[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7560 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
119th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 7560
To amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to provide for the
selection of a fiscal agent for the Patrick Leahy Lake Champlain Basin
Program, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
February 12, 2026
Ms. Stefanik (for herself and Ms. Balint) introduced the following
bill; which was referred to the Committee on Transportation and
Infrastructure
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to provide for the
selection of a fiscal agent for the Patrick Leahy Lake Champlain Basin
Program, 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 ``Patrick Leahy Lake Champlain Basin
Program Enhancements Act of 2026'' or the ``LCBP Enhancements Act of
2026''.
SEC. 2. PATRICK LEAHY LAKE CHAMPLAIN BASIN PROGRAM.
Section 120 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C.
1270) is amended--
(1) in subsection (a)--
(A) in paragraph (2)(A), by striking ``New England
Interstate Water Pollution Control Commission'' and
inserting ``fiscal agent''; and
(B) by adding at the end the following:
``(3) Fiscal agent.--
``(A) In general.--The Steering Committee and the
Administrator shall jointly select a qualified entity
to serve as the fiscal agent for the Patrick Leahy Lake
Champlain Basin Program.
``(B) Assessment.--
``(i) In general.--Beginning as soon as
practicable after the date of enactment of the
LCBP Enhancements Act of 2026, and as necessary
but not less frequently than once every 5 years
thereafter, the Steering Committee and the
Administrator shall jointly assess the
effectiveness of the fiscal agent and, if
appropriate, select a new qualified entity to
serve as the fiscal agent through a competitive
process.
``(ii) Stakeholder engagement.--In carrying
out the assessments required under clause (i),
the Steering Committee and the Administrator
shall consult with, and incorporate feedback
from, impacted stakeholders.
``(iii) No competitive process after
selection.--On selection of a fiscal agent, the
Administrator shall award funding to the fiscal
agent without competition until such time as a
new fiscal agent is selected.
``(iv) New fiscal agent selection.--If the
Steering Committee and the Administrator
jointly select a new fiscal agent pursuant to
clause (i)--
``(I) the Administrator may de-
obligate unobligated or unexpended
funds from prior awards under clause
(iii) and re-obligate those funds to
the new fiscal agent;
``(II) the Steering Committee and
the Administrator shall, to the maximum
extent practicable, ensure the
continuity of the staff, programming,
funding awards, and other activities
and administrative functions of the
Patrick Leahy Lake Champlain Basin
Program, as determined necessary by the
Steering Committee and the
Administrator; and
``(III) the Steering Committee and
the Administrator shall, to the maximum
extent practicable, ensure that the new
fiscal agent--
``(aa) is headquartered in
the Lake Champlain drainage
basin;
``(bb) only if a suitable
entity described in item (aa)
is not identified, is
headquartered in the State of
New York or Vermont; or
``(cc) only if a suitable
entity described in item (bb)
is not identified, maintains a
significant staffing presence,
including staff that would have
decisionmaking authority with
respect to the Patrick Leahy
Lake Champlain Basin Program,
within the Lake Champlain
drainage basin.
``(v) Report to congress.--Not later than
90 days after the date on which an assessment
under clause (i) is completed, the
Administrator shall submit to the Committee on
Environment and Public Works of the Senate and
the Committee on Transportation and
Infrastructure of the House of Representatives
a report that describes the findings of that
assessment, including a description of the
reasons for maintaining the current fiscal
agent or selecting a new fiscal agent.
``(C) Responsibilities.--The responsibilities of
the fiscal agent may include, as jointly determined
appropriate by the Steering Committee and the
Administrator, executing payroll, paying bills and
fulfilling other obligations, developing and executing
funding agreements, and acting as a fiduciary for the
Patrick Leahy Lake Champlain Basin Program.'';
(2) by redesignating subsections (g) through (i) as
subsections (h) through (j), respectively;
(3) by inserting after subsection (f) the following:
``(g) Great Lakes Fishery Commission.--
``(1) In general.--The United States Section of the Great
Lakes Fishery Commission may undertake, fund, and support work
on Lake Champlain, in the Lake Champlain drainage basin, and in
other areas within the Saint Lawrence River basin in Vermont
and New York, including through--
``(A) fisheries and aquatic ecosystem research,
monitoring, restoration, and management;
``(B) sea lamprey control;
``(C) aquatic invasive species prevention and
mitigation;
``(D) public engagement and education; and
``(E) other work to implement the Plan.
``(2) Authorization.--In carrying out paragraph (1), the
United States Section of the Great Lakes Fishery Commission may
work with the Patrick Leahy Lake Champlain Basin Program,
Federal and State agencies, institutions of higher education,
nonprofit organizations, units of local government, and
Canadian federal and Quebec provincial authorities.'';
(4) in subsection (h) (as so redesignated)--
(A) by redesignating paragraphs (1), (2), and (3)
as paragraphs (3), (2), and (4), respectively, and
moving the paragraphs so as to appear in numerical
order;
(B) by inserting before paragraph (2) (as so
redesignated) the following:
``(1) Fiscal agent.--The term `fiscal agent' means an
organization, including a nonprofit organization, interstate
commission, or other entity jointly determined appropriate by
the Administrator and the Steering Committee, that provides
fiscal and administrative management support for the Patrick
Leahy Lake Champlain Basin Program under the direction of the
Steering Committee and the Administrator.''; and
(C) by adding at the end the following:
``(5) Steering committee.--The term `Steering Committee'
means the Steering Committee established by the Lake Champlain
Management Conference on October 9, 1996, to implement the Lake
Champlain Management Plan and maintained under the most recent
Memorandum of Understanding on Environmental Cooperation on the
Management of Lake Champlain entered into between the State of
New York, the State of Vermont, and, if the Province of Quebec
elects to participate, the Province of Quebec.''; and
(5) in subsection (j) (as so redesignated), by striking
``2027'' and inserting ``2032''.
<all>