[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 136 (Friday, October 2, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Pages S11383-S11384]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         GREAT LAKES FISH AND WILDLIFE RESTORATION ACT OF 1998

  Mr. HAGEL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate 
proceed to the immediate consideration of calendar No. 599, H.R. 1481.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The clerk will report.
  The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

       A bill (H.R. 1481) to amend the Great Lakes Fish and 
     Wildlife Restoration Act of 1990 to provide for 
     implementation of recommendations of the United States Fish 
     and Wildlife Service contained in the Great Lakes Fishery 
     Resources Restoration Study.

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection to the immediate 
consideration of the bill?
  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the bill.
 Mr. GLENN. Mr. President, I would like to thank my colleagues 
for taking the time today to consider this legislation which is so 
important to my region.
  I introduced The Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Restoration Act GLFWRA 
of 1997 as S. 659 in the Senate in April of 1997, in coordination with 
the introduction of the companion bill, H.R. 1481, in the House by 
Congressman Steve LaTourette. It's been a long process, but one in 
which bipartisan and bicameral cooperation at every step of the process 
served to create a better and stronger bill to serve the needs of the 
Great Lakes region.
  The Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Restoration Act has eight Senate 
sponsors, including myself, and twenty-eight of our colleagues on the 
House are also cosponsors. This bill represents the consensus of a 
diverse collaboration of tribal, state, federal and international 
agencies with jurisdiction over the management of fish and wildlife 
resources of the Great Lakes. The bill also has received favorable 
review and broad support of organizations throughout the Great Lakes 
region for the approach it takes toward

[[Page S11384]]

restoration of the ecological integrity of the Great Lakes ecosystem.
  The primary purpose of the Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Restoration 
Act is to implement proposals that address recommendations put forth by 
the Great Lakes Fishery Resources Restoration Study. To this end, the 
Act reauthorizes the existing Great Lakes Coordination and Great Lakes 
Fishery Resources Offices. The bill also sets up a proposal review 
committee under the guidance of the existing Council of Lake Committees 
to review grant proposals and identify projects of the highest priority 
for the restoration of the fish and wildlife resources of the Great 
Lakes Basin. The Act encourages, supports, and coordinates Federal and 
non-federal cooperative habitat restoration and natural resource 
management programs in the Great Lakes Basin.
  The Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Restoration Act represents a new 
generation of environmental legislation, one that recognizes the 
complexity and inter-relatedness of ecosystems. This act seeks to 
address natural resource management in a comprehensive and 
conscientious manner by building partnerships among the Great Lakes 
states, U.S. and Canadian governments, and native American Tribes. 
Through regional cooperation, I believe we can address the 
environmental and economic concerns of the Great Lakes Basin and 
continue on the road towards the recovery of this precious natural and 
national resource. By passing this legislation, we in the Congress will 
be taking the right next step toward responsible stewardship of the 
Great Lakes as we venture into the new millennium.
  This fall, as I look back on the earth from space, I will be sure to 
look down on the Great Lakes. I know that they will be a cleaner, safer 
place for both humans and wildlife to live than they were at the time 
of my last flight because of the efforts we have made over the past 
decades. With the passage of this legislation, I will also be sure that 
they will continue to become even cleaner, safer places where fish and 
wildlife communities, and the human communities who enjoy them can 
continue to prosper.
  Mr. LEVIN. I would like to ask the distinguished sponsor of the 
Senate bill if he could comment on whether or not the bill, H.R. 1481, 
is intended to provide Indian Tribes in the Great Lakes region with any 
fish and wildlife management authority beyond that contained in 
existing treaty provisions and as recognized by Federal courts.
  Mr. GLENN. The bill's provision appointing tribal representatives to 
the committee created by the bill is not intended to expand their 
existing authorities.
  Mr. ABRAHAM. Would the Senator from Ohio provide a further 
clarification that the Senate intends that the committee created in the 
bill will provide its recommendations under the guidance and direction 
of the Council of Lake Committees of the Great Lakes Fishery 
Commission?
  Mr. GLENN. The Senator from Michigan is correct. That is the intent.
  Mr. LEVIN. I thank the Senator from Ohio for his assistance and, as 
an original cosponsor of S. 659, I applaud his efforts to move this 
important legislation expeditiously.
  Mr. HAGEL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the bill be 
considered read the third time and passed, the motion to reconsider be 
laid upon the table, and that any statements relating to the bill be 
placed at the appropriate place in the Record.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The bill (H.R. 1481) was considered read the third time, and passed.

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