H.R. 726 — Crow Tribe Water Rights Settlement Amendments Act of 2025

This section amends the Crow Tribe Water Rights Settlement Act of 2010 (P.L. 111-291) as follows: (1) revises definitions in Section 403 to redefine "MR&I Project" as activities specified in Section 411(e)(3)(F) and replace references to "MR&I System" with "MR&I Projects" in paragraph (12); (2) repeals Section 406 on the MR&I System and makes a conforming change to the table of contents; (3) amends Section 411 (Crow Settlement Fund) to revise fund management and distribution, update cross-references, add an MR&I Projects Account in subsection (c)(5) for post-2025 appropriations and specified deposits to prioritize tribal water infrastructure (i.e., production, treatment, delivery, wastewater) and compliance with environmental laws—with remaining funds usable for on-reservation land purchases with water rights after Secretary notice—and specify tribal title to infrastructure with no federal obligation for operation, maintenance, or replacement; (4) redesignates Sections 412-416 as 413-417 and inserts new Section 412 to establish the Crow CIP Implementation Account as a non-trust account for post-2025 appropriations and specified deposits, plus interest, to carry out Section 405 (Crow Irrigation Project improvements); (5) extends from 15 years to 20 years the mitigation period for impacts on Yellowtail Dam, Montana, in Section 413(b)(1); and (6) amends Section 415 (Funding) to replace "System" with "Projects" and revise subsection (h) on joint signature accounts. (As background, the 2010 Act ratified the Crow Tribe's water rights settlement in Montana, providing $286 million in federal funds for water infrastructure, irrigation, and mitigation.)