Calendar No. 314

106TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION S. 492

[Report No. 106–181]

A BILL

To amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act

to assist in the restoration of the ChesapeakeBay, and for other purposes.

OCTOBER 13, 1999

Reported without amendment
II

Calendar No. 314

106TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION S. 492

[Report No. 106–181]

To amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to assist in the restoration

of the Chesapeake Bay, and for other purposes.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

MARCH 2, 1999

Mr. SARBANES (for himself, Ms. MIKULSKI, Mr. WARNER, Mr. ROBB, and Mr.

SANTORUM) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works

OCTOBER 13, 1999

Reported by Mr. CHAFEE without amendment

A BILL

To amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to assist

in the restoration of the Chesapeake Bay, 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,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Chesapeake Bay Res5 toration Act of 1999’’.
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S 492 RS

1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

2 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that—

3 (1) the Chesapeake Bay is a national treasure

4 and a resource of worldwide significance;

5 (2) over many years, the productivity and water

6 quality of the Chesapeake Bay and its watershed

7 were diminished by pollution, excessive sedimenta8 tion, shoreline erosion, the impacts of population

9 growth and development in the Chesapeake Bay wa10 tershed, and other factors;

11 (3) the Federal Government (acting through

12 the Administrator of the Environmental Protection

13 Agency), the Governor of the State of Maryland, the

14 Governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia, the Gov15 ernor of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the

16 Chairperson of the Chesapeake Bay Commission,

17 and the Mayor of the District of Columbia, as

18 Chesapeake Bay Agreement signatories, have com19 mitted to a comprehensive cooperative program to

20 achieve improved water quality and improvements in

21 the productivity of living resources of the Bay;

22 (4) the cooperative program described in para23 graph (3) serves as a national and international

24 model for the management of estuaries; and

25 (5) there is a need to expand Federal support

26 for monitoring, management, and restoration activi-
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1 ties in the Chesapeake Bay and the tributaries of

2 the Bay in order to meet and further the original

3 and subsequent goals and commitments of the

4 Chesapeake Bay Program.

5 (b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are—

6 (1) to expand and strengthen cooperative ef7 forts to restore and protect the Chesapeake Bay;

8 and

9 (2) to achieve the goals established in the

10 Chesapeake Bay Agreement.

11 SEC. 3. CHESAPEAKE BAY.

12 The Federal Water Pollution Control Act is amended

13 by striking section 117 (33 U.S.C. 1267) and inserting

14 the following:

15 ‘‘SEC. 117. CHESAPEAKE BAY.

16 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section:

17 ‘‘(1) ADMINISTRATIVE COST.—The term ‘ad18 ministrative cost’ means the cost of salaries and

19 fringe benefits incurred in administering a grant

20 under this section.

21 ‘‘(2) CHESAPEAKE BAY AGREEMENT.—The

22 term ‘Chesapeake Bay Agreement’ means the for23 mal, voluntary agreements executed to achieve the

24 goal of restoring and protecting the Chesapeake Bay

25 ecosystem and the living resources of the Chesa-
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1 peake Bay ecosystem and signed by the Chesapeake

2 Executive Council.

3 ‘‘(3) CHESAPEAKE BAY ECOSYSTEM.—The term

4 ‘Chesapeake Bay ecosystem’ means the ecosystem of

5 the Chesapeake Bay and its watershed.

6 ‘‘(4) CHESAPEAKE BAY PROGRAM.—The term

7 ‘Chesapeake Bay Program’ means the program di8 rected by the Chesapeake Executive Council in ac9 cordance with the Chesapeake Bay Agreement.

10 ‘‘(5) CHESAPEAKE EXECUTIVE COUNCIL.—The

11 term ‘Chesapeake Executive Council’ means the sig12 natories to the Chesapeake Bay Agreement.

13 ‘‘(6) SIGNATORY JURISDICTION.—The term

14 ‘signatory jurisdiction’ means a jurisdiction of a sig15 natory to the Chesapeake Bay Agreement.

16 ‘‘(b) CONTINUATION OF CHESAPEAKE BAY PRO17 GRAM.—

18 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In cooperation with the

19 Chesapeake Executive Council (and as a member of

20 the Council), the Administrator shall continue the

21 Chesapeake Bay Program.

22 ‘‘(2) PROGRAM OFFICE.—

23 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator

24 shall maintain in the Environmental Protection

25 Agency a Chesapeake Bay Program Office.
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1 ‘‘(B) FUNCTION.—The Chesapeake Bay

2 Program Office shall provide support to the

3 Chesapeake Executive Council by—

4 ‘‘(i) implementing and coordinating

5 science, research, modeling, support serv6 ices, monitoring, data collection, and other

7 activities that support the Chesapeake Bay

8 Program;

9 ‘‘(ii) developing and making available,

10 through publications, technical assistance,

11 and other appropriate means, information

12 pertaining to the environmental quality

13 and living resources of the Chesapeake

14 Bay ecosystem;

15 ‘‘(iii) in cooperation with appropriate

16 Federal, State, and local authorities, as17 sisting the signatories to the Chesapeake

18 Bay Agreement in developing and imple19 menting specific action plans to carry out

20 the responsibilities of the signatories to the

21 Chesapeake Bay Agreement;

22 ‘‘(iv) coordinating the actions of the

23 Environmental Protection Agency with the

24 actions of the appropriate officials of other
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1 Federal agencies and State and local au2 thorities in developing strategies to—

3 ‘‘(I) improve the water quality

4 and living resources in the Chesa5 peake Bay ecosystem; and

6 ‘‘(II) obtain the support of the

7 appropriate officials of the agencies

8 and authorities in achieving the objec9 tives of the Chesapeake Bay Agree10 ment; and

11 ‘‘(v) implementing outreach programs

12 for public information, education, and par13 ticipation to foster stewardship of the re14 sources of the Chesapeake Bay.

15 ‘‘(c) INTERAGENCY AGREEMENTS.—The Adminis16 trator may enter into an interagency agreement with a

17 Federal agency to carry out this section.

18 ‘‘(d) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND ASSISTANCE

19 GRANTS.—

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In cooperation with the

21 Chesapeake Executive Council, the Administrator

22 may provide technical assistance, and assistance

23 grants, to nonprofit organizations, State and local

24 governments, colleges, universities, and interstate

25 agencies to carry out this section, subject to such
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1 terms and conditions as the Administrator considers

2 appropriate.

3 ‘‘(2) FEDERAL SHARE.—

4 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in

5 subparagraph (B), the Federal share of an as6 sistance grant provided under paragraph (1)

7 shall be determined by the Administrator in ac8 cordance with guidance issued by the Adminis9 trator.

10 ‘‘(B) SMALL WATERSHED GRANTS PRO11 GRAM.—The Federal share of an assistance

12 grant provided under paragraph (1) to carry

13 out an implementing activity under subsection

14 (g)(2) shall not exceed 75 percent of eligible

15 project costs, as determined by the Adminis16 trator.

17 ‘‘(3) NON-FEDERAL SHARE.—An assistance

18 grant under paragraph (1) shall be provided on the

19 condition that non-Federal sources provide the re20 mainder of eligible project costs, as determined by

21 the Administrator.

22 ‘‘(4) ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS.—Administrative

23 costs shall not exceed 10 percent of the annual grant

24 award.
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1 ‘‘(e) IMPLEMENTATION AND MONITORING

2 GRANTS.—

3 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If a signatory jurisdiction

4 has approved and committed to implement all or

5 substantially all aspects of the Chesapeake Bay

6 Agreement, on the request of the chief executive of

7 the jurisdiction, the Administrator—

8 ‘‘(A) shall make a grant to the jurisdiction

9 for the purpose of implementing the manage10 ment mechanisms established under the Chesa11 peake Bay Agreement, subject to such terms

12 and conditions as the Administrator considers

13 appropriate;

14 ‘‘(B) may make a grant to a signatory ju15 risdiction for the purpose of monitoring the

