[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4104 Reported in House (RH)]






                                                 Union Calendar No. 497
106th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 4104

                          [Report No. 106-840]

 To amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to authorize funding 
   to carry out certain water quality and barrier island restoration 
      projects for the Mississippi Sound, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 28, 2000

  Mr. Taylor of Mississippi introduced the following bill; which was 
     referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure

                           September 12, 2000

Reported with amendments, committed to the Committee of the Whole House 
          on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed
 [Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed 
                               in italic]
 [For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on March 
                               28, 2000]

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to authorize funding 
   to carry out certain water quality and barrier island restoration 
      projects for the Mississippi Sound, 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 ``Mississippi Sound Restoration Act of 
2000''.

SEC. 2. NATIONAL ESTUARY PROGRAM.

    (a) Finding.--Congress finds that the Mississippi Sound is an 
estuary of national significance.
    (b) Addition to National Estuary Program.--Section 320(a)(2)(B) of 
the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1330(a)(2)(B)) is 
amended by inserting ``Mississippi Sound, Mississippi;'' before ``and 
Peconic Bay, New York.''.

SEC. 3. MISSISSIPPI SOUND.

    Title I of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 
et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:

``SEC. 121. MISSISSIPPI SOUND.

    ``(a) Establishment of Restoration Program.--The Administrator 
shall establish within the Environmental Protection Agency the 
Mississippi Sound Restoration Program.
    ``(b) Purpose.--The purpose of the program shall be to restore the 
ecological health of the Sound, including barrier islands, coastal 
wetlands, keys, and reefs, by developing and funding restoration 
projects and related scientific and public education projects and by 
coordinating efforts among Federal, State, and local governmental 
agencies and nonregulatory organizations.
    ``(c) Duties.--In carrying out the program, the Administrator 
shall--
            ``(1) provide administrative and technical assistance to a 
        management conference convened for the Sound under section 320;
            ``(2) assist and support the activities of the management 
        conference, including the implementation of recommendations of 
        the management conference;
            ``(3) support environmental monitoring of the Sound and 
        research to provide necessary technical and scientific 
        information;
            ``(4) develop a comprehensive research plan to address the 
        technical needs of the program;
            ``(5) coordinate the grant, research, and planning programs 
        authorized under this section; and
            ``(6) collect and make available to the public 
        publications, and other forms of information the management 
        conference determines to be appropriate, relating to the 
        environmental quality of the Sound.
    ``(d) Grants.--The Administrator may make grants--
            ``(1) for restoration projects and studies recommended by a 
        management conference convened for the Sound under section 320; 
        and
            ``(2) for public education projects recommended by the 
        management conference.
    ``(e) Definitions.--In this section, the following definitions 
apply:
            ``(1) Sound.--The term `Sound' means the Mississippi Sound 
        located on the Gulf Coast of the State of Mississippi.
            ``(2) Program.--The term `program' means the Mississippi 
        Sound Restoration Program established under subsection (a).
    ``(f) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated $10,000,000 to carry out this section. Such sums shall 
remain available until expended.''.

SEC. 4. SENSE OF THE CONGRESS.

    It is the sense of the Congress that all recipients of grants under 
this Act (including amendments made by this Act) shall abide by the Buy 
American Act. The Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency 
shall give notice of the Buy American Act requirements to grant 
applicants under this Act.
            Amend the title so as to read: ``A bill to amend the 
        Federal Water Pollution Control Act to authorize funding to 
        carry out certain water quality and environmental restoration 
        projects for the Mississippi Sound, Mississippi, and for other 
        purposes.''.
                                                 Union Calendar No. 497

106th CONGRESS

  2d Session

                               H. R. 4104

                          [Report No. 106-840]

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 To amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to authorize funding 
   to carry out certain water quality and barrier island restoration 
      projects for the Mississippi Sound, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                           September 12, 2000

Reported with amendments, committed to the Committee of the Whole House 
          on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed