[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 51 (Tuesday, May 3, 1994)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: May 3, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
   INTRODUCTION OF THE LEWIS AND CLARK RURAL WATER SYSTEM ACT OF 1994

                                 ______


                            HON. TIM JOHNSON

                            of south dakota

                    in the house of representatives

                          Tuesday, May 3, 1994

  Mr. JOHNSON of South Dakota. Mr. Speaker, today, I am introducing 
legislation, along with my colleagues Representative David Minge of 
Minnesota and Representative Fred Grandy of Iowa, to authorize the 
Lewis and Clark rural water system. The Lewis and Clark rural water 
system is made up of 22 rural water systems and communities in 
southeastern South Dakota, northwestern Iowa and southwestern Minnesota 
who have joined together in an effort to cooperatively address the dual 
problems facing the delivery of drinking water in this region--
inadequate quantities of water and poor quality water.
  This region has seen substantial growth and development in recent 
years, and studies have shown that future water needs will be 
significantly greater than the current available supply. Most of the 
people who are served by 10 of the water utilities in the proposed 
Lewis and Clark project area currently enforce water restrictions on a 
seasonal basis. Almost half of the membership has water of such poor 
quality it does not meet present or proposed standards for drinking 
water. More than two-thirds rely on shallow aquifers as their primary 
source of drinking water, aquifers which are very vulnerable to 
contamination by surface activities.
  The Lewis and Clark system will be a supplemental supply of drinking 
water for its 22 members, acting as a treated, bulk delivery system. 
The distribution to deliver water to individual users will continue 
through the existing systems used by each member utility. This 
regionalization approach to solving these water supply and quality 
problems enables the Missouri River to provide a source of clean, safe 
drinking water to more than 180,000 individuals. A source of water 
which none of the members of Lewis and Clark could afford on their own.
  The proposed system would help to stabilize the regional rural 
economy by providing water to Sioux Falls, the hub city in the region, 
as well as numerous small communities and individual farms in South 
Dakota and portions of Iowa and Minnesota.
  The States of South Dakota, Iowa and Minnesota have all authorized 
the project and local sponsors have demonstrated a financial commitment 
to this project through State grants, local water development district 
grants and membership dues. The State of South Dakota has already 
contributed more than $400,000.
  Mr. Speaker, I certainly appreciate that Congress has been supportive 
of water development efforts in South Dakota over the past several 
years, and I especially want to thank Chairman Miller of the Committee 
on Natural Resources and Chairman Bevill of the Appropriations 
Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development for the continued support 
they have demonstrated over the years.
  I do not believe our needs get any more basic than good quality, 
reliable drinking water, and I appreciate the fact that Congress has 
shown support for efforts to improve drinking water supplies in South 
Dakota. I look forward to continue working with my colleagues to have 
that support extended to the Lewis and Clark rural water system.

                                H.R. --

       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 ``Lewis and Clark Rural Water 
     System Act of 1994''.

     SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

       As used in this Act (unless the context clearly required 
     otherwise):
       (1) Environmental enhancement.--The term ``environmental 
     enhancement'' means the wetland and wildlife enhancement 
     activities that are carried out substantially in accordance 
     with the environmental enhancement component of the 
     feasibility study.
       (2) Environmental enhancement component.--The term 
     ``environmental enhancement component'' means the component 
     described in the report entitled ``Wetlands and Wildlife 
     Enhancement for the Lewis and Clark Rural Water System'', 
     dated April 1991, that is included in the feasibility study.
       (3) Feasibility study.--The term ``feasibility study'' 
     means the study entitled ``Feasibility Level Evaluation of a 
     Missouri River Regional Water Supply for South Dakota, Iowa 
     and Minnesota'', dated September 1993, that includes a water 
     conservation plan, environmental report, and environmental 
     enhancement component.
       (4) Member entity.--The term ``member entity'' means a 
     rural water system or municipality that signed a Letter of 
     Commitment to participate in the Lewis and Clark Rural Water 
     System.
       (5) Project construction budget.--The term ``project 
     construction budget'' means the description of the total 
     amount of funds that are needed for the construction of the 
     water supply system, as contained in the feasibility study.
       (6) Pumping and incidental operational requirements.--The 
     term ``pumping and incidental operational requirements'' 
     means all power requirements that are incidental to the 
     operation of intake facilities, pumping stations, water 
     treatment facilities, reservoirs, and pipelines up to the 
     point of delivery of water by the Lewis and Clark Rural Water 
     System to each member entity that distributes water at retail 
     to individual users.
       (7) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
     of the Interior.
       (8) Water supply system.--The term ``water supply system'' 
     means the Lewis and Clark Rural Water System that is 
     established and operated substantially in accordance with the 
     feasibility study.

