[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1973 Enrolled Bill (ENR)]


        H.R.1973

                       One Hundred Ninth Congress

                                 of the

                        United States of America


                          AT THE FIRST SESSION

          Begun and held at the City of Washington on Tuesday,
            the fourth day of January, two thousand and five


                                 An Act


 
 To make access to safe water and sanitation for developing countries a 
   specific policy objective of the United States foreign assistance 
                    programs, 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 ``Senator Paul Simon Water for the 
Poor Act of 2005''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following findings:
        (1) Water-related diseases are a human tragedy, killing up to 
    five million people annually, preventing millions of people from 
    leading healthy lives, and undermining development efforts.
        (2) A child dies an average of every 15 seconds because of lack 
    of access to safe water and adequate sanitation.
        (3) In the poorest countries in the world, one out of five 
    children dies from a preventable, water-related disease.
        (4) Lack of access to safe drinking water, inadequate 
    sanitation, and poor hygiene practices are directly responsible for 
    the vast majority of diarrheal diseases which kill over two million 
    children each year.
        (5) At any given time, half of all people in the developing 
    world are suffering from one or more of the main diseases 
    associated with inadequate provision of water supply and sanitation 
    services.
        (6) Over 1.1 billion people, one in every six people in the 
    world, lack access to safe drinking water.
        (7) Nearly 2.6 billion people, two in every five people in the 
    world, lack access to basic sanitation services.
        (8) Half of all schools in the world do not have access to safe 
    drinking water and basic sanitation.
        (9) Over the past 20 years, two billion people have gained 
    access to safe drinking water and 600 million people have gained 
    access to basic sanitation services.
        (10) Access to safe water and sanitation and improved hygiene 
    are significant factors in controlling the spread of disease in the 
    developing world and positively affecting worker productivity and 
    economic development.
        (11) Increasing access to safe water and sanitation advances 
    efforts toward other development objectives, such as fighting 
    poverty and hunger, promoting primary education and gender 
    equality, reducing child mortality, promoting environmental 
    stability, improving the lives of slum dwellers, and strengthening 
    national security.
        (12) Providing safe supplies of water and sanitation and 
    hygiene improvements would save millions of lives by reducing the 
    prevalence of water-borne diseases, water-based diseases, water-
    privation diseases, and water-related vector diseases.
        (13) Because women and girls in developing countries are often 
    the carriers of water, lack of access to safe water and sanitation 
    disproportionately affects women and limits women's opportunities 
    at education, livelihood, and financial independence.
        (14) Between 20 percent and 50 percent of existing water 
    systems in developing countries are not operating or are operating 
    poorly.
        (15) In developing world water delivery systems, an average of 
    50 percent of all water is lost before it gets to the end-user.
        (16) Every $1 invested in safe water and sanitation would yield 
    an economic return of between $3 and $34, depending on the region.
        (17) Developing sustainable financing mechanisms, such as 
    pooling mechanisms and revolving funds, is necessary for the long-
    term viability of improved water and sanitation services.
        (18) The annual level of investment needed to meet the water 
    and sanitation needs of developing countries far exceeds the amount 
    of Official Development Assistance (ODA) and spending by 
    governments of developing countries, so facilitating and attracting 
    greater public and private investment is essential.
        (19) Meeting the water and sanitation needs of the lowest-
    income developing countries will require an increase in the 
    resources available as grants from donor countries.
        (20) The long-term sustainability of improved water and 
    sanitation services can be advanced by promoting community level 
    action and engagement with civil society.
        (21) Target 10 of the United Nations Millennium Development 
    Goals is to reduce by half the proportion of people without 
    sustainable access to safe drinking water by 2015.
        (22) The participants in the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable 
    Development, held in Johannesburg, South Africa, including the 
    United States, agreed to the Plan of Implementation of the World 
    Summit on Sustainable Development which included an agreement to 
    work to reduce by one-half ``the proportion of people who are 
    unable to reach or afford safe drinking water,'' and ``the 
    proportion of people without access to basic sanitation'' by 2015.
        (23) At the World Summit on Sustainable Development, the United 
    States announced the Water for the Poor Initiative, committing $970 
    million for fiscal years 2003 through 2005 to improve sustainable 
    management of fresh water resources and accelerate and expand 
    international efforts to achieve the goal of cutting in half by 
    2015 the proportion of people who are unable to reach or to afford 
    safe drinking water.
        (24) United Nations General Assembly Resolution 58/217 
    (February 9, 2004) proclaimed ``the period from 2005 to 2015 the 
    International Decade for Action, `Water for Life', to commence on 
    World Water Day, 22 March 2005'' for the purpose of increasing the 
    focus of the international community on water-related issues at all 
    levels and on the implementation of water-related programs and 
    projects.
        (25) Around the world, 263 river basins are shared by two or 
    more countries, and many more basins and watersheds cross political 
    or ethnic boundaries.
        (26) Water scarcity can contribute to insecurity and conflict 
    on subnational, national, and international levels, thus 
    endangering the national security of the United States.
        (27) Opportunities to manage water problems can be leveraged in 
    ways to build confidence, trust, and peace between parties in 
    conflict.
        (28) Cooperative water management can help resolve conflicts 
    caused by other problems and is often a crucial component in 
    resolving such conflicts.
        (29) Cooperative water management can help countries recover 
    from conflict and, by promoting dialogue and cooperation among 
    former parties in conflict, can help prevent the reemergence of 
    conflict.

