An Act to authorize and modify various Federal reclamation projects and programs, and for other purposes.
Public Law 94-228 · S. 151 · 94th Congress · began in the Senate
Signed by Gerald Ford (R) on Mar 11, 1976 · Water Resources Development
Sponsor: Sen. Clifford Hansen (R-WY)
Cosponsors (1): Sen. Gale McGee
Passage votes
- HouseMethod not stated
- SenateMethod not stated
Data notes
The final version of the law, as each chamber passed it. A chamber that passed it by voice vote or unanimous consent has no count. “Method not stated” means the record does not say how the chamber voted. Where the record has a member-by-member vote, the “Who voted for it” section shows who voted yea.
Summary
The Congressional Research Service’s plain-language summary of what the law does.
Reclamation Authorization Act - =Title I: Polecat Bench, Wyoming= - Reauthorizes as a part of the Pick-Sloan Missouri Basin program the Polecat Bench area of the Shoshone River. Directs the Secretary of the Interior to implement such inclusion into the program.
Requires that the development under this Act of the Polecat Bench area shall be in accordance with the Federal Water Project Recreation Act.
Provides for limiting of water application from the area for a period of ten years to exclude use by newly irrigated lands.
=Title II: Dickinson Dam, North Dakota= - Authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to modify the Dickinson Dam spillway on the Heart River in the State of North Dakota. Authorizes the construction of a new spillway.
Authorizes an amendatory repayment contract with the city of Dickinson, North Dakota for repayment of specified authorized work costs.
Authorizes the appropriation of $4,000,000 for works construction under this title.
=Title III: McKay Dam and Reservoir, Oregon= - Directs the Secretary of the Interior to reallocate costs of the Urvatilla project in the State of Oregon for the purpose of irrigation, flood control and recreation of McKay Dam and Reservoir in such State.
Authorizes the appropriation of $1,300,000 for the modification of McKay Dam for purpose of this title.
=Title IV: Pollock-Herreid Unit, South Dakota= - Authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to construct and operate the Pollock-Herreid unit, in the State of South Dakota, of the Pick-Sloan Missouri Basin program. Sets forth the principal works of such project.
Authorizes the appropriation of $26,000,000 for the works authorized under this title.
Committees
The committees the bill was sent to, and what each did with it.
Data notes
A committee links to its page only where it exists in the current Congress; older and renamed committees are named without a link.
Timeline
From introduction to signing, newest first: the committees, the floor and the president. 13 actions.
- Mar 11, 1976Became lawBecame law · Signed by President.
- PresidentPresident · Public law 94-228.
- Mar 1, 1976PresidentPresident · Measure presented to President.
- PresidentPresident · Measure enrolled in Senate.
- Feb 26, 1976PresidentPresident · Measure enrolled in House.
- Feb 25, 1976Resolving differencesResolving differences · Senate agreed to House amendments.
- Jan 20, 1976FloorFloor · Measure passed House, amended, in lieu of H.R. 10537.
- CommitteeCommittee · Discharged from House Natural Resources Committee
- Sep 3, 1975CommitteeCommittee · Referred to House Natural Resources Committee
- Aug 1, 1975FloorFloor · Measure passed Senate, amended.
- Jul 31, 1975CommitteeCommittee · Reported by Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee
- Jan 15, 1975CommitteeCommittee · Referred to Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee
- IntroducedIntroduced · Introduced in the Senate
Data notes
Shows the introduction, each committee and subcommittee step the source dates (referral, hearings, markup, report, discharge), and the floor, conference, presidential and became-law steps. Calendar placements, messages between the chambers, amendments and committee report numbers are not shown for laws before the 108th Congress. Two entries the source lists twice are shown once.
Official record
The bill’s full text and every action, including introduction and committee steps, are on Congress.gov. Data through Oct 7, 2026.