Rep. Joe Heck’s files first bill, on power generated at Hoover Dam

By Karoun Demirjian

Thursday, Jan. 27, 2011 | 8:54 a.m.

Nevada’s newest House representative Joe Heck filed his first bill Wednesday: a measure to expand the reach of hydroelectric power generated at Hoover Dam.

Built in the 1930s, the Hoover Dam was once the country’s most ambitious experiment with water-powered electricity. Now it’s the country's sixth-largest hydroelectric power-producing facility, supplying electricity to parts of Nevada, Arizona and California under the guidance of the Hoover Power Plant Act of 1984. Contracts for the sale of electricity produced at the dam expire in 2017.

Heck’s bill, HR 470, would renew the general Hoover power contract for another 50 years, starting in 2017, but add in a new requirement that recipients contribute 5 percent of the power they’re allocated to a pool that would then be distributed to federally recognized Native American tribes, irrigation districts, rural electric cooperatives, military installations, and other eligible entities.

It’s an effort that was spearheaded last Congress by California Congresswoman Grace Napolitano, a Democrat, who is a co-sponsor of Heck’s bill.

“This bipartisan bill ensures Nevada’s businesses and individuals have a reliable and clean energy source for years to come,” Heck said. “Congresswoman Napolitano and her staff deserve tremendous credit for the work they put into this legislation last year, and I look forward to working with her again soon.”