[House Report 106-995]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



106th Congress                                                   Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 2d Session                                                     106-995

======================================================================



 
                 ESTUARIES AND CLEAN WATERS ACT OF 2000

                                _______
                                

                October 24, 2000.--Ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

 Mr. Shuster, from the committee on conference, submitted the following

                           CONFERENCE REPORT

                         [To accompany S. 835]

      The committee of conference on the disagreeing votes of 
the two Houses on the amendment of the House to the bill (S. 
835), to encourage the restoration of estuary habitat through 
more efficient project financing and enhanced coordination of 
Federal and non-Federal restoration programs, and for other 
purposes, having met, after full and free conference, have 
agreed to recommend and do recommend to their respective Houses 
as follows:
      That the Senate recede from its disagreement to the 
amendment of the House and agree to the same with an amendment 
as follows:
      In lieu of the matter proposed to be inserted by the 
House amendment, insert the following:

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Estuaries 
and Clean Waters Act of 2000''.
    (b) Table of Contents.--

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.

                      TITLE I--ESTUARY RESTORATION

Sec. 101. Short title.
Sec. 102. Purposes.
Sec. 103. Definitions.
Sec. 104. Estuary habitat restoration program.
Sec. 105. Establishment of Estuary Habitat Restoration Council.
Sec. 106. Estuary habitat restoration strategy.
Sec. 107. Monitoring of estuary habitat restoration projects.
Sec. 108. Reporting.
Sec. 109. Funding.
Sec. 110. General provisions.

                  TITLE II--CHESAPEAKE BAY RESTORATION

Sec. 201. Short title.
Sec. 202. Findings and purposes.
Sec. 203. Chesapeake Bay.

                   TITLE III--NATIONAL ESTUARY PROGRAM

Sec. 301. Addition to national estuary program.
Sec. 302. Grants.
Sec. 303. Authorization of appropriations.

                 TITLE IV--LONG ISLAND SOUND RESTORATION

Sec. 401. Short title.
Sec. 402. Innovative methodologies and technologies.
Sec. 403. Assistance for distressed communities.
Sec. 404. Authorization of appropriations.

              TITLE V--LAKE PONTCHARTRAIN BASIN RESTORATION

Sec. 501. Short title.
Sec. 502. Lake Pontchartrain basin.

                   TITLE VI--ALTERNATIVE WATER SOURCES

Sec. 601. Short title.
Sec. 602. Pilot program for alternative water source projects.

                         TITLE VII--CLEAN LAKES

Sec. 701. Grants to States.
Sec. 702. Demonstration program.

       TITLE VIII--TIJUANA RIVER VALLEY ESTUARY AND BEACH CLEANUP

Sec. 801. Short title.
Sec. 802. Purpose.
Sec. 803. Definitions.
Sec. 804. Actions to be taken by the Commission and the Administrator.
Sec. 805. Negotiation of new treaty minute.
Sec. 806. Authorization of appropriations.

                      TITLE IX--GENERAL PROVISIONS

Sec. 901. Purchase of American-made equipment and products.
Sec. 902. Long-term estuary assessment.
Sec. 903. Rural sanitation grants.

                      TITLE I--ESTUARY RESTORATION

SEC. 101. SHORT TITLE.

    This title may be cited as the ``Estuary Restoration Act of 
2000''.

SEC. 102. PURPOSES.

    The purposes of this title are--
            (1) to promote the restoration of estuary habitat;
            (2) to develop a national estuary habitat 
        restoration strategy for creating and maintaining 
        effective estuary habitat restoration partnerships 
        among public agencies at all levels of government and 
        to establish new partnerships between the public and 
        private sectors;
            (3) to provide Federal assistance for estuary 
        habitat restoration projects and to promote efficient 
        financing of such projects; and
            (4) to develop and enhance monitoring and research 
        capabilities through the use of the environmental 
        technology innovation program associated with the 
        National Estuarine Research Reserve System established 
        by section 315 of the Coastal Zone Management Act of 
        1972 (16 U.S.C. 1461) to ensure that estuary habitat 
        restoration efforts are based on sound scientific 
        understanding and innovative technologies.

SEC. 103. DEFINITIONS.

    In this title, the following definitions apply:
            (1) Council.--The term ``Council'' means the 
        Estuary Habitat Restoration Council established by 
        section 105.
            (2) Estuary.--The term ``estuary'' means a part of 
        a river or stream or other body of water that has an 
        unimpaired connection with the open sea and where the 
        sea water is measurably diluted with fresh water 
        derived from land drainage. The term also includes near 
        coastal waters and wetlands of the Great Lakes that are 
        similar in form and function to estuaries, including 
        the area located in the Great Lakes biogeographic 
        region and designated as a National Estuarine Research 
        Reserve under the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972 
        (16 U.S.C. 1451 et seq.) as of the date of enactment of 
        this Act.
            (3) Estuary habitat.--The term ``estuary habitat'' 
        means the physical, biological, and chemical elements 
        associated with an estuary, including the complex of 
        physical and hydrologic features and living organisms 
        within the estuary and associated ecosystems.
            (4) Estuary habitat restoration activity.--
                    (A) In general.--The term ``estuary habitat 
                restoration activity'' means an activity that 
                results in improving degraded estuaries or 
                estuary habitat or creating estuary habitat 
                (including both physical and functional 
                restoration), with the goal of attaining a 
                self-sustaining system integrated into the 
                surrounding landscape.
                    (B) Included activities.--The term 
                ``estuary habitat restoration activity'' 
                includes--
                            (i) the reestablishment of 
                        chemical, physical, hydrologic, and 
                        biological features and components 
                        associated with an estuary;
                            (ii) except as provided in 
                        subparagraph (C), the cleanup of 
                        pollution for the benefit of estuary 
                        habitat;
                            (iii) the control of nonnative and 
                        invasive species in the estuary;
                            (iv) the reintroduction of species 
                        native to the estuary, including 
                        through such means as planting or 
                        promoting natural succession;
                            (v) the construction of reefs to 
                        promote fish and shellfish production 
                        and to provide estuary habitat for 
                        living resources; and
                            (vi) other activities that improve 
                        estuary habitat.
                    (C) Excluded activities.--The term 
                ``estuary habitat restoration activity'' does 
                not include an activity that--
                            (i) constitutes mitigation required 
                        under any Federal or State law for the 
                        adverse effects of an activity 
                        regulated or otherwise governed by 
                        Federal or State law; or
                            (ii) constitutes restoration for 
                        natural resource damages required under 
                        any Federal or State law.
            (5) Estuary habitat restoration project.--The term 
        ``estuary habitat restoration project'' means a project 
        to carry out an estuary habitat restoration activity.
            (6) Estuary habitat restoration plan.--
                    (A) In general.--The term ``estuary habitat 
                restoration plan'' means any Federal or State 
                plan for restoration of degraded estuary 
                habitat that was developed with the substantial 
                participation of appropriate public and private 
                stakeholders.
                    (B) Included plans and programs.--The term 
                ``estuary habitat restoration plan'' includes 
                estuary habitat restoration components of--
                            (i) a comprehensive conservation 
                        and management plan approved under 
                        section 320 of the Federal Water 
                        Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1330);
                            (ii) a lakewide management plan or 
                        remedial action plan developed under 
                        section 118 of the Federal Water 
                        Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1268);
                            (iii) a management plan approved 
                        under the Coastal Zone Management Act 
                        of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1451 et seq.); and
                            (iv) the interstate management plan 
                        developed pursuant to the Chesapeake 
                        Bay program under section 117 of the 
                        Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 
                        U.S.C. 1267).
            (7) Indian tribe.--The term ``Indian tribe'' has 
        the meaning given such term by section 4 of the Indian 
        Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 
        U.S.C. 450b).
            (8) Non-federal interest.--The term ``non-Federal 
        interest'' means a State, a political subdivision of a 
        State, an Indian tribe, a regional or interstate 
        agency, or, as provided in section 104(f)(2), a 
        nongovernmental organization.
            (9) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the 
        Secretary of the Army.
            (10) State.--The term ``State'' means the States of 
        Alabama, Alaska, California, Connecticut, Delaware, 
        Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, 
        Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, 
        Mississippi, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North 
        Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, 
        South Carolina, Texas, Virginia, Washington, and 
        Wisconsin, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth 
        of Puerto Rico, the Commonwealth of the Northern 
        Mariana Islands, the United States Virgin Islands, 
        American Samoa, and Guam.

SEC. 104. ESTUARY HABITAT RESTORATION PROGRAM.

    (a) Establishment.--There is established an estuary habitat 
restoration program under which the Secretary may carry out 
estuary habitat restoration projects and provide technical 
assistance in accordance with the requirements of this title.
    (b) Origin of Projects.--A proposed estuary habitat 
restoration project shall originate from a non-Federal interest 
consistent with State or local laws.
    (c) Selection of Projects.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary shall select estuary 
        habitat restoration projects from a list of project 
        proposals submitted by the Estuary Habitat Restoration 
        Council under section 105(b).
            (2) Required elements.--Each estuary habitat 
        restoration project selected by the Secretary must--
                    (A) address restoration needs identified in 
                an estuary habitat restoration plan;
                    (B) be consistent with the estuary habitat 
                restoration strategy developed under section 
                106;
                    (C) include a monitoring plan that is 
                consistent with standards for monitoring 
                developed under section 107 to ensure that 
                short-term and long-term restoration goals are 
                achieved; and
                    (D) include satisfactory assurance from the 
                non-Federal interests proposing the project 
                that the non-Federal interests will have 
                adequate personnel, funding, and authority to 
                carry out items of local cooperation and 
                properly maintain the project.
            (3) Factors for selection of projects.--In 
        selecting an estuary habitat restoration project, the 
        Secretary shall consider the following factors:
                    (A) Whether the project is part of an 
                approved Federal estuary management or habitat 
                restoration plan.
                    (B) The technical feasibility of the 
                project.
                    (C) The scientific merit of the project.
                    (D) Whether the project will encourage 
                increased coordination and cooperation among 
                Federal, State, and local government agencies.
                    (E) Whether the project fosters public-
                private partnerships and uses Federal resources 
                to encourage increased private sector 
                involvement, including consideration of the 
                amount of private funds or in-kind 
                contributions for an estuary habitat 
                restoration activity.
                    (F) Whether the project is cost-effective.
                    (G) Whether the State in which the non-
                Federal interest is proposing the project has a 
                dedicated source of funding to acquire or 
                restore estuary habitat, natural areas, and 
                open spaces for the benefit of estuary habitat 
                restoration or protection.
                    (H) Other factors that the Secretary 
                determines to be reasonable and necessary for 
                consideration.
            (4) Priority.--In selecting estuary habitat 
        restoration projects to be carried out under this 
        title, the Secretary shall give priority consideration 
        to a project if, in addition to meriting selection 
        based on the factors under paragraph (3)--
                    (A) the project occurs within a watershed 
                in which there is a program being carried out 
                that addresses sources of pollution and other 
                activities that otherwise would re-impair the 
                restored habitat; or
                    (B) the project includes pilot testing of 
                or a demonstration of an innovative technology 
                having the potential for improved cost-
                effectiveness in estuary habitat restoration.
    (d) Cost Sharing.--
            (1) Federal share.--Except as provided in paragraph 
        (2) and subsection (e)(2), the Federal share of the 
        cost of an estuary habitat restoration project (other 
        than the cost of operation and maintenance of the 
        project) carried out under this title shall not exceed 
        65 percent of such cost.
            (2) Innovative technology costs.--The Federal share 
        of the incremental additional cost of including in a 
        project pilot testing of or a demonstration of an 
        innovative technology described in subsection (c)(4)(B) 
        shall be 85 percent.
            (3) Non-federal share.--The non-Federal share of 
        the cost of an estuary habitat restoration project 
        carried out under this title shall include lands, 
        easements, rights-of-way, and relocations and may 
        include services, or any other form of in-kind 
        contribution determined by the Secretary to be an 
        appropriate contribution equivalent to the monetary 
        amount required for the non-Federal share of the 
        activity.
            (4) Operation and maintenance.--The non-Federal 
        interests shall be responsible for all costs associated 
        with operating, maintaining, replacing, repairing, and 
        rehabilitating all projects carried out under this 
        section.
    (e) Interim Actions.--
            (1) In general.--Pending completion of the estuary 
        habitat restoration strategy to be developed under 
        section 106, the Secretary may take interim actions to 
        carry out an estuary habitat restoration activity.
            (2) Federal share.--The Federal share of the cost 
        of an estuary habitat restoration activity before the 
        completion of the estuary habitat restoration strategy 
        shall not exceed 25 percent of such cost.
    (f) Cooperation of Non-Federal Interests.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary may not carry out an 
        estuary habitat restoration project until a non-Federal 
        interest has entered into a written agreement with the 
        Secretary in which the non-Federal interest agrees to--
                    (A) provide all lands, easements, rights-
                of-way, and relocations and any other elements 
                the Secretary determines appropriate under 
                subsection (d)(3); and
                    (B) provide for maintenance and monitoring 
                of the project.
            (2) Nongovernmental organizations.--Notwithstanding 
        section 221(b) of the Flood Control Act of 1970 (42 
        U.S.C. 1962d-5b(b)), for any project to be undertaken 
        under this title, the Secretary, in consultation and 
        coordination with appropriate State and local 
        governmental agencies and Indian tribes, may allow a 
        nongovernmental organization to serve as the non-
        Federal interest for the project.
    (g) Delegation of Project Implementation.--In carrying out 
this title, the Secretary may delegate project implementation 
to another Federal department or agency on a reimbursable basis 
if the Secretary, upon the recommendation of the Council, 
determines such delegation is appropriate.

SEC. 105. ESTABLISHMENT OF ESTUARY HABITAT RESTORATION COUNCIL.

