[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2198 Engrossed in Senate (ES)]

113th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2198

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT


 
To direct the Secretary of the Interior, the Secretary of Commerce, the 
 Secretary of Agriculture, and the Administrator of the Environmental 
Protection Agency to take actions to provide additional water supplies 
   to the State of California due to drought, 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; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Emergency Drought 
Relief Act of 2014''.
    (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents of this Act is as 
follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Findings.
Sec. 3. Definitions.
Sec. 4. Emergency projects.
Sec. 5. Emergency environmental reviews.
Sec. 6. State revolving funds.
Sec. 7. Effect on State laws.
Sec. 8. Termination of authorities.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds that--
            (1) as established in the Proclamation of a State of 
        Emergency issued by the Governor of the State on January 17, 
        2014, the State is experiencing record dry conditions;
            (2) extremely dry conditions have persisted in the State 
        since 2012, and the drought conditions are likely to persist 
        into the future;
            (3) the water supplies of the State are at record-low 
        levels, as indicated by a statewide average snowpack of 12 
        percent of the normal average for winter as of February 1, 
        2014, and the fact that all major Central Valley Project 
        reservoir levels are at or below 50 percent of the capacity of 
        the reservoirs as of April 1, 2014;
            (4) the 2013-2014 drought constitutes a serious emergency 
        posing immediate and severe risks to human life and safety and 
        to the environment throughout the State;
            (5) the emergency requires--
                    (A) immediate and credible action that respects the 
                complexity of the water system of the State and the 
                importance of the water system to the entire State; and
                    (B) policies that do not pit stakeholders against 
                one another, which history has shown only leads to 
                costly litigation that benefits no one and prevents any 
                real solutions;
            (6) Federal law (including regulations) directly authorizes 
        expedited decisionmaking procedures and environmental and 
        public review procedures to enable timely and appropriate 
        implementation of actions to respond to such a type and 
        severity of emergency; and
            (7) the serious emergency posed by the 2013-2014 drought in 
        the State fully satisfies the conditions necessary for the 
        exercise of emergency decisionmaking, analytical, and public 
        review requirements under--
                    (A) the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 
                1531 et seq.);
                    (B) the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 
                (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.);
                    (C) water control management procedures of the 
                Corps of Engineers described in section 222.5 of title 
                33, Code of Federal Regulations (including successor 
                regulations); and
                    (D) the Reclamation States Emergency Drought Relief 
                Act of 1991 (Public Law 102-250; 106 Stat. 53).

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Central valley project.--The term ``Central Valley 
        Project'' has the meaning given the term in section 3403 of the 
        Central Valley Project Improvement Act (106 Stat. 4707).
            (2) Klamath project.--The term ``Klamath Project'' means 
        the Bureau of Reclamation project in the States of California 
        and Oregon, as authorized under the Act of June 17, 1902 (32 
        Stat. 388, chapter 1093).
            (3) Reclamation project.--The term ``Reclamation Project'' 
        means a project constructed pursuant to the authorities of the 
        reclamation laws and whose facilities are wholly or partially 
        located in the State.
            (4) Secretaries.--The term ``Secretaries'' means--
                    (A) the Administrator of the Environmental 
                Protection Agency;
                    (B) the Secretary of Agriculture;
                    (C) the Secretary of Commerce; and
                    (D) the Secretary of the Interior.
            (5) State.--The term ``State'' means the State of 
        California.
            (6) State water project.--The term ``State Water Project'' 
        means the water project described by California Water Code 
        section 11550 et seq., and operated by the California 
        Department of Water Resources.

SEC. 4. EMERGENCY PROJECTS.

