[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 86 (Monday, June 1, 2015)]
[House]
[Pages H3618-H3619]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
NATIONAL ESTUARY PROGRAM REAUTHORIZATION
Mr. GIBBS. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill
(H.R. 944) to reauthorize the National Estuary Program, and for other
purposes.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 944
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. COMPETITIVE AWARDS.
Section 320(g) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act
(33 U.S.C. 1330(g)) is amended by adding at the end the
following:
``(4) Competitive awards.--
``(A) In general.--Using the amounts made available under
subsection (i)(2)(B), the Administrator shall make
competitive awards under this paragraph.
``(B) Application for awards.--The Administrator shall
solicit applications for awards under this paragraph from
State, interstate, and regional water pollution control
agencies and entities, State coastal zone management
agencies, interstate agencies, other public or nonprofit
private agencies, institutions, organizations, and
individuals.
``(C) Selection of recipients.--In selecting award
recipients under this paragraph, the Administrator shall
select recipients that are best able to address urgent and
challenging issues that threaten the ecological and economic
well-being of coastal areas. Such issues shall include--
``(i) extensive seagrass habitat losses resulting in
significant impacts on fisheries and water quality;
``(ii) recurring harmful algae blooms;
``(iii) unusual marine mammal mortalities;
``(iv) invasive exotic species that may threaten wastewater
systems and cause other damage;
``(v) jellyfish proliferation limiting community access to
water during peak tourism seasons;
``(vi) flooding that may be related to sea level rise or
wetland degradation or loss; and
``(vii) low dissolved oxygen conditions in estuarine waters
and related nutrient management.''.
SEC. 2. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
Section 320 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33
U.S.C. 1330) is amended by striking subsection (i) and
inserting the following:
``(i) Authorization of Appropriations.--
``(1) In general.--There is authorized to be appropriated
to the Administrator $27,000,000 for each of fiscal years
2016 through 2020 for--
``(A) expenses relating to the administration of grants or
awards by the Administrator under this section, including the
award and oversight of grants and awards, except that such
expenses may not exceed 5 percent of the amount appropriated
under this subsection for a fiscal year; and
``(B) making grants and awards under subsection (g).
``(2) Allocations.--
``(A) Conservation and management plans.--Not less than 80
percent of the amount made available under this subsection
for a fiscal year shall be used by the Administrator for the
development, implementation, and monitoring of each of the
conservation and management plans eligible for grant
assistance under subsection (g)(2).
``(B) Competitive awards.--Not less than 15 percent of the
amount made available under this subsection for a fiscal year
shall be used by the Administrator for making competitive
awards described in subsection (g)(4).''.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Ohio (Mr. Gibbs) and the gentleman from Washington (Mr. Larsen) each
will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Ohio.
Mr. GIBBS. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
H.R. 944, introduced by my colleague, Representative LoBiondo,
reauthorizes the National Estuary Program found in section 320 of the
Clean Water Act. Estuaries are unique and highly productive waters that
are important to the ecological and economic basis of our Nation.
Congress first authorized the National Estuary Program in 1987,
amendments to the Clean Water Act to promote the protection of the
national significant estuaries in the United States that are deemed to
be threatened by pollution, development, or overuse.
Unlike many of the programs under the Clean Water Act, the National
Estuary Program is a nonregulatory program. Instead, it is designed to
support collaborative, voluntary efforts of Federal, State, and local
stakeholders to restore degraded estuaries.
Using consensus building in a collaborative decisionmaking process
instead of a top-down regulatory approach, the National Estuary Program
has been effective at promoting locally based involvement. In addition,
it leverages non-Federal money for restoration activities by providing
funding for the program.
In reauthorization of the National Estuary Program, H.R. 944 makes
prudent fiscal adjustments. The bill reauthorizes section 320 of the
Clean Water Act through 2018 in the amount of $27 million a year. This
amount is consistent with appropriations over the past 5 years, and, in
recognition of the fiscal realities of today, decreases the authorized
level of funding by $8 million a year.
H.R. 944 also directs more funds to where they need to be in the
individual estuaries in the program. The bill achieves this by reducing
the amount
[[Page H3619]]
of discretionary funds made available to the EPA.
Finally, the bill allocates a portion of eligible program funds for
competitive awards to Federal, State, and local stakeholders to address
certain high priority estuary needs, including algae blooms, hypoxia,
flooding, and invasive species. This is identical to a bill that passed
the House by voice vote in the last Congress.
I urge all Members to support H.R. 944, and I reserve the balance of
my time.
Mr. LARSEN of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I
may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 944.
