H.R. 6279 — Urban Canal Modernization Act

This section revises definitions applicable to Bureau of Reclamation project facilities (i.e., components of federal reclamation projects excluding high- and significant-hazard dams)—including reordering paragraphs to place "extraordinary operation and maintenance work" (major nonrecurring maintenance exceeding 10% of a facility's annual operation and maintenance budget or $100,000) first, making minor grammatical corrections, and adding a new term "(8) urban canal of concern" for a transferred works canal reach (i.e., operated by a nonfederal entity under contract) whose failure risks more than 100 individuals or $5 million in property damage (or is classified as urban by a Reclamation office) and would result in loss of life and property, as determined by the Secretary of the Interior per inspection guidelines. The section further authorizes the Secretary or a transferred works operating entity—with the Secretary's concurrence—to perform extraordinary operation and maintenance work on an urban canal of concern deemed necessary, requiring the Secretary to provide nonreimbursable federal funds covering 35% of the entity's allocable share of total costs (with any additional federal advances repaid per existing law); such reimbursable funds also qualify as a nonfederal source for federal grant cost-sharing requirements.