[Congressional Bills 103th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2292 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

103d CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2292

To amend the Watershed Protection and Flood Prevention Act to establish 
        a Waterways Restoration Program, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                July 18 (legislative day, July 11), 1994

 Mr. Hatfield introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
   referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Watershed Protection and Flood Prevention Act to establish 
        a Waterways Restoration Program, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Waterways Restoration Act of 1994''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND POLICY.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds that--
            (1) restoring degraded streams, rivers, wetlands, and other 
        waterways to their natural state is a cost effective and 
        environmentally sensitive means to control flooding, excessive 
        erosion, sedimentation, and nonpoint pollution, including 
        stormwater runoff;
            (2) protecting and restoring watersheds provides critical 
        ecological benefits by restoring and maintaining biodiversity, 
        providing fish and wildlife habitat, filtering pollutants, and 
        performing other important ecological functions;
            (3) waterway restoration and protection projects can 
        provide important economic benefits by rejuvenating waterfront 
        areas, providing recreational opportunities, and creating 
        community service jobs and job training opportunities in 
        environmental restoration for disadvantaged youth, displaced 
        resource harvesters, and other unemployed residents; and
            (4) restoring waterways helps to increase the fishing 
        potential of waterways and restore diminished fisheries, which 
        are important to local and regional cultures and economies and 
        to low-income and ethnic cultural groups who rely heavily on 
        fish as a food source.
    (b) Policy.--Congress declares it is in the national interest to--
            (1) protect and restore the chemical, biological, and 
        physical components of streams and rivers and associated 
        wetland systems in order to restore the biological and physical 
        structures, diversity, functions, and dynamics of the stream 
        and wetland ecological systems;
            (2) replace deteriorating stormwater structural 
        infrastructures and physical waterway alterations that are 
        environmentally destructive with cost effective, low 
        maintenance, and environmentally sensitive projects;
            (3) promote the use of nonstructural means to manage and 
        convey streamflow, stormwater, and flood waters;
            (4) increase the involvement of the public and youth 
        conservation and service corps in the monitoring, inventorying, 
        and restoration of watersheds in order to improve public 
        education, prevent pollution, and develop coordinated citizen 
        and governmental partnerships to restore damaged waterways; and
            (5) benefit business districts, local economies, and 
        neighborhoods through the restoration of waterways.

SEC. 3. WORKS OF IMPROVEMENT DEFINED.

    Section 2 of the Watershed Protection and Flood Prevention Act (16 
U.S.C. 1002) is amended by striking the following sentence: ``Each 
project must contain benefits directly related to agriculture, 
including rural communities, that account for at least 20 percent of 
the total benefits of the project.''.

SEC. 4. WATERWAYS RESTORATION PROGRAM.

    The Watershed Protection and Flood Prevention Act (16 U.S.C. 1001 
et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following new section:

``SEC. 14. WATERWAYS RESTORATION PROGRAM.

