[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4013 Introduced in House (IH)]







106th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 4013

To establish a cooperative effort of the Department of Agriculture and 
the Department of the Interior to reduce sediment and nutrient loss in 
                   the Upper Mississippi River Basin.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 16, 2000

   Mr. Kind  (for himself, Mr. Leach, Mr. Gutknecht, Mr. Minge, Mr. 
   Manzullo, Mr. Evans, Mr. Nussle, Mr. Luther, Ms. Baldwin, and Mr. 
    Vento) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
     Committee on Agriculture, and in addition to the Committee on 
 Resources, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, 
 in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the 
                jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To establish a cooperative effort of the Department of Agriculture and 
the Department of the Interior to reduce sediment and nutrient loss in 
                   the Upper Mississippi River Basin.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Upper Mississippi 
River Basin Conservation Act of 2000''.
    (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents of this Act is as 
follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Findings, purposes, and sound science.
Sec. 3. Definitions.
           TITLE I--SEDIMENT AND NUTRIENT MONITORING NETWORK

Sec. 101. Establishment of monitoring network.
Sec. 102. Data collection and storage responsibilities.
Sec. 103. Relationship to existing sediment and nutrient monitoring in 
                            Upper Mississippi River Basin.
Sec. 104. Collaboration with other public and private monitoring 
                            efforts.
Sec. 105. Cost share requirements.
Sec. 106. Reporting requirements.
    TITLE II--INITIATIVE GRANT, DEMONSTRATION, AND OUTREACH PROGRAMS

Sec. 201. Computer modeling of sediment and nutrient sources in Upper 
                            Mississippi River Basin.
Sec. 202. Research regarding best management practices and sediment and 
                            nutrient loss.
Sec. 203. Demonstration projects regarding new best management 
                            practices to reduce sediment and nutrient 
                            loss.
Sec. 204. Use of electronic means to distribute information.
Sec. 205. Reporting requirements.
   TITLE III--FINANCIAL AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE UNDER DEPARTMENT OF 
                   AGRICULTURE CONSERVATION PROGRAMS

Sec. 301. Increased assistance to reduce sediment and nutrient loss.
Sec. 302. Designation of Upper Mississippi River Basin as a 
                            conservation priority area.
Sec. 303. Increased enrollment authority under conservation and wetland 
                            reserve programs.
Sec. 304. Increased funding for Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program and 
                            environmental quality incentives program.
Sec. 305. Cooperative agreements.
                 TITLE IV--PROTECTION OF PERSONAL DATA

Sec. 401. Privacy of personal data received by Department of 
                            Agriculture and data gathering locations.
 TITLE V--ADVISORY COUNCIL ON THE UPPER MISSISSIPPI RIVER STEWARDSHIP 
                               INITIATIVE

Sec. 501. Establishment of Advisory Council.
Sec. 502. Responsibilities of Advisory Council.
Sec. 503. Advisory nature of Council.
    TITLE VI--INTERAGENCY WORKING GROUP ON UPPER MISSISSIPPI RIVER 
                         STEWARDSHIP INITIATIVE

Sec. 601. Establishment of Interagency Working Group.
               TITLE VII--AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS

Sec. 701. Authorization of appropriations.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS, PURPOSES, AND SOUND SCIENCE.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
            (1) The Upper Mississippi River and its tributaries are an 
        important source of municipal and industrial water supplies for 
        many of the region's more than 24,000,000 residents.
            (2) The Upper Mississippi River supports many economic 
        activities of regional and national importance and is an 
        important element of the national transportation 
        infrastructure, enabling shipment of agricultural, petroleum, 
        coal, and many other products.
            (3) Millions of tourists annually visit the Upper 
        Mississippi River to fish, hunt, swim, boat, and camp, as well 
        as to visit the region's many historic towns and archeological 
        sites.
            (4) The sediments and nutrients that inadvertently wash off 
        of farmland into streams and ultimately into the Mississippi 
        River result in--
                    (A) a reduction in the quality and quantity of farm 
                crops and thereby a reduction in farm income;
                    (B) an increase in channel maintenance costs;
                    (C) a threat to drinking water supplies; and
                    (D) the filling of side channels used by river 
                wildlife.
            (5) The public and private costs associated with sediment 
        and nutrient loss in the Mississippi River Basin are 
        significant:
                    (A) Farmers lose more than $300,000,000 worth of 
                applied nitrogen annually.
                    (B) Dredging costs exceed $100,000,000 annually.
                    (C) Habitat preservation efforts will soon reach 
                $33,000,000 annually.
            (6) Although there are more than 75 local, State, Tribal, 
        and Federal public and private programs designed to address 
        sediment and nutrient loss in the Upper Mississippi River 
        Basin, there is a lack of collaboration by resource managers to 
        identify and address significant sources of sediment and 
        nutrient loss, monitor results, share information, or set 
        priorities. Consequently, programs often overlap, gaps are left 
        unfilled, and scarce resources are not used efficiently.
            (7) Congress and the executive branch recognize the need to 
        focus Federal investment in natural resources management and 
stewardship in the Upper Mississippi River Basin in a manner consistent 
with efficiency and effectiveness in meeting local, State, Tribal, 
Basin, and national goals for agriculture and environmental health and 
sustainability.
            (8) A Basin-wide approach to natural resource management 
        involving advisory groups of local, State, and Tribal 
        stakeholders in concert with Federal agencies with appropriate 
        natural resource authorities is the most effective means to 
        ensure that Federal investments would accomplish desired 
        results at the local, State, Tribal, and Basin levels. This 
        would ensure that conservation activities would contribute to 
        similar national goals.
            (9) A public-private approach to natural resource 
        management in the Upper Mississippi River Basin would ensure 
        that all voices would be heard and all stakeholders would be 
        able to contribute to a process of meeting complimentary and 
        overlapping resource management and environmental goals.
    (b) Purposes.--The purposes of this Act are--
            (1) to adopt a coordinated public-private approach in the 
        Upper Mississippi River Basin to take action to control 
        nutrient and sediment loss, to monitor the results of such 
        actions, share information, and make adjustments to further 
        reduce nutrient and sediment loss;
            (2) to identify major sources of sediment and nutrients 
        that wash into rivers and streams of the Upper Mississippi 
        River Basin;
            (3) to increase and target technical and financial 
        assistance to reduce nutrient and sediment loss in the Upper 
        Mississippi River Basin;
            (4) to develop and demonstrate new solutions;
            (5) to use monitoring and computer models to set goals and 
        measure success;
            (6) to expand efforts to share information; and
            (7) to coordinate public and private programs to 
        collaboratively set and meet priorities.
    (c) Reliance on Sound Science.--It is the policy of Congress that 
Federal investments in the Upper Mississippi River Basin must be guided 
by sound science.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) The term ``Advisory Council'' means the Advisory 
        Council on the Upper Mississippi River Stewardship Initiative 
        established by title V.
            (2) The term ``Upper Mississippi River Basin'' means the 
        watershed portion of the Mississippi River extending from Lake 
        Itasca downstream to its confluence with the Illinois River and 
        all of the tributaries upstream of that confluence, including 
        those tributaries of the Illinois River.
            (3) The terms ``Upper Mississippi River Stewardship 
        Initiative'' and ``Initiative'' mean the activities authorized 
        or required by this Act and the amendments made by this Act to 
        reduce nutrient and sediment loss in the Upper Mississippi 
        River Basin.
            (4) The term ``sound science'' means a scientific method 
        that uses the best available technical and scientific 
        information and techniques to identify and understand natural 
        resource management needs and appropriate treatments, to 
        implement conservation measures, and to assess the results of 
        treatments on natural resource health and sustainability in the 
        Upper Mississippi River Basin.

           TITLE I--SEDIMENT AND NUTRIENT MONITORING NETWORK

SEC. 101. ESTABLISHMENT OF MONITORING NETWORK.