SEC. 3. STATEMENT OF POLICY.

    It is the policy of the United States--
        (1) to increase the percentage of water and sanitation 
    assistance targeted toward countries designated as high priority 
    countries under section 6(f) of this Act;
        (2) to ensure that water and sanitation assistance reflect an 
    appropriate balance of grants, loans, contracts, investment 
    insurance, loan guarantees, and other assistance to further ensure 
    affordability and equity in the provision of access to safe water 
    and sanitation for the very poor;
        (3) to ensure that the targeting of water and sanitation 
    assistance reflect an appropriate balance between urban, periurban, 
    and rural areas to meet the purposes of assistance described in 
    section 135 of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, as added by 
    section 5(a) of this Act;
        (4) to ensure that forms of water and sanitation assistance 
    provided reflect the level of existing resources and markets for 
    investment in water and sanitation within recipient countries;
        (5) to ensure that water and sanitation assistance, to the 
    extent possible, supports the poverty reduction strategies of 
    recipient countries and, when appropriate, encourages the inclusion 
    of water and sanitation within such poverty reduction strategies;
        (6) to promote country and local ownership of safe water and 
    sanitation programs, to the extent appropriate;
        (7) to promote community-based approaches in the provision of 
    affordable and equitable access to safe water and sanitation, 
    including the involvement of civil society;
        (8) to mobilize and leverage the financial and technical 
    capacity of businesses, governments, nongovernmental organizations, 
    and civil society in the form of public-private alliances;
        (9) to encourage reforms and increase the capacity of foreign 
    governments to formulate and implement policies that expand access 
    to safe water and sanitation in an affordable, equitable, and 
    sustainable manner, including integrated strategic planning; and
        (10) to protect the supply and availability of safe water 
    through sound environmental management, including preventing the 
    destruction and degradation of ecosystems and watersheds.

SEC. 4. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

    It is the sense of Congress that--
        (1) in order to make the most effective use of amounts of 
    Official Development Assistance for water and sanitation and avoid 
    waste and duplication, the United States should seek to establish 
    innovative international coordination mechanisms based on best 
    practices in other development sectors; and
        (2) the United States should greatly increase the amount of 
    Official Development Assistance made available to carry out section 
    135 of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, as added by section 5(a) 
    of this Act.

SEC. 5. ASSISTANCE TO PROVIDE SAFE WATER AND SANITATION.

    (a) In General.--Chapter 1 of part I of the Foreign Assistance Act 
of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2151 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the 
following new section:

``SEC. 135. ASSISTANCE TO PROVIDE SAFE WATER AND SANITATION.

