Interior Cuts Red Tape to Speed Water Infrastructure in the West

WASHINGTON — The Department of the Interior today announced Secretary's Order 3446, which streamlines federally funded construction projects at Bureau of Reclamation facilities across the 17 Western states. The order reduces administrative burdens, cuts costs for water and power users and supports faster delivery of critical infrastructure across the West. 

The order directs Reclamation to work with local water and power partners to modify certain contracts and establish new contract terms that allow qualified partners to manage portions of the procurement process on some federally funded projects. This partner-led approach is designed to speed up project delivery and improve efficiency while maintaining federal oversight. 

"The Trump administration is focused on unleashing American infrastructure, cutting unnecessary red tape and lowering costs for families, farmers and communities," said Secretary Doug Burgum. "By empowering local partners and simplifying federal processes, we can deliver water and power projects faster to make life more affordable for American families while strengthening economic growth throughout the West." 

Reclamation will begin implementing the order immediately. One of the early efforts will be the B. F. Sisk Dam Raise and Reservoir Expansion in partnership with the San Luis and Delta Mendota Water Authority. Under the new model, the authority will conduct procurement for a significant part of the storage raise project during the upcoming construction period. The expansion will add 130,000 acre-feet of storage capacity to the 2 million acre-feet San Luis Reservoir, the largest off-stream reservoir in the United States. In addition, the order directs Reclamation to review key processes and programs, including cost-share programs, Reclamation guidelines, engineering design review procedures and environmental compliance, by engaging with stakeholders to identify process improvements and efficiencies. 

“In addition to speeding up project timelines and cutting costs for our customers and taxpayers, the order directs the Bureau of Reclamation to review many of its processes, manuals and guidelines to identify further operational efficiencies,” said Assistant Secretary for Water and Science Andrea Travnicek. “We’ve heard from many of our stakeholders that there are a multitude of ways to improve Reclamation’s customer service, and this order will help facilitate that in alignment with the goals of the Trump administration.” 

The order also launches a broader Interior effort to identify additional opportunities to reduce regulatory burdens across major Reclamation programs, including cost-share requirements, engineering design reviews and environmental compliance. As part of this work, Reclamation will consult with water and power users, tribal nations and other stakeholders to pinpoint changes that can shorten timelines and lower costs. Interior will also evaluate whether this partner-led contracting approach could strengthen project delivery in other bureaus, including the Bureau of Indian Affairs. 

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