    (a) Water Supplies.--
            (1) In general.--In response to the declaration of a state 
        of drought emergency by the Governor of the State, the 
        Secretaries shall provide the maximum quantity of water 
        supplies possible to Central Valley Project agricultural, 
        municipal and industrial, and refuge service and repayment 
        contractors, State Water Project contractors, and any other 
        locality or municipality in the State, by approving, consistent 
        with applicable laws (including regulations), projects and 
        operations to provide additional water supplies as quickly as 
        possible based on available information to address the 
        emergency conditions.
            (2) Application.--Paragraph (1) applies to projects or 
        operations involving the Klamath Project if the projects or 
        operations would benefit Federal water contractors in the 
        State.
    (b) Limitation.--Nothing in this section allows agencies to approve 
projects--
            (1) that would otherwise require congressional 
        authorization; or
            (2) without following procedures required by applicable 
        law.
    (c) Administration.--In carrying out subsection (a), the 
Secretaries shall, consistent with applicable laws (including 
regulations)--
            (1) authorize and implement actions to ensure that the 
        Delta Cross Channel Gates shall remain open to the greatest 
        extent possible, timed to maximize the peak flood tide period 
        and provide water supply and water quality benefits for the 
        duration of the drought emergency declaration of the State, 
        consistent with operational criteria and monitoring criteria 
        developed pursuant to the California State Water Resources 
        Control Board's Order Approving a Temporary Urgency Change in 
        License and Permit Terms in Response to Drought Conditions, 
        effective January 31, 2014, or a successor order;
            (2)(A) collect data associated with the operation of the 
        Delta Cross Channel Gates described in paragraph (1) and the 
        impact of the operation on species listed as threatened or 
        endangered under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 
        1531 et seq.), water quality, and water supply; and
            (B) after assessing the data described in subparagraph (A), 
        require the Director of the National Marine Fisheries Service 
        to recommend revisions to operations of the Central Valley 
        Project and the California State Water Project, including, if 
        appropriate, the reasonable and prudent alternatives contained 
        in the biological opinion issued by the National Marine 
        Fisheries Service on June 4, 2009, that are likely to produce 
        fishery, water quality, and water supply benefits;
            (3)(A) implement turbidity control strategies that allow 
        for increased water deliveries while avoiding jeopardy to adult 
        delta smelt (Hypomesus transpacificus) due to entrainment at 
        Central Valley Project and State Water Project pumping plants; 
        and
            (B) manage reverse flow in the Old and Middle Rivers as 
        prescribed by the biological opinions issued by the United 
        States Fish and Wildlife Service on December 15, 2008, for 
        Delta smelt and by the National Marine Fisheries Service on 
        June 4, 2009, for salmonids, to minimize water supply 
        reductions for the Central Valley Project and the State Water 
        Project;
            (4) adopt a 1:1 inflow to export ratio for the increased 
        flow of the San Joaquin River, as measured as a 3-day running 
        average at Vernalis during the period from April 1 through May 
        31, resulting from voluntary transfers and exchanges of water 
        supplies, among other purposes;
            (5) issue all necessary permit decisions under the 
        authority of the Secretaries within 30 days of receiving a 
        completed application by the State to place and use temporary 
        barriers or operable gates in Delta channels to improve water 
        quantity and quality for State Water Project and Central Valley 
        Project South of Delta water contractors and other water users, 
        which barriers or gates should provide benefits for species 
        protection and in-Delta water user water quality and shall be 
        designed such that formal consultations under section 7 of the 
        Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1536) would not be 
        necessary;
            (6)(A) require the Director of the United States Fish and 
        Wildlife Service and the Commissioner of the Bureau of 
        Reclamation to complete all requirements under the National 
        Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and 
        the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) 
        necessary to make final permit decisions on water transfer 
        requests associated with voluntarily fallowing nonpermanent 
        crops in the State, within 30 days of receiving such a request; 
        and
            (B) require the Director of the United States Fish and 
        Wildlife Service to allow any water transfer request associated 
        with fallowing to maximize the quantity of water supplies 
        available for nonhabitat uses as long as the fallowing and 
        associated water transfer are in compliance with applicable 
        Federal laws (including regulations);
            (7) participate in, issue grants, or otherwise provide 
        funding for, as soon as practicable after the date of enactment 
        of this Act, under existing authority available to the 
        Secretary of the Interior, pilot projects to increase water in 
        reservoirs in regional river basins experiencing extreme, 
        exceptional, or sustained drought that have a direct impact on 
        the water supply of the State, including the Colorado River 
        Basin, provided that any participation, grant, or funding by 
        the Secretary with respect to the Upper Division shall be with 
        or to the respective State;
            (8) maintain all rescheduled water supplies held in the San 
        Luis Reservoir and Millerton Reservoir for all water users for 
        delivery in the immediately following contract water year 
        unless precluded by reservoir storage capacity limitations;
            (9) to the maximum extent possible based on the 
        availability of water and without causing land subsidence or 
        violating water quality standards--
                    (A) meet the contract water supply needs of Central 
                Valley Project refuges through the improvement or 
                installation of water conservation measures, water 
                conveyance facilities, and wells to use groundwater 
                resources, which activities may be accomplished by 
                using funding made available under the Water Assistance 
                Program or the WaterSMART program of the Department of 
                the Interior; and
                    (B) make a quantity of Central Valley Project 
                surface water obtained from the measures implemented 
                under subparagraph (A) available to Central Valley 
                Project contractors;
            (10) in coordination with the Secretary of Agriculture, 
        enter into an agreement with the National Academy of Sciences 
        to conduct a comprehensive study, to be completed not later 
        than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, on the 
        effectiveness and environmental impacts of saltcedar biological 
        control efforts on increasing water supplies and improving 
        riparian habitats of the Colorado River and its principal 
        tributaries, in the State and elsewhere;
            (11) make any WaterSMART grant funding allocated to the 
        State available on a priority and expedited basis for projects 
        in the State that--
                    (A) provide emergency drinking and municipal water 
                supplies to localities in a quantity necessary to meet 
                minimum public health and safety needs;
                    (B) prevent the loss of permanent crops;
                    (C) minimize economic losses resulting from drought 
                conditions; or
                    (D) provide innovative water conservation tools and 
                technology for agriculture and urban water use that can 
                have immediate water supply benefits;
            (12) implement offsite upstream projects in the Delta and 
        upstream Sacramento River and San Joaquin basins, in 
        coordination with the California Department of Water Resources 
        and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, that offset 
        the effects on species listed as threatened or endangered under 
        the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) due 
        to actions taken under this Act; and
            (13) use all available scientific tools to identify any 
        changes to real-time operations of Bureau of Reclamation, State 
        and local water projects that could result in the availability 
        of additional water supplies.
    (d) Other Agencies.--To the extent that a Federal agency other than 
agencies headed by the Secretaries has a role in approving projects 
described in subsections (a) and (c), this section shall apply to those 
Federal agencies.
    (e) Accelerated Project Decision and Elevation.--
            (1) In general.--Upon the request of the State, the heads 
        of Federal agencies shall use the expedited procedures under 
        this subsection to make final decisions relating to a Federal 
        project or operation to provide additional water supplies or 
        address emergency drought conditions pursuant to subsections 
        (a) and (c).
            (2) Request for resolution.--
                    (A) In general.--Upon the request of the State, the 
                head of an agency referred to in subsection (a), or the 
                head of another Federal agency responsible for carrying 
                out a review of a project, as applicable, the Secretary 
                of the Interior shall convene a final project decision 
                meeting with the heads of all relevant Federal agencies 
                to decide whether to approve a project to provide 
                emergency water supplies.
                    (B) Meeting.--The Secretary of the Interior shall 
                convene a meeting requested under subparagraph (A) not 
                later than 7 days after receiving the meeting request.
            (3) Notification.--Upon receipt of a request for a meeting 
        under this subsection, the Secretary of the Interior shall 
        notify the heads of all relevant Federal agencies of the 
        request, including the project to be reviewed and the date for 
        the meeting.
            (4) Decision.--Not later than 10 days after the date on 
        which a meeting is requested under paragraph (2), the head of 
        the relevant Federal agency shall issue a final decision on the 
        project.
            (5) Meeting convened by secretary.--The Secretary of the 
        Interior may convene a final project decision meeting under 
        this subsection at any time, at the discretion of the 
        Secretary, regardless of whether a meeting is requested under 
        paragraph (2).

