During the 1950s the State of California also began building its own water project, whose design also required an off-stream water storage reservoir. The state approached the federal government with an offer to design a joint-use facility; however it took several years for the Bureau of Reclamation to agree to the proposal. On May 16, 1960 the state and the Bureau of Reclamation signed a "coordinated operation" agreement which laid out plans for the construction of joint-use facilities, including the San Luis Dam and Power Plant. The state government was to cover 55 percent of the cost with the federal government providing the rest. On June 3, 1960 President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed an act authorizing the San Luis Unit Project.