II 

Calendar No. 452 

112TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 1266 

[Report No. 112–183] 

To direct the Secretary of the Interior to establish a program to build 

on and help coordinate funding for restoration and protection efforts 

of the 4-State Delaware River Basin region, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 23, 2011 

Mr. CARPER (for himself, Mr. COONS, Mr. MENENDEZ, Mr. LAUTENBERG, 

Mr. SCHUMER, Mrs. GILLIBRAND, and Mr. CASEY) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works 

JULY 16, 2012 

Reported by Mrs. BOXER, with an amendment 

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

A BILL 

To direct the Secretary of the Interior to establish a program 

to build on and help coordinate funding for restoration 

and protection efforts of the 4-State Delaware River 

Basin region, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Delaware River Basin 

3 Conservation Act of 2011’’. 

4 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

5 Congress finds that— 

6 (1) the Delaware River Basin is a national 

7 treasure of great cultural, environmental, and eco8 logical importance; 

9 (2) the Basin contains over 12,500 square miles 

10 of land in the States of Delaware, New Jersey, New 

11 York, and Pennsylvania, including nearly 800 square 

12 miles of bay and more than 2,000 tributary rivers 

13 and streams; 

14 (3) the Basin is home to more than 8,000,000 

15 people who depend on the Delaware River and the 

16 Delaware Bay as an economic engine, a place of 

17 recreation, and a vital habitat for fish and wildlife; 

18 (4) the Basin provides clean drinking water to 

19 more than 15,000,000 people, including New York 

20 City, which relies on the Basin for approximately 

21 half of the drinking water supply of the city, and 

22 Philadelphia, whose most significant threat to the 

23 drinking water supply of the city is forest clearing 

24 in the Upper Basin, according to a study conducted 

25 by the Philadelphia Water Department; 


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1 (5) almost 180 species of fish and wildlife are 

2 considered special status species in the Basin due to 

3 habitat loss and degradation, particularly sturgeon, 

4 eastern oyster, and red knots, which have been iden5 tified as unique species in need of habitat improve6 ment; 

7 (6) the Basin provides habitat for over 200 

8 resident and migrant fish species, includes signifi9 cant recreational fisheries, and is a prolific source of 

10 eastern oyster, blue crab, and the largest population 

11 of the American horseshoe crab; 

12 (7) as of the date of enactment of this Act, oys13 ter landings in the Delaware Bay are at 100,000 

14 bushels, down from the 500,000 bushels that were 

15 harvested in the 1980s, due, in part, to water pollu16 tion and disease; 

17 (8) the Delaware Bay has the second largest 

18 concentration of shorebirds in North America and is 

19 designated as 1 of the 4 most important shorebird 

20 migration sites in the world; 

21 (9) the Basin, 50 percent of which is forested, 

22 also has 1,000,000 acres of wetland, more than 

23 126,000 acres of which are recognized as inter24 nationally important, resulting in a landscape that 


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1 provides essential ecosystem services, including 

2 recreation, commercial, and water quality benefits; 

3 (10) much of the remaining exemplary natural 

4 landscape in the Basin is vulnerable to further deg5 radation, as the Basin gains approximately 14 

6 square miles of developed land annually, and with 

7 new development, urban watersheds are increasingly 

8 covered by impervious surfaces, amplifying the quan9 tity of polluted runoff into rivers and streams; 

10 (11) the Delaware River is the longest 

11 undammed river east of the Mississippi, and a crit12 ical component of the National Wild and Scenic Riv13 ers System in the Northeast; 

14 (12) management of water volume in the Basin 

15 is critical to flood mitigation and habitat for fish 

16 and wildlife, and following 3 major floods along the 

17 Delaware River since 2004, the Governors of the 

18 States of Delaware, New Jersey, New York, and 

19 Pennsylvania have called for natural flood damage 

20 reduction measures to combat the problem, including 

21 restoring the function of riparian corridors; 

22 (13) the Delaware River Port Complex (includ23 ing docking facilities in the States of Delaware, New 

