[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 61 (Tuesday, April 17, 2007)]
[House]
[Pages H3413-H3414]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     AUTHORIZING PARTICIPATION IN LOS ANGELES COUNTY WATER SUPPLY 
                   AUGMENTATION DEMONSTRATION PROJECT

  Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 786) to amend the Reclamation Wastewater and Groundwater 
Study and Facilities Act to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to 
participate in the Los Angeles County Water Supply Augmentation 
Demonstration Project, and for other purposes.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                                H.R. 786

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. AUTHORIZATION OF LOS ANGELES COUNTY WATER SUPPLY 
                   AUGMENTATION DEMONSTRATION PROJECT.

       (a) In General.--The Reclamation Wastewater and Groundwater 
     Study and Facilities Act (Public Law 102-575, title XVI; 43 
     U.S.C. 390h et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the 
     following:

     ``SEC. 16__. LOS ANGELES COUNTY WATER SUPPLY AUGMENTATION 
                   DEMONSTRATION PROJECT.

       ``(a) In General.--The Secretary of the Interior, in 
     cooperation with the Los Angeles and San Gabriel Rivers 
     Watershed Council, is authorized to participate in the 
     planning, design, construction, and assessment of a 
     neighborhood demonstration project to--
       ``(1) demonstrate the potential for infiltration of 
     stormwater runoff to recharge groundwater by retrofitting one 
     or more sites in the Los Angeles area with features designed 
     to reflect state-of-the-art best management practices for 
     water conservation, pollution reduction and treatment, and 
     habitat restoration; and
       ``(2) through predevelopment and postdevelopment 
     monitoring, assess--
       ``(A) the potential new water supply yield based on 
     increased infiltration; and
       ``(B) the value of the new water.
       ``(b) Cost Sharing.--The Federal share of the cost of the 
     project described in subsection (a) shall not exceed 25 
     percent of the total cost of the project.
       ``(c) Limitation.--No Federal funds shall be used for the 
     operation and maintenance of the project described in 
     subsection (a). For purposes of this subsection, pre- and 
     post-development monitoring for not more than 2 years before 
     and after project installation for project assessment 
     purposes shall not be considered operation and maintenance.
       ``(d) Sunset of Authority.--- The authority of the 
     Secretary to carry out any provisions of this section shall 
     terminate 10 years after the date of the enactment of this 
     section.''.
       (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections in section 2 
     of Public Law 102-575 is amended by inserting after the item 
     relating to section 16__ the following:

``Sec. 16__. Los Angeles County Water Supply Augmentation Demonstration 
              Project.''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Arizona (Mr. Grijalva) and the gentleman from New Mexico (Mr. Pearce) 
each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Arizona.


                             General Leave

  Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
have 5 legislative days to revise and extend and include extraneous 
material on the bill under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Arizona?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  The purpose of H.R. 786, sponsored by our colleague from Lakewood, 
California, Linda Sanchez, is to authorize the Secretary of Interior to 
participate in the Los Angeles County Water Supply Augmentation 
Demonstration Project.
  The legislation will authorize Federal financial assistance for a 
unique water reuse and conservation project in the Los Angeles area. 
The initiative will demonstrate that small-scale neighborhood projects 
can be built to increase local water supplies and reduce urban runoff 
pollution. Projects like this can help residents of southern California 
increase local water supplies, reduce our dependence on imported water 
from northern California and the Colorado River.
  This is an innovative project and a good bill that deserves our 
support. I congratulate my colleague, Congresswoman Sanchez, for 
championing this legislation.
  In the 109th Congress, the Subcommittee on Water and Power held a 
hearing on similar legislation. This legislation was subsequently 
passed by the House under suspension of the rules.
  We strongly support H.R. 786, and I would like, once again, to thank 
and commend my friend, Linda Sanchez, for her work on this bill.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. PEARCE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  H.R. 786 authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to participate in 
the design, planning, and construction of a water recharge 
demonstration project in southern California. To meet the needs of 
future population growth in this arid region, capturing storm-water 
runoff and recharging groundwater could substantially increase local 
water supplies.
  I urge my colleagues to support this bill.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to 
the gentlewoman from California, Linda Sanchez.
  Ms. LINDA T. SANCHEZ of California. Mr. Speaker, let me begin by 
thanking Mr. Grijalva for being so generous with time. And I would also 
like to thank Natural Resources Committee Chairman Nick Rahall and 
Ranking Member Don Young, as well as Water and Power Subcommittee 
Chairwoman Grace Napolitano, for recognizing the importance of this 
bill, H.R. 786, the ``Southern California Water Augmentation Study.''
  I would like to especially thank Chairwoman Grace Napolitano for her 
support on this bill and her leadership in moving it through the 
Natural Resources Committee.
  I became interested in this effort because California and other parts 
of the country need to move forward on two very important issues. 
First, we must increase our groundwater drinking supplies. We can do 
this by improving the safe infiltration of surface water which seeps 
into the ground. Second, we must reduce urban storm-water runoff that 
can carry trash and contamination to our beaches and oceans. This water 
augmentation study addresses both of those issues.
  Storm-water currently becomes contaminated by running off rooftops 
and roads and carrying that pollution into our oceans. Our study is 
assessing ways to safely absorb that water into the ground where 
natural purifying processes can take place. This will stem the flow of 
polluted water into the ocean and safely recharge our groundwater 
supplies. Simply put, this project is about taking the water that we 
lose and turning it into water we use.
  This study will assess the potential of urban storm-water 
infiltration to augment our water supplies. It will determine the 
benefits, costs, and risks of infiltration. It will help us understand 
what conditions we need to make infiltration work and assess its 
potential for increasing our drinking water supply. At the same time, 
it will show us how to reduce water pollution, creating additional 
environmental and social benefits.
  Mr. Speaker, this bill is designed to make southern California more 
water-self-sufficient and less reliant on imported water from our 
neighbors in the central and northern parts of our State.
  This is a bipartisan effort in which there is agreement on the merits 
of the project throughout our government. I am very pleased that 
President Bush has included funding for the water augmentation study in 
his last four budgets, including this year.
  Also, the Bureau of Reclamation has been extremely supportive of this 
project. In fact, they helped create it in the year 2000 because they 
see it as helping to solve the real problem we face in California and 
other, shall I say, ``water-challenged'' areas of the country.
  Again, I would like to thank Chairman Rahall and Ranking Member 
Young, as well as the great staff on the

[[Page H3414]]

House Resources Committee; and to thank Representative Napolitano for 
her unyielding support of this bill.
  In 1907, Theodore Roosevelt said, ``The conservation of natural 
resources is the fundamental problem. Unless we solve that problem, it 
will avail us little to solve all others.'' With your help, Southern 
California can make significant progress toward improving its water 
resources management.
  I urge approval of this legislation.
  Mr. PEARCE. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I 
yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I 
yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Grijalva) that the House suspend the rules 
and pass the bill, H.R. 786.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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