```

[House Report 107-274]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]

                                                                       
107th Congress                                            Rept. 107-274
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 1st Session                                                     Part 1

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

 
               CONNECTICUT RIVER ATLANTIC SALMON COMPACT

                                _______
                                

                November 8, 2001.--Ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

  Mr. Hansen, from the Committee on Resources, submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                        [To accompany H.R. 2062]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

  The Committee on Resources, to whom was referred the bill 
(H.R. 2062) to extend the effective period of the consent of 
Congress to the interstate compact relating to the restoration 
of Atlantic salmon to the Connecticut River Basin and creating 
the Connecticut River Atlantic Salmon Commission, and for other 
purposes, having considered the same, report favorably thereon 
with an amendment and recommend that the bill as amended do 
pass.
  The amendment is as follows:
  Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the 
following:

SECTION 1. CONNECTICUT RIVER ATLANTIC SALMON COMPACT.

  (a) Effective Period of Congressional Consent.--Section 3(2) of 
Public Law 98-138 (97 Stat. 870) is amended by striking ``twenty 
years'' and inserting ``40 years''.
  (b) Authorization of Appropriations.--Public Law 98-138 (97 Stat. 
866) is amended by adding at the end the following:

``SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

  ``There is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of the 
Interior to carry out the activities of the Connecticut River Atlantic 
Salmon Commission $5,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2002 through 
2010.''.

                          Purpose of the Bill

    The purpose of H.R. 2062 is to extend the effective period 
of the consent of Congress to the interstate compact relating 
to the restoration of Atlantic salmon to the Connecticut River 
Basin and creating the Connecticut River Atlantic Salmon 
Commission.

                  Background and Need for Legislation

    The Connecticut River is the longest river in New England, 
stretching over 400 miles from the Long Island Sound to the 
Canadian Border. The Connecticut River is the southernmost 
river which currently has spawning Atlantic salmon in the 
United States, and supports over 60 other species of fish, 14 
of which are migratory.
    Atlantic salmon have a complicated life cycle, traveling 
over 2,000 miles between the United States to Greenland and 
back during their lifetime. Atlantic salmon, unlike Pacific 
salmon, have the ability to spawn more than once. In the 
Connecticut River basin, the Atlantic salmon freshwater habitat 
spans four New England states; Connecticut, Massachusetts, New 
Hampshire, and Vermont.
    The most recent attempt to restore Atlantic salmon started 
in 1965 when the Federal Anadromous Fish Conservation Act made 
funds available for interstate fish restoration programs. The 
current Atlantic Salmon Restoration Program formally commenced 
in 1967 when Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and 
Vermont, along with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the 
National Marine Fisheries Service, signed a statement of intent 
to restore anadromous fish to the Connecticut River. 
Subsequently, Congress passed the Connecticut River Basin 
Atlantic Salmon Compact in 1983, which formalized the state and 
federal agreements. The original compact was authorized for 20 
years. This action created the Connecticut River Atlantic 
Salmon Commission which was authorized to guide the restoration 
of salmon to the basin. The commission has been successful in 
finding suitable donor stocks that naturally spawn and have 
established an annual return of sea-run salmon to the 
Connecticut River. The commission is also working on additional 
measures to rebuild the Connecticut River stock, including 
installation of fish passages, establishing hatchery smolt 
production, and increasing the number of fry stocked in the 
watershed.
    H.R. 2062 extends the effective period of the consent of 
Congress to the interstate compact relating to the restoration 
of Atlantic Salmon to the Connecticut River Basin by an 
additional 20 years. Appropriations are authorized at $5 
million for fiscal years 2002-2010.

                            Committee Action

    On June 5, 2001, H.R. 2062 was introduced by Congressman 
John W. Olver (D-MA) and was referred to the Committee on 
Resources. On June 15, 2001, the bill was referred within the 
Committee to the Subcommittee on Fisheries Conservation, 
Wildlife and Oceans. On July 19,2001, the Subcommittee met to 
mark up the bill. Congressman Wayne T. Gilchrest (R-MD) offered an 
amendment to reduce the authorized appropriation to $5 million. The 
amendment was adopted by voice vote. The bill, as amended, was then 
forwarded to the Full Committee by voice vote. On September 12, 2001, 
the Full Resources Committee met to consider the bill. By unanimous 
consent, the committee print showing the text of the bill as it was 
amended by the Subcommittee on July 19, 2001, was considered as 
original text. There were no amendments to the bill. The bill was then 
ordered favorably reported to the House of Representatives by unanimous 
consent.

            Committee Oversight Findings and Recommendations

    Regarding clause 2(b)(1) of rule X and clause 3(c)(1) of 
rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the 
Committee on Resources' oversight findings and recommendations 
are reflected in the body of this report.

                   Constitutional Authority Statement

    Article I, section 8 of the Constitution of the United 
States grants Congress the authority to enact this bill.

                    Compliance With House Rule XIII

    1. Cost of Legislation. Clause 3(d)(2) of rule XIII of the 
Rules of the House of Representatives requires an estimate and 
a comparison by the Committee of the costs which would be 
incurred in carrying out this bill. However, clause 3(d)(3)(B) 
of that rule provides that this requirement does not apply when 
the Committee has included in its report a timely submitted 
cost estimate of the bill prepared by the Director of the 
Congressional Budget Office under section 402 of the 
Congressional Budget Act of 1974.
