[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 107 (Tuesday, June 26, 2018)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4454-S4455]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

  SA 3218. Mr. GARDNER (for himself, Mrs. Feinstein, Mr. Wyden, Mr. 
Udall, Mr. Moran, Mr. Bennet, and Ms. Harris) submitted an amendment 
intended to be proposed by him to the bill H.R. 2, to provide for the 
reform and continuation of agricultural and other programs of the 
Department of Agriculture through fiscal year 2023, and for other 
purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:

       In section 2105(a), strike the closing quotation marks and 
     the following period and insert the following:
       ``(g) Drought and Water Conservation Agreements.--In the 
     case of an agreement under subsection (b)(1) to address 
     regional drought concerns, in accordance with the 
     conservation purposes of the program, the Secretary, in 
     consultation with the applicable State technical committee 
     established under section 1261(a), may--

[[Page S4455]]

       ``(1) notwithstanding subsection (a)(1), enroll other 
     agricultural land on which the resource concerns identified 
     in the agreement can be addressed if the enrollment of the 
     land is critical to the accomplishment of the purposes of the 
     agreement;
       ``(2) permit dryland agricultural uses with the adoption of 
     best management practices on enrolled land if the agreement 
     involves the significant long-term reduction of consumptive 
     water use and dryland production is compatible with the 
     agreement; and
       ``(3) calculate annual rental payments consistent with 
     existing administrative practice for similar drought and 
     water conservation agreements under this subchapter and 
     ensure regional consistency in those rates.''.
       On page 123, line 3, insert ``or for addressing the 
     conservation of water to advance drought mitigation'' before 
     the semicolon.
       In section 2303, strike paragraph (5) and insert the 
     following:
       (5) in subsection (h)--
       (A) by striking paragraph (1) and inserting the following:
       ``(1) Availability of payments.--The Secretary may provide 
     water conservation and system efficiency payments under this 
     subsection to an entity described in paragraph (2) or a 
     producer for--
       ``(A) water conservation scheduling, water distribution 
     efficiency, soil moisture monitoring, or an appropriate 
     combination thereof;
       ``(B) irrigation-related structural or other measures that 
     conserve surface water or groundwater, including managed 
     aquifer recovery practices; or
       ``(C) a transition to water-conserving crops, water-
     conserving crop rotations, or deficit irrigation.'';
       (B) by redesigning paragraph (2) as paragraph (3);
       (C) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following:
       ``(2) Eligibility of certain entities.--
       ``(A) In general.--Notwithstanding section 1001(f)(6), the 
     Secretary may enter into a contract under this subsection 
     with a State, irrigation district, groundwater management 
     district, acequia, or similar entity under a streamlined 
     contracting process to implement water conservation or 
     irrigation practices under a watershed-wide project that will 
     effectively conserve water, provide fish and wildlife 
     habitat, or provide for drought-related environmental 
     mitigation, as determined by the Secretary.
       ``(B) Implementation.--Water conservation or irrigation 
     practices that are the subject of a contract entered into 
     under subparagraph (A) shall be implemented on--
       ``(i) eligible land of a producer; or
       ``(ii) land that is under the control of an irrigation 
     district, a groundwater management district, an acequia, or a 
     similar entity.
       ``(C) Waiver authority.--The Secretary may waive the 
     applicability of the limitations in section 1001D(b) or 
     section 1240G for a payment made under a contract entered 
     into under this paragraph if the Secretary determines that 
     the waiver is necessary to fulfill the objectives of the 
     project.'';
       (D) in paragraph (3) (as so redesignated)--
       (i) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by striking 
     ``to a producer'' and inserting ``under this subsection'';
       (ii) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``the eligible land 
     of the producer is located, there is a reduction in water use 
     in the operation of the producer'' and inserting ``the land 
     on which the practices will be implemented is located, there 
     is a reduction in water use in the operation on that land''; 
     and
       (iii) in subparagraph (B), by inserting ``except in the 
     case of an application under paragraph (2),'' before ``the 
     producer agrees''; and
       (E) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(4) Effect.--Nothing in this section authorizes the 
     Secretary to modify the process for determining the annual 
     allocation of funding to States under the program.''.
                                 ______