This bill creates two dedicated funding streams within the Indian Water Rights Settlement Completion Fund to help fulfill the federal government's long-standing obligations to Native American tribes regarding water rights. The first subaccount will receive $45 million annually from 2026 through 2035 to support operations, maintenance, and repairs for existing water settlements involving tribes including the Ak-Chin Indian Community, Ute tribes, and the Hualapai Tribe. The second subaccount will receive $250 million annually during the same ten-year period to fund new water rights settlements and complete ongoing settlement agreements, with the Secretary of the Interior having discretion to determine how and when to distribute these funds. The bill also extends customs user fees through September 2035 to help offset the cost of these water settlement obligations. Overall, the legislation allocates approximately $2.95 billion over a decade to address various Indian water rights settlements that have been authorized by Congress.
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