Florida Wetlands Mitigation Banking Study Act of 1996

Summary: Florida Wetlands Mitigation Banking Study Act of 1996 - Directs the Secretary of the Army to study and report to specified congressional committees and the President on the potential and problems of mitigation banking in Florida.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Florida Wetlands Mitigation Banking 
Study Act of 1996''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) Mitigating the environmental impacts of necessary 
        development actions on the Nation's wetlands and other aquatic 
        resources is a central premise of Federal wetlands programs. 
        While mitigation is required to prevent loss of the Nation's 
        wetland resources, mitigation should be undertaken in a manner 
        that is flexible, efficient, reliable, and effective.
            (2) Mitigation banking is wetland resource restoration, 
        enhancement, creation, and in exceptional circumstances 
        preservation, undertaken to provide mitigation ``credits'' to 
        offset unavoidable wetland losses.
            (3) Mitigation banks often provide greater flexibility, 
        efficiency, reliability, and effectiveness in meeting 
        mitigation requirements than on-site mitigation can and often 
        have significant environmental advantages over individual 
        mitigation projects, such as--
                    (A) maintaining the integrity of a larger aquatic 
                ecosystem by consolidating compensatory mitigation into 
                a single large parcel;
                    (B) bringing together financial resources, 
                planning, and scientific expertise not practicable to 
                bring to many project-specific compensatory mitigation 
                proposals;
                    (C) reducing permit processing times and providing 
                more cost-effective compensatory mitigation 
                opportunities for projects that qualify;
                    (D) improving regulatory oversight by focusing 
                regulatory agency resources more effectively; and
                    (E) contributing toward attainment of the goal of 
                no net loss of the Nation's wetlands by providing 
                opportunities to compensate for authorized impacts when 
                mitigation might not otherwise be appropriate or 
                practicable.
            (4) The State of Florida has developed one of the most 
        advanced regulatory frameworks in the Nation for authorizing 
        the establishment and use of mitigation banks. Florida's 
        statutes and regulations governing mitigation banks contain 
        provisions for evaluating the suitability of mitigation banks, 
        determining the number of mitigation ``credits'' to be awarded 
        a mitigation bank, and ensuring the success and perpetual 
        protection and management of mitigation banks. As a result, a 
        number of mitigation banks have been successfully established 
        and used in Florida.
            (5) In determining whether Federal legislation or further 
        administrative action is necessary to encourage the 
        establishment of mitigation banks, to allow for the use of 
        mitigation banks to meet the requirements of applicable Federal 
        statutes and regulations, and to ensure the proper location, 
        success, and perpetual protection and management of mitigation 
        banks, a study of the authorization and use of mitigation banks 
        in Florida is necessary and useful.

SEC. 3. MITIGATION BANKING STUDY.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of the Army shall conduct a study of 
mitigation banking in the State of Florida for the purpose of 
evaluating the potential and problems of mitigation banking. By July 1, 
1997, the Secretary shall submit a written report on the results of the 
study to the President, the Committee on Environment and Public Works 
of the Senate, and the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 
of the House of Representatives.
    (b) Consultation.--In conducting this mitigation banking study and 
preparing the report under this section, the Secretary shall consult 
with the following:
            (1) The Environmental Protection Agency.
            (2) The Natural Resources Conservation Service of the 
        Department of Agriculture.
            (3) The Fish and Wildlife Service of the Department of the 
        Interior.
            (4) The National Marine Fisheries Service of the Department 
        of Commerce.
            (5) The Florida Department of Environmental Protection.
            (6) The Northwest Florida Water Management District.
            (7) The Suwannee River Water Management District.
            (8) The St. Johns River Water Management District.
            (9) The Southwest Florida Water Management District.
            (10) The South Florida Water Management District.
    (c) Matters To Be Addressed.--The Secretary's mitigation bank study 
and report under this section shall address all subjects relating to 
the effective and responsible establishment, use, and perpetual 
protection and management of mitigation banks and shall specifically 
address the following issues:
            (1) Whether Federal legislation is necessary to encourage 
        the responsible establishment, use, and perpetual protection 
        and management of mitigation banks.
            (2) The manner in which mitigation banks should be 
        authorized.
            (3) The legal restrictions which should be placed on lands 
        within a mitigation bank to ensure the perpetual protection of 
        that mitigation bank.
            (4) The financial responsibility that entities establishing 
        a mitigation bank should provide to ensure the success and 
        perpetual protection and management of that mitigation bank.
            (5) The manner in which wetland and upland areas within a 
        mitigation bank should be evaluated in the award of mitigation 
        ``credits'' to a mitigation bank.
            (6) The manner in which mitigation ``credits'' from a 
        mitigation bank can be used as compensation for unavoidable 
        impacts to wetlands and other aquatic resources.
            (7) The manner in which the service area of a mitigation 
        bank should be established.
            (8) The relationship of mitigation banks to public 
        acquisition or restoration programs designed to restore or 
        enhance the environment.
            (9) The manner in which the siting of mitigations banks can 
        be directed to assure compatibility with adjacent land uses and 
        furtherance of local or regional goals for the restoration or 
        protection of watersheds, floodplains, particular habitat types 
        or functions, and water quality.
            (10) The procedure by which Federal and any State 
        authorizations of the establishment and use of mitigation banks 
        can be coordinated to reduce duplication and increase 
        governmental efficiency.
    (d) Public Comment.--Prior to submitting the report, the Secretary 
shall provide notice and an opportunity for public comment on the 
report. The Secretary shall also solicit comments on the report from 
other States by submitting a copy of the report to the Interstate 
Counsel on Water Policy for comment.