    (a) Establishment.--The Secretary of the Interior shall establish a 
sediment and nutrient monitoring network for the Upper Mississippi 
River Basin for the purpose of reducing sediment and nutrient loss.
    (b) Role of United States Geological Survey.--The Secretary of the 
Interior shall carry out this title acting through the office of the 
Director of the United States Geological Survey.
    (c) Headquarters.--Sediment and nutrient monitoring information 
shall be headquartered at the Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences 
Center in La Crosse, Wisconsin.

SEC. 102. DATA COLLECTION AND STORAGE RESPONSIBILITIES.

    (a) Guidelines for Data Collection and Storage.--The Secretary of 
the Interior shall establish guidelines for the effective design of 
data collection activities regarding sediment and nutrient monitoring, 
for the use of suitable and consistent methods for data collection, and 
for consistent reporting, data storage, and archiving practices.
    (b) Release of Data.--Data resulting from sediment and nutrient 
monitoring in the Upper Mississippi River Basin shall be released to 
the public using generic station identifiers and location coordinates. 
In the case of a monitoring station located on private lands, 
information regarding the location of the station shall not be 
disseminated without the landowner's permission.
    (c) Consultation.--The Secretary of the Interior shall establish 
the guidelines under subsection (a) in consultation with the Secretary 
of Agriculture and all entities known to be conducting sediment and 
nutrient monitoring in the Upper Mississippi River Basin.

SEC. 103. RELATIONSHIP TO EXISTING SEDIMENT AND NUTRIENT MONITORING IN 
              UPPER MISSISSIPPI RIVER BASIN.

    The Secretary of the Interior shall integrate existing sediment and 
nutrient monitoring efforts, to the maximum extent practicable, into 
the sediment and nutrient monitoring network required by section 101.

SEC. 104. COLLABORATION WITH OTHER PUBLIC AND PRIVATE MONITORING 
              EFFORTS.

    (a) Collaboration.--To establish the sediment and nutrient 
monitoring network, the Secretary of the Interior shall collaborate, to 
the maximum extent practicable, with the Secretary of Agriculture and 
with State, tribal, local, and private sediment and nutrient monitoring 
programs that meet the guidelines prescribed under section 102(a).
    (b) Grant Program.--The Secretary of the Interior shall direct the 
State Water Resources Research Institute Program to target resources to 
promote sediment and nutrient studies in the Upper Mississippi River 
Basin by governmental and nongovernmental entities to the maximum 
extent practicable.

SEC. 105. COST SHARE REQUIREMENTS.

    (a) Required Cost Sharing.--The non-Federal sponsors of the 
sediment and nutrient monitoring network shall be responsible for not 
less than 25 percent of the costs of maintaining the network.
    (b) In-Kind Contributions.--Up to 80 percent of the non-Federal 
share may be provided through in-kind contributions.

SEC. 106. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.

    The Secretary of the Interior shall report to Congress not later 
than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act on the 
development of the sediment and nutrient monitoring network.

    TITLE II--INITIATIVE GRANT, DEMONSTRATION, AND OUTREACH PROGRAMS

SEC. 201. COMPUTER MODELING OF SEDIMENT AND NUTRIENT SOURCES IN UPPER 
              MISSISSIPPI RIVER BASIN.

    (a) Modeling Program Required.--The Director of the United States 
Geological Survey, in collaboration with the Chief of the Natural 
Resources Conservation Service, shall establish a modeling program to 
identify significant sources of sediment and nutrients in the Upper 
Mississippi River Basin.
    (b) Role.--Computer modeling shall be used to identify 
subwatersheds which are significant sources of sediment and nutrient 
loss and shall be made available for the purposes of targeting public 
and private sediment and nutrient reduction efforts.
    (c) Components.--Sediment and nutrient models for the Upper 
Mississippi River Basin shall include the following:
            (1) Models of processes affecting field sediment and 
        nutrient losses.
            (2) Models of watersheds.
            (3) Models of main river channels.
            (4) Models that relate sediment and nutrient yields from 
        large basins to sources, land uses, and management practices.
    (d) Collection of Ancillary Information.--Ancillary information 
shall be collected in a GIS format to support modeling and management 
use of modeling results, including the following:
            (1) Land use data.
            (2) Soils data.
            (3) Elevation data.
            (4) Information on sediment and nutrient reduction 
        improvement actions.
            (5) Remotely sense data.
    (e) Headquarters.--Information developed by computer modeling shall 
be headquartered at the Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center in 
La Crosse, Wisconsin.

SEC. 202. RESEARCH REGARDING BEST MANAGEMENT PRACTICES AND SEDIMENT AND 
              NUTRIENT LOSS.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of Agriculture shall evaluate the 
benefits and costs of best management practices designed to reduce 
sediment and nutrient loss.
    (b) Evaluation Practices.--The Secretary of Agriculture shall work 
with other partnering agencies, whether Federal, State, Tribal, and 
local, and with other public and nonpublic agencies to evaluate the 
benefits of best management practices designed to reduce nutrient and 
sediment loss.
    (c) Economic Risk Assessment.--The Secretary of Agriculture shall 
assess the economic risks associated with new best management practices 
designed to reduce sediment and nutrient loss.

SEC. 203. DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS REGARDING NEW BEST MANAGEMENT 
              PRACTICES TO REDUCE SEDIMENT AND NUTRIENT LOSS.

    The Secretary of Agriculture shall administer a grant program to 
supplement non-Federal funds being used by State, Tribal, local, and 
private projects to demonstrate new best management practices designed 
to reduce sediment and nutrient loss in the Upper Mississippi River 
Basin.

SEC. 204. USE OF ELECTRONIC MEANS TO DISTRIBUTE INFORMATION.

    (a) Establishment of System.--Not later than 90 days after the date 
of the enactment of this Act, the Director of the United States 
Geological Survey shall establish a system that uses the 
telecommunications medium known as the Internet to provide information 
regarding the following:
            (1) Public and private programs designed to reduce sediment 
        and nutrient loss in the Upper Mississippi River Basin.
            (2) Information on sediment and nutrient levels in the 
        Upper Mississippi River and its tributaries.
            (3) Successful sediment and nutrient reduction projects.
    (b) Cooperation.--The Director of the United States Geological 
Survey shall establish the system in cooperation with the Natural 
Resources Conservation Service.

SEC. 205. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.

    (a) Monitoring Activities.--Commencing one year after the date of 
the enactment of this Act, the Director of the United States Geological 
Survey shall provide to Congress and make available to the public an 
annual report regarding monitoring activities conducted in the Upper 
Mississippi River Basin.
    (b) Modeling Activities.--Every three years, the Director of United 
States Geological Survey shall provide to Congress and make available 
to the public a progress report regarding modeling activities.

   TITLE III--FINANCIAL AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE UNDER DEPARTMENT OF 
                   AGRICULTURE CONSERVATION PROGRAMS

SEC. 301. INCREASED ASSISTANCE TO REDUCE SEDIMENT AND NUTRIENT LOSS.

    The Secretary of Agriculture shall increase financial and technical 
assistance, consistent with the funding provided pursuant to the 
authorization of appropriations in section 701, to reduce sediment and 
nutrient loss in the Upper Mississippi River Basin, and shall work with 
public and private partners to target new assistance to subwatersheds 
in the Upper Mississippi River Basin that are significant sources of 
sediment and nutrients.

SEC. 302. DESIGNATION OF UPPER MISSISSIPPI RIVER BASIN AS A 
              CONSERVATION PRIORITY AREA.

    Section 1230(c) of the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 
3830(c)) is amended by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
            ``(4) Upper mississippi river basin.--The Upper Mississippi 
        River Basin (as defined in section 3 of the Upper Mississippi 
        River Basin Conservation Act of 2000) is a conservation 
        priority area for the purposes of this chapter and chapter 
        4.''.

SEC. 303. INCREASED ENROLLMENT AUTHORITY UNDER CONSERVATION AND WETLAND 
              RESERVE PROGRAMS.

    (a) Conservation Reserve Program.--Section 1231(d) of the Food 
Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3831(d)) is amended by striking 
``36,400,000 acres'' and inserting ``45,000,000 acres''.
    (b) Wetlands Reserve Program.--Section 1237(b) of such Act (16 
U.S.C. 3837(b)) is amended by striking paragraph (1) and inserting the 
following new paragraph:
            ``(1) Maximum enrollment.--The total number of acres 
        enrolled in the wetland reserve program shall not exceed 
        1,075,000 acres.''.

SEC. 304. INCREASED FUNDING FOR WILDLIFE HABITAT INCENTIVES PROGRAM AND 
              ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY INCENTIVES PROGRAM.

    (a) Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program.--Section 387(c) of the 
Federal Agriculture Improvement and Reform Act of 1996 (16 U.S.C. 
3836a(c)) is amended by striking ``$50,000,000'' and inserting 
``$75,000,000''.
    (b) Environmental Quality Incentives Program.--Section 1241(b) of 
the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3841(b)) is amended by 
striking ``and $200,000,000 for each of fiscal years 1997 through 
2002,'' and inserting ``$200,000,000 for each of fiscal years 1997 
through 2000, and $300,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2001 and 
2002,''.

SEC. 305. COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS.

    (a) Agreements Authorized.--Notwithstanding any other provision of 
law (including any provision of law requiring competition), the 
Secretary of Agriculture may enter into a cooperative agreement with a 
State, Tribal, local, and other public and nonpublic agencies if the 
Secretary of Agriculture determines that--
            (1) the objectives of the agreement will serve a mutual 
        interest of the parties to the agreement in carrying out the 
        programs administered by the Department of Agriculture; and
            (2) all parties to the agreement will contribute resources 
        to the accomplishment of these objectives.
    (b) Types of Agreements.--A cooperative agreement under this 
section may include an agreement for the acquisition of goods and 
services, including personal services.

                 TITLE IV--PROTECTION OF PERSONAL DATA

SEC. 401. PRIVACY OF PERSONAL DATA RECEIVED BY DEPARTMENT OF 
              AGRICULTURE AND DATA GATHERING LOCATIONS.

    The Food Security Act of 1985 is amended by inserting after section 
1243 (16 U.S.C. 3843) the following new section:

``SEC. 1244. PRIVACY OF PERSONAL DATA RELATING TO NATURAL RESOURCES 
              CONSERVATION PROGRAMS.

    ``(a) Information and Data Received for Technical and Financial 
Assistance.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law and except as 
provided in paragraph (c), information and data provided to, or 
developed by, the Secretary of Agriculture (including a contractor of 
the Secretary) for the purpose of providing technical or financial 
assistance to a landowner or operator with respect to any natural 
resources conservation program administered by the Natural Resources 
Conservation Service or the Farm Service Agency shall not be released 
or disclosed (including release or disclosure pursuant to section 552 
of title 5, United States Code) to any agency or person outside the 
Department of Agriculture.
    ``(b) Inventory, Monitoring, and Site Specific Data.--
Notwithstanding any other provision of law and except as provided in 
paragraph (c), in order to maintain the personal privacy, 
confidentiality, and cooperation of landowners and operators, and to 
maintain the integrity of sample sites, the specific geographic 
locations of the National Resources Inventory of the Department of 
Agriculture data gathering sites and the information and data generated 
by such sites are not public information and shall not be subject to 
the mandatory disclosure provisions of section 552 of title 5, United 
States Code, or released to any local, tribal, State, or Federal agency 
outside the Department of Agriculture.
    ``(c) Exceptions.--
            ``(1) Release and disclosure for enforcement.--The 
        Secretary of Agriculture may release or disclose information or 
        data covered by subsection (a) or (b) to the extent necessary 
        to enforce the natural resources conservation programs referred 
        to in subsection (a).
            ``(2) Limited disclosure to cooperating persons and 
        agencies.--The Secretary may release or disclose information or 
        data covered by subsection (a) or (b) to a person or a local, 
        tribal, State, or Federal agency working in cooperation with 
        the Secretary of Agriculture in providing technical and 
        financial assistance described in subsection (a) or collecting 
        information and data from National Resources Inventory data 
        gathering sites. However, the person or local, tribal, State, 
        or Federal agency that receives the information or data may 
        release the information or data only for the purpose of 
        assisting the Secretary in providing the requested technical or 
        financial assistance or in collecting information and data from 
        National Resources Inventory data gathering sites.
            ``(3) Limited exception for statistical and aggregate 
        data.--The Secretary may release information or data covered by 
        subsection (b), if the information or data has been transformed 
        into a statistical or aggregate form that does not allow 
        identification of the individual landowner, operator, or 
        specific data gathering site.
    ``(d) Violations.--Section 1770(c) of the Food Security Act of 1985 
(7 U.S.C. 2276) shall apply to any person who releases or causes to be 
released information or data in violation of this section.''.

