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$588,644.85 made to this committee 2 years ago. To match that amount on the recognized basis the Geological Survey would have required $580,991.86, but only $458,000 was available, a deficiency of $122,991.86. Many of the States accepted the uneven matching, but a few of the States, because of their legislation which restricted State contributions to the amounts of actual Federal contributions, necessarily held back some of their funds, to the amount of $13,142.70. The actual cooperative expenditures during the year thus were: Federal, $456,524.90: State and municipal, $577,976.63.

The total State funds offered in cooperation thus far in the fiscal year 1937 are $605,959.31, whereas the prediction of such offerings as presented to this committee a year ago was $596,845. To meet the offers for cooperation in 1937 (generally on the basis of equal allotments by the Federal Government, but in some instances on the basis of lesser Federal allotments in connection with cooperation with municipalities), and also to meet certain obligations carried over from last year, a total of $634,751.91 would be required. However, only $589,317 is available for this purpose out of the 1937 appropriation. The difference between the latter two items is $45,434.91, which is designated in the summary table as "Deficiency of Federal funds for meeting State cooperation."

It is estimated at this time that the State offers of cooperation in 1938 will amount to more than $633,000; the experience of the previous 2 years, cited above, shows that the actual offerings will probably prove to be larger than this preliminary estimate. The Federal funds required to meet offers of that amount on the recognized basis will be about $626,000. The budget estimate provides $600,000 to be used only for cooperation for 1938. Therefore, the estimated "Deficiency of Federal funds for meeting State cooperation" is shown in the table as about $26,000 for the fiscal year 1938.

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1 Corresponding State contribution is included in State amount for surface water investigations.

2 $577,976.63 was actual State expenditures. State offerings totaled $591,119.33, but because of deficiency in Federal funds certain States necessarily reduced their contributions, the total reduction being $13,142.70. Of this amount, a budget reserve of $17,300 has been set up.

NONCOOPERATIVE WORK

That part of the annual appropriation which is not specifically restricted to use in cooperation with States and municipalities is available for general noncooperative work. The amounts thus available or estimated for the fiscal years 1936, 1937, and 1938 have been indicated in table 1. For convenience of the committee this noncooperative work will be presented under three principal headings: (A) Federal river-measurement stations on Colorado River and tributaries; (B) other Federal river-measurement stations; and (C) miscellaneous Federal projects and Federal administration. The amounts allotted from the noncooperative funds under these three headings are summarized in the following table:

TABLE 3.-Principal uses of noncooperative funds

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(A) Federal river-measurement stations on Colorado River and tributaries.

(B) Other Federal river-measurement stations..

(C) Miscellaneous Federal projects and Federal administration..

Total.

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These allotments and uses of noncooperative funds may be analyzed in more detail as follows:

A. FEDERAL RIVER-MEASUREMENT STATIONS ON COLORADO RIVER AND TRIBUTARIES

The necessity for the establishment and operation of stations on the Colorado River and tributaries at Federal expense was recognized by the Congress in the Interior Department Appropriation Act for 1929 in which $50,000 was made available "For the operation and maintenance of the Lees Ferry, Ariz., gaging station and other base gaging stations in the Colorado River drainage". There was a change in the wording of the stream gaging item beginning with that for the fiscal year 1936, whereby specific reference to the Colorado River stations is omitted and the funds therefor are carried in the noncooperative part of the appropriation.

The 17 Colorado River gaging stations now being operated with the funds allotted under this heading include three new stations constructed (and prior to June 30, 1935, operated also) by means of Public Works funds. These three new stations are near Willow Beach and Parker, Ariz., and at Picacho, Calif. They were constructed at these sites from 10 to 250 miles below Boulder Dam Reservoir in order to determine the uses and channel losses of water below the reservoir, the quantities of water available at principal diversion points, and later the amounts of water diverted. The determinations of silt load and chemical composition of water at these three stations by comparison with the data obtained at the Grand Canyon station indicate the amount of silt deposited in the reservoir, the changes in chemical composition resulting from mixing and storage, and the rate of picking up a silt load in the channel below the reservoir. Continued operation of all of the 17 Colorado River stations is an imperative Federal need.

