Short title

This Act may be cited as the

Senator Paul Simon Water for the World Act of 2011

Findings

Congress finds the following: (1)The Senator Paul Simon Water for the Poor Act of 2005 (Public Law 109–121)— (A)makes access to safe water and sanitation for developing countries a specific policy objective of United States foreign assistance programs; (B)requires the Secretary of State to— (i)develop a strategy to elevate the role of water and sanitation policy; and (ii)improve the effectiveness of United States assistance programs undertaken in support of that strategy; (C)codifies Target 10 of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals; and (D)seeks to reduce by half between 1990 (the baseline year) and 2015— (i)the proportion of people who are unable to reach or afford safe drinking water; and (ii)the proportion of people without access to basic sanitation. (2)On December 20, 2006, the United Nations General Assembly, in GA Resolution 61/192, declared 2008 as the International Year of Sanitation, in recognition of the impact of sanitation on public health, poverty reduction, economic and social development, and the environment. (3)On August 1, 2008, Congress passed H. Con. Res. 318, which— (A)supports the goals and ideals of the International Year of Sanitation; and (B)recognizes the importance of sanitation on public health, poverty reduction, economic and social development, and the environment. (4)While progress is being made on safe water and sanitation efforts— (A)more than 884,000,000 people throughout the world lack access to safe drinking water; and (B)2 of every 5 people in the world do not have access to basic sanitation services. (5)The health consequences of unsafe drinking water and poor sanitation are significant, accounting for— (A)nearly 10 percent of the global burden of disease; and (B)more than 2,000,000 deaths each year. (6)Water scarcity has negative consequences for agricultural productivity and food security for the 1,200,000,000 people who, as of 2010, suffer from chronic hunger and seriously threatens the ability of the world to more than double food production to meet the demands of a projected population of 9,000,000,000 people by 2050. (7)According to the November 2008 report entitled, Global Trends 2025: A Transformed World, the National Intelligence Council expects rapid urbanization and future population growth to exacerbate already limited access to water, particularly in agriculture-based economies. (8)According to the 2005 Millennium Ecosystem Assessment, commissioned by the United Nations, more than 1/5 of the world population relies on freshwater that is either polluted or excessively withdrawn. (9)The impact of water scarcity on conflict and instability is evident in many parts of the world, including the Darfur region of Sudan, where demand for water resources has contributed to armed conflict between nomadic ethnic groups and local farming communities. (10)In order to further the United States contribution to safe water and sanitation efforts, it is necessary to— (A)expand foreign assistance capacity to address the challenges described in this section; and (B)represent issues related to water and sanitation at the highest levels of United States foreign assistance and diplomatic deliberations, including those related to issues of global health, food security, the environment, global warming, and maternal and child mortality.

Sense of Congress

It is the sense of Congress that the United States should help undertake a global effort to bring sustainable access to clean water and sanitation to poor people throughout the world.

Purpose

The purpose of this Act is— (1)to enable first-time access to safe water and sanitation, on a sustainable basis, for 100,000,000 people in high priority countries (as designated under section 6(f) of the Senator Paul Simon Water for the Poor Act of 2005 (22 U.S.C. 2152h note)) within 6 years of the date of enactment of this Act through direct funding, development activities, and partnerships; and (2)to enhance the capacity of the United States Government to fully implement the Senator Paul Simon Water for the Poor Act of 2005 (Public Law 109–121).

Developing United States Government capacity

Section 135 of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2152h) is amended by adding at the end the following:

(e)

Senior Advisor for water

(1)

In general

To carry out the purposes of subsection (a), the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development shall designate a senior advisor to coordinate and conduct the activities described in this section and the Senator Paul Simon Water for the Poor Act of 2005 (Public Law 109–121). The Advisor shall report directly to the Administrator and be known as the Senior Advisor for Water. The initial Senior Advisor for Water shall be the individual serving as the USAID Global Water Coordinator as of the date of the enactment of the Senator Paul Simon Water for the World Act of 2010. (2)

Duties

The Advisor shall— (A)implement this section and the Senator Paul Simon Water for the Poor Act of 2005 (Public Law 109–121); (B)develop and oversee implementation in high priority countries of country-specific water strategies and expertise, in coordination with appropriate United States Agency for International Development Mission Directors, to enable the goal of providing 100,000,000 additional people with sustainable access to safe water and sanitation through direct funding, development activities, and partnerships within 6 years of the date of the enactment of the Senator Paul Simon Water for the World Act of 2011; and (C)place primary emphasis on providing safe, affordable, and sustainable drinking water, sanitation, and hygiene in a manner that— (i)is consistent with sound water resource management principles; and (ii)utilizes such approaches as direct service provision, capacity building, institutional strengthening, regulatory reform, and partnership collaboration; and (D)integrate water strategies with country-specific or regional food security strategies. (3)