16 Chesapeake Bay ecosystem.

17 ‘‘(2) PROPOSALS.—

18 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A signatory jurisdic19 tion described in paragraph (1) may apply for

20 a grant under this subsection for a fiscal year

21 by submitting to the Administrator a com22 prehensive proposal to implement management

23 mechanisms established under the Chesapeake

24 Bay Agreement.
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1 ‘‘(B) CONTENTS.—A proposal under sub2 paragraph (A) shall include—

3 ‘‘(i) a description of proposed man4 agement mechanisms that the jurisdiction

5 commits to take within a specified time pe6 riod, such as reducing or preventing pollu7 tion in the Chesapeake Bay and its water8 shed or meeting applicable water quality

9 standards or established goals and objec10 tives under the Chesapeake Bay Agree11 ment; and

12 ‘‘(ii) the estimated cost of the actions

13 proposed to be taken during the fiscal

14 year.

15 ‘‘(3) APPROVAL.—If the Administrator finds

16 that the proposal is consistent with the Chesapeake

17 Bay Agreement and the national goals established

18 under section 101(a), the Administrator may ap19 prove the proposal for an award.

20 ‘‘(4) FEDERAL SHARE.—The Federal share of

21 an implementation grant under this subsection shall

22 not exceed 50 percent of the cost of implementing

23 the management mechanisms during the fiscal year.

24 ‘‘(5) NON-FEDERAL SHARE.—An implementa25 tion grant under this subsection shall be made on
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1 the condition that non-Federal sources provide the

2 remainder of the costs of implementing the manage3 ment mechanisms during the fiscal year.

4 ‘‘(6) ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS.—Administrative

5 costs shall not exceed 10 percent of the annual grant

6 award.

7 ‘‘(7) REPORTING.—On or before October 1 of

8 each fiscal year, the Administrator shall make avail9 able to the public a document that lists and de10 scribes, in the greatest practicable degree of detail—

11 ‘‘(A) all projects and activities funded for

12 the fiscal year;

13 ‘‘(B) the goals and objectives of projects

14 funded for the previous fiscal year; and

15 ‘‘(C) the net benefits of projects funded for

16 previous fiscal years.

17 ‘‘(f) FEDERAL FACILITIES AND BUDGET COORDINA18 TION.—

19 ‘‘(1) SUBWATERSHED PLANNING AND RESTORA20 TION.—A Federal agency that owns or operates a

21 facility (as defined by the Administrator) within the

22 Chesapeake Bay watershed shall participate in re23 gional and subwatershed planning and restoration

24 programs.
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1 ‘‘(2) COMPLIANCE WITH AGREEMENT.—The

2 head of each Federal agency that owns or occupies

3 real property in the Chesapeake Bay watershed shall

4 ensure that the property, and actions taken by the

5 agency with respect to the property, comply with the

6 Chesapeake Bay Agreement, the Federal Agencies

7 Chesapeake Ecosystem Unified Plan, and any subse8 quent agreements and plans.

9 ‘‘(3) BUDGET COORDINATION.—

10 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—As part of the annual

11 budget submission of each Federal agency with

12 projects or grants related to restoration, plan13 ning, monitoring, or scientific investigation of

14 the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem, the head of the

15 agency shall submit to the President a report

16 that describes plans for the expenditure of the

17 funds under this section.

18 ‘‘(B) DISCLOSURE TO THE COUNCIL.—The

19 head of each agency referred to in subpara20 graph (A) shall disclose the report under that

21 subparagraph with the Chesapeake Executive

22 Council as appropriate.

23 ‘‘(g) CHESAPEAKE BAY PROGRAM.—

24 ‘‘(1) MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES.—The Admin25 istrator, in coordination with other members of the
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1 Chesapeake Executive Council, shall ensure that

2 management plans are developed and implementa3 tion is begun by signatories to the Chesapeake Bay

4 Agreement to achieve and maintain—

5 ‘‘(A) the nutrient goals of the Chesapeake

6 Bay Agreement for the quantity of nitrogen and

7 phosphorus entering the Chesapeake Bay and

8 its watershed;

