Reclamation — along with states, municipalities, and tribes that rely on Corps water projects or Bureau of Reclamation infrastructure. Energy researchers, universities, and contractors receiving DOE grants or loan guarantees would be affected, as would utilities regulated by FERC and nuclear operators overseen by the NRC. Regional economic commissions serving Appalachia, the Delta, and other areas would also be funded.
Why it matters
The bill sets the operating budgets for programs managing nuclear weapons, flood control, western water supply, and energy research for an entire fiscal year. The $5.1 billion redirection of unobligated IIJA funds toward nuclear energy programs represents a significant policy shift away from the original clean-energy and fossil programs those funds were designated for. Policy riders on DEI, China, COVID mandates, and the DOE clean-energy buildings rule make the bill a vehicle for a range of non-appropriations policy changes that would take effect on enactment.
What would change
Changes to existing law
Amends Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation Act (Public Law 114-322) (Sec. 203)
Extends a key expiration date from 2021 to 2027 and updates a program expiration to December 16, 2034.
Amends Reclamation Wastewater and Groundwater Study and Facilities Act (43 U.S.C. 390h) (Sec. 203)
Raises the program authorization cap from $50,000,000 to $177,500,000.
Amends Water Desalination Act of 1996 (Public Law 104-298) (Sec. 203)
Increases an authorization ceiling from $30,000,000 to $106,500,000.
Amends Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009, Section 9504(e) (42 U.S.C. 10364(e)) (Sec. 204)
Raises the WaterSMART program authorization from $920,000,000 to $1,000,000,000.
Amends Calfed Bay-Delta Authorization Act (Public Law 108-361) (Sec. 205)
Extends authorization through 2026 and raises one funding limit from $30,000,000 to $35,000,000.
Amends Reclamation States Emergency Drought Relief Act of 1991 (43 U.S.C. 2241) (Sec. 207)
Increases the program authorization ceiling from $120,000,000 to $130,000,000.
Amends Water Resources Development Act of 1992 (33 U.S.C. 2328) (Sec. 511)
Expands the permissible use of recreation fees to any facility at the civil works project, not just the specific site where collected.
Agencies directed to act
Effective dates
- All appropriations for energy and water programs take effect
- Secretary of Army must submit baseline reprogramming report to Congress
- Bureau of Reclamation first quarterly reprogramming report due
- IIJA unobligated balance transfers to nuclear energy accounts
Funding and costs
- $2,555,000,000
Army Corps of Engineers construction of river, harbor, flood-control, and ecosystem projects
- $6,140,000,000
Army Corps of Engineers operation and maintenance of existing civil works projects
- $490,000,000
Mississippi River and Tributaries flood damage reduction projects
- $1,710,630,000
Bureau of Reclamation water and related natural resources management
- $1,830,000,000
DOE energy efficiency and renewable energy activities
- $1,795,000,000
DOE nuclear energy activities
- $8,400,000,000
DOE science programs and research facilities
- $20,661,993,000
NNSA nuclear weapons activities
- $6,521,396,000
DOE defense environmental cleanup at atomic energy sites
- $350,000,000
Advanced Research Projects Agency–Energy (ARPA-E) activities
- $150,000,000
Loan guarantee costs for small modular reactor and advanced nuclear reactor construction
- $952,700,000
Nuclear Regulatory Commission salaries and expenses
How implementation would work
Spending levels are locked to a detailed report accompanying the Act; agencies must seek prior congressional approval before reprogramming above defined thresholds. DOE must notify appropriations committees at least three business days before making grants or contracts of $1 million or more and obtain 30-day prior approval for reprogrammings exceeding $5 million or 10 percent of a program line. The Corps and Bureau of Reclamation must submit quarterly reprogramming reports. The NRC submits monthly budget status reports. The $5.1 billion IIJA transfer in Sec. 313 is self-executing on enactment. Most policy riders are self-executing prohibitions on agency action.
Legislative status & sources
Latest action
Read the second time. Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 156.
Official CRS summary
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This bill provides FY2026 appropriations for U.S. Army Corps of Engineers civil works projects, the Department of the Interior's Bureau of Reclamation, the Department of Energy (DOE), and several independent agencies.
The bill provides appropriations for U.S. Army Corps of Engineers civil works projects, including for
- Investigations,
- Construction,
- Mississippi River and Tributaries,
- Operation and Maintenance,
- the Regulatory Program,
- Flood Control and Coastal Emergencies,
- Expenses,
- the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works, and
- the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Program.
The bill provides appropriations to the Department of the Interior for the Central Utah Project and the Bureau of Reclamation.
The bill provides appropriations to DOE for energy programs, including
- Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy;
- Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response;
- Electricity;
- Grid Deployment;
- Nuclear Energy;
- Fossil Energy;
- Naval Petroleum and Oil Shale Reserves;
- the Strategic Petroleum Reserve;
- the Northeast Home Heating Oil Reserve;
- the Energy Information Administration;
- Non-Defense Environmental Cleanup;
- the Uranium Enrichment Decontamination and Decommissioning Fund;
- Science;
- Nuclear Waste Disposal;
- the Advanced Research Projects Agency—Energy;
- the Title 17 Innovative Technology Loan Guarantee Program;
- the Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing Loan Program;
- the Tribal Energy Loan Guarantee Program;
- Indian Energy Policy and Programs;
- Departmental Administration; and
- the Office of the Inspector General.
The bill also provides appropriations to DOE for
- Atomic Energy Defense Activities of the National Nuclear Security Administration,
- Environmental and Other Defense Activities, and
- the Power Marketing Administrations.
The bill provides appropriations to several independent agencies, including the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
The bill also sets forth requirements and restrictions for using funds provided by this and other appropriations acts.
Legislative subjects
Administrative law and regulatory procedures; Advanced technology and technological innovations; Alabama; Alaska; Alternative and renewable resources; Appalachian Regional Commission; Appropriations; Aquatic ecology; Arizona; Arkansas; Arms control and nonproliferation; Army Corps of Engineers; California; Coal; Colorado; Computer security and identity theft; Congressional oversight; Dams and canals; Delta Regional Authority; Denali Commission; Department of Energy; Department of the Interior; Disaster relief and insurance; Economic development; Economics and Public Finance; Electric power generation and transmission; Emergency planning and evacuation; Energy efficiency and conservation; Energy research; Energy storage, supplies, demand; Executive agency funding and structure; Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC); Federal-Indian relations; Floods and storm protection; Florida; Georgia; Government buildings, facilities, and property; Government lending and loan guarantees; Government studies and investigations; Government trust funds; Great Lakes; Hazardous wastes and toxic substances; Hybrid, electric, and advanced technology vehicles; Illinois; Infrastructure development; Kentucky; Lakes and rivers; Land transfers; Land use and conservation; Licensing and registrations; Lighting, heating, cooling; Louisiana; Maine; Marine and coastal resources, fisheries; Marketing and advertising; Maryland; Mississippi; Mississippi River; Missouri; Motor vehicles; Natural disasters; Navigation, waterways, harbors; New Hampshire; New Mexico; New York State; North Carolina; Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC); Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board; Nuclear power; Ohio; Oil and gas; Pennsylvania; Public contracts and procurement; Radioactive wastes and releases; Regional and metropolitan planning; Research administration and funding; Seashores and lakeshores; South Carolina; Strategic materials and reserves; Tennessee; Texas; User charges and fees; Utah; Vermont; Virginia; Water resources funding; West Virginia; Wetlands
Committee report
H. Rept. 119-213