    (a) Council.--There is established a council to be known as 
the ``Estuary Habitat Restoration Council''.
    (b) Duties.--The Council shall be responsible for--
            (1) soliciting, reviewing, and evaluating project 
        proposals and developing recommendations concerning 
        such proposals based on the factors specified in 
        section 104(c)(3);
            (2) submitting to the Secretary a list of 
        recommended projects, including a recommended priority 
        order and any recommendation as to whether a project 
        should be carried out by the Secretary or by another 
        Federal department or agency under section 104(g);
            (3) developing and transmitting to Congress a 
        national strategy for restoration of estuary habitat;
            (4) periodically reviewing the effectiveness of the 
        national strategy in meeting the purposes of this title 
        and, as necessary, updating the national strategy; and
            (5) providing advice on the development of the 
        database, monitoring standards, and report required 
        under sections 107 and 108.
    (c) Membership.--The Council shall be composed of the 
following members:
            (1) The Secretary (or the Secretary's designee).
            (2) The Under Secretary for Oceans and Atmosphere 
        of the Department of Commerce (or the Under Secretary's 
        designee).
            (3) The Administrator of the Environmental 
        Protection Agency (or the Administrator's designee).
            (4) The Secretary of the Interior, acting through 
        the Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife 
        Service (or such Secretary's designee).
            (5) The Secretary of Agriculture (or such 
        Secretary's designee).
            (6) The head of any other Federal agency designated 
        by the President to serve as an ex officio member of 
        the Council.
    (d) Prohibition of Compensation.--Members of the Council 
may not receive compensation for their service as members of 
the Council.
    (e) Chairperson.--The chairperson shall be elected by the 
Council from among its members for a 3-year term, except that 
the first elected chairperson may serve a term of fewer than 3 
years.
    (f) Convening of Council.--
            (1) First meeting.--The Secretary shall convene the 
        first meeting of the Council not later than 60 days 
        after the date of enactment of this Act for the purpose 
        of electing a chairperson.
            (2) Additional meetings.--The chairperson shall 
        convene additional meetings of the Council as often as 
        appropriate to ensure that this title is fully carried 
        out, but not less often than annually.
    (g) Council Procedures.--The Council shall establish 
procedures for voting, the conduct of meetings, and other 
matters, as necessary.
    (h) Public Participation.--Meetings of the Council shall be 
open to the public. The Council shall provide notice to the 
public of such meetings.
    (i) Advice.--The Council shall consult with persons with 
recognized scientific expertise in estuary or estuary habitat 
restoration, representatives of State agencies, local or 
regional government agencies, and nongovernmental organizations 
with expertise in estuary or estuary habitat restoration, and 
representatives of Indian tribes, agricultural interests, 
fishing interests, and other estuary users--
                    (A) to assist the Council in the 
                development of the estuary habitat restoration 
                strategy to be developed under section 106; and
                    (B) to provide advice and recommendations 
                to the Council on proposed estuary habitat 
                restoration projects, including advice on the 
                scientific merit, technical merit, and 
                feasibility of a project.

SEC. 106. ESTUARY HABITAT RESTORATION STRATEGY.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 1 year after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Council, shall develop an estuary 
habitat restoration strategy designed to ensure a comprehensive 
approach to maximize benefits derived from estuary habitat 
restoration projects and to foster the coordination of Federal 
and non-Federal activities related to restoration of estuary 
habitat.
    (b) Goal.--The goal of the strategy shall be the 
restoration of 1,000,000 acres of estuary habitat by the year 
2010.
    (c) Integration of Estuary Habitat Restoration Plans, 
Programs, and Partnerships.--In developing the estuary habitat 
restoration strategy, the Council shall--
            (1) conduct a review of estuary management or 
        habitat restoration plans and Federal programs 
        established under other laws that authorize funding for 
        estuary habitat restoration activities; and
            (2) ensure that the estuary habitat restoration 
        strategy is developed in a manner that is consistent 
        with the estuary management or habitat restoration 
        plans.
    (d) Elements of the Strategy.--The estuary habitat 
restoration strategy shall include proposals, methods, and 
guidance on--
            (1) maximizing the incentives for the creation of 
        new public-private partnerships to carry out estuary 
        habitat restoration projects and the use of Federal 
        resources to encourage increased private sector 
        involvement in estuary habitat restoration activities;
            (2) ensuring that the estuary habitat restoration 
        strategy will be implemented in a manner that is 
        consistent with the estuary management or habitat 
        restoration plans;
            (3) promoting estuary habitat restoration projects 
        to--
                    (A) provide healthy ecosystems in order to 
                support--
                            (i) wildlife, including endangered 
                        and threatened species, migratory 
                        birds, and resident species of an 
                        estuary watershed; and
                            (ii) fish and shellfish, including 
                        commercial and recreational fisheries;
                    (B) improve surface and ground water 
                quality and quantity, and flood control;
                    (C) provide outdoor recreation; and
                    (D) address other areas of concern that the 
                Council determines to be appropriate for 
                consideration;
            (4) addressing the estimated historic losses, 
        estimated current rate of loss, and extent of the 
        threat of future loss or degradation of each type of 
        estuary habitat;
            (5) measuring the rate of change for each type of 
        estuary habitat;
            (6) selecting a balance of smaller and larger 
        estuary habitat restoration projects; and
            (7) ensuring equitable geographic distribution of 
        projects funded under this title.
    (e) Public Review and Comment.--Before the Council adopts a 
final or revised estuary habitat restoration strategy, the 
Secretary shall publish in the Federal Register a draft of the 
estuary habitat restoration strategy and provide an opportunity 
for public review and comment.
    (f) Periodic Revision.--Using data and information 
developed through project monitoring and management, and other 
relevant information, the Council may periodically review and 
update, as necessary, the estuary habitat restoration strategy.

SEC. 107. MONITORING OF ESTUARY HABITAT RESTORATION PROJECTS.

    (a) Under Secretary.--In this section, the term ``Under 
Secretary'' means the Under Secretary for Oceans and Atmosphere 
of the Department of Commerce.
    (b) Database of Restoration Project Information.--The Under 
Secretary, in consultation with the Council, shall develop and 
maintain an appropriate database of information concerning 
estuary habitat restoration projects carried out under this 
title, including information on project techniques, project 
completion, monitoring data, and other relevant information.
    (c) Monitoring Data Standards.--The Under Secretary, in 
consultation with the Council, shall develop standard data 
formats for monitoring projects, along with requirements for 
types of data collected and frequency of monitoring.
    (d) Coordination of Data.--The Under Secretary shall 
compile information that pertains to estuary habitat 
restoration projects from other Federal, State, and local 
sources and that meets the quality control requirements and 
data standards established under this section.
    (e) Use of Existing Programs.--The Under Secretary shall 
use existing programs within the National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration to create and maintain the database 
required under this section.
    (f) Public Availability.--The Under Secretary shall make 
the information collected and maintained under this section 
available to the public.

SEC. 108. REPORTING.

    (a) In General.--At the end of the third and fifth fiscal 
years following the date of enactment of this Act, the 
Secretary, after considering the advice and recommendations of 
the Council, shall transmit to Congress a report on the results 
of activities carried out under this title.
    (b) Contents of Report.--A report under subsection (a) 
shall include--
            (1) data on the number of acres of estuary habitat 
        restored under this title, including descriptions of, 
        and partners involved with, projects selected, in 
        progress, and completed under this title that comprise 
        those acres;
            (2) information from the database established under 
        section 107(b) related to ongoing monitoring of 
        projects to ensure that short-term and long-term 
        restoration goals are achieved;
            (3) an estimate of the long-term success of varying 
        restoration techniques used in carrying out estuary 
        habitat restoration projects;
            (4) a review of how the information described in 
        paragraphs (1) through (3) has been incorporated in the 
        selection and implementation of estuary habitat 
        restoration projects;
            (5) a review of efforts made to maintain an 
        appropriate database of restoration projects carried 
        out under this title; and
            (6) a review of the measures taken to provide the 
        information described in paragraphs (1) through (3) to 
        persons with responsibility for assisting in the 
        restoration of estuary habitat.

SEC. 109. FUNDING.

    (a) Authorization of Appropriations.--
            (1) Estuary habitat restoration projects.--There is 
        authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary for 
        carrying out and providing technical assistance for 
        estuary habitat restoration projects--
                    (A) $40,000,000 for fiscal year 2001;
                    (B) $50,000,000 for each of fiscal years 
                2002 and 2003;
                    (C) $60,000,000 for fiscal year 2004; and
                    (D) $75,000,000 for fiscal year 2005.
        Such sums shall remain available until expended.
            (2) Monitoring.--There is authorized to be 
        appropriated to the Under Secretary for Oceans and 
        Atmosphere of the Department of Commerce for the 
        acquisition, maintenance, and management of monitoring 
        data on restoration projects carried out under this 
        title, $1,500,000 for each of fiscal years 2001 through 
        2005. Such sums shall remain available until expended.
    (b) Set-Aside for Administrative Expenses of the Council.--
Not to exceed 3 percent of the amounts appropriated for a 
fiscal year under subsection (a)(1) or $1,500,000, whichever is 
greater, may be used by the Secretary for administration and 
operation of the Council.

SEC. 110. GENERAL PROVISIONS.

    (a) Agency Consultation and Coordination.--In carrying out 
this title, the Secretary shall, as necessary, consult with, 
cooperate with, and coordinate its activities with the 
activities of other Federal departments and agencies.
    (b) Cooperative Agreements; Memoranda of Understanding.--In 
carrying out this title, the Secretary may--
            (1) enter into cooperative agreements with Federal, 
        State, and local government agencies and other 
        entities; and
            (2) execute such memoranda of understanding as are 
        necessary to reflect the agreements.
    (c) Federal Agency Facilities and Personnel.--Federal 
agencies may cooperate in carrying out scientific and other 
programs necessary to carry out this title, and may provide 
facilities and personnel, for the purpose of assisting the 
Council in carrying out its duties under this title.
    (d) Identification and Mapping of Dredged Material Disposal 
Sites.--In consultation with appropriate Federal and non-
Federal public entities, the Secretary shall undertake, and 
update as warranted by changed conditions, surveys to identify 
and map sites appropriate for beneficial uses of dredged 
material for the protection, restoration, and creation of 
aquatic and ecologically related habitats, including wetlands, 
in order to further the purposes of this title.
    (e) Study of Bioremediation Technology.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the 
        date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the 
        Environmental Protection Agency, with the participation 
        of the estuarine scientific community, shall begin a 2-
        year study on the efficacy of bioremediation products.
            (2) Requirements.--The study shall--
                    (A) evaluate and assess bioremediation 
                technology--
                            (i) on low-level petroleum 
                        hydrocarbon contamination from 
                        recreational boat bilges;
                            (ii) on low-level petroleum 
                        hydrocarbon contamination from 
                        stormwater discharges;
                            (iii) on nonpoint petroleum 
                        hydrocarbon discharges; and
                            (iv) as a first response tool for 
                        petroleum hydrocarbon spills; and
                    (B) recommend management actions to 
                optimize the return of a healthy and balanced 
                ecosystem and make improvements in the quality 
                and character of estuarine waters.

                  TITLE II--CHESAPEAKE BAY RESTORATION

SEC. 201. SHORT TITLE.

    This title may be cited as the ``Chesapeake Bay Restoration 
Act of 2000''.

SEC. 202. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds that--
            (1) the Chesapeake Bay is a national treasure and a 
        resource of worldwide significance;
            (2) over many years, the productivity and water 
        quality of the Chesapeake Bay and its watershed were 
        diminished by pollution, excessive sedimentation, 
        shoreline erosion, the impacts of population growth and 
        development in the Chesapeake Bay watershed, and other 
        factors;
            (3) the Federal Government (acting through the 
        Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency), 
        the Governor of the State of Maryland, the Governor of 
        the Commonwealth of Virginia, the Governor of the 
        Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the Chairperson of the 
        Chesapeake Bay Commission, and the mayor of the 
        District of Columbia, as Chesapeake Bay Agreement 
        signatories, have committed to a comprehensive 
        cooperative program to achieve improved water quality 
        and improvements in the productivity of living 
        resources of the Bay;
            (4) the cooperative program described in paragraph 
        (3) serves as a national and international model for 
        the management of estuaries; and
            (5) there is a need to expand Federal support for 
        monitoring, management, and restoration activities in 
        the Chesapeake Bay and the tributaries of the Bay in 
        order to meet and further the original and subsequent 
        goals and commitments of the Chesapeake Bay Program.
    (b) Purposes.--The purposes of this title are--
            (1) to expand and strengthen cooperative efforts to 
        restore and protect the Chesapeake Bay; and
            (2) to achieve the goals established in the 
        Chesapeake Bay Agreement.

SEC. 203. CHESAPEAKE BAY.

    Section 117 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 
U.S.C. 1267) is amended to read as follows:

``SEC. 117. CHESAPEAKE BAY.