I am pleased the House is considering H.R. 944, a bill that I
introduced along with Congressman LoBiondo and Congressman Murphy to
reauthorize the National Estuary Program through 2020.
I want to thank my colleagues for their hard work in pulling this
legislation together.
Estuaries are critically important to the health of our Nation's
environment and our economy. Their waters are a unique mixture of
freshwater, drainage from the land, and salty seawater. Estuaries
provide vital nesting and feeding areas for many aquatic plants and
animals. They also help maintain healthy ocean environments by
filtering out sediment and pollutants from rivers and streams before
they flow into the ocean.
In addition to improving habitat for critical wildlife like salmon,
restoring estuaries can have important carbon sequestration effects.
For example, a report last year on the Snohomish Estuary in my
district found that currently planned and in-progress restoration
projects will result in at least 2.55 million tons of CO2
sequestered from the atmosphere over the next 100 years. That is the
equivalent of a year's worth of emissions from a half a million
automobiles.
Over half of the U.S. population lives in coastal areas, including
along the shores of estuaries. These areas provided 69 million jobs and
contributed $7.9 trillion to the economy recently. These gains come
from commercial and recreational fishing, as well as tourism and other
forms of regulation recreation. By one estimate, restoring our estuary
areas could create more than 30 jobs for every $1 million invested.
In the Pacific Northwest and across the country, healthy estuaries
like the Puget Sound support fish, birds, and other wildlife, and
sustain important economic and recreational activities like trade,
fishing, tourism, and many other forms of outdoor recreation.
Estuaries in the Pacific Northwest also serve as habitat and spawning
areas for salmon, another critical driver for our regional economy.
Unfortunately, human activities have led to a decline in the health
of estuaries, threatening them in many coastal parts of the country.
Population growth in areas abutting estuaries have led to an increase
in storm water runoff and sewage discharges, ultimately polluting the
waters with toxins.
Fortunately, the National Estuary Program, which would be authorized
by H.R. 944, is an important part of remedying these problems facing
our Nation's estuaries. Since 1987, the program has operated
successfully at the EPA in partnership with other State and local
entities and has fostered innovative solutions to local water quality
programs.
Funding from the program helps create solutions to nurture estuaries
back to health, like the comprehensive plan we have for the Puget Sound
recovery.
This bipartisan legislation that we have today will ensure that local
organizations across the country, in partnership with the EPA, can
protect and restore estuaries for the benefit of future generations.
I support this legislation, and I urge my colleagues to support it as
well.
With that, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. GIBBS. Mr. Speaker I yield such time as he may consume to the
gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. LoBiondo).
Mr. LoBIONDO. Mr. Speaker, first, I would like to thank Chairman
Gibbs and Chairman Shuster and Ranking Members DeFazio and Napolitano
for helping bring H.R. 944, the National Estuary Program
Reauthorization, to the floor.
I would also like to thank my colleagues Mr. Posey and Mr. Murphy of
Florida, and especially Mr. Larsen, who has been great to work with on
a number of issues.
This version of the National Estuary Program Reauthorization is
fiscally responsible by reducing the authorization levels by $8 million
while ultimately increasing the amount of money each estuary program
will receive. It is a very commonsense approach that helps get the job
done.
This reauthorization will detail just how the EPA is to spend the
authorized and appropriated money.
Unlike many of the programs under the Clean Water Act, the National
Estuary Program is a nonregulatory program. That was mentioned before,
but I think it bears repeating: it is a nonregulatory program.
Instead, it is designed to support collaborative, voluntary efforts
of Federal, State, and local stakeholders to restore degraded
estuaries. I think this is exactly the approach that will get results,
and an approach that will encourage people to be working together for
something that really can actually see a very positive result with our
estuaries.
Unfortunately, the National Estuary Program has been losing money due
to EPA administrative costs. By setting limits of 5 percent for
administrative costs for the EPA, we can guarantee 80 percent of the
funding goes to the end user, the NEP, and not bureaucratic salaries
and red tape.
{time} 1800
In this year's reauthorization, we have set aside 15 percent of the
funding for a competitive award program. This program will seek
applications meant to deal with urgent and challenging issues that
threaten the ecological and economic well-being of coastal areas.
By structuring how the money is spent and lowering authorization
levels, this legislation strikes the right balance of fiscal and
environmental responsibility.
I urge all Members to support H.R. 944.
Mr. LARSEN of Washington. Mr. Speaker, we have no further speakers,
so I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 944.
I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. GIBBS. Mr. Speaker, I urge support for H.R. 944, and I yield back
the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Gibbs) that the House suspend the rules and
pass the bill, H.R. 944.
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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