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Hydropower Policy Modernization Act of 2017
(Sec. 2) This bill designates the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) as the lead agency for coordinating all federal authorizations and reviews related to hydropower license applications, including compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969. FERC must establish a process to set a schedule for the review and disposition of each federal authorization following the filing of an application for a license.
The bill expands the definition of "renewable energy" to include electric energy generated from hydropower projects. The bill authorizes FERC to extend the length of time of preliminary permits and to extend the time limit that a licensee has to commence construction on a hydropower project.
(Sec. 3) The bill authorizes the use of trial-type hearings to resolve disputes related to a hydropower license application. Under certain circumstances, the hearing may be demanded by applicants or other parties for any disputed issues of material fact.
FERC must consult with federal and state agencies and the public to compile best practices for performing studies and environmental reviews in connection with the timely and efficient completion of hydropower license proceedings.
The bill creates a process to approve license amendments for qualifying hydropower projects.
(Sec. 5) The Department of Commerce and the Department of the Interior must consider the threat of invasive species when prescribing a fishway. (Fishways are structures placed on or around constructed barriers to give fish the opportunity to migrate.)
(Sec. 6) FERC may examine the license for any project that is located in an area that was declared to be a disaster area in 2017.
Written by the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service, describing H.R. 3043 as passed House amended on Nov 8, 2017. It is not the text of the measure; a later amendment may have changed what it does.
Nov 8, 2017Each bar: ✓ Yea from the bottom, ✕ Nay aboveNov 8, 2017
House Nov 8, 2017 · the primary vote
Hydropower Policy Modernization Act of 2017
Passed
257 Yea 166 Nay 9 not voting
Party-line vote 29 of 423 voting members broke with their own party: 26 Democrats, 3 Republicans.
DemocratsRepublicansFilled: YeaRing: NayGrey: not voting or present
432 members on this roll call, from the official House record. Party majorities need at least five voting members, so an independent never counts as breaking with a party.
Organizations that named H.R. 3043 in a lobbying disclosure. Only those that cited the bill by number appear, so this is a floor, not a full list.
260 disclosures name this measure. Retrieved from LDA.gov on 2026-10-05. Senate Office of Public Records cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from LDA.gov.