24 Jersey, and Pennsylvania) is the largest freshwater 

25 port in the world, the Port of Philadelphia handles 


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1 the largest volume of international tonnage and 70 

2 percent of the oil shipped to the East Coast, and the 

3 Port of Wilmington, a full-service deepwater port 

4 and marine terminal, is the busiest terminal on the 

5 Delaware River, handling more than 400 vessels per 

6 year with an annual import/export cargo tonnage of 

7 more than 4,000,000 tons; 

8 (14) the Delaware Estuary, where freshwater 

9 from the Delaware River mixes with saltwater from 

10 the Atlantic Ocean, is 1 of the largest and most 

11 complex of the 28 estuaries in the National Estuary 

12 Program, and the Partnership for the Delaware Es13 tuary works to improve the environmental health of 

14 the Delaware Estuary; 

15 (15) the Delaware River Basin Commission is a 

16 Federal-interstate compact government agency 

17 charged with overseeing a unified approach to man18 aging the river system and implementing important 

19 water resources management projects and activities 

20 throughout the Basin that are in the national inter21 est; and 

22 (16) restoration activities in the Basin are sup23 ported through several Federal and State agency 

24 programs, and funding for those important pro25 grams should continue and complement the estabVerDate Mar 15 2010 04:49 Jul 17, 2012 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S1266.RS S1266

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1 lishment of the Delaware River Basin Restoration 

2 Program, which is intended to build on and help co3 ordinate restoration and protection funding mecha4 nisms at the Federal, State, regional, and local lev5 els. 

6 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

7 In this Act: 

8 (1) BASIN.—The term ‘‘Basin’’ means the 4- 

9 State Delaware Basin region, including all of Dela10 ware Bay and portions of the States of Delaware, 

11 New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania located in 

12 the Delaware River watershed. 

13 (2) BASIN STATE.—The term ‘‘Basin State’’ 

14 means each of the States of Delaware, New Jersey, 

15 New York, and Pennsylvania. 

16 (3) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘‘Director’’ means 

17 the Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife 

18 Service. 

19 (4) FOUNDATION.—The term ‘‘Foundation’’ 

20 means the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, a 

21 congressionally chartered foundation established by 

22 section 2 of the National Fish and Wildlife Founda23 tion Establishment Act (16 U.S.C. 3701). 


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1 (5) GRANT PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘grant pro2 gram’’ means the Delaware River Basin restoration 

3 grant program established under section 5. 

4 (6) PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘program’’ means 

5 the Delaware River Basin restoration program es6 tablished under section 4. 

7 (7) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

8 the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Di9 rector. 

10 (8) SERVICE.—The term ‘‘Service’’ means the 

11 United States Fish and Wildlife Service. 

12 SEC. 4. PROGRAM ESTABLISHMENT. 

13 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 180 days after 

14 amounts are made available to carry out this Act, the Sec15 retary shall establish a program to be known as the ‘‘Dela16 ware River Basin restoration program’’. 

17 (b) DUTIES.—In carrying out the program, the Sec18 retary shall— 

19 (1) draw on existing and new management 

20 plans for the Basin and work in consultation with 

21 applicable management entities, including represent22 atives of the Partnership for the Delaware Estuary, 

23 the Delaware River Basin Commission, the Federal 

24 Government, and other State and local governments, 

25 and regional and nonprofit organizations, as approVerDate Mar 15 2010 04:49 Jul 17, 2012 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S1266.RS S1266

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1 priate, to identify, prioritize, and implement restora2 tion and protection activities within the Basin; 

3 (2) adopt an investment strategy that— 

4 (A) supports the implementation of a 

5 shared set of restoration and protection activi6 ties developed in accordance with paragraph 

7 (1); 

8 (B) targets cost-effective conservation 

9 projects; and 

10 (C) supports measurable conservation ef11 forts; 

12 (3) establish the grant program in accordance 

13 with section 5; and 

14 (4) provide for technical assistance in accord15 ance with this Act. 