 TITLE V--ADVISORY COUNCIL ON THE UPPER MISSISSIPPI RIVER STEWARDSHIP 
                               INITIATIVE

SEC. 501. ESTABLISHMENT OF ADVISORY COUNCIL.

    (a) Establishment.--The Secretary of Agriculture, in consultation 
with the governors specified in subsection (c), shall establish an 
advisory body, to be known as the Advisory Council on the Upper 
Mississippi River Stewardship Initiative, to provide guidance regarding 
the Initiative.
    (b) Membership.--
            (1) Voting members.--The Advisory Council shall consist of 
        a total of 15 voting members.
            (2) Chairperson.--Voting members shall elect one member 
        appointed under subparagraph (c) to serve as chairperson for 
        the Advisory Council. The chairperson shall serve for a term 
        lasting no more than one year.
    (c) Appointment.--The governors of the States of Minnesota, 
Wisconsin, Illinois, Iowa, and Missouri shall each appoint two voting 
members of the Advisory Council, to be selected from nongovernmental 
agriculture, natural resources, recreational, and environmental groups 
and other persons with interests in the sustainability and health of 
the natural resources of the Upper Mississippi River Basin.
    (d) State Technical Committee Representation.--The five remaining 
voting members of the Advisory Council shall be drawn from the State 
Technical Committees established by the Secretary of Agriculture under 
section 1261 of the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3861) for the 
States of Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Iowa, and Missouri. The 
Secretary of Agriculture shall select one member from each of these 
State Technical Committees.
    (e) Nonvoting Members.--The governors referred to in subsection (c) 
shall also each appoint one nonvoting member for the Advisory Council 
who will serve as representatives of the governors.
    (f) Per Diem.--Members of the Advisory Council, including members 
appointed pursuant to subsection (e), shall receive the Federal per 
diem for transportation and lodging associated with meetings and other 
activities of the Advisory Council.

SEC. 502. RESPONSIBILITIES OF ADVISORY COUNCIL.