     SEC. 3. FEDERAL ASSISTANCE FOR THE WATER SUPPLY SYSTEM.

       (a) In General.--The Secretary is authorized to make grants 
     to the Lewis and Clark Rural Water System, Inc., a nonprofit 
     corporation, for the planning and construction of the water 
     supply system.
       (b) Service Area.--The water supply system shall provide 
     for safe and adequate municipal, rural, and industrial water 
     supplies, environmental enhancement, mitigation of wetland 
     areas, and water conservation in--
       (1) Lake County, McCook County, Minnehaha County, Turner 
     County, Lincoln County, Clay County, and Union County, in 
     southeastern South Dakota;
       (2) Rock County, and Nobles County, in southwestern 
     Minnesota; and
       (3) Lyon County, Sioux County, Osceola County, O'Brien 
     County, Dickinson County, and Clay County, in northwestern 
     Iowa.
       (c) Amount of Grants.--Grants made available under 
     subsection (a) to the Lewis and Clark Rural Water System, 
     Inc. shall not exceed the amount of funds authorized under 
     section 10.
       (d) Limitation on Availability of Construction Funds.--The 
     Secretary shall not obligate funds for the construction of 
     the water supply system until--
       (1) the requirements of the National Environmental Policy 
     Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) have been met;
       (2) a final engineering report has been prepared and 
     submitted to Congress not less than 90 days before the 
     commencement of construction of the system; and
       (3) a water conservation program has been developed and 
     implemented.

     SEC. 4. FEDERAL ASSISTANCE FOR WETLAND AND WILDLIFE 
                   ENHANCEMENT.

       (a) Initial Development.--The Secretary shall make grants 
     and other funds available to Lewis and Clark Rural Water 
     System, Inc., and other private, State, and Federal entities, 
     for the initial development of the environmental enhancement 
     component.
       (b) Nonreimbursement.--Funds provided under subsection (a) 
     shall be nonreimbursable and nonreturnable.

     SEC. 5. WATER CONSERVATION PROGRAMS.

       (a) Purpose.--The water conservation program required under 
     this section shall be designed to ensure that users of water 
     from the water supply system will use the best practicable 
     technology and management techniques to conserve water use.
       (b) Description.--The water conservation programs shall 
     include--
       (1) low consumption performance standards for all newly 
     installed plumbing fixtures;
       (2) leak detection and repair programs;
       (3) rate schedules that do not include declining block rate 
     schedules for municipal households and special water users 
     (as defined in the feasibility study);
       (4) public education programs and technical assistance to 
     member entities; and
       (5) coordinated operation among each rural water system, 
     and each water supply facility in existence on the date of 
     enactment of this Act, in the service area of the system.
       (c) Review and Review.--The programs described in 
     subsection (b) shall contain provisions for periodic review 
     and revision, in cooperation with the Secretary.

     SEC. 6. MITIGATION OF FISH AND WILDLIFE LOSSES.

       Mitigation for fish and wildlife losses incurred as a 
     result of the construction and operation of the water supply 
     system shall be on an acre-for-acre basis, based on 
     ecological equivalency, concurrent with project construction, 
     as provided in the feasibility study.

     SEC. 7. USE OF PICK-SLOAN POWER.