    ``(a) Definitions.--As used in this section:
            ``(1) Biotechnical slope protection.--The term 
        `biotechnical slope protection' means the use of live and dead 
        plant material to repair and fortify a watershed slope, 
        roadcut, stream bank, or other site that is vulnerable to 
        excessive erosion, using such systems as brush piling, brush 
        layering, brush matting, fascines, joint plantings, and wood 
        cribwalls.
            ``(2) Channelization.--The term `channelization' means 
        removing the meanders and vegetation from a river or stream for 
        purposes of accelerating storm flow velocity, filling habitat 
        to accommodate land development and existing structures, or 
        stabilizing a bank with concrete or riprap.
            ``(3) Eligible entity.--The term `eligible entity' means--
                    ``(A) any tribal or local government, flood control 
                district, water district, conservation district (as 
                defined in section 1201(a)(2) of the Food Security Act 
                of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3801(a)(2)), agricultural extension 
                4-H program, nonprofit organization, or watershed 
                council; or
                    ``(B) any unincorporated neighborhood organization, 
                watershed council, or small citizen nongovernmental or 
                nonprofessional organization for which an incorporated 
                nonprofit organization acts as a fiscal agent.
            ``(4) Fiscal agent.--The term `fiscal agent' means an 
        incorporated nonprofit organization that--
                    ``(A) acts as a legal entity that is authorized to 
                accept government or private funds and pass them onto 
                an unincorporated community, cultural, or neighborhood 
                organization; and
                    ``(B) has entered into a written agreement with 
                such an unincorporated organization that specifies the 
                funding, program, and working arrangements for carrying 
                out a project under the program.
            ``(5) Nonprofit organization.--The term `nonprofit 
        organization' means any organization with a tax exempt status 
        under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.
            ``(6) Program.--The term `program' means the Waterways 
        Restoration Program established by the Secretary under 
        subsection (b).
            ``(7) Secretary.--The term `Secretary' means the Secretary 
        of Agriculture, acting through the Chief of the Soil 
        Conservation Service.
            ``(8) Stream channel quasi-equilibrium.--The term `stream 
        channel quasi-equilibrium' means restoring channel geometrics, 
        meanders, and slopes so that channel dimensions are 
        appropriately sized to the watershed and the slope of the 
        watershed, bankfull discharges, and sediment sizes and 
        transport rates for the purpose of correcting excessive channel 
        erosion and deposition.
            ``(9) Watershed council.--The term `watershed council' 
        means a representative group of local watershed residents 
        (including the private, public, government, and nonprofit 
        sectors) organized to develop and carry out a consensus 
        watershed restoration plan that includes restoration, 
        acquisition, and other activities.
            ``(10) Waterway.--The term `waterway' means any natural, 
        degraded, seasonal, or created wetland on private or public 
        land, including a river, stream, riparian area, marsh, pond, 
        bog, mudflat, lake, or estuary. The term includes any natural 
        or humanmade watercourse on public or private land that is 
        culverted, channelized, or vegetatively cleared, including a 
        canal, irrigation ditch, drainage way, or navigation, 
        industrial, flood control, or water supply channel.
            ``(11) Youth conservation and service corps.--The term 
        `youth conservation and service corps program' means a full-
        time, year-round youth corps program or a full-time summer 
        youth corps program described in section 122(a)(2) of the 
        National and Community Service Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 
        12572(a)(2)).
    ``(b) Establishment.--The Secretary, acting through the Chief of 
the Soil Conservation Service, shall establish and carry out a 
Waterways Restoration Program in accordance with this section. Under 
the program, the Secretary shall provide technical assistance and 
grants, on a competitive basis, to eligible entities to assist the 
entities in carrying out waterway restoration projects.
    ``(c) Project Eligibility.--
            ``(1) Project objectives.--A project shall be eligible for 
        assistance under the program if the project is designed to 
        achieve ecological restoration or protection and 1 or more of 
        the following objectives:
                    ``(A) Flood damage reduction.
                    ``(B) Erosion control.
                    ``(C) Stormwater management.
                    ``(D) Water quality enhancement.
            ``(2) Location of projects.--A project may be carried out 
        under the program on Federal lands or on State or private lands 
        in any case in which the State or the private land owner is a 
        sponsor or cosponsor of the project.
            ``(3) Project descriptions.--A project eligible for 
        assistance under the program shall include a project 
        established for any of the following purposes:
                    ``(A) Restoration and monitoring of degraded 
                waterways, including revegetation, restoration of 
                biological communities, and changes in land management 
                practices.
                    ``(B) Reestablishment of stream channel quasi-
                equilibrium.
                    ``(C) Restoration or establishment of wetland and 
                riparian environments as part of a multiobjective 
                stormwater management system in which the restored or 
                established areas provide stormwater storage, 
                detention, and retention, nutrient filtering, wildlife 
                habitat, and increased biological diversity.
                    ``(D) Reduction of runoff.
                    ``(E) Stream bank restoration using the principles 
                of biotechnical slope protection.
                    ``(F) Creation and acquisition of multiobjective 
                floodplain riparian zones, including removal of natural 
                or humanmade levees, for floodwater and sediment 
                storage, wildlife habitat, and recreation.
                    ``(G) Removal of culverts and storm drains to 
                establish natural environmental conditions.