    ``(a) Definitions.--In this section, the following 
definitions apply:
            ``(1) Administrative cost.--The term 
        `administrative cost' means the cost of salaries and 
        fringe benefits incurred in administering a grant under 
        this section.
            ``(2) Chesapeake bay agreement.--The term 
        `Chesapeake Bay Agreement' means the formal, voluntary 
        agreements executed to achieve the goal of restoring 
        and protecting the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem and the 
        living resources of the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem and 
        signed by the Chesapeake Executive Council.
            ``(3) Chesapeake bay ecosystem.--The term 
        `Chesapeake Bay ecosystem' means the ecosystem of the 
        Chesapeake Bay and its watershed.
            ``(4) Chesapeake bay program.--The term `Chesapeake 
        Bay Program' means the program directed by the 
        Chesapeake Executive Council in accordance with the 
        Chesapeake Bay Agreement.
            ``(5) Chesapeake executive council.--The term 
        `Chesapeake Executive Council' means the signatories to 
        the Chesapeake Bay Agreement.
            ``(6) Signatory jurisdiction.--The term `signatory 
        jurisdiction' means a jurisdiction of a signatory to 
        the Chesapeake Bay Agreement.
    ``(b) Continuation of Chesapeake Bay Program.--
            ``(1) In general.--In cooperation with the 
        Chesapeake Executive Council (and as a member of the 
        Council), the Administrator shall continue the 
        Chesapeake Bay Program.
            ``(2) Program office.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The Administrator shall 
                maintain in the Environmental Protection Agency 
                a Chesapeake Bay Program Office.
                    ``(B) Function.--The Chesapeake Bay Program 
                Office shall provide support to the Chesapeake 
                Executive Council by--
                            ``(i) implementing and coordinating 
                        science, research, modeling, support 
                        services, monitoring, data collection, 
                        and other activities that support the 
                        Chesapeake Bay Program;
                            ``(ii) developing and making 
                        available, through publications, 
                        technical assistance, and other 
                        appropriate means, information 
                        pertaining to the environmental quality 
                        and living resources of the Chesapeake 
                        Bay ecosystem;
                            ``(iii) in cooperation with 
                        appropriate Federal, State, and local 
                        authorities, assisting the signatories 
                        to the Chesapeake Bay Agreement in 
                        developing and implementing specific 
                        action plans to carry out the 
                        responsibilities of the signatories to 
                        the Chesapeake Bay Agreement;
                            ``(iv) coordinating the actions of 
                        the Environmental Protection Agency 
                        with the actions of the appropriate 
                        officials of other Federal agencies and 
                        State and local authorities in 
                        developing strategies to--
                                    ``(I) improve the water 
                                quality and living resources in 
                                the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem; 
                                and
                                    ``(II) obtain the support 
                                of the appropriate officials of 
                                the agencies and authorities in 
                                achieving the objectives of the 
                                Chesapeake Bay Agreement; and
                            ``(v) implementing outreach 
                        programs for public information, 
                        education, and participation to foster 
                        stewardship of the resources of the 
                        Chesapeake Bay.
    ``(c) Interagency Agreements.--The Administrator may enter 
into an interagency agreement with a Federal agency to carry 
out this section.
    ``(d) Technical Assistance and Assistance Grants.--
            ``(1) In general.--In cooperation with the 
        Chesapeake Executive Council, the Administrator may 
        provide technical assistance, and assistance grants, to 
        nonprofit organizations, State and local governments, 
        colleges, universities, and interstate agencies to 
        carry out this section, subject to such terms and 
        conditions as the Administrator considers appropriate.
            ``(2) Federal share.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Except as provided in 
                subparagraph (B), the Federal share of an 
                assistance grant provided under paragraph (1) 
                shall be determined by the Administrator in 
                accordance with guidance issued by the 
                Administrator.
                    ``(B) Small watershed grants program.--The 
                Federal share of an assistance grant provided 
                under paragraph (1) to carry out an 
                implementing activity under subsection (g)(2) 
                shall not exceed 75 percent of eligible project 
                costs, as determined by the Administrator.
            ``(3) Non-federal share.--An assistance grant under 
        paragraph (1) shall be provided on the condition that 
        non-Federal sources provide the remainder of eligible 
        project costs, as determined by the Administrator.
            ``(4) Administrative costs.--Administrative costs 
        shall not exceed 10 percent of the annual grant award.
    ``(e) Implementation and Monitoring Grants.--
            ``(1) In general.--If a signatory jurisdiction has 
        approved and committed to implement all or 
        substantially all aspects of the Chesapeake Bay 
        Agreement, on the request of the chief executive of the 
        jurisdiction, the Administrator--
                    ``(A) shall make a grant to the 
                jurisdiction for the purpose of implementing 
                the management mechanisms established under the 
                Chesapeake Bay Agreement, subject to such terms 
                and conditions as the Administrator considers 
                appropriate; and
                    ``(B) may make a grant to a signatory 
                jurisdiction for the purpose of monitoring the 
                Chesapeake Bay ecosystem.
            ``(2) Proposals.--
                    ``(A) In general.--A signatory jurisdiction 
                described in paragraph (1) may apply for a 
                grant under this subsection for a fiscal year 
                by submitting to the Administrator a 
                comprehensive proposal to implement management 
                mechanisms established under the Chesapeake Bay 
                Agreement.
                    ``(B) Contents.--A proposal under 
                subparagraph (A) shall include--
                            ``(i) a description of proposed 
                        management mechanisms that the 
                        jurisdiction commits to take within a 
                        specified time period, such as reducing 
                        or preventing pollution in the 
                        Chesapeake Bay and its watershed or 
                        meeting applicable water quality 
                        standards or established goals and 
                        objectives under the Chesapeake Bay 
                        Agreement; and
                            ``(ii) the estimated cost of the 
                        actions proposed to be taken during the 
                        fiscal year.
            ``(3) Approval.--If the Administrator finds that 
        the proposal is consistent with the Chesapeake Bay 
        Agreement and the national goals established under 
        section 101(a), the Administrator may approve the 
        proposal for an award.
            ``(4) Federal share.--The Federal share of a grant 
        under this subsection shall not exceed 50 percent of 
        the cost of implementing the management mechanisms 
        during the fiscal year.
            ``(5) Non-federal share.--A grant under this 
        subsection shall be made on the condition that non-
        Federal sources provide the remainder of the costs of 
        implementing the management mechanisms during the 
        fiscal year.
            ``(6) Administrative costs.--Administrative costs 
        shall not exceed 10 percent of the annual grant award.
            ``(7) Reporting.--On or before October 1 of each 
        fiscal year, the Administrator shall make available to 
        the public a document that lists and describes, in the 
        greatest practicable degree of detail--
                    ``(A) all projects and activities funded 
                for the fiscal year;
                    ``(B) the goals and objectives of projects 
                funded for the previous fiscal year; and
                    ``(C) the net benefits of projects funded 
                for previous fiscal years.
    ``(f) Federal Facilities and Budget Coordination.--
            ``(1) Subwatershed planning and restoration.--A 
        Federal agency that owns or operates a facility (as 
        defined by the Administrator) within the Chesapeake Bay 
        watershed shall participate in regional and 
        subwatershed planning and restoration programs.
            ``(2) Compliance with agreement.--The head of each 
        Federal agency that owns or occupies real property in 
        the Chesapeake Bay watershed shall ensure that the 
        property, and actions taken by the agency with respect 
        to the property, comply with the Chesapeake Bay 
        Agreement, the Federal Agencies Chesapeake Ecosystem 
        Unified Plan, and any subsequent agreements and plans.
            ``(3) Budget coordination.--
                    ``(A) In general.--As part of the annual 
                budget submission of each Federal agency with 
                projects or grants related to restoration, 
                planning, monitoring, or scientific 
                investigation of the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem, 
                the head of the agency shall submit to the 
                President a report that describes plans for the 
                expenditure of the funds under this section.
                    ``(B) Disclosure to the council.--The head 
                of each agency referred to in subparagraph (A) 
                shall disclose the report under that 
                subparagraph with the Chesapeake Executive 
                Council as appropriate.
    ``(g) Chesapeake Bay Program.--
            ``(1) Management strategies.--The Administrator, in 
        coordination with other members of the Chesapeake 
        Executive Council, shall ensure that management plans 
        are developed and implementation is begun by 
        signatories to the Chesapeake Bay Agreement to achieve 
        and maintain--
                    ``(A) the nutrient goals of the Chesapeake 
                Bay Agreement for the quantity of nitrogen and 
                phosphorus entering the Chesapeake Bay and its 
                watershed;
                    ``(B) the water quality requirements 
                necessary to restore living resources in the 
                Chesapeake Bay ecosystem;
                    ``(C) the Chesapeake Bay Basinwide Toxins 
                Reduction and Prevention Strategy goal of 
                reducing or eliminating the input of chemical 
                contaminants from all controllable sources to 
                levels that result in no toxic or 
                bioaccumulative impact on the living resources 
                of the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem or on human 
                health;
                    ``(D) habitat restoration, protection, 
                creation, and enhancement goals established by 
                Chesapeake Bay Agreement signatories for 
                wetlands, riparian forests, and other types of 
                habitat associated with the Chesapeake Bay 
                ecosystem; and
                    ``(E) the restoration, protection, 
                creation, and enhancement goals established by 
                the Chesapeake Bay Agreement signatories for 
                living resources associated with the Chesapeake 
                Bay ecosystem.
            ``(2) Small watershed grants program.--The 
        Administrator, in cooperation with the Chesapeake 
        Executive Council, shall--
                    ``(A) establish a small watershed grants 
                program as part of the Chesapeake Bay Program; 
                and
                    ``(B) offer technical assistance and 
                assistance grants under subsection (d) to local 
                governments and nonprofit organizations and 
                individuals in the Chesapeake Bay region to 
                implement--
                            ``(i) cooperative tributary basin 
                        strategies that address the water 
                        quality and living resource needs in 
                        the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem; and
                            ``(ii) locally based protection and 
                        restoration programs or projects within 
                        a watershed that complement the 
                        tributary basin strategies, including 
                        the creation, restoration, protection, 
                        or enhancement of habitat associated 
                        with the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem.
    ``(h) Study of Chesapeake Bay Program.--
            ``(1) In general.--Not later than April 22, 2003, 
        and every 5 years thereafter, the Administrator, in 
        coordination with the Chesapeake Executive Council, 
        shall complete a study and submit to Congress a 
        comprehensive report on the results of the study.
            ``(2) Requirements.--The study and report shall--
                    ``(A) assess the state of the Chesapeake 
                Bay ecosystem;
                    ``(B) compare the current state of the 
                Chesapeake Bay ecosystem with its state in 
                1975, 1985, and 1995;
                    ``(C) assess the effectiveness of 
                management strategies being implemented on the 
                date of enactment of this section and the 
                extent to which the priority needs are being 
                met;
                    ``(D) make recommendations for the improved 
                management of the Chesapeake Bay Program either 
                by strengthening strategies being implemented 
                on the date of enactment of this section or by 
                adopting new strategies; and
                    ``(E) be presented in such a format as to 
                be readily transferable to and usable by other 
                watershed restoration programs.
    ``(i) Special Study of Living Resource Response.--
            ``(1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after 
        the date of enactment of this section, the 
        Administrator shall commence a 5-year special study 
        with full participation of the scientific community of 
        the Chesapeake Bay to establish and expand 
        understanding of the response of the living resources 
        of the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem to improvements in 
        water quality that have resulted from investments made 
        through the Chesapeake Bay Program.
            ``(2) Requirements.--The study shall--
                    ``(A) determine the current status and 
                trends of living resources, including grasses, 
                benthos, phytoplankton, zooplankton, fish, and 
                shellfish;
                    ``(B) establish to the extent practicable 
                the rates of recovery of the living resources 
                in response to improved water quality 
                condition;
                    ``(C) evaluate and assess interactions of 
                species, with particular attention to the 
                impact of changes within and among trophic 
                levels; and
                    ``(D) recommend management actions to 
                optimize the return of a healthy and balanced 
                ecosystem in response to improvements in the 
                quality and character of the waters of the 
                Chesapeake Bay.
    ``(j) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized 
to be appropriated to carry out this section $40,000,000 for 
each of fiscal years 2001 through 2005. Such sums shall remain 
available until expended.''.

                  TITLE III--NATIONAL ESTUARY PROGRAM

SEC. 301. ADDITION TO NATIONAL ESTUARY PROGRAM.

    Section 320(a)(2)(B) of the Federal Water Pollution Control 
Act (33 U.S.C. 1330(a)(2)(B)) is amended by inserting ``Lake 
Pontchartrain Basin, Louisiana and Mississippi;'' before ``and 
Peconic Bay, New York.''.

SEC. 302. GRANTS.

    Section 320(g) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act 
(33 U.S.C. 1330(g)) is amended by striking paragraphs (2) and 
(3) and inserting the following:
            ``(2) Purposes.--Grants under this subsection shall 
        be made to pay for activities necessary for the 
        development and implementation of a comprehensive 
        conservation and management plan under this section.
            ``(3) Federal share.--The Federal share of a grant 
        to any person (including a State, interstate, or 
        regional agency or entity) under this subsection for a 
        fiscal year--
                    ``(A) shall not exceed--
                            ``(i) 75 percent of the annual 
                        aggregate costs of the development of a 
                        comprehensive conservation and 
                        management plan; and
                            ``(ii) 50 percent of the annual 
                        aggregate costs of the implementation 
                        of the plan; and
                    ``(B) shall be made on condition that the 
                non-Federal share of the costs are provided 
                from non-Federal sources.''.

SEC. 303. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    Section 320(i) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act 
(33 U.S.C. 1330(i)) is amended by striking ``$12,000,000 per 
fiscal year for each of fiscal years 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 
and 1991'' and inserting ``$35,000,000 for each of fiscal years 
2001 through 2005''.

                TITLE IV--LONG ISLAND SOUND RESTORATION

SEC. 401. SHORT TITLE.

    This title may be cited as the ``Long Island Sound 
Restoration Act''.

SEC. 402. INNOVATIVE METHODOLOGIES AND TECHNOLOGIES.

    Section 119(c)(1) of the Federal Water Pollution Control 
Act (33 U.S.C. 1269(c)(1)) is amended by inserting ``, 
including efforts to establish, within the process for granting 
watershed general permits, a system for promoting innovative 
methodologies and technologies that are cost-effective and 
consistent with the goals of the Plan'' before the semicolon at 
the end.

SEC. 403. ASSISTANCE FOR DISTRESSED COMMUNITIES.

    Section 119 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 
U.S.C. 1269) is amended--
            (1) by redesignating subsection (e) as subsection 
        (f); and
            (2) by inserting after subsection (d) the 
        following:
    ``(e) Assistance to Distressed Communities.--
            ``(1) Eligible communities.--For the purposes of 
        this subsection, a distressed community is any 
        community that meets affordability criteria established 
        by the State in which the community is located, if such 
        criteria are developed after public review and comment.
            ``(2) Priority.--In making assistance available 
        under this section for the upgrading of wastewater 
        treatment facilities, the Administrator may give 
        priority to a distressed community.''.

SEC. 404. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    Section 119(f) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act 
(as redesignated by section 403 of this Act) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (1) by striking ``1991 through 
        2001'' and inserting ``2001 through 2005''; and
            (2) in paragraph (2) by striking ``not to exceed 
        $3,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 1991 through 
        2001'' and inserting ``not to exceed $40,000,000 for 
        each of fiscal years 2001 through 2005''.

             TITLE V--LAKE PONTCHARTRAIN BASIN RESTORATION

SEC. 501. SHORT TITLE.

    This title may be cited as the ``Lake Pontchartrain Basin 
Restoration Act of 2000''.

SEC. 502. LAKE PONTCHARTRAIN BASIN.

    Title I of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 
U.S.C. 1251 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the 
following:

``SEC. 121. LAKE PONTCHARTRAIN BASIN.

