[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1211 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







108th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1211

   To further the purposes of title XVI of the Reclamation Projects 
Authorization and Adjustment Act of 1992, the ``Reclamation Wastewater 
and Groundwater Study and Facilities Act'', by directing the Secretary 
    of the Interior to undertake a demonstration program for water 
    reclamation in the Tularosa Basin of New Mexico, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              June 9, 2003

 Mr. Domenici introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
       referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To further the purposes of title XVI of the Reclamation Projects 
Authorization and Adjustment Act of 1992, the ``Reclamation Wastewater 
and Groundwater Study and Facilities Act'', by directing the Secretary 
    of the Interior to undertake a demonstration program for water 
    reclamation in the Tularosa Basin of New Mexico, 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. TULAROSA BASIN FACILITY.

    (a) In furtherance of the purposes of title XVI of the Reclamation 
Projects Authorization and Adjustment Act of 1992 (106 Stat. 4600, 
4663; 43 U.S.C. 390h), the Secretary of the Interior (``Secretary'') 
shall construct, manage, and maintain a test and evaluation facility 
(`facility') at the Tularosa Basin, located in Otero County in the 
State of New Mexico capable of processing at least 100,000 gallons of 
water per day.
    (b) Objectives of Facility.--The facility shall be used to carry 
out research on, and to test, demonstrate, and evaluate new 
desalination technologies to produce potable water from saline or other 
unsuitable water, including analysis of effects on energy consumption, 
byproduct disposal, and operations and maintenance costs to determine 
the most technologically-efficient and cost-effective means to produce 
potable water from saline or other unsuitable water using desalination 
technologies.
    (c) Technology Plan Development.--The Secretary shall contract with 
Sandia National Laboratory (``Sandia'') to develop a desalination 
technology plan (`plan') within one year from the date when funds are 
made available for the purposes of this Act. The plan shall--
            (1) be developed in consultation with the Secretary and the 
        Secretary of Energy;
            (2) consider the experience of similar facilities and 
        research programs operated by the Federal government and by 
        other research institutions; and
            (3) include recommendations for the siting and 
        configuration of the facility and the research and development 
        program to be undertaken at the facility.
    (d) Review of Plan.--The Secretary shall review the plan and may 
modify or change any recommendation after consultation with the 
Secretary of Energy.
    (e) Construction of Facility.--Within three years from the date of 
completion of the plan, the Secretary shall construct the facility in 
accordance with the recommendations contained in the plan, including 
any modifications or changes. The Secretary may contract with other 
Federal agencies, State agencies, educational institutions, and private 
entities for construction of the facility.
    (f) Memorandum of Agreement for Operation.--The Secretary and the 
Secretary of Energy shall enter into a Memorandum of Agreement for the 
operation of the facility and the conduct of research under this Act. 
Research may be conducted at the facility and may also be carried out 
at any laboratory facility determined to be suitable by Sandia. The 
Secretary and the Secretary of Energy shall establish a technical 
advisory panel drawn from Federal or State agencies, academic 
institutions, and private or public entities to provide program 
guidance and technical assistance in the operation or the facility and 
conduct of research.
    (g) Provision of Water.--The Secretary shall dispose of all water 
produced by the facility under contract with one more communities 
located in Otero County, New Mexico where the water would be 
supplementary to water provided by public water systems or wells in the 
communities and only after Sandia notifies the Secretary that the water 
is of a consistent, reliable quality. The water shall be provided at no 
cost to the local community except for the costs of conveyance and 
delivery.

SEC. 2. RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM.

    The Secretary and the Secretary of Energy may undertake research 
and development of desalination technologies in addition to the program 
carried out at the facility directly or by contract, interagency 
agreement, cooperative agreement, or grant. Any agreement or grant may 
be made only on the basis of a competitive, merit-reviewed process. The 
Secretary and the Secretary of Energy may carry out the program at a 
location outside the United States after consultation with and approval 
by the Secretary of State.

SEC. 3. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    Appropriations may be made to the Secretary and to the Secretary of 
Energy. There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be 
necessary to carry out the provisions of this Act, but not to exceed--
            (1) $1,500,000 for development of the plan under section 
        1(c);
            (2) $30,00,000 (January 2003 price levels), plus or minus 
        such amounts, if any, as may be required by reason of ordinary 
        fluctuations in construction costs as indicated by engineering 
        cost indexes applicable to the types of construction involved 
        for the construction of the facility;
            (3) $6,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2004 through 2010 
        for transfer to Sandia to carry out research programs 
        associated with the facility; and
            (4) $10,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2004 through 2010 
        for research and development activities under section 2 of 
        which not more than $1,500,000 in any fiscal year may be for 
        research undertaken directly by the Secretary and not more than 
        $1,000,000 in any fiscal year may be for grants to institutions 
        of higher education (including United States-Mexico binational 
        research foundations and interuniversity research programs 
        established by the 2 countries).
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