classes of persons who would be eligible to receive reclamation project
water. Our criteria for eligible recipients of project water reflect our
view that the basic entitlement should center around the adult indi-
vidual, without regard to family size, as has heretofore been the tra-
ditional practice. Joint ownerships would be permitted between two
related or unrelated adults. Multiple ownership arrangements would
be permitted, but would be limited to owners in an immediate family
relationship with each other. This limitation represents an effort to
recognize family multiple ownerships that have legitimate purposes
but do not run counter to program purposes, and to exclude those more
wiide-open multiple ownerships that are more difficult to monitor and
control and which tend to promote non-resident, non-participating,
investor-type ownerships that are inconsistent with the purposes of
the reclamation program.
 RESIDENCY
 The most significant of the eligibility requirements is residency,
considered in Section 5 of our amendments. The Department considers
a strong residency requirement to be the best means of assuring the
owner-operated farms that are envisioned by the reclamation program.
In this respect, we disagree with the position taken in S. 14 which
would apparently do away with the residency requirement. We be-
lieve that the loose eligibility criteria provided in S. 14 would make
it extremely difficult to monitor and manage the reclamation pro-
gram to maintain consistency with program goals.
 Section 5 of the Reclamation Act of 1902 requires that landowners
receiving federally subsidized water be "bona fide residents" on the
farm or in "neighborhood" of the farm, which has been historically
defined as a maximum distance of 50 miles from the farm. We would
reaffirm this requirement, while allowing some exceptions for such rea-
sons as retirement or health.
 We recognize that the residency requirement has not been enforced
for 50 years, and hardships could be created if the requirement were
reimposed abruptly. Consequently, we believe the requirement should
be phased in gradually, and our aemndments apply the following tran-
sition rules.
 New purchasers of reclamation project lands would be given a three-
year grace period to become residents. They would be required to
declare, by affidavit, their intent to become a resident within three
years, and thereafter to become a resident within that time in order
for their land to continue to receive project water. Affidavits would
be monitored to achieve compliance. Our proposed amendments would
allow, in addition to other sanctions, the cancellation of water de-
liveries for any lands involved in .a fraudulent declaration.
 Adult individuals who now own land but are not residents would
continue to receive project water for the lands, and residency would be
required only of new owners at the first transfer of title, however it
occurs.
 Multiple ownerships held by persons in an immediate family rela-
tionship (defined as those in a direct lineal relationship with each
other, spouses, brothers and sisters) would not be required to meet
residency requirements until the first transfer of title or shares, or the
addition of new shareholders, however accomplished.