    ``(a) Establishment of Restoration Program.--The 
Administrator shall establish within the Environmental 
Protection Agency the Lake Pontchartrain Basin Restoration 
Program.
    ``(b) Purpose.--The purpose of the program shall be to 
restore the ecological health of the Basin by developing and 
funding restoration projects and related scientific and public 
education projects.
    ``(c) Duties.--In carrying out the program, the 
Administrator shall--
            ``(1) provide administrative and technical 
        assistance to a management conference convened for the 
        Basin under section 320;
            ``(2) assist and support the activities of the 
        management conference, including the implementation of 
        recommendations of the management conference;
            ``(3) support environmental monitoring of the Basin 
        and research to provide necessary technical and 
        scientific information;
            ``(4) develop a comprehensive research plan to 
        address the technical needs of the program;
            ``(5) coordinate the grant, research, and planning 
        programs authorized under this section; and
            ``(6) collect and make available to the public 
        publications, and other forms of information the 
        management conference determines to be appropriate, 
        relating to the environmental quality of the Basin.
    ``(d) Grants.--The Administrator may make grants--
            ``(1) for restoration projects and studies 
        recommended by a management conference convened for the 
        Basin under section 320; and
            ``(2) for public education projects recommended by 
        the management conference.
    ``(e) Definitions.--In this section, the following 
definitions apply:
            ``(1) Basin.--The term `Basin' means the Lake 
        Pontchartrain Basin, a 5,000 square mile watershed 
        encompassing 16 parishes in the State of Louisiana and 
        4 counties in the State of Mississippi.
            ``(2) Program.--The term `program' means the Lake 
        Pontchartrain Basin Restoration Program established 
        under subsection (a).
    ``(f) Authorization of Appropriations.--
            ``(1) In general.--There is authorized to be 
        appropriated to carry out this section $20,000,000 for 
        each of fiscal years 2001 through 2005. Such sums shall 
        remain available until expended.
            ``(2) Public education projects.--Not more that 15 
        percent of the amount appropriated pursuant to 
        paragraph (1) in a fiscal year may be expended on 
        grants for public education projects under subsection 
        (d)(2).''.

                  TITLE VI--ALTERNATIVE WATER SOURCES

SEC. 601. SHORT TITLE.

    This title may be cited as the ``Alternative Water Sources 
Act of 2000''.

SEC. 602. PILOT PROGRAM FOR ALTERNATIVE WATER SOURCE PROJECTS.

    Title II the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 
1281 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:

``SEC. 220. PILOT PROGRAM FOR ALTERNATIVE WATER SOURCE PROJECTS.

    ``(a) Policy.--Nothing in this section shall be construed 
to affect the application of section 101(g) of this Act and all 
of the provisions of this section shall be carried out in 
accordance with the provisions of section 101(g).
    ``(b) In General.--The Administrator may establish a pilot 
program to make grants to State, interstate, and intrastate 
water resource development agencies (including water management 
districts and water supply authorities), local government 
agencies, private utilities, and nonprofit entities for 
alternative water source projects to meet critical water supply 
needs.
    ``(c) Eligible Entity.--The Administrator may make grants 
under this section to an entity only if the entity has 
authority under State law to develop or provide water for 
municipal, industrial, and agricultural uses in an area of the 
State that is experiencing critical water supply needs.
    ``(d) Selection of Projects.--
            ``(1) Limitation.--A project that has received 
        funds under the reclamation and reuse program conducted 
        under the Reclamation Projects Authorization and 
        Adjustment Act of 1992 (43 U.S.C. 390h et seq.) shall 
        not be eligible for grant assistance under this 
        section.
            ``(2) Additional consideration.--In making grants 
        under this section, the Administrator shall consider 
        whether the project is located within the boundaries of 
        a State or area referred to in section 1 of the 
        Reclamation Act of June 17, 1902 (32 Stat. 385), and 
        within the geographic scope of the reclamation and 
        reuse program conducted under the Reclamation Projects 
        Authorization and Adjustment Act of 1992 (43 U.S.C. 
        390h et seq.).
            ``(3) Geographical distribution.--Alternative water 
        source projects selected by the Administrator under 
        this section shall reflect a variety of geographical 
        and environmental conditions.
    ``(e) Committee Resolution Procedure.--
            ``(1) In general.--No appropriation shall be made 
        for any alternative water source project under this 
        section, the total Federal cost of which exceeds 
        $3,000,000, if such project has not been approved by a 
        resolution adopted by the Committee on Transportation 
        and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives or 
        the Committee on Environment and Public Works of the 
        Senate.
            ``(2) Requirements for securing consideration.--For 
        purposes of securing consideration of approval under 
        paragraph (1), the Administrator shall provide to a 
        committee referred to in paragraph (1) such information 
        as the committee requests and the non-Federal sponsor 
        shall provide to the committee information on the costs 
        and relative needs for the alternative water source 
        project.
    ``(f) Uses of Grants.--Amounts from grants received under 
this section may be used for engineering, design, construction, 
and final testing of alternative water source projects designed 
to meet critical water supply needs. Such amounts may not be 
used for planning, feasibility studies or for operation, 
maintenance, replacement, repair, or rehabilitation.
    ``(g) Cost Sharing.--The Federal share of the eligible 
costs of an alternative water source project carried out using 
assistance made available under this section shall not exceed 
50 percent.
    ``(h) Reports.--On or before September 30, 2004, the 
Administrator shall transmit to Congress a report on the 
results of the pilot program established under this section, 
including progress made toward meeting the critical water 
supply needs of the participants in the pilot program.
    ``(i) Definitions.--In this section, the following 
definitions apply:
            ``(1) Alternative water source project.--The term 
        `alternative water source project' means a project 
        designed to provide municipal, industrial, and 
        agricultural water supplies in an environmentally 
        sustainable manner by conserving, managing, reclaiming, 
        or reusing water or wastewater or by treating 
        wastewater. Such term does not include water treatment 
        or distribution facilities.
            ``(2) Critical water supply needs.--The term 
        `critical water supply needs' means existing or 
        reasonably anticipated future water supply needs that 
        cannot be met by existing water supplies, as identified 
        in a comprehensive statewide or regional water supply 
        plan or assessment projected over a planning period of 
        at least 20 years.
    ``(j) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized 
to be appropriated to carry out this section a total of 
$75,000,000 for fiscal years 2002 through 2004. Such sums shall 
remain available until expended.''.

                         TITLE VII--CLEAN LAKES

SEC. 701. GRANTS TO STATES.

    Section 314(c)(2) of the Federal Water Pollution Control 
Act (33 U.S.C. 1324(c)(2)) is amended by striking 
``$50,000,000'' the first place it appears and all that follows 
through ``1990'' and inserting ``$50,000,000 for each of fiscal 
years 2001 through 2005''.

SEC. 702. DEMONSTRATION PROGRAM.

    Section 314(d) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act 
(33 U.S.C. 1324(d)) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (2) by inserting ``Otsego Lake, 
        New York; Oneida Lake, New York; Raystown Lake, 
        Pennsylvania; Swan Lake, Itasca County, Minnesota; 
        Walker Lake, Nevada; Lake Tahoe, California and Nevada; 
        Ten Mile Lakes, Oregon; Woahink Lake, Oregon; Highland 
        Lake, Connecticut; Lily Lake, New Jersey; Strawbridge 
        Lake, New Jersey; Baboosic Lake, New Hampshire; French 
        Pond, New Hampshire; Dillon Reservoir, Ohio; 
        Tohopekaliga Lake, Florida; Lake Apopka, Florida; Lake 
        George, New York; Lake Wallenpaupack, Pennsylvania; 
        Lake Allatoona, Georgia;'' after ``Sauk Lake, 
        Minnesota;'';
            (2) in paragraph (3) by striking ``By'' and 
        inserting ``Notwithstanding section 3003 of the Federal 
        Reports Elimination and Sunset Act of 1995 (31 U.S.C. 
        1113 note; 109 Stat. 734-736), by''; and
            (3) in paragraph (4)(B)(i) by striking 
        ``$15,000,000'' and inserting ``$25,000,000''.

       TITLE VIII--TIJUANA RIVER VALLEY ESTUARY AND BEACH CLEANUP

SEC. 801. SHORT TITLE.

    This title may be cited as the ``Tijuana River Valley 
Estuary and Beach Sewage Cleanup Act of 2000''.

SEC. 802. PURPOSE.

    The purpose of this title is to authorize the United States 
to take actions to address comprehensively the treatment of 
sewage emanating from the Tijuana River area, Mexico, that 
flows untreated or partially treated into the United States 
causing significant adverse public health and environmental 
impacts.

SEC. 803. DEFINITIONS.

    In this title, the following definitions apply:
            (1) Administrator.--The term ``Administrator'' 
        means the Administrator of the Environmental Protection 
        Agency.
            (2) Commission.--The term ``Commission'' means the 
        United States section of the International Boundary and 
        Water Commission, United States and Mexico.
            (3) IWTP.--The term ``IWTP'' means the South Bay 
        International Wastewater Treatment Plant constructed 
        under the provisions of the Federal Water Pollution 
        Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.), section 510 of 
        the Water Quality Act of 1987 (101 Stat. 80-82), and 
        Treaty Minutes to the Treaty for the Utilization of 
        Waters of the Colorado and Tijuana Rivers and of the 
        Rio Grande, dated February 3, 1944.
            (4) Secondary treatment.--The term ``secondary 
        treatment'' has the meaning such term has under the 
        Federal Water Pollution Control Act and its 
        implementing regulations.
            (5) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the 
        Secretary of State.
            (6) Mexican facility.--The term ``Mexican 
        facility'' means a proposed public-private wastewater 
        treatment facility to be constructed and operated under 
        this title within Mexico for the purpose of treating 
        sewage flows generated within Mexico, which flows 
        impact the surface waters, health, and safety of the 
        United States and Mexico.
            (7) MGD.--The term ``mgd'' means million gallons 
        per day.

 SEC. 804. ACTIONS TO BE TAKEN BY THE COMMISSION AND THE ADMINISTRATOR.

    (a) Secondary Treatment.--
            (1) In general.--Subject to the negotiation and 
        conclusion of a new Treaty Minute or the amendment of 
        Treaty Minute 283 under section 1005 of this Act, and 
        notwithstanding section 510(b)(2) of the Water Quality 
        Act of 1987 (101 Stat. 81), the Commission is 
        authorized and directed to provide for the secondary 
        treatment of a total of not more than 50 mgd in 
        Mexico--
                    (A) of effluent from the IWTP if such 
                treatment is not provided for at a facility in 
                the United States; and
                    (B) of additional sewage emanating from the 
                Tijuana River area, Mexico.
            (2) Additional authority.--Subject to the results 
        of the comprehensive plan developed under subsection 
        (b) revealing a need for additional secondary treatment 
        capacity in the San Diego-Tijuana border region and 
        recommending the provision of such capacity in Mexico, 
        the Commission may provide not more than an additional 
        25 mgd of secondary treatment capacity in Mexico for 
        treatment described in paragraph (1).
    (b) Comprehensive Plan.--Not later than 24 months after the 
date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall develop 
a comprehensive plan with stakeholder involvement to address 
the transborder sanitation problems in the San Diego-Tijuana 
border region. The plan shall include, at a minimum--
            (1) an analysis of the long-term secondary 
        treatment needs of the region;
            (2) an analysis of upgrades in the sewage 
        collection system serving the Tijuana area, Mexico; and
            (3) an identification of options, and 
        recommendations for preferred options, for additional 
        sewage treatment capacity for future flows emanating 
        from the Tijuana River area, Mexico.
    (c) Contract.--
            (1) In general.--Subject to the availability of 
        appropriations to carry out this subsection and 
        notwithstanding any provision of Federal procurement 
        law, upon conclusion of a new Treaty Minute or the 
        amendment of Treaty Minute 283 under section 5, the 
        Commission may enter into a fee-for-services contract 
        with the owner of a Mexican facility in order to carry 
        out the secondary treatment requirements of subsection 
        (a) and make payments under such contract.
            (2) Terms.--Any contract under this subsection 
        shall provide, at a minimum, for the following:
                    (A) Transportation of the advanced primary 
                effluent from the IWTP to the Mexican facility 
                for secondary treatment.
                    (B) Treatment of the advanced primary 
                effluent from the IWTP to the secondary 
                treatment level in compliance with water 
                quality laws of the United States, California, 
                and Mexico.
                    (C) Return conveyance from the Mexican 
                facility of any such treated effluent that 
                cannot be reused in either Mexico or the United 
                States to the South Bay Ocean Outfall for 
                discharge into the Pacific Ocean in compliance 
                with water quality laws of the United States 
                and California.
                    (D) Subject to the requirements of 
                subsection (a), additional sewage treatment 
                capacity that provides for advanced primary and 
                secondary treatment of sewage described in 
                subsection (a)(1)(B) in addition to the 
                capacity required to treat the advanced primary 
                effluent from the IWTP.
                    (E) A contract term of 20 years.
                    (F) Arrangements for monitoring, 
                verification, and enforcement of compliance 
                with United States, California, and Mexican 
                water quality standards.
                    (G) Arrangements for the disposal and use 
                of sludge, produced from the IWTP and the 
                Mexican facility, at a location or locations in 
                Mexico.
                    (H) Maintenance by the owner of the Mexican 
                facility at all times throughout the term of 
                the contract of a 20 percent equity position in 
                the capital structure of the Mexican facility.
                    (I) Payment of fees by the Commission to 
                the owner of the Mexican facility for sewage 
                treatment services with the annual amount 
                payable to reflect all agreed upon costs 
                associated with the development, financing, 
                construction, operation, and maintenance of the 
                Mexican facility, with such annual payment to 
                maintain the owner's 20 percent equity position 
                throughout the term of the contract.
                    (J) Provision for the transfer of ownership 
                of the Mexican facility to the United States, 
                and provision for a cancellation fee by the 
                United States to the owner of the Mexican 
                facility, if the Commission fails to perform 
                its obligations under the contract. The 
                cancellation fee shall be in amounts declining 
                over the term of the contract anticipated to be 
                sufficient to repay construction debt and other 
                amounts due to the owner that remain 
                unamortized due to early termination of the 
                contract.
                    (K) Provision for the transfer of ownership 
                of the Mexican facility to the United States, 
                without a cancellation fee, if the owner of the 
                Mexican facility fails to perform the 
                obligations of the owner under the contract.
                    (L) The use of competitive procedures, 
                consistent with title III of the Federal 
                Property and Administrative Services Act of 
                1949 (41 U.S.C. 251 et seq.), by the owner of 
                the Mexican facility in the procurement of 
                property or services for the engineering, 
                construction, and operation and maintenance of 
                the Mexican facility.
                    (M) An opportunity for the Commission to 
                review and approve the selection of contractors 
                providing engineering, construction, and 
                operation and maintenance for the Mexican 
                facility.
                    (N) The maintenance by the owner of the 
                Mexican facility of all records (including 
                books, documents, papers, reports, and other 
                materials) necessary to demonstrate compliance 
                with the terms of this section and the 
                contract.
                    (O) Access by the Inspector General of the 
                Department of State or the designee of the 
                Inspector General for audit and examination of 
                all records maintained pursuant to subparagraph 
                (N) to facilitate the monitoring and evaluation 
                required under subsection (d).
                    (P) Offsets or credits against the payments 
                to be made by the Commission under this section 
                to reflect an agreed upon percentage of 
                payments that the owner of the Mexican facility 
                receives through the sale of water treated by 
                the facility.
    (d) Implementation.--
            (1) In general.--The Inspector General of the 
        Department of State shall monitor the implementation of 
        any contract entered into under this section and 
        evaluate the extent to which the owner of the Mexican 
        facility has met the terms of this section and 
        fulfilled the terms of the contract.
            (2) Report.--The Inspector General shall transmit 
        to Congress a report containing the evaluation under 
        paragraph (1) not later than 2 years after the 
        execution of any contract with the owner of the Mexican 
        facility under this section, 3 years thereafter, and 
        periodically after the second report under this 
        paragraph.

