Bill funds water projects in western states with federal grants.

What it does

The MORE WATER Act gives $1.7 billion in federal money to western states. Funding runs from 2028 to 2032 for water projects. Projects include water recycling, pipes to move water, and habitat restoration. States and local groups must pay for half the cost. The bill stops funding old Bureau of Reclamation projects. Projects must have received money within the last 8 years.

Who it affects

Water districts, cities, towns, and communities in western states can apply. Low-income communities needing safe drinking water can benefit. Irrigation districts and water companies are likely to receive most funding.

One thing to notice

Most money goes to water supply projects for farms and cities. Less money goes to drinking water for low-income areas.

From the analysis of the bill text, linked under Primary records below.

Where it stands

• Jan 29, 2026 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in Senate”
• Jan 29, 2026 — Referred to Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources · Congress.gov: “Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.”
• Mar 17, 2026 — Hearing held · Congress.gov: “Committee on Energy and Natural Resources Subcommittee on Water and Power. Hearings held”
• Jul 29, 2026 — Reported out of committee · Congress.gov: “Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Ordered to be reported with an amendment in the nature of a…”

Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.

Money around this bill

6 groups reported lobbying about this bill. They filed 7 reports from Mar 2026 to Jun 2026.

Those reports show $550,000 in lobbying spending. Each report lists about 14 bills. So that money was not all for this bill.

More groups named this bill than 82% of bills with any report.

Alex Padilla, who sponsored the bill, received $175,500 from PACs for the 2026 election.

• Association of California Water Agencies — $250,000 in 2 reports
• Metropolitan Water District of Southern California — $190,000 in 1 report
• Eastern Municipal Water District — $50,000 in 1 report
• City of Sacramento — $20,000 in 1 report
• Los Angeles County Sanitation District — $20,000 in 1 report

Lobbying is legal. These reports show who lobbied about this bill, not what changed.

Words to know

• federal grants — Money from the U.S. government that does not have to be paid back.
• Bureau of Reclamation — A U.S. government agency that manages water and dams in western states.
• irrigation districts — Local groups that bring water to farms and agricultural land.
• habitat restoration — Work to fix and protect wild places where animals and plants live.
• lobbying — Trying to influence lawmakers about a bill. Companies and groups pay people to do this.
• PACs — Groups that collect money and give it to candidates for office.