II 109th CONGRESS 1st Session S. 208 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES January 31, 2005 Mr. Levin (for himself, Mr. DeWine, Ms. Stabenow, and Mr. Voinovich) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works A BILL To amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to direct the Great Lakes National Program Office of the Environmental Protection Agency to develop, implement, monitor, and report on a series of indicators of water quality and related environmental factors in the Great Lakes.

1.

Short title

This Act may be cited as the Great Lakes Water Quality Indicators and Monitoring Act.

2.

Findings

Congress finds that— (1)there are no comprehensive, regularly-collected data that reveal whether the water quality or related environmental factors of the Great Lakes have improved as a result of efforts to remediate and protect the Great Lakes; (2)that lack of data was confirmed in May 2003 in a report by the Government Accountability Office that concluded existing data were inadequate to assess the overall progress of restoration efforts in the Great Lakes; and (3)without those data, it is impossible to determine whether— (A)progress is being made toward achieving the goals contained in the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement between the United States and Canada; or (B)Federal and State water quality standards and remediation programs are effective.

3.

Great Lakes water quality indicators and monitoring

(a)

In general

Section 118(c)(1) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1268(c)(1)) is amended by striking subparagraph (B) and inserting the following: (B)(i)not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this clause, in cooperation with Canada and appropriate Federal agencies (including the United States Geological Survey, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the United States Fish and Wildlife Service), develop and implement a set of science-based indicators of water quality and related environmental factors in the Great Lakes, including, at a minimum, measures of toxic pollutants that have accumulated in the Great Lakes for a substantial period of time, as determined by the Program Office; (ii)not later than 4 years after the date of enactment of this clause— (I)establish a Federal network for the regular monitoring of, and collection of data throughout, the Great Lakes basin with respect to the indicators described in clause (i); and (II)collect an initial set of benchmark data from the network; and (iii)not later than 2 years after the date of collection of the data described in clause (ii)(II), and biennially thereafter, in addition to the report required under paragraph (10), submit to Congress, and make available to the public, a report that— (I)describes the water quality and related environmental factors of the Great Lakes (including any changes in those factors), as determined through the regular monitoring of indicators under clause (ii)(I) for the period covered by the report; and (II)identifies any emerging problems in the water quality or related environmental factors of the Great Lakes. . (b)

Authorization of appropriations

Section 118 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1268) is amended by striking subsection (h) and inserting the following: (h)

Authorization of appropriations

(1)

In general

There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section (other than subsection (c)(1)(B)) $25,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2006 through 2010. (2)

Great Lakes water quality indicators and monitoring

There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out subsection (c)(1)(B)— (A)$4,000,000 for fiscal year 2006; (B)$6,000,000 for fiscal year 2007; (C)$8,000,000 for fiscal year 2008; and (D)$10,000,000 for fiscal year 2009. .