Flood Control Act of 1939 (FCA 1939) Pub.L. 76–396 (ch. 699, 53 Stat. 1414), enacted on August 11, 1939 by the 76th Congress, is U.S. legislation that authorized construction of flood control projects across the United States. The passage of FCA 1939, authorized the transfer of ownership of the local and state dams to the United States Army Corps of Engineers.
Other effects
FCA 1939 was instrumental in establishing the Federal policy of Cost-benefit analysis, the standard by which the government determines whether or not a project provides sufficient benefits to justify the cost of expending public funds. It specified the standard that "the benefits to whomever they accrue [be] in excess of the estimated costs.
References
Flood Control Act of 1939 Wikipedia(Text) CC BY-SA