16 (c) COORDINATION.—In establishing the program, 

17 the Secretary shall consult, as appropriate, with— 

18 (1) the heads of Federal agencies, including— 

19 (A) the Administrator of the Environ20 mental Protection Agency; 

21 (B) the Administrator of the National Oce22 anic Atmospheric Administration; 

23 (C) the Chief of the Natural Resource 

24 Conservation Service; 


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1 (D) the Chief of Engineers of the United 

2 States Army Corps of Engineers; 

3 (E) the Director of the National Park 

4 Service; and 

5 (F) the head of any other applicable agen6 cy; 

7 (2) the Governors of the Basin States; 

8 (3) the Partnership for the Delaware Estuary; 

9 (4) the Delaware River Basin Commission; 

10 (5) fish and wildlife joint venture partnerships; 

11 and 

12 (6) other public agencies and organizations with 

13 authority for the planning and implementation of 

14 conservation strategies in the Basin. 

15 (d) PURPOSES.—The purposes of the program in16 clude— 

17 (1) coordinating restoration and protection ac18 tivities among Federal, State, local, and regional en19 tities and conservation partners throughout the 

20 Basin; 

21 (2) carrying out coordinated restoration and 

22 protection activities throughout the Basin and Basin 

23 States— 

24 (A) to sustain and enhance habitat restora25 tion and protection activities; 


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1 (B) to sustain and enhance water quality 

2 improvements, including drinking water quality; 

3 (C) to sustain and enhance water manage4 ment and flood damage mitigation improve5 ments to benefit fish and wildlife habitat; 

6 (D) to improve opportunities for public ac7 cess and recreation in the Basin; 

8 (E) to encourage environmentally sensitive 

9 land use planning and development; 

10 (F) to increase the capacity to implement 

11 coordinated restoration and protection activities 

12 in the Basin by conducting public outreach and 

13 education and promoting citizen involvement; 

14 and 

15 (G) to coordinate, conduct, and support 

16 the planning, monitoring, and research activi17 ties necessary to carry out coordinated restora18 tion and protection activities; and 

19 (3) providing competitive grants for technical 

20 assistance to carry out restoration and protection ac21 tivities in the Basin, with priority given to activities 

22 with multiple benefits, including habitat, water qual23 ity, and flood protection. 


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1 SEC. 5. GRANTS AND ASSISTANCE. 

2 (a) DELAWARE RIVER BASIN RESTORATION PRO3 GRAM.—To the extent that funds are available to carry 

4 out this section, the Secretary shall establish a grant pro5 gram to be known as the ‘‘Delaware River Basin restora6 tion grant program’’ to provide competitive matching 

7 grants of varying amounts to State and local governments, 

8 nonprofit organizations, community organizations, institu9 tions of higher education, and other eligible entities to 

10 carry out activities described in section 4(d). 

11 (b) CRITERIA.—The Secretary, in consultation with 

12 the organizations described in section 4(c), shall develop 

13 criteria for the grant program to help ensure that activi14 ties funded under this section accomplish 1 or more of 

15 the following: 

16 (1) Restoration or protection of fish and wildlife 

17 species and the habitats of those species. 

18 (2) Improvement or protection of water quality 

19 by reducing nonpoint and point source pollutants. 

20 (3) Reduction or improvement of the manage21 ment of water volume and flooding. 

22 (4) Inclusion of priority needs or actions identi23 fied in the single investment strategy adopted under 

24 section 4(b)(2). 


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1 (5) Inclusion of restoration and protection ac2 tivities with multiple benefits in the Basin, including 

3 habitat, water quality, and flood damage reduction. 

4 (c) COST SHARING.— 

5 (1) FEDERAL SHARE.—The Federal share of 

6 the cost of a project funded under the grant pro7 gram shall not exceed 75 percent of the total cost 

8 of the activity, as determined by the Secretary. 

9 (2) NON-FEDERAL SHARE.—The non-Federal 

10 share of the cost of a project funded under the grant 

11 program may be provided in cash or in the form of 

12 an in-kind contribution of services or materials. 

13 (d) ADMINISTRATION.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may enter 

15 into an agreement to manage the grant program 

16 with the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation or 

17 a similar organization with applicable expertise. 