Capacity

The Advisor shall be designated appropriate staff and may utilize interagency details or partnerships with universities, civil society, and the private sector, as needed, to strengthen implementation capacity. (4)

Funding sources

The Advisor shall ensure that at least 25 percent of the overall funding necessary to meet the global goal set forth under paragraph (2)(B) is provided by non-Federal sources, including foreign governments, international institutions, and through partnerships with universities, civil society, and the private sector, including private and corporate foundations. (f)

Special Coordinator for International Water

(1)

Establishment

To increase the capacity of the Department of State to address international issues regarding safe water, sanitation, integrated river basin management, and other international water programs, the Secretary of State shall establish a Special Coordinator for International Water (referred to in this subsection as the Special Coordinator), who shall report to the Under Secretary for Democracy and Global Affairs. The initial Special Coordinator shall be the individual serving as Special Coordinator for Water Resources as of the date of the enactment of the Senator Paul Simon Water for the World Act of 2011. (2)

Duties

The Special Coordinator shall— (A)oversee and coordinate the diplomatic policy of the United States Government with respect to global freshwater issues, including interagency coordination related to— (i)sustainable access to safe drinking water, sanitation, and hygiene; (ii)integrated river basin and watershed management; (iii)global food security; (iv)transboundary conflict; (v)agricultural and urban productivity of water resources; (vi)disaster recovery, response, and rebuilding; (vii)pollution mitigation; and (viii)adaptation to hydrologic change due to climate variability; and (B)ensure that international freshwater issues are represented— (i)within the United States Government; and (ii)in key diplomatic, development, and scientific efforts with other nations and multilateral organizations. (3)

Support staff

The Special Coordinator shall be designated appropriate staff to support the duties described in paragraph (2).

Safe water, sanitation, and hygiene strategy

Section 6 of the Senator Paul Simon Water for the Poor Act of 2005 (22 U.S.C. 2152h note) is amended— (1)in subsection (b), by adding at the end the following: The Special Coordinator for International Water established under section 135(f) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2152h(f)) shall take actions to ensure that the safe water and sanitation strategy is integrated into any review or development of a Federal strategy for global development, global health, or global food security that sets forth or establishes the United States mission for global development, guidelines for assistance programs, and how development policy will be coordinated with policies governing trade, immigration, and other relevant international issues.; (2)in subsection (c), by adding at the end the following: In developing the program activities needed to implement the strategy, the Secretary shall consider the results of the assessment described in subsection (e)(9).; and (3)in subsection (e)— (A)in paragraph (5), by striking and at the end; (B)in paragraph (6), by striking the period at the end and inserting a semicolon; and (C)by adding at the end the following:

(7)an assessment of all United States Government foreign assistance allocated to the drinking water and sanitation sector during the 3 previous fiscal years, across all United States Government agencies and programs, including an assessment of the extent to which the United States Government’s efforts are reaching and supporting the goal of enabling first-time access to safe water and sanitation on a sustainable basis for 100,000,000 people in high priority countries; (8)recommendations on what the United States Government would need to do to achieve and support the goals referred to in paragraph (7), in support of the United Nation’s Millennium Development Goal on access to safe drinking water; and (9)an assessment of best practices for mobilizing and leveraging the financial and technical capacity of business, governments, nongovernmental organizations, and civil society in forming public-private partnerships that measurably increase access to safe, affordable, drinking water and sanitation.

Developing local capacity

The Senator Paul Simon Water for the Poor Act of 2005 (Public Law 109–121) is amended— (1)by redesignating sections 9, 10, and 11 as sections 10, 11, and 12, respectively; and (2)by inserting after section 8 the following:

Water and sanitation institutional capacity-building program

(a)

Establishment

(1)

In general

The Secretary of State and the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (referred to in this section as the Secretary and the Administrator, respectively), in consultation with host country institutions, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Department of Agriculture, and other agencies, as appropriate, shall establish, in coordination with mission directors in high priority countries, a program to build the capacity of host country institutions and officials responsible for water and sanitation in countries that receive assistance under section 135 of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, including training at appropriate levels, to— (A)provide affordable, equitable, and sustainable access to safe drinking water and sanitation; (B)educate the populations of such countries about the dangers of unsafe drinking water and lack of proper sanitation; and (C)encourage behavior change to reduce individuals’ risk of disease from unsafe drinking water and lack of proper sanitation and hygiene. (2)

Expansion

The Secretary and the Administrator may establish the program described in this section in additional countries if the receipt of such capacity building would be beneficial for promoting access to safe drinking water and sanitation, with due consideration given to good governance. (3)

