I
106TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 4104
To amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to authorize funding
to carry out certain water quality and barrier island restoration projects
for the Mississippi Sound, and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
MARCH 28, 2000
Mr. TAYLOR of Mississippi introduced the following bill; which was referred
to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure
A BILL
To amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to au-
thorize funding to carry out certain water quality and
barrier island restoration projects for the Mississippi
Sound, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Mississippi Sound Res-
toration Act of 2000’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that—
(1) the Mississippi Sound provides a diverse en-
vironment that provides the diverse essential habitat
that supports numerous species of fish, birds, mam-
mals, and plants;
(2) the Sound supports an extensive and suc-
cessful seafood industry that is important to the re-
gion’s economy and way of life;
(3) the unique natural resources of the Sound
provides the community with extensive recreational
opportunities adding to the quality of life and con-
tributing to the local economy;
(4) the Sound encompasses an area of approxi-
mately 2,400 square miles;
(5) the barrier islands system is in need of res-
toration to serve as wildlife habitat and to provide
mainland protection from coastal erosion;
(6) increasing population growth and rapid de-
velopment combined with intensive land use have re-
sulted in dramatic threats to the environment and
ecology of the Sound;
(7) a major source of pollution in the Sound is
raw or partially treated human waste from—
(A) communities with poor sewer systems
or without sewer systems; and
mental Protection Agency the Mississippi Sound
Restoration Program.
‘‘(2) PURPOSES.—The purposes of the program
shall be—
‘‘(A) to coordinate efforts among and pro-
vide resources for Federal, State, and local gov-
ernmental agencies and nonregulatory organiza-
tions to reduce pollution and restore barrier is-
lands in the Sound; and
‘‘(B) to restore the ecological health of the
Sound.
‘‘(3) ADMINISTRATION.—
‘‘(A) 
MISSISSIPPI
SOUND
EXECUTIVE
COUNCIL.—Not later than 180 days after the
date of enactment of this section, the Adminis-
trator shall establish the Mississippi Sound Ex-
ecutive Council, to be composed of the following
individuals (or their designees):
‘‘(i) The Administrator.
‘‘(ii) The Governor of the State of
Mississippi.
‘‘(iii) One representative from each of
Hancock County, Harrison County, and
Jackson County, Mississippi, designated by
the board of supervisors of the County.
‘‘(iv) The director of the Gulf Coast
Research Lab located in Ocean Springs,
Mississippi, or the designee of the director.
‘‘(v) The Director of the Mississippi
Department of Marine Resources or the
designee of the Director.
‘‘(B) MANAGEMENT PLAN.—
‘‘(i) IN
GENERAL.—Not later than
180 days after the date of enactment of
this section, the Administrator, in coopera-
tion with appropriate Federal, State, and
local authorities, shall assist the Council in
developing 
a 
comprehensive, 
multiuse,
management plan for the restoration and
protection of the Sound.
‘‘(ii) ASSISTANCE.—Assistance pro-
vided by the Administrator under subpara-
graph (A) shall include grants for and
technical assistance in—
‘‘(I) developing an annual work
plan endorsed by the Council;
‘‘(II) supporting Sound-wide en-
vironmental monitoring and research
to provide technical and scientific in-
formation necessary to support man-
agement decisions;
‘‘(III) developing a comprehen-
sive research plan to address the tech-
nical needs of the program; and
‘‘(IV) recommending restoration
projects for implementation by the
State of Mississippi, counties, and
nongovernmental entities.
‘‘(c) RESTORATION PROJECTS.—In accordance with
the management plan, the Administrator shall provide
funding and oversight to carry out voluntary restoration
projects for the Sound that—
‘‘(1) address human waste problems in the
Sound by providing a cost-sharing construction and
education program that offers incentives to counties
and local communities to improve sewage treatment
facilities;
‘‘(2) provide for the rerouting of discharges
from pumping stations through adjacent wetlands,
using existing canals and small water control struc-
tures, in order to use natural wetland to filter pol-
lutants from urban stormwater;
‘‘(3) improve Sound water quality by estab-
lishing new sanitation and sewage systems where
needed;
‘‘(4) reverse the trend of decreasing acreage of
barrier islands and coastal wetlands in the Sound by
creating new sustainable wetland habitat and restor-
ing barrier islands through the beneficial use of
dredged material;
‘‘(5) retain the integrity of natural structural
elements in the coastal landscape, such as ridges
and barrier islands, in order to reduce storm surge
impacts to essential habitats and human infrastruc-
ture; and
‘‘(6) restore and enhance the sustainable yield
of fin and shellfish by the re-creation and enhance-
ment of keys and reefs and enhancement of keys and
reefs that have been destroyed as a result of human
or natural activity.
‘‘(d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There
are authorized to be appropriated such sums as are nec-
essary to carry out subsections (b) and (c). Such funds
shall remain available until expended.’’.
Æ