18 (2) FUNDING.—If the Secretary enters into an 

19 agreement under paragraph (1), the organization se20 lected shall— 

21 (A) for each fiscal year, receive amounts to 

22 carry out this section in an advance payment of 

23 the entire amount on October 1, or as soon as 

24 practicable thereafter, of that fiscal year; 


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1 (B) invest and reinvest those amounts for 

2 the benefit of the grant program; and 

3 (C) otherwise administer the grant pro4 gram to support partnerships between the pub5 lic and private sectors in accordance with this 

6 Act. 

7 (3) REQUIREMENTS.—If the Secretary enters 

8 into an agreement with the Foundation under para9 graph (1), any amounts received by the Foundation 

10 under this section shall be subject to the National 

11 Fish and Wildlife Foundation Establishment Act (16 

12 U.S.C. 3701 et seq.), excluding section 10(a) of that 

13 Act (16 U.S.C. 3709(a)). 

14 (e) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary may 

15 provide, or provide for, technical assistance to carry out 

16 this section, on a nonreimbursable basis, to— 

17 (1) other Federal agencies; 

18 (2) State and local governments; 

19 (3) nonprofit organizations; 

20 (4) community organizations; 

21 (5) institutions of higher education; or 

22 (6) other entities, as the Secretary determines 

23 to be appropriate. 


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1 SEC. 6. ANNUAL REPORTS. 

2 Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment 

3 of this Act and annually thereafter, the Secretary shall 

4 submit to Congress a report on the implementation of this 

5 Act, including a description of each project that has re6 ceived funding under this Act. 

7 SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be appro9 priated to the Secretary to carry out this Act $5,000,000 

10 for each of fiscal years 2012 through 2017. 

11 (b) USE.—Of any amount made available for each 

12 fiscal year, the Secretary shall use at least 75 percent to 

13 carry out the grant program and to provide, or provide 

14 for, technical assistance under section 5(e). 

15 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

16 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Delaware River Basin 

17 Conservation Act of 2011’’. 

18 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

19 Congress finds that— 

20 (1) the Delaware River Basin is a national 

21 treasure of great cultural, environmental, and ecologi22 cal importance; 

23 (2) the Basin contains over 12,500 square miles 

24 of land in the States of Delaware, New Jersey, New 

25 York, and Pennsylvania, including nearly 800 square 


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1 miles of bay and more than 2,000 tributary rivers 

2 and streams; 

3 (3) the Basin is home to more than 8,000,000 

4 people who depend on the Delaware River and the 

5 Delaware Bay as an economic engine, a place of 

6 recreation, and a vital habitat for fish and wildlife; 

7 (4) the Basin provides clean drinking water to 

8 more than 15,000,000 people, including New York 

9 City, which relies on the Basin for approximately 

10 half of the drinking water supply of the city, and 

11 Philadelphia, whose most significant threat to the 

12 drinking water supply of the city is forest clearing in 

13 the Upper Basin, according to a study conducted by 

14 the Philadelphia Water Department; 

15 (5) almost 180 species of fish and wildlife are 

16 considered special status species in the Basin due to 

17 habitat loss and degradation, particularly sturgeon, 

18 eastern oyster, and red knots, which have been identi19 fied as unique species in need of habitat improve20 ment; 

21 (6) the Basin provides habitat for over 200 resi22 dent and migrant fish species, includes significant 

23 recreational fisheries, and is a prolific source of east24 ern oyster, blue crab, and the largest population of the 

25 American horseshoe crab; 


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1 (7) as of the date of enactment of this Act, oyster 

2 landings in the Delaware Bay are at 100,000 bushels, 

3 down from the 500,000 bushels that were harvested in 

4 the 1980s, due, in part, to water pollution and dis5 ease; 

6 (8) the Delaware Bay has the second largest con7 centration of shorebirds in North America and is des8 ignated as 1 of the 4 most important shorebird migra9 tion sites in the world; 