Capacity

The Secretary and the Administrator— (A)should designate appropriate staff with relevant expertise to carry out the strategy developed under section 6; and (B)may utilize, as needed, interagency details or partnerships with universities, civil society, and the private sector to strengthen implementation capacity. (b)

Designation

The United States Agency for International Development Mission Director for each country receiving a high priority designation under section 6(f) and for each region containing a country receiving such designation shall report annually to Congress on the status of— (1)designating safe drinking water and sanitation as a strategic objective; (2)integrating the water strategy into a food security strategy; (3)assigning an employee of the United States Agency for International Development as in-country water and sanitation manager to coordinate the in-country implementation of this Act and section 135 of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2152h) with host country officials at various levels of government responsible for water and sanitation, the Department of State, and other relevant United States Government agencies; and (4)coordinating with the Development Credit Authority and the Global Development Alliance to further the purposes of this Act.

Other activities supported

In addition to the requirements of section 135(c) of the Foreign Assistance Act (22 U.S.C. 2152h(c)) the Administrator should— (1)foster global cooperation on research and technology development, including regional partnerships among water experts to address safe drinking water, sanitation, water resource management, and other water-related issues; (2)establish regional and cross-border cooperative activities between scientists and specialists that work to share technologies and best practices, mitigate shared water challenges, foster international cooperation, and defuse cross-border tensions; (3)provide grants through the United States Agency for International Development to foster the development, dissemination, and increased and consistent use of low-cost and sustainable technologies, such as household water treatment, hand washing stations, and latrines, for providing safe drinking water, sanitation, and hygiene that are suitable for use in high priority countries, particularly in places with limited resources and infrastructure; (4)in collaboration with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Department of Agriculture, the Environmental Protection Agency, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and other agencies, as appropriate, conduct formative and operational research and monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of programs that provide safe drinking water and sanitation; and (5)integrate efforts to promote safe drinking water, sanitation and hygiene with existing foreign assistance programs, as appropriate, including activities focused on food security, HIV/AIDS, malaria, tuberculosis, maternal and child health, food security, and nutritional support.

Monitoring and evaluation

(a)

Sense of Congress

It is the sense of the Congress that— (1)achieving United States foreign policy objectives requires the consistent and systematic evaluation of the impact of United States foreign assistance programs and analysis on what programs work and why, when, and where they work; (2)the design of assistance programs and projects should include the collection of relevant baseline data required to measure outcomes and impacts; (3)the design of assistance programs and projects should reflect the knowledge gained from evaluation and analysis; (4)a culture and practice of high-quality evaluation should be revitalized at agencies managing foreign assistance programs, which requires that the concepts of evaluation and analysis are used to inform policy and programmatic decisions, including the training of aid professionals in evaluation design and implementation; (5)the effective and efficient use of funds cannot be achieved without an understanding of how lessons learned are applicable in various environments and under similar or different conditions; and (6)project evaluations should be used as sources of data when running broader analyses of development outcomes and impacts. (b)

Coordination and integration

To the extent possible, the Administrator shall coordinate and integrate evaluation of United States water programs with the learning, evaluation, and analysis efforts of the United States Agency for International Development aimed at measuring development impact.

10.

Updated report regarding water for peace and security

Section 11(b) of the Senator Paul Simon Water for the Poor Act of 2005, as redesignated by section 7, is amended by adding at the end the following: The report submitted under this subsection shall include an assessment of current and likely future political tensions over water sources and multidisciplinary assessment of the expected impacts of changes to water supplies and agricultural productivity in 10, 25, and 50 years..

11.

Comptroller General report on effectiveness and efficiency of United States efforts to provide safe water and sanitation for developing countries

(a)

Report required

Not later than one year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States shall submit to the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate a report on the effectiveness and efficiency of United States efforts to provide safe water and sanitation for developing countries. (b)

Elements

In preparing the report required by subsection (a), the Comptroller General shall, at a minimum— (1)identify all programs (and respective Federal agencies) in the Federal Government that perform the mission of providing safe water and sanitation for developing countries, including capacity-building, professional exchanges, and other related programs; (2)list the actual costs for the implementation, operation, and support of the individual programs; (3)assess the effectiveness of these programs in meeting their goals; (4)assess the efficiency of these programs compared to each other and to programs to provide similar aid performed by nongovernmental organizations and other governments, and identify best practices from this assessment; (5)identify and assess programs that are duplicative of each other or of efforts by nongovernmental organizations and other governments; (6)assess whether appropriate oversight of these programs is being conducted by Federal agencies, especially in the programs in which Federal agencies are utilizing contractors instead of government employees to perform this mission; and (7)make such recommendations as the Comptroller General considers appropriate.