The distribution of funds under this heading in 1936, 1937, and 1938 is shown in the following table:

TABLE 4.-Federal stations on Colorado River and tributaries

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B. OTHER FEDERAL RIVER-MEASUREMENT STATIONS

The need for maintenance and operation of other Federal river measurement stations was recognized by the Congress by the inclusion in the appropriation act for 1932 of funds in the amount of $45,000 for the operation during the 9-month period, October 1931 to June 1932, of about 120 gaging stations selected from about 600 stations which the Geological Survey had established and operated for the Corps of Engineers in connection with their investigations and reports in conformity with House Document 308, Sixty-ninth Congress, first session. (See hearings on Interior Department appropriation bill, 1932, pp. 371-375.) Federal "Gaging streams" funds have been made available each year thereafter for continuing this group of gaging stations.

In connection with many public activities, especially those relating to developments in the Mississippi and Columbia River Basins, the need for additional records of river flow at places where such information was not available became imperative for the proper consideration of many Federal projects. As the appropriated funds were not sufficient to provide for any of the additional stations needed in connec tion with such projects or for the general studies being made by the National Resources Committee and other Federal agencies having to do with national riverdevelopment problems, Public Works funds were allocated or made available by transfer to the Geological Survey for the establishment, and for the operation during the fiscal years 1934 and 1935, of about 40 new Federal stations in the Mississippi River Basin, and 6 new stations in the Columbia River Basin. Those in the Columbia River Basin were installed at the request of the Corps of Engineers to provide for stream-flow information necessary for the present and future development of the Columbia River in Oregon and Washington. The Public Works funds thus made available were practically exhausted by July 1, 1935, as shown in Table No. 9. All these stations are of major importance to Federal projects in progress or under consideration. To meet the requirements of the situation satis factorily, as recommended by the various Federal agencies, it will be necessary to continue to operate on an adequate basis the Federal stations already established. There is a constant growing need that will apparently have to be met at some future date for the establishment and operation of additional Federal stations not possible of inclusion in the cooperative program to yield continuous and reliable records of flow for use at strategic points at other principal rivers of the country where Federal interests predominate. The funds available at the present time and as estimated for 1938 will not provide for the expansion in the program of Federal stations.

Table 5 shows the distribution of the funds for the Federal stations grouped under this heading.

TABLE 5.-Distribution by States of funds for Federal stations other than those in the Colorado River drainage

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TABLE 5.-Distribution by States of funds for Federal stations other than those in the Colorado River drainage-Continued

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C. MISCELLANEOUS FEDERAL PROJECTS AND FEDERAL ADMINISTRATION

The balance of the noncooperative water-resources funds that remains after providing as economically as possible for operation of the Colorado River and other Federal stations represents the only money available to cover other pressing Federal obligations and projects. These include that part of the administrative expense of the Water Resources Branch not related to or provided for by cooperative or other funds; the cost of handling and answering the large volume of general correspondence involved in the great number of inquiries regarding water-resources matters, including many problems related to underground' water supplies which come to the Survey from Members of Congress, from other Federal agencies, from various State agencies and from citizens generally; and the many general investigations of water problems which the Geological Survey must or should make as a part of its normal work or in answer to urgent appeals of other Federal agencies. These purposes have been for many years inadequately supported; hence the Survey falls far short of meeting its public responsibilities in these matters. The amount requested for this purpose in 1938 is the same as that available during the 1937 fiscal year and is indeed a bed-rock figure. The allotments for these several purposes in 1936, 1937, and 1938 are shown in the following table:

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I That part which has no relation to cooperation or to Federal river-measurement' stations. For breakdown, see table 7.

The work listed in the foregoing table is analyzed further under the following headings:

Federal administration.-Under this heading are grouped those costs of administration of water resources activities which are not in any way related to or covered by the work or funds for cooperation. They include the proper part of the salaries in the office of the Chief Hydraulic Engineer, appropriate part of the salaries and other costs of administration of the several kinds of investigational work, part support for field distribution offices and the technical library in Washington, and the costs of general correspondence which is especially heavy in connection with ground water and quality of water work because of the great number of requests for information or advice related especially to regions that are not covered by

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