10 (9) the Basin, 50 percent of which is forested, 

11 also has 1,000,000 acres of wetland, more than 

12 126,000 acres of which are recognized as internation13 ally important, resulting in a landscape that provides 

14 essential ecosystem services, including recreation, 

15 commercial, and water quality benefits; 

16 (10) much of the remaining exemplary natural 

17 landscape in the Basin is vulnerable to further deg18 radation, as the Basin gains approximately 14 square 

19 miles of developed land annually, and with new devel20 opment, urban watersheds are increasingly covered by 

21 impervious surfaces, amplifying the quantity of pol22 luted runoff into rivers and streams; 

23 (11) the Delaware River is the longest 

24 undammed river east of the Mississippi, and a critVerDate Mar 15 2010 04:49 Jul 17, 2012 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00016 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S1266.RS S1266

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1 ical component of the National Wild and Scenic Riv2 ers System in the Northeast; 

3 (12) management of water volume in the Basin 

4 is critical to flood mitigation and habitat for fish and 

5 wildlife, and following 3 major floods along the Dela6 ware River since 2004, the Governors of the States of 

7 Delaware, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania 

8 have called for natural flood damage reduction meas9 ures to combat the problem, including restoring the 

10 function of riparian corridors; 

11 (13) the Delaware River Port Complex (includ12 ing docking facilities in the States of Delaware, New 

13 Jersey, and Pennsylvania) is the largest freshwater 

14 port in the world, the Port of Philadelphia handles 

15 the largest volume of international tonnage and 70 

16 percent of the oil shipped to the East Coast, and the 

17 Port of Wilmington, a full-service deepwater port and 

18 marine terminal, is the busiest terminal on the Dela19 ware River, handling more than 400 vessels per year 

20 with an annual import/export cargo tonnage of more 

21 than 4,000,000 tons; 

22 (14) the Delaware Estuary, where freshwater 

23 from the Delaware River mixes with saltwater from 

24 the Atlantic Ocean, is 1 of the largest and most com25 plex of the 28 estuaries in the National Estuary ProVerDate Mar 15 2010 04:49 Jul 17, 2012 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00017 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S1266.RS S1266

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1 gram, and the Partnership for the Delaware Estuary 

2 works to improve the environmental health of the 

3 Delaware Estuary; 

4 (15) the Delaware River Basin Commission is a 

5 Federal-interstate compact government agency 

6 charged with overseeing a unified approach to man7 aging the river system and implementing important 

8 water resources management projects and activities 

9 throughout the Basin that are in the national inter10 est; and 

11 (16) restoration activities in the Basin are sup12 ported through several Federal and State agency pro13 grams, and funding for those important programs 

14 should continue and complement the establishment of 

15 the Delaware River Basin Restoration Program, 

16 which is intended to build on and help coordinate res17 toration and protection funding mechanisms at the 

18 Federal, State, regional, and local levels. 

19 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

20 In this Act: 

21 (1) BASIN.—The term ‘‘Basin’’ means the 4- 

22 State Delaware Basin region, including all of Dela23 ware Bay and portions of the States of Delaware, 

24 New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania located in 

25 the Delaware River watershed. 


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1 (2) BASIN STATE.—The term ‘‘Basin State’’ 

2 means each of the States of Delaware, New Jersey, 

3 New York, and Pennsylvania. 

4 (3) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘‘Director’’ means the 

5 Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife Serv6 ice. 

7 (4) FOUNDATION.—The term ‘‘Foundation’’ 

8 means the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, a 

9 congressionally chartered foundation established by 

10 section 2 of the National Fish and Wildlife Founda11 tion Establishment Act (16 U.S.C. 3701). 

12 (5) GRANT PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘grant pro13 gram’’ means the Delaware River Basin restoration 

14 grant program established under section 5. 

15 (6) PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘program’’ means the 

16 Delaware River Basin restoration program estab17 lished under section 4. 

18 (7) RESTORATION AND PROTECTION.—The term 

19 ‘‘restoration and protection’’ means the conservation, 

20 protection, and enhancement of fish and wildlife, as 

21 well as the habitats of fish and wildlife. 

