To direct the Secretary of the Interior to allow for prepayment of repayment contracts between the United States and the Uintah Water Conservancy District.

I rise in support of H.R. 818, which would direct the Secretary of the Interior to allow for the prepayment of repayment contracts between the United States and the Uintah Water Conservancy District.

I would very much like to thank Chairmen Hastings and McClintock and Ranking Members Markey and Napolitano for their support in moving this bill through the Natural Resources Committee.

This is a commonsense bill that encourages and promotes fiscal responsibility at all levels of government. Allowing the Uintah Water Conservancy District to pay its debt obligations back early and in a timely manner is what we like to call a ``win-win'' in that it's finally beneficial to the local government and Federal Government alike.

It provides local government the ability to responsibly self-govern, giving it the flexibility to pay its loan off early and save hundreds of thousands of dollars in future interest payments. This savings will result in lower costs to the water users, which is very important as we continue to grow out of the current economic recession and look for additional ways to support much needed economic development in rural communities. Likewise, allowing for prepayment results in a significant payment to the Federal Treasury.

As Congress continues to look for ways to trim the Federal budget and encourage best practices and good government policies, allowing for prepayment is a good model to follow. In addition, I believe this legislation provides a good opportunity to help rural communities prioritize and implement best practices to utilize scarce resources in an effort to meet rural water demands in a cost-effective and fiscally responsible manner.

I would also like to point out that there is precedence for allowing the prepayment of repayment contracts. H.R. 818 is similar to legislation used by the Central Utah Water Conservancy District, which allowed for the prepayment of the repayment contracts for the Bonneville Unit. This effort saved hundreds of thousands in taxpayer dollars and allowed for project managers to consider time and cost savings through a balanced approach to managing an important resource in my State.

H.R. 818 is the same bill that passed the House unanimously in the 111th Congress. It has also in this Congress been reintroduced in the Senate by my counterparts in the Utah delegation, Senators Hatch and Lee. I urge my colleagues to join me in passing this bill once again.

I yield myself such time as I may consume.

(Mrs. NAPOLITANO asked and was given permission to revise and extend her remarks.)

Mr. Speaker, H.R. 818, sponsored by our friend and colleague Congressman Matheson, would allow the Uintah Water Conservancy District of Uintah County, Utah, to prepay--that means to pay ahead of time for anybody who really understands the prepay--the debt owed to the Federal Government for the construction of the Jensen Unit.

At a time when our country is watching our dollars and cents, H.R. 818 is legislation that does make very credible sense. The water district would have the option to pay its loan early--what a novel concept--and translate the interest savings into lower rates for its customers--again, quite an interesting concept. The Federal Government, in turn, would benefit from the accelerated repayment of the debt to the Treasury and be able to use that for debt reduction or whatever else is needed.

I do commend Congressman Matheson of Utah for his efforts in moving this legislation. Identical legislation passed the House unanimously in the 111th Congress, so I ask my colleagues to support this bill.

With that, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Utah (Mr. Matheson).

As I have no further requests for time, I would urge my colleagues to vote for this very important piece of legislation.

I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 818) to direct the Secretary of the Interior to allow for prepayment of repayment contracts between the United States and the Uintah Water Conservancy District.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous materials on the bill under consideration.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

H.R. 818 would allow a local water district in Utah to prepay its loan obligations to the Federal Government. Prepayment can benefit local water utilities because it relieves them of interest costs and some regulatory burdens.

This concept is similar to giving a family an option to prepay its mortgage and to save compounded interest cost. It's also in the best interest of the American taxpayer since it will facilitate the revenues to the U.S. Treasury.

I urge adoption of this measure, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent the Senate proceed to Calendar No. 211.

I ask unanimous consent the bill be read a third time, passed, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, with no intervening action or debate, and any statements be printed in the Record.