    (a) Coordination and Communication.--The Advisory Council shall 
serve as a means for coordination, communication, and information 
sharing regarding such issues in the Upper Mississippi River Basin as 
follows:
            (1) Science and technology concerning conservation 
        practices.
            (2) Monitoring and modeling needs.
            (3) Strategies for implementing conservation assistance and 
        programs.
            (4) Performance assessment.
            (5) Evaluation and reporting.
    (b) Annual Report on Reduction Efforts.--
            (1) Preparation.--The Advisory Council shall prepare an 
        annual report regarding publicly-financed efforts to reduce 
        sediment and nutrient loss in the Upper Mississippi River 
        Basin. In the case of any such report, output data shall 
        conform to the standards established pursuant to section 401.
            (2) Submission.--The annual report shall be submitted--
                    (A) to the State legislatures of the States of 
                Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Illinois, Missouri, 
                Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Louisiana, and 
                Mississippi;
                    (B) to the Upper Mississippi River Basin 
                Association; and
                    (C) to the Congress.
    (c) Special Task Forces.--The Advisory Council may establish and 
provide guidance to public-private task groups, including the 
following:
            (1) A Sediment and Nutrient Monitoring Task Group.
            (2) A Computer Modeling Task Group.
            (3) An Outreach Task Group.
    (d) Public Meetings.--As part of its responsibilities under this 
section, the Advisory Council shall hold annual public meetings in each 
of the States of Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Illinois, and Missouri to 
formulate recommendations and seek public input regarding methods and 
priorities to reduce sediment and nutrient loss in the Upper 
Mississippi River Basin. To qualify as the annual meeting in a State, 
at least two of the three members of the Advisory Council from that 
State must be present at the meeting.
    (e) Staff Director.--The Secretary of Agriculture shall appoint an 
employee of the Natural Resources Conservation Service of the 
Department of Agriculture to act as staff director for the Advisory 
Council. The staff director shall work in conjunction with the 
chairperson of the Advisory Council to assist in coordinating the 
activities of the Advisory Council.

SEC. 503. ADVISORY NATURE OF COUNCIL.

    (a) In General.--The Advisory Council is purely advisory and shall 
have no implementation or enforcement authority. However, the Secretary 
of Agriculture and the heads of the other Federal agencies in the 
Interagency Working Group established under section 601 shall give 
strong consideration to the recommendations of the Advisory Council in 
administering natural resources programs of the Upper Mississippi River 
Basin.
    (b) Public Outreach.--The Secretary of Agriculture shall work with 
the Advisory Council to coordinate outreach activities in the Upper 
Mississippi River Basin related to technologies and other methods to 
reduce sediment and nutrient loss.

 TITLE VI--INTERAGENCY WORKING GROUP ON UPPER MISSISSIPPI RIVER BASIN 
                               INITIATIVE

SEC. 601. ESTABLISHMENT OF INTERAGENCY WORKING GROUP.

    (a) Establishment.--The Secretary of Agriculture and the Secretary 
of the Department of the Interior shall establish an Interagency 
Working Group to coordinate Federal nutrient and sediment reduction 
efforts in the Upper Mississippi River Basin under the Initiative.
    (b) Participation.--The Interagency Working Group shall include the 
following:
            (1) The Secretary of Agriculture, or the designee of the 
        Secretary.
            (2) The Secretary of the Interior, or the designee of the 
        Secretary.
    (c) Chair.--The Secretary of Agriculture (or the designee of the 
Secretary) shall serve as chairperson of the Interagency Working Group 
and may solicit input and participation by other Federal agencies 
engaged in sediment and nutrient reduction efforts in the Upper 
Mississippi River Basin.
    (d) Annual Work Plan and Budget.--The Interagency Working Group 
shall annually develop a coordinated work plan and budget for the 
Federal agencies participating in the Initiative--
            (1) to better coordinate Federal efforts to address 
        sediment and nutrient reduction in the Upper Mississippi River 
        Basin;
            (2) to encourage Federal agencies responsible for sediment 
        and nutrient reduction efforts to leverage local, State, and 
        Federal resources;
            (3) to identify gaps and overlapping programs; and
            (4) to better prioritize existing Federal spending to 
        address major sources of sediment and nutrient loss.
    (e) Coordination.--The Interagency Working Group shall coordinate 
its recommendations to be included in the work plan and budget with 
those of individual agencies.
    (f) Submission of Work Plan and Budget.--Not later than September 
15 of each year, the Interagency Working Group shall submit to the 
Office of Management and Budget the work plan and budget required by 
subsection (d).

               TITLE VII--AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS

SEC. 701. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There is authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be 
necessary to carry out this Act.
                                 <all>