ICYMI: “A Big Win for Southern Nevada’s Infrastructure”: Congresswoman Lee Celebrates Help Hoover Dam Act Being Signed into Law

BOULDER CITY, NV – Last week, Congresswoman Susie Lee (NV-03) joined Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV) and Puoy Premsrirut, Colorado River Commission Chairwoman, to discuss her bipartisan, bicameral Help Hoover Dam Act, which was recently signed into law, that will free about $50 million in in long-stranded funds for Hoover Dam operations, maintenance, and improvement projects.

Read more below:

Las Vegas Review-Journal: Hoover Dam needs urgent repairs. It just got a $52M boost

February 20, 2026 | Alan Halaly

• For almost a century, Hoover Dam has stood tall, delivering water and reliable hydropower to cities throughout the American West.
• But even the most impressive feats of human engineering need maintenance — $200 million of it over the next decade, to be exact, according to estimates from the Bureau of Reclamation, the federal agency in charge of water and dams in the West.
• “Sadly, even a structural achievement like the Hoover Dam is not immune from aging, and its maintenance needs have been mounting for quite some years,” said Rep. Susie Lee, D-Nev.
• Lee and Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., joined Colorado River Commission of Nevada Chairwoman Puoy Premsrirut at a Lake Mead outlook Friday to celebrate the release of $52 million to the Bureau of Reclamation for necessary work.
• The money, collected from ratepayers, had been suspended for years in an inaccessible account. It was originally meant to give retirement benefits to dam employees, but once that program was funded elsewhere, the money was in limbo.
• The original bill to free up the funds, called Help Hoover Dam Act, failed to pick up momentum when Lee co-introduced it in 2024. Some members misunderstood the fact that the bill wouldn’t have cost taxpayers a cent, Lee said.
• Asked about what pressing matters the Bureau of Reclamation might use the funding for in particular, Premsrirut said the most crucial, outstanding project is new, wide-head turbines. That could cost anywhere between $8 million and $12 million, she said.
• The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers considers Hoover Dam to be “high hazard,” meaning that should it ever fail, the loss of life and property would be tremendous.
• Hoover Dam is no longer the main source of power for NV Energy, but the utility was the first to be served by the dam in 1937. Today, the dam provides power to utilities throughout Arizona, Nevada and California, though low water levels have made it less reliable.

KVVU-FOX 5: ‘Help Hoover Dam Act’ signed into law, directing $50M to maintenance and restoration

February 20, 2026 | Lisa Sturgis

• More than $50 million in unused funds will be redirected toward the repair, restoration, and renovation of Hoover Dam under newly signed federal legislation.
• Rep. Susie Lee (D-Nevada) and Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nevada) joined the chair of the Colorado River Commission to mark the signing of the Help Hoover Dam Act into law.
• The legislation diverts funds from defunct contractor retirement and disability accounts. Lee said the money had been stranded after the benefits it was originally intended to cover became funded through other sources.
• “It was originally collected to support post-retirement benefits for Hoover employees,” Lee said. “However, those benefits are now fully covered by other sources, such as the Civil Services Retirement and Disability Fund. So therefore, this money has just literally been stranded.”
• Lee said the hydropower community offered up the funding, and she and Cortez Masto worked to direct it toward the dam.
• The dam is more than 90 years old and requires near-constant maintenance, routine updating, and occasional restoration. Lee said the redirected funds will cover approximately one-fourth of the dam’s projected maintenance costs.
• “And let’s be clear, this bill does not require one extra dollar of federal funding,” Lee said.“The money’s already there. It’s sitting in an account ready to be used. And so we now have before us a way to address one-fourth of the dam’s projected maintenance cost.”
• Lee said the funding is also an investment in Lake Mead, Southern Nevada’s most essential water source.

KTNV-ABC 13: Channel 13 News at 6 PM

February 20, 2026 | Tricia Kean

• Well, a big win for southern Nevada’s infrastructure as lawmakers celebrate a new law to help maintain Hoover Dam.
• Congresswoman Susie Lee and Senator Catherine Cortez Masto announcing the bipartisan Help Hoover Dam Act has been signed into law, freeing up about 50 million dollars for critical maintenance.
• Federal officials say the nearly 100 year-old dam will need more than 200 million dollars in upgrades over the next decade.
• Lawmakers say the new funding will help protect that vital resource for years to come.
• LEE: “It doesn't require any additional taxpayer dollars. It is a very clear statement that it is the intent of Congress that this money be used for the maintenance now.”
• The dam provides power to more than 1 million people in water to about 25 million across the region. 

KLAS-CBS 8: Nevada leaders celebrate new law bringing $50M to Hoover Dam

February 20, 2026 | Jenelle Vanoy 

• Nevada Democratic Rep. Susie Lee and Nevada Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto joined Puoy Premsrirut, Chairwoman of the Colorado River Commission, to highlight the bipartisan, bicameral Help Hoover Dam Act, which was recently signed into law and will free up about $50 million for long-needed maintenance at the Hoover Dam.
• All three leaders emphasized the importance of preserving the Nevada landmark that has been a global engineering marvel for 90 years.
• “The Hoover Dam is as much a wonder of the West today as it was when it first became part of the Nevada landscape 90 years ago,” said Lee, the Act’s lead sponsor in the House.
• She noted that while the dam continues to provide power, water, and recreation, its age means mounting maintenance needs.
• Lee praised the legislation for cutting through federal red tape and unlocking tens of millions of dollars in long-stranded funding to support capital improvement projects.
• She added that the bill ensures the federal government is using available resources responsibly to maintain the nearly century-old structure.
• The legislation gives the Bureau of Reclamation access to about $50 million in long-stranded funds for operations, maintenance, and upgrades at the dam—funds the agency previously testified in support of unlocking during the 118th Congress.
• According to the Bureau of Reclamation, the Hoover Dam will require more than $200 million in major plant investments—beyond routine maintenance—over the next decade as the facility continues to face operational pressures across the Colorado River Basin.
• Built in the 1930s, the dam generates hydroelectric power for more than 1 million people across Nevada, Arizona, and California each year.
• Lake Mead and its reservoir supply water to 25 million people and anchor the country’s first and largest National Recreation Area.
• The Help Hoover Dam Act invests more than $50 million using funds collected from Hoover hydropower contractors over the last 25 years, helping prevent energy price increases, save taxpayer dollars, and protect Western water and natural resources.
• It gives the Bureau of Reclamation clear authority to recover orphaned federal funds and partner with hydropower contractors to support operations, maintenance, capital improvements, and cleanup activities on the dam and connected lands.

Vegas PBS: Instagram Post

February 24, 2026 | Amber Dixon

• The Hoover Dam is more than 90 years old, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers classifies it as a high hazard, meaning that if it were to ever fail, people downstream would likely die.
• Now, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation estimates that over the next 10 years, $200 million will be needed in major investment for the dam over and above routine operation and maintenance costs.
• And thanks to the passage of the Help Hoover Dam Act, $50 million is now available for those efforts.
• At a press conference, U.S. Representative Susie Lee of Nevada, explained where that money is coming from.
• LEE: “It's $50 million that was collected from Hoover Hydro Power contractors over the last quarter century. And it's just literally sitting in an orphaned federal account. It was originally collected to support post retirement benefits for Hoover employees. However, those benefits are now fully covered by other sources. And so that community, the hydropower community, specifically came to us and asked us that the funds that were raised and contributed by their ratepayers be applied to the operation and maintenance at the dam.”

The Help Hoover Dam Act was signed into law as part of the Commerce, Justice, Science; Energy and Water Development; and Interior and Environment Appropriations Act, 2026. 

###