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Witnesses urge Congress to strengthen watershed and dam rehabilitation programs under PL 566
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Summary
Dan Siebert and other witnesses told the subcommittee the Watershed Protection and Flood Prevention Act's programs are critical for flood prevention and water management and recommended increased funding, broader repair authority and reduced administrative barriers for rehabilitation of aging watershed structures.
Dan Siebert, a charter member and former executive director of the National Watershed Coalition, told the subcommittee that the watershed and flood prevention program administered by NRCS is an "often overlooked infrastructure program" that provides flood prevention, water quality protection and agricultural water management across the country.
Siebert described a national inventory of nearly 12,000 watershed structures and said many structures are past their design life. He noted the Watershed Protection and Flood Prevention Act (often referenced as Public Law 566) authorizes NRCS work with local sponsors to install watershed projects and the rehabilitation program created in 2000 addresses aging dams. "Many dams today are in a far different setting than when constructed," Siebert said, and he urged statutory and administrative changes to make it easier to repair structures that fall between routine maintenance and full rehabilitation thresholds.
Siebert recommended several changes he said would improve program delivery: increased funding, flexible authority to repair structures that do not meet full rehabilitation thresholds, state cost‑share authority for repairs, reduced regulatory and administrative barriers that lengthen project timelines, and statutory language to improve oversight and accountability. He emphasized the program's steady annual benefits: "The annual benefits these projects produce is over $2,000,000,000," and said about 48 million people benefit from watershed projects in their districts.
Members asked technical questions about how small watershed structures operate and whether removal or rehabilitation is appropriate; Siebert and others argued rehabilitation is typically correct because the structures reduce peak flows and protect downstream infrastructure.
Ending: The subcommittee signaled support for improvements and asked for additional details; no votes were held.
