[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3243 Introduced in House (IH)]







105th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 3243

 To authorize the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency 
to make grants to State agencies with responsibility for water resource 
 development for the purpose of maximizing available water supply and 
protecting the environment through the development of alternative water 
                                sources.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           February 12, 1998

Mrs. Thurman (for herself, Mrs. Fowler, Ms. Brown of Florida, Mr. Boyd, 
Mr. Davis of Florida, Mr. Deutsch, Mr. Foley, Mr. Hastings of Florida, 
 Mrs. Meek of Florida, and Mr. Wexler) introduced the following bill; 
       which was referred to the Committee on Transportation and 
                             Infrastructure

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To authorize the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency 
to make grants to State agencies with responsibility for water resource 
 development for the purpose of maximizing available water supply and 
protecting the environment through the development of alternative water 
                                sources.

    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 ``Alternative Water Source Development 
Act of 1998''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act, the following definitions apply:
            (1) Alternative water source project.--The term 
        ``alternative water source project'' means a project intended 
        to preserve and protect, and maximize use of, existing sources 
        of potable, commercial, industrial, or agricultural water by 
        conserving, managing, reclaiming, or reusing water or 
        wastewater.
            (2) Critical water supply needs.--The term ``critical water 
        supply needs'' means existing water supply that is not 
        projected to meet future demand over a 20-year planning period.

SEC. 3. ALTERNATIVE WATER SOURCE DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM.

    (a) In General.--The Administrator of the Environmental Protection 
Agency shall establish a program under which the Administrator will 
make grants to State, interstate, and intrastate water resource 
development agencies (including water management districts and water 
supply authorities), and local government agencies, that have authority 
to develop water resources for potable, commercial, industrial, or 
agricultural uses. The Administrator shall only make a grant under the 
program to an agency having authority within the boundaries of a State 
if the State is experiencing critical water supply needs. Such grants 
shall be for the purpose of assisting such agencies in the development 
and construction of alternative water source projects in accordance 
with this Act.
    (b) Purposes of Program.--The Administrator shall carry out the 
program--
            (1) to demonstrate methods of developing alternative water 
        source technologies including methods and applications to 
        conserve, manage, reclaim, and reuse water; and
            (2) to protect groundwater from overpumping and to preserve 
        minimum flows and levels of surface water bodies.
    (c) Eligible Agency.--
            (1) In general.--The Administrator shall only make a grant 
        under this section to an agency described in subsection (a) if 
        the agency has--
                    (A) engaged in a planning effort to assess the 
                availability of water resources and the need to develop 
                alternative sources and produced a comprehensive water 
                resource plan designed to meet expected water resource 
                needs for a 20-year period;
                    (B) demonstrated that currently available water 
                resources will not be sufficient to provide for 
                expected potable, commercial, industrial, and 
                agricultural needs over the next 20 years; and
                    (C) has agreed to provide 50 percent of the cost of 
                the project to be funded with the grant.
            (2) Limitation.--No agency of a State eligible for 
        assistance or receiving funds under the Reclamation Projects 
        Authorization and Adjustment Act of 1992 (43 U.S.C. 390h et 
        seq.) shall be eligible for grant assistance under this Act.
    (d) Uses of Grant.--Grants made by the Administrator under this 
section may be used for engineering, planning, design, and 
construction.
    (e) Federal Share.--The Federal share of the cost of activities 
carried out with grants made under this section shall be 50 percent.

SEC. 4. REPORTS.

    (a) Reports to Administrator.--Each recipient of a grant under 
section 2 shall submit to the Administrator of the Environmental 
Protection Agency, not later than 18 months after the date of receipt 
of the grant and biennially thereafter for the term of the program 
under this Act, a report on eligible activities carried out by the 
grant recipient.
    (b) Report to Congress.--On or before the last day of the fifth 
fiscal year beginning after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 
Administrator shall transmit to Congress a report on the results of the 
program conducted under this Act, together with an analysis on the 
extent to which the purposes described in section 2(b) have been 
realized and recommendations for appropriate administrative and 
legislative actions.

SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this Act 
$50,000,000 per fiscal year for each of the first 5 fiscal years 
beginning after the date of the enactment of this Act. Such sums shall 
remain available until expended.
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