22 (8) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

23 the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Di24 rector. 


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1 (9) SERVICE.—The term ‘‘Service’’ means the 

2 United States Fish and Wildlife Service. 

3 SEC. 4. PROGRAM ESTABLISHMENT. 

4 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 180 days after 

5 amounts are made available to carry out this Act, the Sec6 retary shall establish a program to be known as the ‘‘Dela7 ware River Basin restoration program’’. 

8 (b) DUTIES.—In carrying out the program, the Sec9 retary shall— 

10 (1) draw on existing and new management plans 

11 for the Basin, or portions of the Basin, and work in 

12 consultation with applicable management entities, in13 cluding representatives of the Partnership for the 

14 Delaware Estuary, the Delaware River Basin Com15 mission, the Federal Government, and other State 

16 and local governments, and regional and nonprofit 

17 organizations, as appropriate, to identify, prioritize, 

18 and implement restoration and protection activities 

19 within the Basin; 

20 (2) adopt a basin-wide strategy that— 

21 (A) supports the implementation of a 

22 shared set of science-based restoration and pro23 tection activities developed in accordance with 

24 paragraph (1); 


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1 (B) targets cost-effective conservation 

2 projects; and 

3 (C) supports measurable conservation ef4 forts; 

5 (3) establish the grant program in accordance 

6 with section 5; and 

7 (4) provide for technical assistance in accordance 

8 with this Act. 

9 (c) COORDINATION.—In establishing the program, the 

10 Secretary shall consult, as appropriate, with— 

11 (1) the heads of Federal agencies, including— 

12 (A) the Administrator of the Environmental 

13 Protection Agency; 

14 (B) the Administrator of the National Oce15 anic Atmospheric Administration; 

16 (C) the Chief of the Natural Resource Con17 servation Service; 

18 (D) the Chief of Engineers of the Corps of 

19 Engineers; and 

20 (E) the head of any other applicable agency; 

21 (2) the Governors of the Basin States; 

22 (3) the Partnership for the Delaware Estuary; 

23 (4) the Delaware River Basin Commission; 

24 (5) fish and wildlife joint venture partnerships; 

25 and 


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1 (6) other public agencies and organizations with 

2 authority for the planning and implementation of 

3 conservation strategies in the Basin. 

4 (d) PURPOSES.—The purposes of the program in5 clude— 

6 (1) coordinating restoration and protection ac7 tivities among Federal, State, local, and regional en8 tities and conservation partners throughout the 

9 Basin; 

10 (2) carrying out coordinated restoration and 

11 protection activities throughout the Basin and Basin 

12 States— 

13 (A) to sustain and enhance fish and wildlife 

14 habitat restoration and protection activities; 

15 (B) to improve and maintain water quality 

16 to support fish and wildlife, as well as the habi17 tats of fish and wildlife; 

18 (C) to sustain and enhance water manage19 ment and flood damage mitigation improvements 

20 to benefit fish and wildlife habitat; 

21 (D) to improve opportunities for public ac22 cess and recreation in the Basin; 

23 (E) to encourage environmentally sensitive 

24 land use planning and development; 


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1 (F) to increase the capacity to implement 

2 coordinated restoration and protection activities 

3 in the Basin by conducting public outreach and 

4 education and promoting citizen involvement; 

5 and 

6 (G) to increase scientific capacity to sup7 port the planning, monitoring, and research ac8 tivities necessary to carry out coordinated res9 toration and protection activities; and 

10 (3) providing competitive grants for technical as11 sistance to carry out restoration and protection ac12 tivities in the Basin, with priority given to activities 

13 with multiple benefits, as described in paragraph (2). 

14 SEC. 5. GRANTS AND ASSISTANCE. 

15 (a) DELAWARE RIVER BASIN RESTORATION PRO16 GRAM.—To the extent that funds are available to carry out 

17 this section, the Secretary shall establish a grant program 

18 to be known as the ‘‘Delaware River Basin restoration 

19 grant program’’ to provide competitive matching grants of 

20 varying amounts to State and local governments, nonprofit 

21 organizations, community organizations, institutions of 

22 higher education, and other eligible entities to carry out ac23 tivities described in section 4(d). 