    ``(a) Purposes.--The purposes of assistance authorized by this 
section are--
        ``(1) to promote good health, economic development, poverty 
    reduction, women's empowerment, conflict prevention, and 
    environmental sustainability by providing assistance to expand 
    access to safe water and sanitation, promoting integrated water 
    resource management, and improving hygiene for people around the 
    world;
        ``(2) to seek to reduce by one-half from the baseline year 1990 
    the proportion of people who are unable to reach or afford safe 
    drinking water and the proportion of people without access to basic 
    sanitation by 2015;
        ``(3) to focus water and sanitation assistance toward the 
    countries, locales, and people with the greatest need;
        ``(4) to promote affordability and equity in the provision of 
    access to safe water and sanitation for the very poor, women, and 
    other vulnerable populations;
        ``(5) to improve water efficiency through water demand 
    management and reduction of unaccounted-for water;
        ``(6) to promote long-term sustainability in the affordable and 
    equitable provision of access to safe water and sanitation through 
    the creation of innovative financing mechanisms such as national 
    revolving funds, and by strengthening the capacity of recipient 
    governments and communities to formulate and implement policies 
    that expand access to safe water and sanitation in a sustainable 
    fashion, including integrated planning;
        ``(7) to secure the greatest amount of resources possible, 
    encourage private investment in water and sanitation infrastructure 
    and services, particularly in lower middle-income countries, 
    without creating unsustainable debt for low-income countries or 
    unaffordable water and sanitation costs for the very poor; and
        ``(8) to promote the capacity of recipient governments to 
    provide affordable, equitable, and sustainable access to safe water 
    and sanitation.
    ``(b) Authorization.--To carry out the purposes of subsection (a), 
the President is authorized to furnish assistance for programs in 
developing countries to provide affordable and equitable access to safe 
water and sanitation.
    ``(c) Activities Supported.--Assistance provided under subsection 
(b) shall, to the maximum extent practicable, be used to--
        ``(1) expand affordable and equitable access to safe water and 
    sanitation for underserved populations;
        ``(2) support the design, construction, maintenance, upkeep, 
    repair, and operation of water delivery and sanitation systems;
        ``(3) improve the safety and reliability of water supplies, 
    including environmental management; and
        ``(4) improve the capacity of recipient governments and local 
    communities, including capacity-building programs for improved 
    water resource management.
    ``(d) Local Currency.--The President may use payments made in local 
currencies under an agreement made under title I of the Agricultural 
Trade Development and Assistance Act of 1954 (7 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) to 
provide assistance under this section.''.
    (b) Conforming Amendment.--Section 104(c) of the Agricultural Trade 
Development and Assistance Act of 1954 (7 U.S.C. 1704(c)) is amended by 
adding at the end the following new paragraph:
        ``(9) Safe water and sanitation.--To provide assistance under 
    section 135 of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to promote good 
    health, economic development, poverty reduction, women's 
    empowerment, conflict prevention, and environmental sustainability 
    by increasing affordable and equitable access to safe water and 
    sanitation.''.

SEC. 6. SAFE WATER AND SANITATION STRATEGY.

    (a) Strategy.--The President, acting through the Secretary of 
State, shall develop a strategy to further the United States foreign 
assistance objective to provide affordable and equitable access to safe 
water and sanitation in developing countries, as described in section 
135 of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, as added by section 5(a) of 
this Act.
    (b) Consultation.--The strategy required by subsection (a) shall be 
developed in consultation with the Administrator of the United States 
Agency for International Development, the heads of other appropriate 
Federal departments and agencies, international organizations, 
international financial institutions, recipient governments, United 
States and international nongovernmental organizations, indigenous 
civil society, and other appropriate entities.
    (c) Implementation.--The Secretary of State, acting through the 
Administrator of the United States Agency for International 
Development, shall implement the strategy required by subsection (a). 
The strategy may also be implemented in part by other Federal 
departments and agencies, as appropriate.
    (d) Consistent With Safe Water and Sanitation Policy.--The strategy 
required by subsection (a) shall be consistent with the policy stated 
in section 3 of this Act.
    (e) Content.--The strategy required by subsection (a) shall 
include--
        (1) an assessment of the activities that have been carried out, 
    or that are planned to be carried out, by all appropriate Federal 
    departments and agencies to improve affordable and equitable access 
    to safe water and sanitation in all countries that receive 
    assistance from the United States;
        (2) specific and measurable goals, benchmarks, and timetables 
    to achieve the objective described in subsection (a);
        (3) an assessment of the level of funding and other assistance 
    for United States water and sanitation programs needed each year to 
    achieve the goals, benchmarks, and timetables described in 
    paragraph (2);
        (4) methods to coordinate and integrate United States water and 
    sanitation assistance programs with other United States development 
    assistance programs to achieve the objective described in 
    subsection (a);
        (5) methods to better coordinate United States water and 
    sanitation assistance programs with programs of other donor 
    countries and entities to achieve the objective described in 
    subsection (a); and
        (6) an assessment of the commitment of governments of countries 
    that receive assistance under section 135 of the Foreign Assistance 
    Act of 1961, as added by section 5(a) of this Act, to policies or 
    policy reforms that support affordable and equitable access by the 
    people of such countries to safe water and sanitation.
    (f) Designation of High Priority Countries.--The strategy required 
by subsection (a) shall further include the designation of high 
priority countries for assistance under section 135 of the Foreign 
Assistance Act of 1961, as added by section 5(a) of this Act. This 
designation shall be made on the basis of--
        (1) countries in which the need for increased access to safe 
    water and sanitation is greatest; and
        (2) countries in which assistance under such section can be 
    expected to make the greatest difference in promoting good health, 
    economic development, poverty reduction, women's empowerment, 
    conflict prevention, and environmental sustainability.
    (g) Reports.--
        (1) Initial report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
    the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall submit to 
    the appropriate congressional committees a report that describes 
    the strategy required by subsection (a).
        (2) Subsequent reports.--
            (A) In general.--Not less than once every year after the 
        submission of the initial report under paragraph (1) until 
        2015, the Secretary of State shall submit to the appropriate 
        congressional committees a report on the status of the 
        implementation of the strategy, progress made in achieving the 
        objective described in subsection (a), and any changes to the 
        strategy since the date of the submission of the last report.
            (B) Additional information.--Such reports shall include 
        information on the amount of funds expended in each country or 
        program, disaggregated by purpose of assistance, including 
        information on capital investments, and the source of such 
        funds by account.
        (3) Definition.--In this subsection, the term ``appropriate 
    congressional committees'' means--
            (A) the Committee on International Relations and the 
        Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives; 
        and
            (B) the Committee on Foreign Relations and the Committee on 
        Appropriations of the Senate.

