Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2026

Enumerated powers · passes

Congress has explicit constitutional authority under Article I, Section 8, Clause 1 (the Taxing and Spending Clause) to appropriate funds for the general welfare. Funding the Army Corps of Engineers (commerce and navigation under Clause 3), the Bureau of Reclamation (property under Clause 17), and Department of Energy programs (defense under Clause 12, general welfare) all fall within enumerated powers. The bill does not regulate private conduct beyond the spending power.

Bill of Rights · passes

The bill does not restrict speech, religion, press, assembly, petition, arms, quartering, search and seizure, self-incrimination, due process, takings, fair trial, jury, cruel and unusual punishment, or any other right protected by the first ten amendments. It is a funding measure with no prohibitions or mandates on individual conduct.

Individual liberty · passes

The bill imposes no restrictions on what individuals may do with their person, property, speech, labor, or belief. It funds government programs and infrastructure projects. No individual is compelled to act or refrain from acting. The burden on individual sovereignty is zero.

Decentralization · passes

The four-question test: (1) Individuals cannot fund large-scale water and energy infrastructure alone — this is a legitimate government function. (2) Local communities cannot manage national energy security, nuclear waste, or interstate water projects. (3) States cannot unilaterally manage the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, nuclear weapons activities, or interstate energy grids. (4) The bill does not consolidate decision-making upward beyond what is necessary for national-scale projects. The Tenth Amendment is not violated because the bill funds federal programs within enumerated powers, not commandeering state resources.

Due process and takings · passes

The bill does not bypass due process or take private property without just compensation. It funds government operations and infrastructure projects. Any property acquisitions by the Army Corps or Bureau of Reclamation would be subject to existing Fifth Amendment takings requirements and separate statutory procedures. The bill itself contains no provisions that violate procedural or substantive due process.