    2. Congressional Budget Act. As required by clause 3(c)(2) 
of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and 
section 308(a) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, this 
bill does not contain any new budget authority, spending 
authority, credit authority, or an increase or decrease in 
revenues or tax expenditures.
    3. General Performance Goals and Objectives. As required by 
clause 3(c)(4) of rule XIII, the general performance goal or 
objective of this bill is to extend the effective period of the 
consent of Congress to the interstate compact relating to the 
restoration of Atlantic salmon to the Connecticut River Basin 
and creating the Connecticut River Atlantic Salmon Commission.
    4. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate. Under clause 
3(c)(3) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives and section 403 of the Congressional Budget Act 
of 1974, the Committee has received the following cost estimate 
for this bill from the Director of the Congressional Budget 
Office:

H.R. 2062--A bill to extend the effective period of the consent of 
        Congress to the interstate compact relating to the restoration 
        of Atlantic salmon to the Connecticut River Basin and creating 
        the Connecticut River Atlantic Salmon Commission, and for other 
        purposes

    Summary: CBO estimates that implementing H.R. 2062 would 
cost $2 million in 2002 and $23 million over the 2002-2006 
period, assuming appropriation of the authorized amounts. The 
bill would not affect direct spending or receipts; therefore, 
pay-as-you-go procedures would not apply. H.R. 2062 contains no 
intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the 
Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA) and would impose no costs 
on state, local, or tribal governments.
    Under Public Law 98-138, the Congress consented to an 
interstate compact that established the Connecticut River 
Atlantic Salmon Commission, an interagency, multistate 
cooperative organization created to restore Atlantic salmon to 
the Connecticut River. H.R. 2062 would extend by 20 years the 
effective period of Congressional consent to the compact and 
authorize the appropriation of $5 million a year during that 
period for the commission.
    Estimated cost to the Federal Government: The estimated 
budgetary impact of H.R. 2062 is shown in the following table. 
The costs of this legislation fall within budget function 300 
(natural resources and environment).

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                  By fiscal year, in millions of dollars--
                                                           -----------------------------------------------------
                                                              2001     2002     2003     2004     2005     2006
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                        SPENDING SUBJECT TO APPROPRIATION

Spending Under Current Law:
    Budget Authority \1\..................................        1        0        0        0        0        0
    Estimated Outlays.....................................        1        0        0        0        0        0
Proposed Changes:
    Authorization Level...................................        0        5        5        5        5        5
    Estimated Outlays.....................................        0        2        5        6        5        5
Spending Under H.R. 2062:
    Authorization Level \1\...............................        1        5        5        5        5        5
    Estimated Outlays.....................................        1        2        5        6        5        5
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ The 2001 level is the amount appropriated that year for activities related to the Connecticut River Salmon
  Commission.

    Basis of estimate: For this estimate, CBO assumes that H.R. 
2062 will be enacted near the start of fiscal year 2002 and 
that authorized amounts will be provided near the start of each 
fiscal year.
    According to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, federal 
agencies currently spend a total of about $1 million annually 
for activities related to the Connecticut River Atlantic Salmon 
Commission. According to the agency, additional funds proposed 
by H.R. 2062 would enable the commission to expand its 
activities and would be used to hire additional staff and 
restore salmon habitat. CBO estimates that outlays for these 
activities would total $2 million in 2002 and $23 million over 
the next five years.
    Pay-as-you-go considerations: None.
    Intergovernmental and private-sector impact: H.R. 2062 
contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as 
defined in UMRA and would impose no costs on state, local, or 
tribal governments.
    Previous CBO estimate: On September 18, 2001, CBO 
transmitted a cost estimate for S. 703, similar legislation as 
reported by the Senate Committee on the Judiciary on September 
6, 2001. Differences between the two cost estimates reflect 
differences in the amounts authorized to be appropriated under 
each bill. Specifically, S. 703 would authorize appropriations 
of $9 million a year, while H.R. 2062 would authorize $5 
million a year.
    Estimate prepared by: Federal Costs: Megan Carroll. Impact 
on State, Local, and Tribal Governments: Marjorie Miller. 
Impact on the Private Sector: Lauren Marks.
    Estimate approved by: Peter H. Fontaine, Deputy Assistant 
Director for Budget Analysis.

                    Compliance With Public Law 104-4

    This bill contains no unfunded mandates.

                Preemption of State, Local or Tribal Law

    This bill is not intended to preempt any State, local or 
tribal law.

         Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported

    In compliance with clause 3(e) of rule XIII of the Rules of 
the House of Representatives, changes in existing law made by 
the bill, as reported, are shown as follows (existing law 
proposed to be omitted is enclosed in black brackets, new 
matter is printed in italic, existing law in which no change is 
proposed is shown in roman):

                        ACT OF OCTOBER 28, 1983

                          (Public Law 98-138)

 AN ACT To grant the consent of Congress to an interstate agreement or 
     compact relating to the restoration of Atlantic Salmon in the 
Connecticut River Basin, and to allow the Secretary of Commerce and the 
 Secretary of the Interior to participate as members in a Connecticut 
River Atlantic Salmon Commission

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

  Sec. 3. The consent of the Congress granted by the first 
section of this Act to the compact referred to in that 
section--
          (1)  * * *
          (2) shall be effective for a period of [twenty years] 
        40 years beginning on the date of the consent of the 
        Congress becomes effective under paragraph (1).

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

  There is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of 
the Interior to carry out the activities of the Connecticut 
River Atlantic Salmon Commission $5,000,000 for each of fiscal 
years 2002 through 2010.

                                

```