SEC. 805. NEGOTIATION OF NEW TREATY MINUTE.

    (a) Congressional Statement.--In light of the existing 
threat to the environment and to public health and safety 
within the United States as a result of the river and ocean 
pollution in the San Diego-Tijuana border region, the Secretary 
is requested to give the highest priority to the negotiation 
and execution of a new Treaty Minute, or a modification of 
Treaty Minute 283, consistent with the provisions of this 
title, in order that the other provisions of this title to 
address such pollution may be implemented as soon as possible.
    (b) Negotiation.--
            (1) Initiation.--The Secretary is requested to 
        initiate negotiations with Mexico, within 60 days after 
        the date of enactment of this Act, for a new Treaty 
        Minute or a modification of Treaty Minute 283 
        consistent with the provisions of this title.
            (2) Implementation.--Implementation of a new Treaty 
        Minute or of a modification of Treaty Minute 283 under 
        this title shall be subject to the provisions of the 
        National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 
        4321 et seq.).
            (3) Matters to be addressed.--A new Treaty Minute 
        or a modification of Treaty Minute 283 under paragraph 
        (1) should address, at a minimum, the following:
                    (A) The siting of treatment facilities in 
                Mexico and in the United States.
                    (B) Provision for the secondary treatment 
                of effluent from the IWTP at a Mexican facility 
                if such treatment is not provided for at a 
                facility in the United States.
                    (C) Provision for additional capacity for 
                advanced primary and secondary treatment of 
                additional sewage emanating from the Tijuana 
                River area, Mexico, in addition to the 
                treatment capacity for the advanced primary 
                effluent from the IWTP at the Mexican facility.
                    (D) Provision for any and all approvals 
                from Mexican authorities necessary to 
                facilitate water quality verification and 
                enforcement at the Mexican facility.
                    (E) Any terms and conditions considered 
                necessary to allow for use in the United States 
                of treated effluent from the Mexican facility, 
                if there is reclaimed water which is surplus to 
                the needs of users in Mexico and such use is 
                consistent with applicable United States and 
                California law.
                    (F) Any other terms and conditions 
                considered necessary by the Secretary in order 
                to implement the provisions of this title.

SEC. 806. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There is authorized to be appropriated a total of 
$156,000,000 for fiscal years 2001 through 2005 to carry out 
this title. Such sums shall remain available until expended.

                      TITLE IX--GENERAL PROVISIONS

SEC. 901. PURCHASE OF AMERICAN-MADE EQUIPMENT AND PRODUCTS.

    (a) In General.--It is the sense of Congress that, to the 
extent practicable, all equipment and products purchased with 
funds made available under this Act should be American made.
    (b) Notice to Recipients of Assistance.--The head of each 
Federal Agency providing financial assistance under this Act, 
to the extent practicable, shall provide to each recipient of 
the assistance a notice describing the statement made in 
subsection (a).

SEC. 902. LONG-TERM ESTUARY ASSESSMENT.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of Commerce (acting through 
the Under Secretary for Oceans and Atmosphere) and the 
Secretary of the Interior (acting through the Director of the 
Geological Survey) may carry out a long-term estuary assessment 
project (in this section referred to as the ``project'') in 
accordance with the requirements of this section.
    (b) Purpose.--The purpose of the project shall be to 
establish a network of strategic environmental assessment and 
monitoring projects for the Mississippi River south of 
Vicksburg, Mississippi, and the Gulf of Mexico, in order to 
develop advanced long-term assessment and monitoring systems 
and models relating to the Mississippi River and other aquatic 
ecosystems, including developing equipment and techniques 
necessary to implement the project.
    (c) Management Agreement.--To establish, operate, and 
implement the project, the Secretary of Commerce and the 
Secretary of the Interior may enter into a management agreement 
with a university-based consortium.
    (d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized 
to be appropriated--
            (1) $1,000,000 for fiscal year 2001 to develop the 
        management agreement under subsection (c); and
            (2) $4,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2002, 2003, 
        2004, and 2005 to carry out the project.
Such sums shall remain available until expended.

SEC. 903. RURAL SANITATION GRANTS.

    Section 303(e) of the Safe Drinking Water Act Amendments of 
1996 (33 U.S.C. 1263a(e)) is amended by striking 
``$15,000,000'' and all that follows through ``section.'' and 
inserting the following: ``to carry out this section 
$40,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2001 through 2005.''.
    And the House agree to the same.
                                   Bud Shuster,
                                   Don Young,
                                   Sherwood Boehlert,
                                   Wayne T. Gilchrest,
                                   Tillie K. Fowler,
                                   Don Sherwood,
                                   John E. Sweeney,
                                   Steven T. Kuykendall,
                                   David Vitter,
                                   Jim Oberstar,
                                   Bob Borski,
                                   Jim Barcia,
                                   Bob Filner,
                                   Earl Blumenauer,
                                   John Baldacci,
                                 Managers on the Part of the House.
                                   Bob Smith,
                                   John W. Warner,
                                   Michael D. Crapo,
                                   Max Baucus,
                                   Barbara Boxer,
                                Managers on the Part of the Senate.

       JOINT EXPLANATORY STATEMENT OF THE COMMITTEE OF CONFERENCE

      The Managers on the part of the House and Senate at the 
Conference on the disagreeing votes of the two Houses on the 
amendment of the House to the bill (S. 835), to improve and 
increase Federal, State and local efforts and to provide 
funding to protect and enhance estuaries across the U.S., and 
to address other clean water-related matters, submit the 
following joint statement to the House and Senate in 
explanation of the effect of the action agreed upon by the 
Managers and recommended in the accompanying Conference report.
      The House amendment struck all of the Senate bill after 
the enacting clause and inserted a substitute text.
      The Senate recedes from its disagreement to the amendment 
of the House with an amendment that is a substitute for the 
Senate bill and the House amendment. The differences between 
the Senate bill, the House amendment, and the substitute agreed 
to in Conference are noted below, except for clerical 
corrections and conforming changes made necessary by agreements 
reached by the conferees, and minor drafting and clerical 
changes.

              section 1. short title and table of contents

      The Conference substitute renames S. 835 as the 
``Estuaries and Clean Waters Act of 2000.''

                  Title I--Estuary Habitat Restoration

      Title I of the Conference substitute establishes a new 
estuary habitat restoration program under the Secretary of the 
Army. Title I is similar to title I in both the Senate bill and 
House amendment. The Conferees adopted title I of the House 
amendment with amendments. Differences between the Senate bill, 
House amendment and Conference substitute are as follows:

                         section 102. purposes

Senate bill
      Section 103 of the Senate bill states that the purposes 
of title I are to: restore one million acres of estuary habitat 
by the year 2010; ensure coordination of existing Federal, 
State, and local plans, programs, and studies; establish 
partnerships among public agencies at all levels of government 
and between the public and private sectors; promote efficient 
financing of estuary habitat restoration activities; and, 
develop and enhance monitoring and research capabilities 
through use of the environmental technology innovation program 
associated with the National Estuarine Research Reserve System 
(NERRs), to ensure that restoration efforts are based on sound 
scientific understanding and innovative technologies.
House amendment
      Section 102 of the House amendment states that the 
purposes of title I are to: promote the restoration of estuary 
habitat; develop a national estuary habitat restoration 
strategy for creating and maintaining effective estuary habitat 
restoration partnerships among public agencies at all levels of 
government and to establish new partnerships between the public 
and private sectors; to provide Federal assistance for estuary 
habitat restoration projects and to promote efficient financing 
of such projects; and, develop and enhance monitoring and 
research capabilities to ensure that estuary habitat 
restoration efforts are based on sound scientific understanding 
and to create a national database of estuary habitat 
restoration information.
Conference substitute
      The purposes of the Senate bill and House amendment are 
substantially similar. The Conference substitute adopts the 
House amendment with an amendment. Section 102(4) is amended to 
clarify that monitoring and research capabilities for estuary 
habitat restoration efforts should be developed and enhanced 
through the use of the environmental technology innovation 
program associated with NERRs.

                        section 103. definitions

Senate bill
      Section 104 of the Senate bill defines key terms used 
throughout the bill, including ``Collaborative Council,'' 
``Degraded Estuary Habitat,'' ``Estuary,'' ``Estuary Habitat,'' 
``Estuary Habitat Restoration Activity,'' ``Estuary Habitat 
Restoration Project,'' ``Estuary Habitat Restoration 
Strategy,'' ``Federal Estuary Management or Habitat Restoration 
Plan,'' ``Secretary,'' and ``Under Secretary.''
      ``Estuary'' is defined as a body of water and its 
associated physical, biological, and chemical elements, in 
which fresh water from a river or stream meets and mixes with 
salt water from the ocean. An exception to this definition is 
made for estuary-like areas in the Great Lakes biogeographic 
regions that are part of NERRs at the time of enactment of this 
legislation.
      ``Estuary Habitat'' is defined as the complex of physical 
and hydrologic features and living organisms within estuaries 
and their associated ecosystems, including salt and fresh water 
coastal marshes, coastal forested wetlands and other coastal 
wetlands, maritime forests, coastal grasslands, tidal flats, 
natural shoreline areas, shellfish beds, sea grass meadows, 
kelp beds, river deltas, and river and stream banks under tidal 
influence.
      ``Estuary Habitat Restoration Activity'' is defined as an 
activity that results in improving degraded estuary habitat, 
including both physical and functional restoration, with the 
goal of attaining a self-sustaining ecologically-based system 
that is integrated with the surrounding landscape. Eligible 
activities include: the reestablishment of physical features 
and biological and hydrologic functions; the cleanup of 
contamination; the control of non-native and invasive species, 
such as phragmites; and the reintroduction of native species, 
such as the planting of eel grass. A project is ineligible if 
it constitutes mitigation for the adverse effects of an 
activity regulated or otherwise governed under Federal or State 
law, or restoration for natural resource damages required under 
any Federal or State law.
      ``Federal Estuary Management or Habitat Restoration 
Plan'' is defined as any Federal plan for restoration of 
degraded estuary habitat that was developed by a public body 
with the substantial participation of appropriate public and 
private stakeholders and reflects a community-based planning 
process.
House amendment
      Section 103 of the House amendment also defines key 
terms, including: ``Council,'' ``Estuary,'' ``Estuary 
Habitat,'' ``Estuary Habitat Restoration Activity,'' ``Estuary 
Habitat Restoration Project,'' ``Estuary Habitat Restoration 
Plan,'' ``Indian Tribe,'' ``Non-Federal Interest,'' 
``Secretary,'' and ``State.''
      The definition of ``Estuary'' is based on section 
104(n)(4) of the Clean Water Act. The House amendment also 
specifies that near coastal waters and wetlands of the Great 
Lakes that are similar in form and function to estuaries are 
included in this definition for the purposes of this title to 
make such areas of the Great Lakes eligible for assistance 
under this title.
      The definition of ``Estuary Habitat'' is similar to the 
Senate bill, but does not list included habitats.
      The definition of ``Estuary Habitat Restoration 
Activity'' is similar to the Senate bill but includes creating 
estuary habitat and the construction of reefs.
      ``Estuary Habitat Restoration Plan'' is defined as any 
Federal or State plan for restoration of degraded estuary 
habitat that was developed with the substantial participation 
of appropriate public and private stakeholders.
      ``Indian tribe'' is defined by referencing the meaning 
that term has in section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and 
Education Assistance Act, which includes Alaska Natives within 
the definition.
Conference substitute
      Section 103 of the Conference substitute adopts the House 
amendment with the following amendment. The Conference 
substitute retains the House definition of the term 
``Estuary,'' which includes the near coastal waters and 
wetlands of the Great Lakes that are similar in form and 
function to estuaries. The Conference substitute adds a 
specific reference to the Old Woman's Creek NERR in Ohio, which 
is captured in the House definition. This reference was 
included in the definition of ``Estuary'' in the Senate bill 
after the Senate adopted by voice vote an amendment offered by 
Senator Voinovich during the September 29, 1999 Senate 
Committee on Environment and Public Works business meeting on 
S. 835.
      The Conference substitute retains the prohibition against 
any project that constitutes mitigation or restoration required 
under Federal or State law. This provision does not prohibit 
the implementation of an estuary habitat restoration project 
that might also be eligible for funding under voluntary habitat 
restoration or environmental programs. This language also does 
not prohibit a non-Federal interest from using funds secured 
under damage settlements to enhance estuary habitat restoration 
projects.