                    ``(H) Organization of local watershed councils in 
                conjunction with the implementation of on-the-ground 
                action education or restoration projects.
                    ``(I) Training of participants, including youth 
                conservation and service corps program participants, in 
                restoration techniques in conjunction with the 
                implementation of on-the-ground action education or 
                restoration projects.
                    ``(J) Development of waterway restoration or 
                watershed plans that are intended for use within the 
                grant agreement period to carry out specific 
                restoration projects.
                    ``(K) Restoration of any stream channel to 
                reestablish a meandering, bankfull flow channel, 
                riparian vegetation, and floodplain in order--
                            ``(i) to restore the functions and dynamics 
                        of a natural stream system to a previously 
                        channelized waterway; or
                            ``(ii) to convey larger flood flows as an 
                        alternative to a channelization project.
                    ``(L) Release of reservoir flows to restore 
                riparian and instream habitat.
                    ``(M) Carrying out watershed or wetland programs 
                that have undergone planning pursuant to other Federal, 
                State, tribal, or local programs and laws and have 
                received necessary environmental review and permits.
                    ``(N) Carrying out early action projects that a 
                watershed council wants to carry out prior to the 
                completion of the required final consensus watershed 
                plan of the council, if the council determines that the 
                project meets the watershed management objectives of 
                the council and is useful in fostering citizen 
                involvement in the planning process.
            ``(4) Priority projects.--Projects that have any of the 
        following attributes shall be given priority by 
        interdisciplinary teams established under subsection (g) in 
        determining funding priorities:
                    ``(A) Projects located in or directly benefiting 
                low-income or economically depressed areas adversely 
                impacted by poor watershed management.
                    ``(B) Projects that will restore or create 
                businesses or occupations in the project area.
                    ``(C) Projects providing opportunities for 
                participants in Federal, State, tribal, and local youth 
                conservation and service corps and provide training in 
                environmental restoration, monitoring, and inventory 
                work.
                    ``(D) Projects serving communities composed of 
                minorities or Native Americans, including the 
                development of outreach programs to facilitate the 
                participation by the groups in the program.
                    ``(E) Projects identified as regional priorities 
                that have been planned within a regional context and 
                coordinated with Federal, State, tribal, and local 
                agencies.
                    ``(F) Projects that will restore wildlife or 
                fisheries of commercial, recreational, subsistence, or 
                scientific concern.
                    ``(G) Projects training and employing fishers and 
                other resource harvesters whose livelihoods have been 
                adversely impacted by habitat degradation.
                    ``(H) Projects providing significant improvements 
                in ecological values and functions in the project area.
                    ``(I) Projects previously approved under this Act 
                that meet or are redesigned to meet the requirements of 
                this section.
            ``(5) Cost-benefit analysis.--A project shall be eligible 
        for assistance under the program if an interdisciplinary team 
        established under subsection (g) determines that the local 
        social, economic, ecological, and community benefits of the 
        project based on local needs, problems, and conditions equal or 
        exceed the financial and social costs of the project.
            ``(6) Flood damage reduction.--A project for which 1 of the 
        purposes is to reduce flood damages shall be designed for the 
        level of risk selected by the local sponsor and cosponsor of 
        the project, taking into account local needs for the reduction 
        of flood risks, the ability of the sponsor and cosponsor to pay 
        project costs, and community objectives to protect or restore 
        environmental quality.
            ``(7) Ineligible projects.--A project involving 
        channelization, stream bank stabilization using a method other 
        than a biotechnical slope protection method, or construction of 
        a reservoir shall not be eligible for assistance under the 
        program.
    ``(d) Program Administration.--
            ``(1) Designation of program administrators.--The Secretary 
        shall designate a program administrator for each State who 
        shall be responsible for administering the program in the 
        State. Except as provided by paragraph (2), the Secretary shall 
        designate the State Conservationist of the Soil Conservation 
        Service of a State as the program administrator of the State.
            ``(2) Approval of state agencies.--
                    ``(A) In general.--A State may submit to the 
                Secretary an application for designation of a State 
                agency to serve as the program administrator of the 
                State.
                    ``(B) Criteria.--The Secretary shall approve an 
                application of a State submitted under subparagraph (A) 
                if the application demonstrates--
                            ``(i) the ability of the State agency to 
                        solicit, select, and fund projects within a 1-
                        year grant administration cycle;
                            ``(ii) the responsiveness of the State 
                        agency to the administrative needs and 
                        limitations of small nonprofit organizations 
                        and low-income or minority communities;
                            ``(iii) the success of the State agency in 
                        carrying out State or local programs with 
                        objectives similar to the objectives of this 
                        section; and
                            ``(iv) the ability of the State agency to 
