[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 119 (Tuesday, September 28, 2004)]
[House]
[Pages H7680-H7681]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA GROUNDWATER REMEDIATION ACT
Mr. RADANOVICH. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the
bill (H.R. 4606) to authorize the Secretary of the Interior, acting
through the Bureau of Reclamation and in coordination with other
Federal, State, and local government agencies, to participate in the
funding and implementation of a balanced, long-term groundwater
remediation program in California, and for other purposes, as amended.
The Clerk read as follows:
H.R. 4606
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 ``Southern California
Groundwater Remediation Act''.
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.
For the purposes of this Act:
(1) Groundwater remediation.--The term ``groundwater
remediation'' means actions that are necessary to prevent,
minimize, clean up, or mitigate damage to groundwater.
(2) Local water authority.--The term ``local water
authority'' means a currently existing (on the the date of
the enactment of this Act) public water district, public
water utility, public water planning agency, municipality, or
Indian Tribe located within the natural watershed of the
Santa Ana River in the State of California.
(3) Remediation fund.--The term ``Remediation Fund'' means
the Southern California Groundwater Remediation Fund
established pursuant to section 3(a).
(4) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary
of the Interior.
SEC. 3. SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA GROUNDWATER REMEDIATION.
(a) Southern California Groundwater Remediation.--
(1) Establishment of remediation fund.--There shall be
established within the Treasury of the United States an
interest bearing account to be known as the ``Southern
California Groundwater Remediation Fund''.
(2) Administration of remediation fund.--The Remediation
Fund shall be administered by the Secretary, acting through
the Bureau of Reclamation. The Secretary shall administer the
Remediation Fund in cooperation with the local water
authority.
(3) Purposes of remediation fund.--
(A) In general.--Subject to subparagraph (B), the amounts
in the Remediation Fund, including interest accrued, shall be
used by the Secretary to provide grants to the local water
authority to reimburse the local water authority for the
Federal share of the costs associated with designing and
constructing groundwater remediation projects to be
administered by the local water authority.
(B) Cost-sharing limitation.--
(i) In general.--The Secretary may not obligate any funds
appropriated to the Remediation Fund in a fiscal year until
the Secretary has deposited into the Remediation Fund an
amount provided by non-Federal interests sufficient to ensure
that at least 35 percent of any funds obligated by the
Secretary for a groundwater remediation project are from
funds provided to the Secretary for that project by the non-
Federal interests.
(ii) Non-federal responsibility.--Each local water
authority shall be responsible for providing the non-Federal
amount required by clause (i) for projects under that local
water authority. The State of California, local government
agencies, and private entities may provide all or any portion
of the non-Federal amount.
(iii) Credits toward non-federal share.--For purposes of
clause (ii), the Secretary shall credit the appropriate local
water authority with the value of all prior expenditures by
non-Federal interests made after January 1, 2000, that are
compatible with the purposes of this section, including--
(I) all expenditures made by non-Federal interests to
design and construct groundwater remediation projects,
including expenditures associated with environmental
analyses, and public involvement activities that were
required to implement the groundwater remediation projects in
compliance with applicable Federal and State laws; and
(II) all expenditures made by non-Federal interests to
acquire lands, easements, rights-of-way, relocations,
disposal areas, and water rights that were required to
implement a groundwater remediation project.
(b) Compliance With Applicable Law.--In carrying out the
activities described in this section, the Secretary shall
comply with any applicable Federal and State laws.
(c) Relationship to Other Activities.--Nothing in this
section shall be construed to affect other Federal or State
authorities that are being used or may be used to facilitate
remediation and protection of the groundwater the natural
watershed of the Santa Ana River in the State of California.
In carrying out the activities described in this section, the
Secretary shall integrate such activities with ongoing
Federal and State projects and activities. None of the funds
made available for such activities pursuant to this section
shall be counted against any Federal authorization ceiling
established for any previously authorized Federal projects or
activities.
(d) Financial Statements and Audits.--The Secretary shall
ensure that all funds obligated and disbursed under this Act
and expended by a local water authority, are accounted for in
accordance with generally accepted accounting principles and
are subjected to regular audits in accordance with applicable
procedures, manuals, and circulars of the Department of the
Interior and the Office of Management and Budget.
(e) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized
to be appropriated to the Remediation Fund $50,000,000. Such
funds shall remain available until expended.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
California (Mr. Radanovich) and the gentleman from Arizona (Mr.
Grijalva) each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from California (Mr. Radanovich).
[[Page H7681]]
Mr. RADANOVICH. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Mr. Speaker, H.R. 4606, authored by the gentleman from California
(Mr. Baca), authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to participate in
the funding and implementation of a balanced, long-term groundwater
remediation program in California. H.R. 4606 establishes the Southern
California Basins Groundwater Remediation Fund within the U.S. Treasury
to provide Federal cost-share monies to remediate groundwater supplies
in the Santa Ana watershed. I urge adoption of this measure.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to commend first the sponsor of the bill,
the gentleman from California (Mr. Baca), for bringing forth this very
important measure.
Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman
from California (Mr. Baca).
Mr. BACA. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 4606, the Southern
California Groundwater Remediation Act.
First of all, I would like to thank our minority leader and our
majority leader for supporting this bill. Our majority leader happened
to go in the Inland Empire to see what is going on in that area, and I
appreciate that.
The Southern California Groundwater Remediation Act is a long-term
solution to helping cities in Southern California remove perchlorate
from their drinking water. Perchlorate groundwater contamination has
become a crisis in Southern California. This includes my hometown of
Rialto in California.
Perchlorate is a main ingredient in rocket fuel. It has been found in
drinking water supplies in 40 States, including California. It has been
linked to thyroid damage and may be especially harmful to infants and
developing fetuses and the 1.2 million women of childbearing age in San
Bernardino, Riverside, and Orange counties.
It is also harmful to those with weak immune systems, such as seniors
and AIDS patients. There is a legal and moral obligation to provide
safe and healthy water. Today, these obligations are in jeopardy. The
hard-working families in these areas are not at fault and should not
have to pay for these problems. We must protect the consumer. Southern
California, and particularly the Inland Empire, has been greatly
impacted by perchlorate. Perchlorate has been detected in 182 sources
in the counties served by the Santa Ana River watershed.
{time} 1600
There is a perchlorate plume in the Inland Empire in California that
is 7 miles long. It has affected 20 wells in San Bernardino County and
jeopardized the water supplies of 500,000 residents. The economic
burden on these communities is almost as much of a concern as the
potential health effects.
H.R. 4606 authorizes $50 million in much-needed assistance. It is
modeled after a successful program in the San Gabriel Basin in southern
California that has also suffered from perchlorate-polluted water. And
it is similar to H.R. 4459, a bill introduced by the gentleman from
California (Mr. Pombo) that deals with perchlorate in northern
California and passed this House last week.
I urge my colleagues to support this urgent bill for southern
California so we can tell these communities that help is on the way. I
would like to thank the gentleman from California (Mr. Pombo), the
gentleman from West Virginia (Mr. Rahall), the gentleman from
California (Mr. Calvert), and the gentlewoman from California (Mrs.
Napolitano) for their support of H.R. 4606 and for moving this
legislation forward quickly.
Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. RADANOVICH. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Issa). The question is on the motion
offered by the gentleman from California (Mr. Radanovich) that the
House suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 4606, as amended.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor
thereof) the rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
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