            SECTION 104. ESTUARY HABITAT RESTORATION PROGRAM

Senate bill
      The Senate bill establishes a collaborative, interagency 
process for the selection of estuary habitat restoration 
projects to receive assistance under this title. The Senate 
bill is based on the premise that the non-Federal interest will 
implement the estuary habitat restoration project, with funding 
provided by the Secretary of the Army. This approach is 
intended to reduce delays, expedite project implementation, and 
reduce unnecessary oversight and paperwork costs.
      Section 106(b) of the Senate bill sets out the process 
for selection of projects. This section specifies that a non-
Federal interest must submit a project application for an 
estuary habitat restoration project to the Collaborative 
Council established under section 105 for review and approval, 
and must obtain, where appropriate, the approval of State or 
local agencies.
      Section 106(b) also sets forth the factors and priorities 
that the Council is to use to select projects and the duties of 
the non-Federal project sponsors. One of the priorities listed 
is whether the project is part of an approved Federal estuary 
management or restoration plan. For example, the Sarasota Bay 
area in Florida is presently implementing a comprehensive 
conservation and management plan (CCMP) under the National 
Estuary Program (NEP), which focuses on restoring lost habitat. 
The NEP is authorized by section 320 of the Clean Water Act. 
The habitat restoration is being accomplished by: reducing 
nitrogen pollution to increase sea grass coverage; constructing 
saltwater wetlands; and, building artificial reefs for juvenile 
fish habitat. Narragansett Bay in Rhode Island also is in the 
process of implementing a CCMP. Current efforts to improve the 
Bay's water quality and restore its habitat address the 
uniqueness of the Narragansett Bay watershed.
      Section 106(c) authorizes interim habitat restoration 
activities to be carried out before the Council completes an 
estuary habitat restoration strategy. Section 106(d) allows a 
nonprofit entity to serve as the non-Federal interest, after 
coordination with the local official responsible for the 
political jurisdiction in which the project will occur.
House amendment
      Section 104(a) of the House amendment authorizes an 
estuary habitat restoration program to be carried out by the 
Secretary of the Army, acting through the Army Corps of 
Engineers.
      Section 104(b) provides that estuary habitat restoration 
projects must be submitted by non-Federal interests, consistent 
with State or local laws.
      Section 104(c) sets forth required elements that eligible 
estuary habitat restoration projects must have, including, 
among others, that the project address restoration needs 
identified in an estuary habitat restoration plan.
      Section 104(d) sets forth the factors and priorities that 
the Secretary is to use to select which estuary habitat 
restoration projects the Corps of Engineers will carry out, 
after the Secretary considers the advice and recommendations of 
the Estuary Habitat Restoration Council established under 
section 105.
      Section 104(e) establishes the cost-sharing required for 
each project. The non-Federal share of a project must include 
necessary lands, easements, rights-of-way and relocations, and 
may include services or any other form of in-kind contributions 
that the Secretary determines to be an appropriate contribution 
toward the monetary amount required for the non-Federal share.
      Section 104(f) authorizes the Corps of Engineers to carry 
out interim habitat restoration activities before the Council 
completes an estuary habitat restoration strategy.
      Section 104(g) requires cooperation of non-Federal 
interests and allows a nongovernmental organization to serve as 
the non-Federal interest for a project, upon the recommendation 
of the Governor of the State in which a project is located, and 
in consultation with appropriate local officials.
      Section 104(h) authorizes the Secretary of the Army to 
delegate project implementation to other Federal agencies, 
after considering the advice and recommendations of the Estuary 
Habitat Restoration Council.
Conference substitute
      The Conference substitute substantially adopts the House 
estuary habitat program structure.
      Unlike the Senate bill, the House amendment does not 
authorize grants. The House amendment provides that the 
Secretary of the Army is responsible for implementing estuary 
habitat restoration projects, similar to the responsibilities 
in carrying out water resources projects under Water Resources 
Development Acts. The Conference substitute adopts the House 
approach. However, in the context of estuary habitat 
restoration projects, it is expected that the Corps of 
Engineers will streamline its process for review and selection 
of projects. In particular, it is expected that the Corps will 
not need to conduct a Feasibility Study, or prepare a Chief's 
Report, for an estuary habitat restoration project because the 
Council will have already reviewed and evaluated a project 
proposal for technical feasibility, merit, and cost-
effectiveness. The Corps is also strongly encouraged to keep 
its oversight and review costs and time to carry out projects 
to a minimum.
      The Conference substitute makes several modifications to 
the House amendment. First, the Conference substitute enhances 
the role of the Estuary Habitat Restoration Council established 
under section 105 of the House amendment in the selection of 
estuary habitat restoration projects. In the House amendment, 
the Secretary of the Army selects projects after considering 
the advice and recommendations of the Council. Section 
104(c)(1) of the Conference substitute directs the Secretary to 
select projects from a list developed and submitted by the 
Council. The Council is to review all project proposals 
submitted and prepare a list of eligible projects that meet the 
statutory criteria. The Council also is to prioritize the 
listed projects and make any recommendations regarding whether 
the projects should be delegated to other Federal agencies for 
implementation. The Secretary must select projects from that 
list; the Secretary may not use funds provided under this 
program to implement estuary habitat restoration projects that 
are not included on the list submitted by the Council.
      The Conference substitute also makes minor revisions to 
the structure of the project selection process. The Conference 
substitute retains the factors for selection of a project from 
the House amendment and adds two factors from the Senate bill: 
technical feasibility, and whether the project is part of an 
approved Federal estuary management or habitat restoration 
plan.
      The Conference substitute adds an innovative technology 
cost-share provision to section 104(d), based on similar 
language from section 107(e) of the Senate bill. New section 
104(d)(2) provides that the Federal cost-share for the 
incremental additional cost of implementing innovative 
technologies in a project shall be 85 percent. The intent of 
this increased cost-share is to encourage the use of innovative 
technologies. Consistent with the stated purposes of this 
title, it is expected that NERRs will identify some of the 
innovative technologies that might be eligible for funding.
      The Conference substitute also includes a new section 
104(d)(4) on operation and maintenance costs that specifies 
that non-Federal interests shall be responsible for all costs 
associated with operating, maintaining, replacing, repairing 
and rehabilitating all projects carried out under this section.
      Section 104(f) of the Conference substitute retains 
language from both the Senate bill and the House amendment that 
allows nongovernmental organizations to serve as the non-
Federal interest in an estuary habitat restoration project with 
one modification. Under the Conference substitute, the 
Secretary is required to consult and coordinate with 
appropriate State and local agencies and tribes before allowing 
a nongovernmental organization to act as the non-Federal 
interest.
      In selecting estuary habitat restoration projects, the 
Conferees direct the Secretary to give priority consideration 
to the Wetlands Recovery Project for the Los Cerritos Wetlands 
in Los Angeles County, California, and to a proposed project 
for restoration of estuary habitat in the Great Bay Estuary in 
New Hampshire.

   SECTION 105. ESTABLISHMENT OF ESTUARY HABITAT RESTORATION COUNCIL

Senate bill
      Section 105 of the Senate bill establishes an interagency 
Collaborative Council chaired by the Secretary of the Army, 
with the participation of the Department of Commerce, acting 
through the Under Secretary for Oceans and Atmosphere; the 
Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA); 
and, the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Fish and 
Wildlife Service.
      Section 106 establishes the duties of the Collaborative 
Council. Section 106(a) requires the Council to draft a 
strategy that will serve as a national framework for restoring 
estuaries. Under section 106(b), the Council is also 
responsible for reviewing project applications and determining 
the eligibility of specific proposals for funding.
House amendment
      Section 105 of the House amendment establishes the 
national Estuary Habitat Restoration Council. The Council's 
function is to review project proposals and make 
recommendations on projects and priorities to the Secretary. 
The Council also makes recommendations regarding whether 
specific projects should be delegated to other agencies for 
implementation. In addition, the Council is responsible for 
developing and periodically reviewing, and updating as 
necessary, a national strategy to restore estuary habitat and 
is to provide advice on monitoring and reporting requirements 
under this title. Under section 106, the Council is also 
directed to establish an Advisory Board, which provides advice 
and recommendations to the Council on the strategy and in the 
consideration of project proposals.
      The Council has six members, including the Secretaries of 
the Army, the Interior (acting through the Director of the Fish 
and Wildlife Service), Commerce (acting through the Under 
Secretary for Oceans and Atmosphere), and Agriculture; the 
Administrator of EPA; and the head of any other Federal agency 
designated by the President.
Conference substitute
      The Conference substitute adopts the House amendment with 
several amendments. First, in section 105(b), the Conference 
substitute revises the Estuary Habitat Restoration Council's 
duties so that the Council shall have a greater role in 
recommending projects for the Secretary to carry out or to 
delegate to another agency to carry out. The House amendment 
directs the Council to solicit, review, and evaluate project 
proposals and make recommendations to the Secretary, including 
recommending prioritization of projects and delegation of 
project implementation to another agency. The Conference 
substitute retains these provisions, but includes a requirement 
that the Council submit a list of recommended projects to the 
Secretary, which shall include prioritization and delegation 
recommendations. Section 104 of the Conference substitute 
requires the Secretary to select projects from this list.
      The Conference substitute also adds a new section 105(i) 
that directs the Council to consult with a broad range of 
experts in estuary or estuary habitat restoration and with 
estuary users to assist in the development of the estuary 
habitat restoration strategy developed under section 106. The 
Council also shall seek the advice and recommendations of 
experts on proposed projects, including the projects' 
scientific and technical merit, and feasibility. In particular, 
the Council shall consult with scientific experts and 
representatives of State, local or regional agencies, and non-
governmental organizations with expertise in estuary or estuary 
habitat restoration, as well as Indian Tribes, agricultural 
interests, fishing interests, and other estuary users. This 
provision is similar to section 106(a)(4) of the Senate bill, 
and replaces section 106 in the House amendment that created a 
formal advisory board.

           SECTION 106. ESTUARY HABITAT RESTORATION STRATEGY

Senate bill
      Section 106(a) of the Senate bill requires the 
Collaborative Council, in consultation with non-Federal 
participants, to draft a strategy that will serve as a national 
framework for restoring estuaries. In developing the strategy, 
the Council is directed to consider the contributions of 
estuary habitat to wildlife; fish and shellfish; surface and 
ground water quality and quantity and flood control; outdoor 
recreation and other concerns; estimated historic losses of 
estuary habitat; and the most appropriate way to balance small 
and large estuary habitat restoration projects.
House amendment
      Section 107 of the House amendment directs the Council, 
in consultation with the advisory board established under 
section 106, to develop a national estuary habitat restoration 
strategy. The strategy is intended to help maximize the 
benefits derived from estuary habitat restoration projects 
selected for implementation, and to foster coordination of 
Federal and non-Federal efforts to restore estuary habitat. The 
Council is directed to publish a draft of the strategy in the 
Federal Register and provide a public comment period of 
sufficient length to provide a meaningful opportunity for 
public review and comment.
      Section 107(b) specifically provides that the goal of the 
strategy shall be to restore one million acres of estuary 
habitat by 2010.
Conference substitute
      Section 106 of the Conference substitute adopts the House 
amendment with only minor changes. The Conference substitute 
specifically adopts the language establishing as the goal of 
the strategy the restoration of one million acres of estuary 
habitat. This goal is consistent with one of the stated 
purposes of the Senate bill.

    SECTION 107. MONITORING OF ESTUARY HABITAT RESTORATION PROJECTS

Senate bill
      Section 108(a) of the Senate bill directs the Under 
Secretary for Oceans and Atmosphere of the Department of 
Commerce, acting through the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
Administration (NOAA), to maintain a database of restoration 
projects carried out under this title, including information on 
project techniques, project completion, monitoring data, and 
other relevant information. This section is intended to ensure 
that available information will be used to improve the methods 
for assuring successful long-term habitat restoration.
House amendment
      Section 108 of the House amendment directs the Under 
Secretary for Oceans and Atmosphere of the Department of 
Commerce, in consultation with the Council, to develop and 
maintain, using existing NOAA programs, a database with 
information on estuary habitat restoration projects carried out 
under this title. The Under Secretary will also develop 
monitoring standards for data types and format, as well as for 
monitoring frequency.
Conference substitute
      Section 107 of the Conference substitute adopts the House 
amendment.

                         SECTION 108. REPORTING

Senate bill
      Section 108(b) of the Senate bill directs the Council to 
submit a biennial report to Congress that describes program 
activities, including the number of acres of estuary habitat 
restored; the percent of restored habitat monitored under a 
plan; the types of restoration methods employed; the activities 
of governmental and non-governmental entities with respect to 
habitat restoration; and the effectiveness of the restoration 
projects.
House amendment
      Section 109 of the House amendment requires the 
Secretary, after considering the advice and recommendations of 
the Council, to submit a report to Congress at the end of the 
third and fifth fiscal years after enactment of this title. The 
report must include information on the number of acres of 
estuary habitat restored; information from the database related 
to ongoing monitoring projects; an estimate of the long-term 
success of varying restoration techniques; a review of how the 
information on restoration techniques has been incorporated 
into the selection and implementation of estuary habitat 
restoration projects; and a review of efforts to maintain an 
appropriate database of habitat restoration projects.
Conference substitute
      Section 108 of the Conference substitute adopts the House 
amendment.

                          SECTION 109. FUNDING

Senate bill
      Section 111 of the Senate bill authorizes a total of $315 
million over five years to assist States and other non-Federal 
persons in carrying out estuary habitat restoration projects as 
follows: $40 million for fiscal year 2001; $50 million for 
fiscal year 2002; and, $75 million for each of fiscal years 
2003 through 2005.
House amendment
      Section 110 of the House amendment authorizes a total of 
$200 million over five years for the Secretary of the Army to 
carry out and provide technical assistance for estuary habitat 
restoration projects as follows: $30 million for fiscal year 
2001; $35 million for fiscal year 2002; and $45 million for 
each of fiscal years 2003 through 2005. Of the annual 
authorizations, the Secretary may use no more than three 
percent, or $1.5 million, whichever is greater, for 
administration and operation of the Council.
      The House amendment also authorizes $1.5 million for each 
of fiscal years 2001 through 2005 for NOAA to acquire, 
maintain, and manage monitoring data on estuary habitat 
restoration projects.
Conference substitute
      Section 109 of the Conference substitute adopts the House 
amendment with an amendment. It authorizes a total of $275 
million over five years to carry out and provide technical 
assistance for estuary habitat restoration projects as follows: 
$40 million for fiscal year 2001; $50 million for fiscal years 
2002 and 2003; $60 million for fiscal year 2004; and $75 
million for fiscal year 2005.

