WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Ranking Member of the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Subcommittee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-CA), introduced legislation to reauthorize the National Dam Safety Program (NDSP). The program is the primary source of federal support for dam safety programs managed at the state level.

The NDSP, led by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, provides critical grants to state dam safety agencies. These grants support state programs with resources for training, emergency planning, and inspection and monitoring activities for the nation’s 92,000 dams. Through NDSP, the North Dakota State Dam Safety Program has received an average annual grant of $120,000 over the past four years to help carry out its activities.

“Dams are an essential component of our nation’s infrastructure and states need adequate support to oversee their management,” said Senator Cramer.“North Dakota is responsible for over 3,000 dams, and reauthorizing this program will provide critical resources to our state for dam safety inspections, monitoring, and emergency planning efforts.”

“As climate change increases the risks of extreme flooding and threatens our nation’s water infrastructure, we cannot afford to go backward in our commitment to address dam safety,” said Senator Padilla. “Of California’s 1,530 dams, more than 800 are classified as High Hazard Potential. Without consistent maintenance and repair, these dams and thousands of dams across the country will be at risk of failure, jeopardizing lives. We urgently need to reauthorize the National Dam Safety Program so we can keep our nation’s dams up-to-date and help disadvantaged communities invest in necessary infrastructure repairs.”

“North Dakota’s dam infrastructure is safer and more resilient because of the National Dam Safety Program, in particular the State Assistance Grant. The State Assistance Grant helps train dam safety team members to the current state of effective dam safety practice. It also helps fund state dam safety projects that enhance public safety and increase infrastructure resilience,” said Andrea Travnicek, North Dakota Department of Water Resources Director. “Thanks to the State Assistance Grant, the North Dakota Department of Water Resources (DWR) is in the final stages of a comprehensive update to the state’s almost 40-year-old Dam Safety Standards, which are vital for managing and designing the state’s dam infrastructure. With stakeholder cooperation, the State Assistance Grant enabled DWR to reimagine and develop reasonable state of the practice standards.”

“On behalf of ASDSO, I want to thank Senators Kevin Cramer and Alex Padilla for supporting the need for strong dam safety programs. Reauthorization of this important program will continue federal leadership and needed funding support to reduce the risks associated with dam failure. We encourage Congress to support proposed improvements to the law which will make it more effective across all states,” said Sharon Tapia, P.E., president, Association of State Dam Safety Officials (ASDSO).

“The nation’s 92,000 dams have suffered from decades of deferred maintenance and chronic underfunding, threatening the safety of the communities which they serve,” said Maria Lehman, 2023 President of American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE). “Recent seasons of record flooding and increasing development downstream of rural dams have not helped. The introduction of the bipartisan National Dam Safety Program Reauthorization Act is an important step to ensuring states have what they need to monitor the thousands of dams in their communities. This program assists states with the vital resources needed to support inspections and monitoring, staffing and training needs, and emergency planning. ASCE commends Senator Padilla, Senator Cramer, Congressman Edwards, and Congresswoman Kuster for their leadership on this issue, and encourages Congress to pass this needed legislation quickly to help ensure the safety of the nation’s dams.”

Additional cosponsors include U.S. Senators Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Gary Peters (D-MI), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Michael Bennet (D-CO), Pete Ricketts (R-NE), John Boozman (R-AR), Thom Tillis (R-NC), Steve Daines (R-MT) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK).

Click here to read the bill.