Title II of Public Law 516-81st Congress, which per Section 216 thereof may be cited as The Flood Control Act of 1950, was a law passed by the

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washing ...

authorizing flood control projects around the country. The Act was prompted in part by floods that swept through the Columbia River watershed in 1948, destroying Vanport, then the second largest city in

Oregon Oregon () is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of its eastern boundary with Idaho. T ...

, and impacting cities as far north as

Trail, British Columbia Trail is a city in the West Kootenay region of the Interior of British Columbia, Canada. It was named after the Dewdney Trail, which passed through the area. The town was first called Trail Creek or Trail Creek Landing, and the name was shorte ...

. By that time, local communities had become wary of federal hydroelectric projects, and sought local control of new developments. One consequence was that a public utility district in

Grant County, Washington Grant County is a county located in the U.S. state of Washington. As of the 2020 census, the population was 99,123. The county seat is Ephrata, and the largest city is Moses Lake. The county was formed out of Douglas County in February 1909 ...

ultimately began construction of the dam at Priest Rapids.

References

{{US-fed-statute-stub 1950 in the environment 1950 in law

1950 Events January * January 1 – The International Police Association (IPA) – the largest police organization in the world – is formed. * January 5 – Sverdlovsk plane crash: ''Aeroflot'' Lisunov Li-2 crashes in a snowstorm. All 19 ...