The House of Representatives recently passed the bipartisan S. 1020, the “Build More Hydro Act,” by a vote of 394-14.
The bill passed the Senate by unanimous consent on July 29, 2025, and now goes to the president’s desk to be signed into law.
The Build More Hydro Act would allow the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to extend a hydropower project license for a maximum of six years if that license was issued before March 13, 2020.
This six-year extension would be broken into a maximum of three, two-year extensions. Current law requires hydropower projects to commence construction within 10 years of receiving a license.
The legislation would also allow for licenses to be reinstated retroactively if they expired between December 31, 2023, and the date that the legislation becomes law. If reinstated, the project would become eligible for the aforementioned extension periods.
The American Public Power Association supports the legislation and submitted a quote for inclusion in a press release from Rep. Dan Newhouse (R-WA), the sponsor of the House companion legislation, H.R. 2072.
“The American Public Power Association applauds Congress for passing S. 1020, the ‘Build More Hydro Act,’” said Desmarie Waterhouse, Senior Vice President, Advocacy & Communications and General Counsel, American Public Power Association, in the news release.
“This bipartisan legislation would allow hydropower owners to petition the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to extend a hydropower license for an additional six years if that license was issued before March 13, 2020. Without legislative action, nearly 40 unconstructed and FERC-licensed hydropower projects are at risk of termination, representing more than 2.6 gigawatts of baseload power,” she said.
“The Build More Hydro Act will make full use of these key resources to ensure that the nation’s grid remains reliable and resilient for the millions of people who rely on hydropower to provide affordable power generation. We encourage President Trump to sign the legislation into law expeditiously,” Waterhouse said.
