Colorado Ute Indian Water Rights Settlement Act

To supply municipal and industrial water supply to the Ute Mountain Ute, Southern Ute Indian Tribe, the Navajo Nation and non-Tribal participants from the Animas-La Plata Project in settlement of water rights claims for the Tribes, and also fulfill other project activities that may be required as a result of the construction, such as relocation of roads and moving powerlines. To complete construction of a reconfigured Animas-La Plata Project, consisting of facilities to divert and store water from the Animas River to provide for an average annual depletion of 57,100 acre-feet of water, to be used for municipal and industrial water supply only, for the Ute Mountain Ute and Southern Ute Indian Tribes, and other tribal and non-tribal entities in the Four Corners Region of the United States. Also, to supply 4,680 acre-feet per year to the Navajo Nation through a pipeline from Farmington to Shiprock, NM.

Federally Recognized Indian Tribal Government - Projects shall be subject to the provisions of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (ii Stat. 2203; 25 U.S.C. 450 et seq.) to the same extent as if such functions were performed by the Bureau of Indian Affairs; and for projects not awarded subject to Public Law 93-638: State, local, Federally recognized Indian Tribal governments, small businesses, individuals, and profit organizations.

Federally recognized Indian Tribal Government members and the general public in southwestern Colorado and northwestern New Mexico.

The Bureau of Reclamation is required by Public Law 100-585 to use Public Law 93-638 procedures to contract for construction of the Animas-La Plata Project with the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe and the Southern Ute Indian Tribe. Construction contracts for estimated quantities and with firm fixed unit pricing are issued to accomplish the work. For projects under this program that are not required to be awarded subject to Public Law 93-638, funding opportunity announcements, along with registration procedures, application packages and instructions, SF-424 forms and any other forms to be used to submit application information, points of contact, and procedures for submitting applications will be available on http://www.grants.gov.

An initial statement of work is issued to the Tribe for review and pricing by the Contract Specialist. The Tribe reviews the initial statement of work, and submits aproposal with an estimate for completion of the work. The proposal with cost estimate is evaluated by the Government Technical Team, the Government Cost & Price Analyst, Contract Specialist, Contract Administrator, and Contracting Officer. Negotiations are held on the various elements until an agreement is reached and an award is then made. For projects not awarded subject to Public Law 93-638, all applications will be initially screened for eligibility and compliance with the requirements stated in the program funding announcement. Applications passing this screening process will be forwarded for review by a proposal evaluation panel comprised of qualified experts in the program area. Applications will be reviewed against the proposal evaluation criteria, and any additional review factors, as stated in the funding announcement. Final selection will be determined by the Commissioner, Bureau of Reclamation, or regional officials, as applicable to the project.

Varies depending on the type and complexity of the project. Further information will be available for each specific project at the time the funding opportunity announcement is posted on www.grants.gov and may be obtained by contacting the Reclamation personnel listed as the point of contact in the funding announcement.