       (A) In General.--From power designated for future 
     irrigation and drainage pumping for the Pick-Sloan Missouri 
     Basin program, the Western Area Power Administration shall 
     make available the capacity and energy required to meet the 
     pumping and incidental operational requirements of the water 
     supply system during the period beginning May 1, and ending 
     October 31, of each year.
       (b) Conditions.--The capacity and energy described in 
     subsection (a) shall be made available on the following 
     conditions:
       (1) The water supply system shall be operated on a not-for-
     profit basis.
       (2) The water supply system shall contract to purchase the 
     entire electric service requirements of the system, including 
     the capacity and energy made available under subsection (a), 
     from a qualified preference power supplier that itself 
     purchases power from the Western Area Power Administration.
       (3) The rate schedule applicable to the capacity and energy 
     made available under subsection (a) shall be the firm power 
     rate schedule of the Pick-Sloan Eastern Division of the 
     Western Area Power Administration in effect when the power is 
     delivered by the Administration.
       (4) It shall be agreed by contract among--
       (A) the Western Area Power Administration;
       (B) the power supplier with which the water supply system 
     contracts under paragraph (2);
       (C) the power supplier of the entity described in 
     subparagraph (B); and
       (D) Lewis and Clark Rural Water System, Inc.;

     that in the case of the capacity and energy made available 
     under subsection (a), the benefit of the rate schedule 
     described in paragraph (3) shall be passed through to the 
     water supply system, except that the power supplier of the 
     water supply system shall not be precluded from including, in 
     the charges of the supplier to the water system for the 
     electric service, the other usual and customary charges of 
     the supplier.

     SEC. 8. NO LIMITATION ON WATER PROJECTS IN STATES.

       This Act shall not limit the authorization for water 
     projects in South Dakota, Iowa, and Minnesota under law in 
     effect on or after the date of enactment of this Act.

     SEC. 9. WATER RIGHTS.

       Nothing in this Act--
       (1) invalidates or preempts State water law or an 
     interstate compact governing water;
       (2) alters the rights of any State to any appropriated 
     share of the waters of any body of surface or ground water, 
     whether determined by past or future interstate compacts or 
     by past or future legislative or final judicial allocations;
       (3) preempts or modifies any Federal or State law, or 
     interstate compact, governing water quality or disposal; or
       (4) confers on any non-Federal entity the ability to 
     exercise any Federal right to the waters of any stream or to 
     any ground water resource.

     SEC. 10. FEDERAL COST SHARE.

       The Secretary is authorized to provide funds equal to 80 
     percent of--
       (1) the amount allocated in the total project construction 
     budget for the planning and construction of the water supply 
     system under section 3; and
       (2) such sums as are necessary to defray increases in 
     development costs reflected in appropriate engineering cost 
     indices after September 1, 1993.

     SEC. 11. NON-FEDERAL COST SHARE.

       The non-Federal share of the costs allocated to the water 
     supply system shall be 20 percent of the--
       (1) the amount allocated in the total project construction 
     budget for the planning and construction of the water supply 
     system under section 3; and
       (2) such sums as are necessary to defray increases in 
     development costs reflected in appropriate engineering cost 
     indices after September 1, 1993.

     SEC. 12. BUREAU OF RECLAMATION.

       (a) Authorization.--The Secretary is authorized to allow 
     the Bureau of Reclamation to provide project construction 
     oversight to the water system and environmental enhancement 
     component for those areas of the water supply system that are 
     described in section 3(b).
       (b) Project Oversight Administration.--The amount of funds 
     used by the Bureau of Reclamation for planning and 
     construction of the water supply system may not exceed an 
     amount equal to 1 percent of the amount provided in the total 
     project construction budget for the entire project 
     construction period.

     SEC. 13. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

       There are authorized to be appropriated $226,320,000 to 
     carry out this Act, of which not less than $8,487,000 shall 
     be used for the initial development of the environmental 
     enhancement component under section 4, to remain available 
     until expended.

                          ____________________