                    SECTION 110. GENERAL PROVISIONS

Senate bill
      Section 113(a) of the Senate bill specifies that the 
Secretary of the Army has the authority to carry out estuary 
habitat restoration projects.
      Section 113(b) makes certain sections of the Water 
Resources Development Act of 1986 inapplicable to this title.
      Section 113(c) adds estuary habitat restoration as a 
mission of the Corps of Engineers.
      Section 113(d) allows other Federal agencies to provide 
assistance to the Collaborative Council.
      Section 113(e) requires an analysis of the personnel and 
funding needed for the Collaborative Council.
House amendment
      Section 111(a) of the House amendment requires the 
Secretary of the Army to consult with other Federal agencies, 
as necessary.
      Section 111(b) authorizes the Secretary of the Army to 
enter into cooperative agreements with Federal, State, and 
local agencies and other entities.
      Section 111(c) authorizes other Federal agencies to 
cooperate in carrying out this title.
      Section 111(d) requires the Secretary of the Army to 
identify and map sites appropriate for beneficial uses of 
dredged material.
      Section 111(e) requires EPA to conduct a study of the 
efficacy of bioremediation products.
Conference substitute
      Section 110 of the Conference substitute adopts the House 
amendment. The Secretary of the Army is to carry out this title 
in accordance with the provisions of this title, not Water 
Resources Development Acts.

                  Title II--Chesapeake Bay Restoration

      The Chesapeake Bay (the Bay) is the largest estuary in 
the United States, and the first estuary in the nation to be 
targeted for restoration as a single ecosystem. The Bay covers 
4,431 square miles, and the Bay watershed covers 64,000 square 
miles including areas of Delaware, Maryland, New York, 
Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of 
Columbia. Over 100,000 streams and rivers drain into the Bay, 
with the Susquehanna River draining 42 percent of the 
watershed. The Bay is a national and regional resource that 
provides millions of pounds of seafood, functions as a center 
for shipping and commerce and is home to thousands of species 
of wildlife. In 1983, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, the 
District of Columbia, and EPA signed the Chesapeake Bay 
Agreement (the Agreement), which established the Chesapeake Bay 
Program.
      The Chesapeake Bay Program has evolved considerably since 
1983 and has become a model for other estuary restoration and 
protection programs around the world. The 1987 amendments to 
the Agreement expanded the initial restoration efforts by 
targeting nutrient over-enrichment as the Bay's major problem 
and establishing a goal to reduce nutrients flowing into the 
Bay by 40 percent. This Agreement included 28 other specific 
commitments to address key issues in habitat, water quality, 
population growth, public information and public access. The 
1992 amendments to the Agreement moved the program upriver and 
committed the 40 percent nutrient reduction goal to the ten 
major tributaries of the Bay beyond the year 2000.
      The Water Quality Act of 1987 formally authorized EPA's 
participation in the Chesapeake Bay Program by adding section 
117 to the Clean Water Act. Section 117 created the Chesapeake 
Bay Program office within EPA. The office helps to coordinate 
State and Federal efforts to restore and protect the Bay, makes 
information available to the public and conducts scientific 
research on the Bay. Section 117 authorized $3 million a year 
for fiscal years 1987 through 1990 to support the activities of 
the Chesapeake Bay Program office, and $10 million a year for 
fiscal years 1987 through 1990 for matching interstate 
development grants.
      Title II of the Conference substitute amends section 117 
of the Clean Water Act and reauthorizes the Chesapeake Bay 
Program. Title II of the Senate bill and the House amendment 
also amend section 117 of the Clean Water Act, and are 
substantially the same. The Conferees adopted the House 
amendment with the following amendments:
      In new section 117(d), the Conference substitute adopts 
language from the Senate bill authorizing EPA to make 
assistance grants to non-Federal entities to carry out this 
section. Such grants may include assistance for monitoring 
activities, data collection, and research.
      In new section 117(g), the Conference substitute adopts 
language from the Senate bill that requires the Administrator 
to ensure that management plans are developed and 
implementation is begun by signatories of the Agreement not 
only to achieve, but also to maintain, the goals of that 
Agreement.
      In new section 117(j), the Conference substitute 
authorizes $40 million for each of fiscal years 2001 through 
2005 to carry out this section.

                  Title III--National Estuary Program

      Title III of the Conference substitute amends section 320 
of the Clean Water Act and reauthorizes the NEP. This title is 
substantially similar to title III in the House amendment and 
section 112 of the Senate bill. The Conferees adopted title III 
of the House amendment with amendments. Differences between the 
Senate bill, House amendment and Conference substitute are as 
follows:

           SECTION 301. ADDITION TO NATIONAL ESTUARY PROGRAM

Senate bill
      The Senate bill did not have a comparable provision.
House amendment
      Section 301 of the House amendment amends section 
320(a)(2)(B) of the Clean Water Act to identify two additional 
estuaries as priorities for inclusion in the NEP.
Conference substitute
      Section 301 of the Conference substitute identifies only 
one additional estuary, Lake Pontchartrain Basin, as a priority 
for inclusion in the NEP.

                          SECTION 302. GRANTS

Senate bill
      Section 112(a) of the Senate bill amends section 
320(g)(2) of the Clean Water Act to provide explicit authority 
for EPA to make grants to implement CCMPs. Examples of 
implementation activities include: enhanced monitoring 
activities; habitat mapping; habitat acquisition; best 
management practices to reduce urban and rural polluted runoff; 
and, the organization of workshops for local elected officials 
and professional water quality managers about habitat and water 
quality issues.
House amendment
      Section 302 of the House amendment amends both paragraphs 
(2) and (3) of section 320(g) of the Clean Water Act. The 
amendment to paragraph (2) is identical to the Senate bill. The 
amendment to paragraph (3) establishes a Federal cost-share of 
up to 50 percent for implementation grants. Under this title, 
construction of projects that are treatment works as defined in 
the Clean Water Act will be subject to the requirements of the 
Davis-Bacon Act as provided in Section 513 of the Clean Water 
Act. Some of the construction authorized by the reported bill 
may not come within the definition of treatment works. The 
House has not addressed the issue of whether these construction 
projects should be covered by the Davis-Bacon Act, and the 
House amendment should not be considered as a precedent on this 
issue.
Conference substitute
      Section 302 of the Conference substitute adopts the House 
amendment.

              SECTION 303. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS

Senate bill
      Section 112(b) of the Senate bill authorizes $25 million 
for each of fiscal years 2001 and 2002 to carry out section 320 
of the Clean Water Act.
House amendment
      Section 303 of the House amendment authorizes $50 million 
for each of fiscal years 2000 through 2004 to carry out section 
320 of the Clean Water Act.
Conference substitute
      Section 303 of the Conference substitute authorizes $35 
million for each of fiscal years 2001 through 2005 to carry out 
section 320 of the Clean Water Act.

                Title IV--Long Island Sound Restoration

      Title IV of the Conference substitute amends section 119 
of the Clean Water Act and reauthorizes the Long Island Sound 
program. This title is similar to title V in the House 
amendment and title III in the Senate bill. The Conferees 
adopted title V of the House amendment with amendments. 
Differences between the Senate bill, House amendment and 
Conference substitute are as follows:

         SECTION 402. INNOVATIVE METHODOLOGIES AND TECHNOLOGIES

Senate bill
      The Senate bill did not have a comparable section.
House amendment
      Section 502 of the House amendment amends section 
119(c)(1) of the Clean Water Act to encourage the Long Island 
Sound Office to assist and support efforts to establish, within 
the process for granting watershed general permits, a system 
for trading nitrogen credits and any other measures that are 
cost-effective and consistent with the goals of the CCMP for 
Long Island Sound. This amendment does not affect any existing 
regulatory authorities under the Clean Water Act.
Conference substitute
      Section 402 of the Conference substitute amends the House 
amendment regarding the duties of the Long Island Sound Office. 
The amendment to section 119(c)(1) of the Clean Water Act 
encourages the Office to assist in the implementation of the 
Long Island Sound CCMP, including efforts, within the process 
of granting a watershed general permit, to promote innovative 
methodologies and technologies, and other cost effective 
measures consistent with the goals of the CCMP. EPA should 
support innovative methodologies and technologies through out 
the program.
      This assistance is to be provided under the existing 
authorities of the Clean Water Act and the laws of New York and 
Connecticut, or any subsequent amendments to such authorities 
or laws. The amendment does not affect any existing statutory 
or regulatory authorities under the Clean Water Act.

           SECTION 403. ASSISTANCE FOR DISTRESSED COMMUNITIES

Senate bill
      The Senate bill did not have a comparable section.
House amendment
      Section 503 of the House amendment amends section 119 of 
the Clean Water Act by adding a new subsection authorizing New 
York and Connecticut to use their state revolving funds, 
established under title VI of the Clean Water Act, to provide 
additional subsidization when making a loan to a distressed 
community for the purposes of assisting the implementation of 
the CCMP for Long Island Sound. The total amount of loan 
subsidies made by a State may not exceed 30 percent of the 
amount of the capitalization grant received by the State for a 
year.
      Under this section, the States of New York and 
Connecticut would establish affordability criteria, after 
public review and comment, to be used to determine which 
communities are distressed. In establishing these criteria, the 
States must consider the extent to which the rate of growth of 
a community's tax base has been historically slow such that 
implementing the CCMP would result in significant increases in 
any water or sewer rate charged by the community's publicly-
owned wastewater treatment facility. EPA is authorized to 
publish information to assist States in establishing 
affordability criteria. A State is authorized to give priority 
to distressed communities in making assistance available under 
this section for the upgrading of wastewater treatment 
facilities.
Conference substitute
      Section 403 of the Conference substitute adopts the House 
amendment with an amendment. The Conference substitute does not 
adopt the provisions of the House amendment allowing loan 
subsidies for loans made to distressed communities from a 
State's revolving loan funds. The Conference substitute 
addresses distressed communities by allowing EPA to give 
distressed communities, which are upgrading wastewater 
treatment facilities, priority in making assistance available 
under section 119(d). A distressed community is any community 
that meets affordability criteria established by the State in 
which the community is located, after public review and 
comment.

             SECTION 404. REAUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS

Senate bill
      Section 404 of the Senate bill authorizes $10 million for 
each of fiscal years 2001 through 2006 to carry out section 
119(d) of the Clean Water Act.
House amendment
      Section 504 of the House amendment authorizes $80 million 
for each of fiscal years 2000 through 2003 to carry out section 
119(d) of the Clean Water Act.
Conference substitute
      Section 404 of the Conference substitute authorizes $40 
million for each of fiscal years 2001 through 2005 to carry out 
section 119(d) of the Clean Water Act.

             Title V--Lake Pontchartrain Basin Restoration

      Title V of the Conference substitute amends title I of 
the Clean Water Act adding a new section 121 establishing the 
Lake Pontchartrain Basin Restoration Program within EPA. This 
title is substantially similar to title VI of the House 
amendment. The Senate bill had no comparable title. The 
Conferees agreed to adopt title VI of the House amendment with 
amendments. Differences between the House amendment and 
Conference substitute are as follows:

                 SECTION 502. LAKE PONTCHARTRAIN BASIN

House amendment
      Section 602 of the House amendment states a Congressional 
finding that the Lake Pontchartrain Basin is an estuary of 
national significance. It amends section 320(a)(2)(B) of the 
Clean Water Act to add the Lake Pontchartrain Basin to the list 
of estuaries to receive priority consideration for inclusion in 
the NEP.
      Section 603 adds a new section 122 to title I of the 
Clean Water Act that establishes a Lake Pontchartrain Basin 
Program within EPA. The purpose of the program is to restore 
the ecological health of the Basin by developing and funding 
restoration projects and related scientific and public 
education projects.
      To carry out the program, the new section 122 requires 
EPA: to provide administrative and technical assistance to a 
management conference for the Lake Pontchartrain Basin convened 
under the NEP; to assist and support the activities of the 
management conference, including implementation of 
recommendations of the management conference; to support 
environmental monitoring of the Basin and research to provide 
necessary technical and scientific information; to develop a 
comprehensive research plan to address the technical needs of 
the program; to coordinate the grant, research, and planning 
programs authorized under this section; and to collect, and 
make available to the public, publications and other forms of 
information that the management conference determines to be 
appropriate relating to the environmental quality of the Basin.
      The new section 122 authorizes $5 million in EPA grants 
for each of fiscal years 2001 through 2005 for restoration 
projects and studies and for public education projects 
recommended by the management conference, although no more than 
15 percent of annual appropriations should be spent on grants 
for public education projects. It also authorizes $100 million 
in EPA grants for an inflow and infiltration project sponsored 
by the New Orleans Sewerage and Water Board and Jefferson 
Parish, Louisiana.
Conference substitute
      Section 502 of the Conference substitute adopts the House 
amendment with amendments. The substitute authorizes $20 
million in funding for the Lake Pontchartrain Basin Program for 
each of fiscal years 2001 through 2005, and deletes the 
specific authorization for funding for the inflow and 
infiltration project.
      The Conferees agreed to clarify several issues in House 
Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Report 106-594. In 
particular, the list of participants in the management 
conference to be convened to carry out the Lake Pontchartrain 
Basin Restoration Program in Report 106-594 is not exclusive. 
The management conference should be broad-based, and may also 
include local government representatives and representatives 
from affected industries and the general public, as determined 
under section 320(c). The Conferees also intend for the 
management conference to consult with the executives of all 16 
Louisiana parishes and appropriate local government officials 
of four Mississippi counties located in the Lake Pontchartrain 
Basin. Further, priority should be given to funding for a 
parish-wide water and sewer systems study in Tammany Parish.

