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2026-07-06 10:51:44 -04:00

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LegalText 16 U.S.C. § 2203 Emergency watershed program us united_states_code code_section 16 CONSERVATION 42 EMERGENCY CONSERVATION PROGRAM 2203 16 U.S.C. § 2203 current 119-100 2026-06-26 official https://uscode.house.gov/download/releasepoints/us/pl/119/100/xml_usc16@119-100.zip /us/usc/t16/s2203 data/legal/raw/us/code/title-16/usc16.xml 47e95c2a6dc923e954cf7f534a285cb73869788db8f5e6548fda3b21d36d9d74 7be8950da5a93cac7c98e4576ce00340f2aba5e8e46d29915382c203c421d503 799e37cbf39f08b6dc39304436658ebc97d2ec3d61e8c9d394988fa510c3558c 2026-07-04 official
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16 U.S.C. § 2203 - Emergency watershed program

Text

(a) In general The Secretary is authorized to undertake emergency watershed protection measures, including the purchase of floodplain easements, for runoff retardation and soil-erosion prevention, in cooperation with landowners and land users, as the Secretary deems necessary to safeguard lives and property from floods, drought, and the products of erosion on any watershed whenever fire, flood, or any other natural occurrence is causing or has caused a sudden impairment of that watershed.

(b) Floodplain easements (1) Modification and termination The Secretary may modify or terminate a floodplain easement administered by the Secretary under this section if—

(A) the current owner agrees to the modification or termination; and

(B) the Secretary determines that the modification or termination—

(i) will address a compelling public need for which there is no practicable alternative; and

(ii) is in the public interest.

(2) Consideration (A) Termination As consideration for termination of an easement and associated agreements under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall enter into compensatory arrangements as determined to be appropriate by the Secretary.

(B) Modification In the case of a modification under paragraph (1)—

(i) as a condition of the modification, the current owner shall enter into a compensatory arrangement (as determined to be appropriate by the Secretary) to incur the costs of modification; and

(ii) the Secretary shall ensure that—

(I) the modification will not adversely affect the floodplain functions and values for which the easement was acquired;

(II) any adverse impacts will be mitigated by enrollment and restoration of other land that provides greater floodplain functions and values at no additional cost to the Federal Government; and

(III) the modification will result in equal or greater environmental and economic values to the United States.

(Pub. L. 95334, title IV, § 403, Aug. 4, 1978, 92 Stat. 434; Pub. L. 104127, title III, § 382, Apr. 4, 1996, 110 Stat. 1016; Pub. L. 11379, title II, § 2506, Feb. 7, 2014, 128 Stat. 752; Pub. L. 115334, title II, § 2403(a)(2)(A), (d), Dec. 20, 2018, 132 Stat. 4571, 4572.)

Notes

Editorial Notes

Amendments2018—Pub. L. 115334, § 2403(d)(1), substituted “Emergency watershed program” for “Emergency measures” in section catchline. Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 115334, § 2403(d)(2), inserted “watershed protection” after “emergency”. Pub. L. 115334, § 2403(a)(2)(A), substituted “The Secretary is” for “The Secretary of Agriculture is”. 2014—Pub. L. 11379 inserted section catchline, designated existing provisions as subsec. (a) and inserted heading, and added subsec. (b). 1996—Pub. L. 104127 inserted “, including the purchase of floodplain easements,” after “emergency measures”.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective DateSection effective Oct. 1, 1978, see section 406 of Pub. L. 95334, set out as a note under section 2201 of this title.

Disaster Assistance for Watershed Protection ActivitiesPub. L. 100387, title IV, § 402, as added Pub. L. 10182, title V, § 503, Aug. 14, 1989, 103 Stat. 586, authorized the Secretary of Agriculture to provide financial and technical disaster relief assistance in accordance with this section to repair damage caused by storms occurring in 1988 or 1989 to watersheds located in any county in any State, to the extent that funds authorized by this section remain available, with $25,000,000 appropriated for fiscal year 1990.