9 ‘‘(B) the water quality requirements nec10 essary to restore living resources in the Chesa11 peake Bay ecosystem;

12 ‘‘(C) the Chesapeake Bay Basinwide Tox13 ins Reduction and Prevention Strategy goal of

14 reducing or eliminating the input of chemical

15 contaminants from all controllable sources to

16 levels that result in no toxic or bioaccumulative

17 impact on the living resources of the Chesa18 peake Bay ecosystem or on human health;

19 ‘‘(D) habitat restoration, protection, and

20 enhancement goals established by Chesapeake

21 Bay Agreement signatories for wetlands, ripar22 ian forests, and other types of habitat associ23 ated with the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem; and

24 ‘‘(E) the restoration, protection, and en25 hancement goals established by the Chesapeake
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1 Bay Agreement signatories for living resources

2 associated with the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem.

3 ‘‘(2) SMALL WATERSHED GRANTS PROGRAM.—

4 The Administrator, in cooperation with the Chesa5 peake Executive Council, shall—

6 ‘‘(A) establish a small watershed grants

7 program as part of the Chesapeake Bay Pro8 gram; and

9 ‘‘(B) offer technical assistance and assist10 ance grants under subsection (d) to local gov11 ernments and nonprofit organizations and indi12 viduals in the Chesapeake Bay region to

13 implement—

14 ‘‘(i) cooperative tributary basin strate15 gies that address the water quality and liv16 ing resource needs in the Chesapeake Bay

17 ecosystem; and

18 ‘‘(ii) locally based protection and res19 toration programs or projects within a wa20 tershed that complement the tributary

21 basin strategies.

22 ‘‘(h) STUDY OF CHESAPEAKE BAY PROGRAM.—

23 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than April 22,

24 2000, and every 5 years thereafter, the Adminis25 trator, in coordination with the Chesapeake Execu-
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1 tive Council, shall complete a study and submit to

2 Congress a comprehensive report on the results of

3 the study.

4 ‘‘(2) REQUIREMENTS.—The study and report

5 shall—

6 ‘‘(A) assess the state of the Chesapeake

7 Bay ecosystem;

8 ‘‘(B) assess the appropriateness of commit9 ments and goals of the Chesapeake Bay Pro10 gram and the management strategies estab11 lished under the Chesapeake Bay Agreement

12 for improving the state of the Chesapeake Bay

13 ecosystem;

14 ‘‘(C) assess the effectiveness of manage15 ment strategies being implemented on the date

16 of enactment of this section and the extent to

17 which the priority needs are being met;

18 ‘‘(D) make recommendations for the im19 proved management of the Chesapeake Bay

20 Program either by strengthening strategies

21 being implemented on the date of enactment of

22 this section or by adopting new strategies; and

23 ‘‘(E) be presented in such a format as to

24 be readily transferable to and usable by other

25 watershed restoration programs.
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1 ‘‘(i) SPECIAL STUDY OF LIVING RESOURCE RE2 SPONSE.—

3 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days

4 after the date of enactment of this section, the Ad5 ministrator shall commence a 5-year special study

6 with full participation of the scientific community of

7 the Chesapeake Bay to establish and expand under8 standing of the response of the living resources of

9 the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem to improvements in

10 water quality that have resulted from investments

11 made through the Chesapeake Bay Program.

12 ‘‘(2) REQUIREMENTS.—The study shall—

13 ‘‘(A) determine the current status and

14 trends of living resources, including grasses,

15 benthos, phytoplankton, zooplankton, fish, and

16 shellfish;

17 ‘‘(B) establish to the extent practicable the

18 rates of recovery of the living resources in re19 sponse to improved water quality condition;

20 ‘‘(C) evaluate and assess interactions of

21 species, with particular attention to the impact

22 of changes within and among trophic levels; and

23 ‘‘(D) recommend management actions to

24 optimize the return of a healthy and balanced

25 ecosystem in response to improvements in the
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1 quality and character of the waters of the

2 Chesapeake Bay.

3 ‘‘(j) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There

4 is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section

5 $30,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2000 through 2005.’’.