[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 60 (Friday, May 3, 1996)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4685-S4686]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     THE WATER RESOURCES RESEARCH ACT OF 1984 AMENDMENT ACT OF 1996

  The Senate proceeded to consider the bill (H.R. 1743) to amend the 
Water Resources Research Act of 1984 to extend the authorizations of 
appropriations through fiscal year 2000, and for other purposes, which 
had been reported from the Committee on Environment and Public Works, 
with an amendment to strike all after the enacting clause and inserting 
in lieu thereof the following:

     SECTION 1. FINDINGS.

       Section 102 of the Water Resources Research Act of 1984 (42 
     U.S.C. 10301) is amended--
       (1) in paragraph (2), by inserting ``, productivity of 
     natural resources and agricultural systems,'' after 
     ``environmental quality'';
       (2) in paragraph (6), by striking ``and'' at the end;
       (3) in paragraph (7), by striking the period at the end and 
     inserting ``; and''; and
       (4) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(8) long-term planning and policy development are 
     essential to ensure the availability of an abundant supply of 
     high quality water for domestic and other use; and
       ``(9) the States must have the research and problem-solving 
     capacity necessary to effectively manage their water 
     resources.''.

     SEC. 2. PURPOSE.

       Section 103 of the Water Resources Research Act of 1984 (42 
     U.S.C. 10302) is amended--
       (1) in paragraph (5)--
       (A) by striking ``to''; and
       (B) by striking ``and'' at the end;
       (2) in paragraph (6), by striking the period at the end and 
     inserting ``; and''; and
       (3) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(7) encourage long-term planning and research to meet 
     future water management, quality, and supply challenges.''.

[[Page S4686]]

     SEC. 3. GRANTS; MATCHING FUNDS.

       Section 104(c) of the Water Resources Research Act of 1984 
     (42 U.S.C. 10303(c)) is amended by striking ``one non-Federal 
     dollar'' and all that follows through ``thereafter'' and 
     inserting ``2 non-Federal dollars for every 1 Federal 
     dollar''.

     SEC. 4. GENERAL AUTHORIZATIONS OF APPROPRIATIONS.

       Section 104(f)(1) of the Water Resources Research Act of 
     1984 (42 U.S.C. 10303(f)(1)) is amended by striking ``of 
     $10,000,000 for each of the fiscal years ending September 30, 
     1989, through September 30, 1995,'' and inserting ``of 
     $5,000,000 for fiscal year 1996, $7,000,000 for each of 
     fiscal years 1997 and 1998, and $9,000,000 for each of fiscal 
     years 1999 and 2000''.

     SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR RESEARCH FOCUSED 
                   ON WATER PROBLEMS OF INTERSTATE NATURE.

       The first sentence of section 104(f)(1) of the Water 
     Resources Research Act of 1984 (42 U.S.C. 10303(g)(1)) is 
     amended by striking ``of $5,000,000 for each of the fiscal 
     years 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, and 1995'' and inserting ``of 
     $3,000,000 for each of fiscal years 1996 through 2000''.

     SEC. 6. COORDINATION.

       Section 104 of the Water Resources Research Act of 1984 (42 
     U.S.C. 10303) is amended by adding at the end the following:
       ``(h) Coordination.--
       ``(1) In general.--To carry out this Act, the Secretary--
       ``(A) shall encourage other Federal departments, agencies 
     (including agencies within the Department of the Interior), 
     and instrumentalities to use and take advantage of the 
     expertise and capabilities that are available through the 
     institutes established by this section, on a cooperative or 
     other basis;
       ``(B) shall encourage cooperation and coordination with 
     other Federal programs concerned with water resources 
     problems and issues;
       ``(C) may enter into contracts, cooperative agreements, and 
     other transactions without regard to section 3709 of the 
     Revised Statues (41 U.S.C. 5);
       ``(D) may accept funds from other Federal departments, 
     agencies (including agencies within the Department of the 
     Interior), and instrumentalities to pay for and add to grants 
     made, and contracts entered into, by the Secretary;
       ``(E) may promulgate such regulations as the Secretary 
     considers appropriate; and
       ``(F) may support a program of internships for qualified 
     individuals at the undergraduate and graduate levels to carry 
     out the educational and training objectives of this Act.
       ``(2) Report.--The Secretary shall report to Congress 
     annually on coordination efforts with other Federal 
     departments, agencies, and instrumentalities under paragraph 
     (1).
       ``(3) Relationship to state rights.--Nothing in this Act 
     shall preempt the rights and authorities of any State with 
     respect to its water resources or management of those 
     resources.''.

  The committee amendment was agreed to.
       The bill (H.R. 1743) was deemed read the third time and 
     passed.
  Mr. CHAFEE. Mr. President, today the Senate considers H.R. 1743, a 
bill to reauthorize the Water Resources Research Act of 1984, as 
amended. This legislation was adopted unanimously by the House of 
Representatives on October 17, 1995. With the strong support of 
Senators Kempthorne, Thomas, and Reid, the Committee on Environment and 
Public Works approved the measure with an amendment on March 28 of this 
year.
  The legislation, which enjoys broad bipartisan support, extends the 
authorization for the State Water Resources Research Institutes for 5 
years. Fifty-four of these institutes have been established at land 
grant universities in each of the 50 States, Washington, DC, and 3 of 
the territories.
  These institutes are a primary link between the academic community, 
the water-related research and regulatory personnel in our State and 
Federal agencies, and various interests in the private sector. The 
institutes provide a mechanism for promoting State, regional, and 
national coordination of water resources research and training. They 
also serve as a network to facilitate research coordination and 
information transfer. Their programs are coordinated with the general 
guidance of the Secretary of the Interior.
  Mr. President, this is a popular program because research from the 
water institutes is often directed at finding solutions to particular 
water problems at the local or regional level. Research results from 
the program are often applied to real-world problems in water 
management. In my own State, the University of Rhode Island's Water 
Resources Center has used this program to further ground water 
resources management and protection, wetlands preservation, and the 
understanding of the effects of air pollutant deposition on lakes and 
streams.
  Nationally, this program is designed to address water resource 
management problems such as: the abundance and quality of water 
supplies, the sources of water contaminants and methods of remediation, 
and the training of research scientists, engineers, and technicians. In 
addition to continuing the general authority for the institutes, this 
bill extends authorization for the awarding of funds for research 
projects.
  Mr. President, let me conclude by explaining the authorization of 
appropriations made in this bill. The 1984 act authorized $10 million 
annually to cover all general water resources research for the 
institutes. H.R. 1743, as approved by the House and reported by the 
committee, authorizes the institutional grants program at lower levels. 
Beginning with fiscal year 1996, $5 million is authorized. For fiscal 
years 1997 and 1998, $7 million is authorized. For fiscal years 1999 
and 2000, $9 million is authorized. This provides the institutional 
grant program with a 5-year authorization total of $37 million.
  Finally, the Committee on Environment and Public Works unanimously 
adopted an amendment offered by Senator Thomas to add funding for 
research focused exclusively on water problems of an interstate nature. 
For interstate research, the bill authorizes $3million for each of the 
fiscal years 1996 through 2000, for a total of $15 million.
  Mr. President, the Water Resources Research Program authorized by 
H.R. 1743 is a cost-effective program. Costs of operating the program 
are shared with non-Federal interests. The program provides valuable 
research that is useful to State and local water managers throughout 
the Nation. This program has given us years of valuable service and I 
urge my colleagues to support H.R. 1743.

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