                  Title VI--Alternative Water Sources

      Title VI of the Conference substitute amends title II of 
the Clean Water Act adding a new section 220 establishing a 
pilot program for alternative water sources. This title is 
similar to title VII of the House amendment. The Senate bill 
had no comparable title. The Conferees adopted title VII of the 
House amendment with amendments. Differences between the House 
amendment and Conference substitute are as follows:

        SECTION 602. PILOT PROGRAM FOR ALTERNATIVE WATER SOURCES

House amendment
      Section 702 of the House amendment amends the Clean Water 
Act by adding a new section 220, ``Grants for Alternative Water 
Source Projects.''
      Section 220(a) authorizes EPA to make grants for 
alternative water source projects to meet critical water supply 
needs.
      Section 220(b) specifies that eligibility for grants is 
restricted to those entities with authority under State law to 
develop or provide water for municipal and industrial, or 
agricultural uses in areas that are experiencing critical water 
supply needs.
      Section 220(c)(1) prohibits a project that has received 
funds under the Bureau of Reclamation's water reclamation and 
reuse program from being eligible for grant assistance under 
this section. Section 220(c)(2) requires EPA to consider 
whether a project is eligible under the Bureau of Reclamation's 
water reclamation and reuse program when selecting projects for 
grants under this section.
      Section 220(d)(1) prohibits the appropriation of funds 
for a project with a Federal cost greater than $3 million if 
the project has not been approved by a resolution adopted by 
either the House or Senate authorizing committee of 
jurisdiction. In order to secure the appropriate authorizing 
committee's consideration of a committee resolution for a 
proposed project, section 220(d)(2) requires EPA and the non-
Federal sponsor for the proposed project to provide to the 
Committee the required information on the project, including 
project costs, and area water supply needs.
      Section 220(e) provides that grant funding received under 
this section may be used for engineering, design, construction, 
and final testing of alternative water source projects designed 
to meet critical water supply needs. Such grant funding may not 
be used for operation, maintenance, replacement, repair or 
rehabilitation of such projects.
      Section 220(f) provides that the Federal cost-share for a 
project receiving assistance under this section shall not 
exceed 50 percent of the eligible costs.
      Section 220(g)(1) requires that each recipient of a grant 
under this section submit a report to EPA on the eligible 
activities carried out by the recipient using grant funding. 
This report shall be submitted to EPA no later than 18 months 
after the date the recipient receives grant funding and every 
two years thereafter, until the alternative water source 
project funded by the grant is complete. Section 220(g)(2) 
requires EPA to submit a report to Congress on the progress 
made toward meeting the critical water supply needs of the 
grant recipients under this section. This report is to be 
transmitted to Congress on or before September 30, 2004.
      Section 220(h) defines key terms. ``Alternative Water 
Source Project'' means a project designed to provide municipal, 
industrial, and agricultural water supplies in an 
environmentally sustainable manner by conserving, managing, 
reclaiming, or reusing water or wastewater or by treating 
wastewater. These projects fall within the definition of 
treatment works in section 212 of the Clean Water Act. All such 
projects, including wastewater treatment projects, should be 
designed to provide water supplies in an environmentally 
sustainable manner. ``Critical Water Supply Needs'' means 
existing or reasonably anticipated future water supply needs 
that cannot be met by existing water supplies, as identified in 
a comprehensive statewide or regional water supply plan or 
assessment projected over a planning period of at least 20 
years.
      To carry out the new section 220, section 220(i) 
authorizes $75 million for each of fiscal years 2000 through 
2004.
Conference substitute
      Section 602 of the Conference substitute adopts the House 
amendment with amendments, including narrowing the title to a 
pilot program.
      Section 220(a) is added stating that nothing in the pilot 
program shall affect the application of section 101(g) of the 
Clean Water Act, which states Congressional policy that nothing 
in the Act shall supersede State authority to allocate water 
quantities or State rights to such quantities.
      Section 220(d)(3) is added to require selected projects 
to reflect a variety of geographical and environmental 
conditions.
      Section 220(h) is revised to require EPA to report to 
Congress on the results of the pilot program, including 
progress made by program participants in meeting their critical 
water supply needs.
      In section 220(i)(1), the definition of ``Alternative 
Water Source Project'' adopts the House definition with a 
clarification that such term does not include water treatment 
or distribution facilities.
      Section 220(j) authorizes a total of $75 million for the 
pilot program for fiscal years 2002 through 2004.

                         Title VII--Clean Lakes

      Title VII of the Conference substitute reauthorizes and 
amends the Clean Lakes Program under section 314 of the Clean 
Water Act. This title is substantially similar to title VIII of 
the House amendment. The Senate bill had no comparable title. 
The Conferees adopted title VIII of the House amendment with 
amendments. Differences between the House amendment and 
Conference substitute are as follows:

                   SECTION 702. DEMONSTRATION PROGRAM

House amendment
      Section 801 of the House amendment amends section 
314(c)(2) of the Clean Water Act by authorizing $50 million for 
grants to States to implement the Clean Lakes Program for each 
of fiscal years 2001 through 2005.
      Section 802 amends section 314(d) of the Clean Water Act 
by: adding several lakes to the list of lakes to receive 
priority consideration for demonstration projects in paragraph 
(2); preventing the report to Congress on the Clean Lakes 
demonstration program in paragraph (3) from expiring under the 
Federal Reports Elimination and Sunset Act of 1995; and, 
increasing the special authorization of financial assistance to 
States to carry out methods and procedures to mitigate harmful 
effects of high acidity from acid deposition or acid mine 
drainage in paragraph (4) from $15 million to $25 million.
Conference substitute
      Section 702 of the Conference substitute amends section 
314(d)(2) of the Clean Water Act authorizing demonstration 
projects to be undertaken in the following lakes, in addition 
to those in the House amendment: Lake Tahoe, California and 
Nevada; Highland Lake, Connecticut; Lake Apopka and 
Tohopekaliga Lake, Florida; Lake Allatoona, Georgia; Walker 
Lake, Nevada; Baboosic Lake and French Pond, New Hampshire; 
Lily Lake and Strawbridge Lake, New Jersey; Lake George, New 
York; Dillon Reservoir, Ohio; Ten Mile Lakes, and Woahink Lake, 
Oregon; and, Lake Wallenpaupack, Pennsylvania.

       Title VIII--Tijuana River Valley Estuary and Beach Cleanup

      Title VIII of the Conference substitute authorizes 
certain actions to address the comprehensive treatment of 
sewage emanating from the Tijuana River to reduce water 
pollution in the San Diego, California border region. This 
title is substantially similar to title X of the House 
amendment. The Senate bill had no comparable title. The 
Conferees adopted title X of the House amendment with 
amendments. Differences between the House amendment and 
Conference substitute are as follows:

      SECTION 804. ACTIONS TO BE TAKEN BY THE COMMISSION AND THE 
                             ADMINISTRATOR

House amendment
      Subject to the negotiation and conclusion of a new treaty 
minute or amendment to Minute 283, section 1004(a) of the House 
amendment authorizes and directs the International and Boundary 
Water Commission (the Commission) to provide secondary 
treatment for a total of not more than 50 million gallons per 
day (mgd) in Mexico of both primary advanced effluent pumped 
from the International Wastewater Treatment Plant (IWTP) in San 
Diego and any additional sewage emanating from the Tijuana 
River area in Mexico.
      Section 1004(b) directs EPA to develop a comprehensive 
plan with stakeholder involvement within two years of the date 
of enactment of the title. The comprehensive plan will analyze 
the long-term secondary treatment needs for the San Diego-
Tijuana border region, and make recommendations for preferred 
options to provide additional treatment capacity for future 
flows emanating from the Tijuana River area. If the 
comprehensive plan includes a recommendation for additional 
treatment capacity to be provided in Mexico rather than in the 
U.S., the Commission is authorized to provide not more than an 
additional 25 mgd of such capacity in Mexico.
      Subject to the availability of appropriations, section 
1004(c) authorizes the Commission to enter into a fee-for-
services contract and make payments on behalf of the U.S. for 
treatment services rendered under the contract with the owner 
of a Mexican facility. Section 1004(c)(2) requires the contract 
to include, at a minimum, the terms listed in the following 
subparagraphs:
      (A) that the advanced primary effluent from the IWTP be 
transported to the Mexican facility;
      (B) that the advanced primary effluent from the IWTP be 
treated to the secondary treatment level in compliance with 
U.S., California, and Mexican water quality laws;
      (C) that any effluent treated at the Mexican facility not 
reused in Mexico or the U.S. is returned for discharge through 
the South Bay Ocean Outfall off the coast of San Diego, and 
that it is in compliance with U.S. and California water quality 
laws;
      (D) that the Mexican facility may provide sewage 
treatment capacity in addition to the capacity needed to treat 
the advanced primary effluent pumped from the IWTP, if 
recommended as a preferred option in the EPA comprehensive plan 
analyzing the long-term treatment needs and recommending 
preferred options to provide such treatment;
      (E) that the contract has a term of 30 years;
      (F) that arrangements are made for the monitoring, 
verification, and enforcement of compliance with U.S., 
California and Mexican water quality standards;
      (G) that arrangements are made for the disposal and use 
of sludge in Mexico, which is from the IWTP and the Mexican 
facility;
      (H) that the Commission pays an annual fee to the owner 
of the Mexican facility covering the costs of development, 
financing, construction, and operation and maintenance of the 
facility;
      (I) that, if the Commission fails to perform its 
contractual obligations, the ownership of the facility is 
transferred to the U.S. after the U.S. pays a cancellation fee 
to the owner of the facility, which reflects the costs of 
repayment of construction debt and other contractual losses 
resulting from early termination of the contract. The 
cancellation fee owed to the owner of the facility shall be in 
amounts declining over the term of the contract;
      (J) that, if the owner of the Mexican facility fails to 
perform its contractual obligations, ownership of the facility 
will be transferred to the U.S. without a cancellation fee;
      (K) that the owner of the Mexican facility uses 
competitive procedures to the extent practicable in the 
procurement of property or services for the engineering, 
construction, and operation and maintenance of the facility;
      (L) that the Commission may review and approve the 
contractors providing for the engineering, construction, and 
operation and maintenance of the facility;
      (M) that the owner of the Mexican facility maintains all 
records to demonstrate compliance with this section and the 
contract; and,
      (N) that the U.S. Department of State Inspector General 
has access to all pertinent records to conduct audits to ensure 
the owner of the Mexican facility is complying with the terms 
of this title and the contract.
      Section 1004(c)(3) states that the Contract Disputes Act 
of 1978 does not apply to a contract executed under this 
section.
      Section 1004(d) requires the U.S. Department of State 
Inspector General to monitor the implementation of contracts 
entered into under this section and to evaluate whether the 
owner of the Mexican facility has complied with the terms of 
the section and fulfilled the contract terms.
Conference substitute
      The Conference substitute adopts the House amendment with 
several amendments to the contract terms listed in section 
804(c)(2).
      In order to ensure greater accountability with respect to 
the costs of developing, financing, constructing, and operating 
and maintaining the facility, the Conference substitute 
requires the owner of the facility to share in all of these 
costs. New subparagraph (H) requires that the owner of the 
facility maintain 20 percent equity in the capital structure of 
the facility throughout the term of the contract. Under new 
subparagraph (I), the Commission's annual payments shall 
maintain the owner's 20 percent equity position throughout the 
term of the contract. Revised subparagraph (E) limits the 
contract term to 20 years.
      The Conference substitute requires, in new subparagraph 
(P), that the owner of the facility provide offsets or credits 
in the event that the owner is able to sell the treated 
wastewater from the facility. The parties negotiating the 
contract may determine the amount of offsets or credits.
      The Conference substitute also requires the owner of the 
facility to competitively bid all subcontracts for the 
facility. Revised subparagraph (L) specifically applies title 
III of the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 
1949, as amended by the Competition in Contracting Act.
      Finally, the Conference substitute does not provide an 
exemption from the Contract Disputes Act.

              SECTION 806. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS

House amendment
      Section 1006 of the House amendment authorizes such sums 
as necessary to be appropriated to carry out the title.
Conference substitute
      Section 806 of the Conference substitute changes the 
authorization from ``such sums as necessary to carry out'' the 
title to a five-year authorization of $156 million for fiscal 
years 2001 through 2005. The Conferees acknowledge that the 
title also authorizes the Commission to enter into a 20-year 
fee-for-services contract with the owner of a Mexican facility. 
The five-year authorization is included to be consistent with 
the authorizations throughout the Conference substitute, and 
the Conferees do not intend this to affect the Commission's 
obligations under the 20-year contract.

                      Title IX--General Provisions

      Other than section 901, this title includes new 
provisions that were not in the Senate bill or the House 
amendment.

     SECTION 901. PURCHASE OF AMERICAN-MADE EQUIPMENT AND PRODUCTS

House amendment
      Titles II, VI, VII, and VIII of the House amendment each 
contained a provision regarding the purchase of American-made 
equipment and products.
Conference substitute
      The Conference substitute deletes the relevant provisions 
in titles II, VI, VII and VIII in the House amendment, and 
replaces them with a new section 901. This section states that 
it is the Sense of Congress, to the extent practicable, for all 
equipment and products purchased with funds made available 
under this Act to be made in America. Also, each Federal agency 
head providing financial assistance under this bill is directed 
to provide such notice to each recipient of financial 
assistance, to the extent practicable.

               SECTION 902. LONG-TERM ESTUARY ASSESSMENT

Conference substitute
      Section 902 of the Conference substitute authorizes the 
Secretary of Commerce and the Secretary of the Interior to 
carry out a long-term estuary assessment project for the 
Mississippi River south of Vicksburg, Mississippi and the Gulf 
of Mexico. The authorized appropriation levels are $1 million 
for fiscal year 2001 for the management agreement with a 
university-based consortium, and $4 million for each of fiscal 
years 2002 through 2005 to carry out the project.
      The Conferees are aware that the Center for 
Bioenvironmental Research at Tulane University and Xavier 
University in New Orleans, Louisiana have formed a university-
based consortium called the ``Long-term Estuary Assessment 
Group'' for the purpose of developing advanced long-term 
assessment and monitoring systems relating to the Mississippi 
River and other aquatic ecosystems and encourages the 
Secretaries of Commerce and of the Interior to examine the work 
begun by the Center for Bioenvironmental Research and this 
consortium when selecting a university-based consortium to 
manage this project.

              SECTION 903. ALASKA RURAL SANITATION GRANTS

Conference substitute
      Section 903 of the Conference substitute amends section 
303(e) of the Safe Drinking Water Act Amendments of 1996 by 
reauthorizing $40 million for each of fiscal years 2001 through 
2005.

                            ADDITIONAL ITEMS

House amendment
      Title IV of the House amendment establishes an EPA grant 
program to improve water quality in the Florida Keys. Title IX 
establishes an EPA Mississippi Sound restoration program.
Conference substitute
      The Conference substitute deletes titles IV and IX of the 
House amendment.
                                   Bud Shuster,
                                   Don Young,
                                   Sherwood Boehlert,
                                   Wayne T. Gilchrest,
                                   Tillie K. Fowler,
                                   Don Sherwood,
                                   John E. Sweeney,
                                   Steven T. Kuykendall,
                                   David Vitter,
                                   Jim Oberstar,
                                   Bob Borski,
                                   Jim Barcia,
                                   Bob Filner,
                                   Earl Blumenauer,
                                   John Baldacci,
                                 Managers on the Part of the House.
                                   Bob Smith,
                                   John W. Warner,
                                   Michael D. Crapo,
                                   Max Baucus,
                                   Barbara Boxer,
                                Managers on the Part of the Senate.

                                  
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