SEC. 5. EMERGENCY ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEWS.

    To minimize the time spent carrying out environmental reviews and 
to deliver water quickly that is needed to address emergency drought 
conditions in the State, the head of each applicable Federal agency 
shall, in carrying out this Act, consult with the Council on 
Environmental Quality in accordance with section 1506.11 of title 40, 
Code of Federal Regulations (including successor regulations) to 
develop alternative arrangements to comply with the National 
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) during the 
emergency.

SEC. 6. STATE REVOLVING FUNDS.

    (a) In General.--The Administrator of the Environmental Protection 
Agency, in allocating amounts for each of the fiscal years during which 
the emergency drought declaration of the State is in force to State 
water pollution control revolving funds established under title VI of 
the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1381 et seq.) and 
the State drinking water treatment revolving loan funds established 
under section 1452 of the Safe Drinking Water Act (42 U.S.C. 300j-12), 
shall, for those projects that are eligible to receive assistance under 
section 603 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1383) 
or section 1452(a)(2) of the Safe Drinking Water Act (42 U.S.C. 300j-
12(a)(2)), respectively, that the State determines will provide 
additional water supplies most expeditiously to areas that are at risk 
of having an inadequate supply of water for public health and safety 
purposes or to improve resiliency to drought--
            (1) require the State to review and prioritize funding for 
        such projects;
            (2) issue a determination of waivers within 30 days of the 
        conclusion of the informal public comment period pursuant to 
        section 436(c) of title IV of division G of Public Law 113-76; 
        and
            (3) authorize, at the request of the State, 40-year 
        financing for assistance under section 603(d)(2) of the Federal 
        Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1383(d)(2)) or section 
        1452(f)(2) of the Safe Drinking Water Act (42 U.S.C. 300j-
        12(f)(2)).
    (b) Effect of Section.--Nothing in this section authorizes the 
Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to modify any 
funding allocation, funding criteria, or other requirement relating to 
State water pollution control revolving funds established under title 
VI of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1381 et seq.) 
and the State drinking water treatment revolving loan funds established 
under section 1452 of the Safe Drinking Water Act (42 U.S.C. 300j-12) 
for any other State.

SEC. 7. EFFECT ON STATE LAWS.

    Nothing in this Act preempts any State law in effect on the date of 
enactment of this Act, including area of origin and other water rights 
protections.

SEC. 8. TERMINATION OF AUTHORITIES.

    The authorities under section 4(a), paragraphs (1) through (6) of 
section 4(c), paragraphs (8) and (9) of section 4(c), paragraphs (11) 
through (13) of section 4(c), section 5, and section 6 permanently 
expire on the date on which the Governor of the State suspends the 
state of drought emergency declaration.

            Passed the Senate May 22, 2014.

            Attest:

                                                             Secretary.
113th CONGRESS

  2d Session

                                S. 2198

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT

To direct the Secretary of the Interior, the Secretary of Commerce, the 
 Secretary of Agriculture, and the Administrator of the Environmental 
Protection Agency to take actions to provide additional water supplies 
   to the State of California due to drought, and for other purposes.