SEC. 7. MONITORING REQUIREMENT.

    The Secretary of State and the Administrator of the United States 
Agency for International Development shall monitor the implementation 
of assistance under section 135 of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, 
as added by section 5(a) of this Act, to ensure that the assistance is 
reaching its intended targets and meeting the intended purposes of 
assistance.

SEC. 8. SENSE OF CONGRESS REGARDING DEVELOPMENT OF LOCAL CAPACITY.

    It is the sense of Congress that the Secretary of State should 
expand current programs and develop new programs, as necessary, to 
train local water and sanitation managers and other officials of 
countries that receive assistance under section 135 of the Foreign 
Assistance Act of 1961, as added by section 5(a) of this Act.

SEC. 9. SENSE OF CONGRESS REGARDING ADDITIONAL WATER AND SANITATION 
              PROGRAMS.

     It is the sense of the Congress that--
        (1) the United States should further support, as appropriate, 
    water and sanitation activities of United Nations agencies, such as 
    the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), the United Nations 
    Development Programme (UNDP), and the United Nations Environment 
    Programme (UNEP); and
        (2) the Secretary of the Treasury should instruct each United 
    States Executive Director at the multilateral development banks 
    (within the meaning of section 1701(c) of the International 
    Financial Institutions Act) to encourage the inclusion of water and 
    sanitation programs as a critical element of their development 
    assistance.

SEC. 10. REPORT REGARDING WATER FOR PEACE AND SECURITY.

    (a) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that United 
States programs to support and encourage efforts around the world to 
develop river basin, aquifer, and other watershed-wide mechanisms for 
governance and cooperation are critical components of long-term United 
States national security and should be expanded.
    (b) Report.--The Secretary of State, in consultation with the 
Administrator of the United States Agency for International 
Development, shall submit to the Committee on International Relations 
of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations 
of the Senate a report on efforts that the United States is making to 
support and promote programs that develop river basin, aquifer, and 
other watershed-wide mechanisms for governance and cooperation.

SEC. 11. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    (a) In General.--There are authorized to be appropriated for fiscal 
year 2006 and each subsequent fiscal year such sums as may be necessary 
to carry out this Act and the amendments made by this Act.
    (b) Other Amounts.--Amounts appropriated pursuant to the 
authorization of appropriations in subsection (a) shall be in addition 
to the amounts otherwise available to carry out this Act and the 
amendments made by this Act.
    (c) Availability.--Amounts appropriated pursuant to the 
authorization of appropriations under subsection (a) are authorized to 
remain available until expended.

                               Speaker of the House of Representatives.

                            Vice President of the United States and    
                                               President of the Senate.