Rural Water Supply Projects and Program

Since the 1980s, Congress has directed Reclamation to construct 13 rural water projects. Several have been completed, and as of 2025, Reclamation is funding seven Rural Water Projects in construction. These projects have their own statutory history and authorization pursuant to Congressional action. From 2006 to 2017, Reclamation implemented the Rural Water Supply Program pursuant to the Rural Water Supply Act of 2006, Public Law 109-451 (PDF - 69 KB). While that authority has since expired, Reclamation still has a robust construction program for authorized Rural Water Projects and can participate in general appraisal-level studies of new or expanded rural water projects under its existing authority

The Act, which expired in 2016, authorized Reclamation to establish a program to work with rural communities, including tribes, throughout the 17 western states to assess potable water supply needs and to identify options to address those needs through appraisal investigations and feasibility studies. Despite expiration of the programmatic authority, Reclamation has carried forward the work products during the program’s activity period to apply to authorized projects where appropriate.

Projects under construction today are described in Reclamation's Annual Budget Request (PDF - 8 MB)

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Rural Water Assessment Report

The Rural Water Supply Act of 2006 (Act) required that the Secretary of the Interior, in consultation with the Secretary of Agriculture, the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, the Director of the Indian Health Service, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development and the Secretary of the Army, to develop a comprehensive assessment of the status for the Bureau of Reclamation’s rural water projects and Reclamation’s plans for completing the design and construction of rural water supply projects that were individually authorized prior to enactment of P.L. 109-451. This Assessment also reports on how the Rural Water Supply Program will be carried out and coordinated with other Federal Programs that support the development and management of water supplies in rural communities in the 17 western States in order to maximize efficiency of the various programs and to leverage Federal and non-Federal funding to meet the shared goals of the programs.

Rural Water Assessment Report (PDF - 974 KB)

Public Law 109-451 (PDF - 69 KB)

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