24 (b) CRITERIA.—The Secretary, in consultation with 

25 the organizations described in section 4(c), shall develop criVerDate Mar 15 2010 04:49 Jul 17, 2012 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00023 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S1266.RS S1266

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1 teria for the grant program to help ensure that activities 

2 funded under this section accomplish 1 or more of the fol3 lowing: 

4 (1) Restoration or protection of fish and wildlife 

5 and the habitats of fish and wildlife. 

6 (2) Improvement or protection of water quality 

7 by reducing pollutants and restoring headwater areas 

8 and drinking water basins. 

9 (3) Improvement of the management of water 

10 volume and mitigation of flood damage to support the 

11 ecological needs of fish and wildlife and the habitats 

12 of fish and wildlife. 

13 (4) Inclusion of priority needs or actions identi14 fied in the basin-wide strategy adopted under section 

15 4(b)(2). 

16 (5) Inclusion of restoration and protection ac17 tivities with multiple benefits in the Basin, including 

18 habitat, water quality, and flood damage mitigation. 

19 (c) COST SHARING.— 

20 (1) FEDERAL SHARE.—The Federal share of the 

21 cost of a project funded under the grant program shall 

22 not exceed 50 percent of the total cost of the activity, 

23 as determined by the Secretary. 

24 (2) NON-FEDERAL SHARE.—The non-Federal 

25 share of the cost of a project funded under the grant 


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1 program may be provided in cash or in the form of 

2 an in-kind contribution of services or materials. 

3 (d) ADMINISTRATION.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may enter into 

5 an agreement to manage the grant program with the 

6 National Fish and Wildlife Foundation or a similar 

7 organization that offers grant management services. 

8 (2) FUNDING.—If the Secretary enters into an 

9 agreement under paragraph (1), the organization se10 lected shall— 

11 (A) for each fiscal year, receive amounts to 

12 carry out this section in an advance payment of 

13 the entire amount on October 1, or as soon as 

14 practicable thereafter, of that fiscal year; 

15 (B) invest and reinvest those amounts for 

16 the benefit of the grant program; and 

17 (C) otherwise administer the grant program 

18 to support partnerships between the public and 

19 private sectors in accordance with this Act. 

20 (3) REQUIREMENTS.—If the Secretary enters 

21 into an agreement with the Foundation under para22 graph (1), any amounts received by the Foundation 

23 under this section shall be subject to the National 

24 Fish and Wildlife Foundation Establishment Act (16 


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26 

•S 1266 RS

1 U.S.C. 3701 et seq.), excluding section 10(a) of that 

2 Act (16 U.S.C. 3709(a)). 

3 (e) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary may pro4 vide, or provide for, technical assistance to carry out this 

5 section, on a nonreimbursable basis, to— 

6 (1) other Federal agencies; 

7 (2) State and local governments; 

8 (3) nonprofit organizations; 

9 (4) community organizations; 

10 (5) institutions of higher education; or 

11 (6) other entities, as the Secretary determines to 

12 be appropriate. 

13 SEC. 6. ANNUAL REPORTS. 

14 Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment 

15 of this Act and annually thereafter, the Secretary shall sub16 mit to Congress a report on the implementation of this Act, 

17 including a description of each project that has received 

18 funding under this Act. 

19 SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be appro21 priated to the Secretary to carry out this Act $5,000,000 

22 for each of fiscal years 2012 through 2017. 

23 (b) USE.—Of any amount made available for each fis24 cal year, the Secretary shall use at least 75 percent to carry 


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•S 1266 RS

1 out the grant program and to provide, or provide for, tech2 nical assistance under section 5(e). 


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Calendar No. 452 

112TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 1266 

[Report No. 112–183] 

A BILL 

To direct the Secretary of the Interior to establish 

other purposes. 4-State Delaware River Basin region, and for ing for restoration and protection efforts of the a program to build on and help coordinate fundJULY 16, 2012 

Reported with an amendment 


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