                        jointly plan and carry out with Indian tribes 
                        programs with objectives similar to this 
                        section.
                    ``(C) Redesignation.--If the Secretary determines, 
                after a public hearing, that a State agency with an 
                approved application under this paragraph no longer 
                meets the criteria set forth in subparagraph (B), the 
                Secretary shall so notify the State and, if appropriate 
                corrective action has not been taken within a 
                reasonable time, withdraw the designation of the State 
                agency as the program administrator of the State and 
                designate the State Conservationist of the Soil 
                Conservation Service of the State as the program 
                administrator of the State.
            ``(3) Technical assistance.--The State Conservationist of a 
        State shall continue to carry out the technical assistance 
        portion of the program in the State even if the State receives 
        approval of an application submitted under paragraph (2)(A).
    ``(e) Grant Application Cycle.--
            ``(1) In general.--A grant under the program shall be 
        awarded on an annual basis.
            ``(2) Grant agreements.--The program administrator of a 
        State may enter into a grant agreement with an eligible entity 
        to permit the entity to phase in a project under the program 
        for a period of not to exceed 3 years, except that the project 
        shall remain subject to reevaluation each year as part of the 
        annual funding cycle.
    ``(f) Selection of Projects.--
            ``(1) Applications.--To receive assistance to carry out a 
        project under the program in a State, an eligible entity shall 
        submit to the program administrator of the State an application 
        that is in such form and contains such information as the 
        Secretary may by regulation require.
            ``(2) Review of applications by interdisciplinary teams.--
                    ``(A) Transmittal.--Each application for assistance 
                under the program received by the program administrator 
                of a State shall be transmitted to the 
                interdisciplinary team of the State established 
                pursuant to subsection (g).
                    ``(B) Review.--On an annual basis, the 
                interdisciplinary team of each State shall--
                            ``(i) review applications transmitted to 
                        the team pursuant to subparagraph (A);
                            ``(ii) determine the eligibility of 
                        proposed projects for funding under the 
                        program;
                            ``(iii) make recommendations concerning 
                        funding priorities for the eligible projects; 
                        and
                            ``(iv) transmit the findings and 
                        recommendations of the team to the program 
                        administrator of the State.
                    ``(C) Project opposition by federal 
                representatives.--If 2 or more of the members of an 
                interdisciplinary team of a State appointed pursuant to 
                clause (ii), (iii), or (iv) of subsection (g)(2)(B) are 
                opposed to a project that is supported by a majority of 
                the members of the interdisciplinary team, a 
                determination on whether the project is eligible to 
                receive assistance under the program shall be made by 
                the Chief of the Soil Conservation Service. In making a 
                determination under this subparagraph, the Chief shall 
                consult with the Administrator of the Environmental 
                Protection Agency, the Director of the Fish and 
                Wildlife Service, and, in a coastal area, the Assistant 
                Administrator of the National Marine Fisheries Service. 
                The Secretary shall conduct such monitoring activities 
                as are necessary to ensure the success and 
                effectiveness of project determinations made pursuant 
                to this subparagraph.
            ``(3) Final selection.--The final determination on whether 
        to provide assistance for a project under the program shall be 
        made by the program administrator of the State and shall be 
        based on the recommendations of the interdisciplinary team of 
        the State transmitted pursuant to paragraph (2)(B).
    ``(g) Appointment of Interdisciplinary Teams.--
            ``(1) In general.--There shall be established in each State 
        an interdisciplinary team of specialists to assist in reviewing 
        project applications under the program.
            ``(2) Appointment.--The interdisciplinary team of a State 
        shall be composed of the following members:
                    ``(A) Appointees of the program administrator.--
                Individuals to be appointed on an annual basis by the 
                program administrator of the State, including at least 
                1 representative of each of the following specialties:
                            ``(i) Hydrologists.
                            ``(ii) Plant ecologists.
                            ``(iii) Aquatic biologists.
                            ``(iv) Biotechnical slope protection 
                        experts.
                            ``(v) Landscape architect or planners.
                            ``(vi) Members of the agricultural 
                        community.
                            ``(vii) Representatives of the fish and 
                        wildlife agency of the State.
                            ``(viii) Representatives of the soil and 
                        water conservation agency of the State.
                    ``(B) Representatives of federal agencies.--One 
                representative of each of the following Federal 
                agencies to be appointed on an annual basis by the 
                appropriate regional or State director of the agency:
                            ``(i) The Soil Conservation Service.
                            ``(ii) The Environmental Protection Agency.
                            ``(iii) The National Marine Fisheries 
                        Service (in a coastal State).
                            ``(iv) The United States Fish and Wildlife 
                        Service.
            ``(3) Affiliation of members.--A member appointed pursuant 
        to paragraph (2)(A) may be an employee of a Federal, State, 
        tribal, or local agency or nonprofit organization.
            ``(4) Federal advisory committee act.--The Federal Advisory 
        Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App. 2) shall not apply to an 
        interdisciplinary team established under this subsection.
    ``(h) Conditions for Receiving Assistance.--
            ``(1) Project sponsors and cosponsors.--
                    ``(A) Requirement.--To be eligible for assistance 
                under the program, a project shall have as project 
                participants both a citizens organization and a State, 
                regional, tribal, or local governing body, agency, or 
                district.
                    ``(B) Project sponsor.--One of the project 
                participants described in subparagraph (A) shall be 
                designated as the project sponsor. The project sponsor 
                shall act as the principal party making the grant 
                application and have the primary responsibility for 
                executing the grant agreement, submitting invoices, and 
                receiving reimbursements.
                    ``(C) Project cosponsor.--The other project 
                participant described in subparagraph (A) shall be 
                designated as the project cosponsor. The project 
                cosponsor shall, jointly with the project sponsor, 
                support and actively participate in the project. There 
                may be more than 1 cosponsor for any project.
            ``(2) Use of grant funds.--Grant funds made available under 
        the program shall not supplant other available funds for 
        waterway restoration projects, including developer fees, 
        mitigation, or compensation required as a permit condition or 
        as a result of a violation of the Federal Water Pollution 
        Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.) or any other law.
            ``(3) Maintenance requirement.--At least 1 project sponsor 
        or cosponsor shall be designated as responsible for ongoing 
        maintenance of the project.
    ``(i) Non-Federal Share.--
            ``(1) In general.--Except as provided by paragraph (2), the 
        non-Federal share of the cost of a project under this section, 
        including structural and nonstructural features, shall be 25 
        percent.
            ``(2) Economically depressed communities.--The Secretary 
        may waive all or part of the non-Federal share of the cost of 
        any project that is to be carried out under the program in an 
        economically depressed community.
            ``(3) In-kind contributions.--Non-Federal interests may 
        meet any portion of the non-Federal share of the cost of a 
        project under this section through in-kind contributions, 
        including contributions of labor, involvement of youth service 
        and conservation corps program participants, materials, 
        equipment, consulting services, and land.
            ``(4) Regulations.--Not later than 1 year after the date of 
        enactment of this section, the Secretary shall issue 
        regulations to establish procedures for granting waivers under 
        paragraph (2).
    ``(j) Limitations on Costs of Administration and Technical 
Assistance.--Of the total amount made available for any fiscal year to 
carry out this section--
            ``(1) not to exceed 15 percent may be used for 
        administrative expenses; and
            ``(2) not to exceed 25 percent may be used for providing 
        technical assistance.
    ``(k) Consultation With Federal Agencies.--In establishing and 
carrying out the program, the Secretary shall consult with the heads of 
appropriate Federal agencies, including--
            ``(1) the Administrator of the Environmental Protection 
        Agency;
            ``(2) the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works;
            ``(3) the Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife 
        Service;
            ``(4) the Commissioner of the Bureau of Reclamation;
            ``(5) the Director of the Geological Survey;
            ``(6) the Chief of the Forest Service; and
            ``(7) the Assistant Administrator for the National Marine 
        Fisheries Service.
    ``(l) Citizens Oversight Committee.--
            ``(1) Establishment.--The Governor of each State shall 
        establish a citizens oversight committee to evaluate management 
        of the program in the State. The membership of a citizens 
        oversight committee shall represent a diversity of regions, 
        cultures, and watershed management interests.
            ``(2) Program components.--A citizens oversight committee 
        established under paragraph (1) shall evaluate the following 
        program components:
                    ``(A) Program outreach, accessibility, and service 
                to low-income and minority ethnic communities and 
                displaced resource harvesters.
                    ``(B) The manageability of grant application 
                procedures, contracting transactions, and invoicing for 
                disbursement for small nonprofit organizations.
                    ``(C) The success of the program in supporting the 
                range of the program objectives, including evaluation 
                of the environmental impacts of the program as carried 
                out.
                    ``(D) The number of jobs created for identified 
                target groups.
                    ``(E) The diversity of job skills fostered for 
                long-term watershed related employment.
                    ``(F) The extent of involvement of youth 
                conservation and service corps programs.
            ``(3) Annual report.--The program administrator of each 
        State shall issue an annual report summarizing the program 
        evaluation under paragraph (1). The report shall be signed by 
        each member of the citizens oversight committee of the State 
        and shall be submitted to the Secretary.
            ``(4) Federal advisory committee act.--The Federal Advisory 
        Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App. 2) shall not apply to a citizens 
        oversight committee established under this subsection.
    ``(m) Funding.--
            ``(1) Minimum amounts.--Not less than 20 percent of the 
        total amount made available to carry out this Act for any 
        fiscal year beginning after September 30, 1994, shall be used 
        by the Secretary to carry out this section.
            ``(2) Transferred funds.--The Secretary may accept 
        transfers of funds from other Federal agencies to carry out 
        this section.
            ``(3) Applicability of requirements.--Funds made available 
        to carry out this section, and financial assistance provided 
        with the funds, shall not be subject to any requirements of 
        this Act other than the requirements of this section.''.
                                 <all>
S 2292 IS----2