H. R. 3388
One Hundred Sixth Congress
of the
United States of America
AT THE SECOND SESSION
Begun and held at the City of Washington on Monday,
the twenty-fourth day of January, two thousand
An Act
To promote environmental restoration around the Lake Tahoe basin.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Lake Tahoe Restoration Act’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that—
(1) Lake Tahoe, one of the largest, deepest, and clearest
lakes in the world, has a cobalt blue color, a unique alpine
setting, and remarkable water clarity, and is recognized nation-
ally and worldwide as a natural resource of special significance;
(2) in addition to being a scenic and ecological treasure,
Lake Tahoe is one of the outstanding recreational resources
of the United States, offering skiing, water sports, biking,
camping, and hiking to millions of visitors each year, and
contributing significantly to the economies of California,
Nevada, and the United States;
(3) the economy in the Lake Tahoe basin is dependent
on the protection and restoration of the natural beauty and
recreation opportunities in the area;
(4) Lake Tahoe is in the midst of an environmental crisis;
the Lake’s water clarity has declined from a visibility level
of 105 feet in 1967 to only 70 feet in 1999, and scientific
estimates indicate that if the water quality at the Lake con-
tinues to degrade, Lake Tahoe will lose its famous clarity
in only 30 years;
(5) sediment and algae-nourishing phosphorous and
nitrogen continue to flow into the Lake from a variety of
sources, including land erosion, fertilizers, air pollution, urban
runoff, highway drainage, streamside erosion, land disturbance,
and ground water flow;
(6) methyl tertiary butyl ether—
(A) has contaminated and closed more than one-third
of the wells in South Tahoe; and
(B) is advancing on the Lake at a rate of approximately
9 feet per day;
(7) destruction of wetlands, wet meadows, and stream zone
habitat has compromised the Lake’s ability to cleanse itself
of pollutants;
(8) approximately 40 percent of the trees in the Lake Tahoe
basin are either dead or dying, and the increased quantity
H. R. 3388—2
of combustible forest fuels has significantly increased the risk
of catastrophic forest fire in the Lake Tahoe basin;
(9) as the largest land manager in the Lake Tahoe basin,
with 77 percent of the land, the Federal Government has a
unique responsibility for restoring environmental health to
Lake Tahoe;
(10) the Federal Government has a long history of environ-
mental preservation at Lake Tahoe, including—
(A) congressional consent to the establishment of the
Tahoe Regional Planning Agency in 1969 (Public Law 91–
148; 83 Stat. 360) and in 1980 (Public Law 96–551; 94
Stat. 3233);
(B) the establishment of the Lake Tahoe Basin
Management Unit in 1973; and
(C) the enactment of Public Law 96–586 (94 Stat.
3381) in 1980 to provide for the acquisition of environ-
mentally sensitive land and erosion control grants;
(11) the President renewed the Federal Government’s
commitment to Lake Tahoe in 1997 at the Lake Tahoe Presi-
dential Forum, when he committed to increased Federal
resources for environmental restoration at Lake Tahoe and
established the Federal Interagency Partnership and Federal
Advisory Committee to consult on natural resources issues con-
cerning the Lake Tahoe basin;
(12) the States of California and Nevada have contributed
proportionally to the effort to protect and restore Lake Tahoe,
including—
(A) expenditures—
(i) exceeding $200,000,000 by the State of Cali-
fornia since 1980 for land acquisition, erosion control,
and other environmental projects in the Lake Tahoe
basin; and
(ii) exceeding $30,000,000 by the State of Nevada
since 1980 for the purposes described in clause (i);
and
(B) the approval of a bond issue by voters in the
State of Nevada authorizing the expenditure by the State
of an additional $20,000,000; and
(13) significant additional investment from Federal, State,
local, and private sources is needed to stop the damage to
Lake Tahoe and its forests, and restore the Lake Tahoe basin
to ecological health.
(b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are—
(1) to enable the Forest Service to plan and implement
significant new environmental restoration activities and forest
management activities to address the phenomena described
in paragraphs (4) through (8) of subsection (a) in the Lake
Tahoe basin;
(2) to ensure that Federal, State, local, regional, tribal,
and private entities continue to work together to improve water
quality and manage Federal land in the Lake Tahoe Basin
Management Unit; and
(3) to provide funding to local governments for erosion
and sediment control projects on non-Federal land if the projects
benefit the Federal land.
H. R. 3388—3
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) ENVIRONMENTAL THRESHOLD CARRYING CAPACITY.—The
term ‘‘environmental threshold carrying capacity’’ has the
meaning given the term in article II of the Tahoe Regional
Planning Compact set forth in the first section of Public Law
96–551 (94 Stat. 3235).
(2) FIRE RISK REDUCTION ACTIVITY.—
(A) IN
GENERAL.—The term ‘‘fire risk reduction
activity’’ means an activity that is necessary to reduce
the risk of wildfire to promote forest management and
simultaneously achieve and maintain the environmental
threshold carrying capacities established by the Planning
Agency in a manner consistent, where applicable, with
chapter 71 of the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency Code
of Ordinances.
(B) INCLUDED ACTIVITIES.—The term ‘‘fire risk reduc-
tion activity’’ includes—
(i) prescribed burning;
(ii) mechanical treatment;
(iii) road obliteration or reconstruction; and
(iv) such other activities consistent with Forest
Service practices as the Secretary determines to be
appropriate.
(3) PLANNING
AGENCY.—The term ‘‘Planning Agency’’
means the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency established under
Public Law 91–148 (83 Stat. 360) and Public Law 96–551
(94 Stat. 3233).
(4) PRIORITY
LIST.—The term ‘‘priority list’’ means the
environmental restoration priority list developed under section
6.
(5) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary
of Agriculture, acting through the Chief of the Forest Service.
SEC. 4. ADMINISTRATION OF THE LAKE TAHOE BASIN MANAGEMENT
UNIT.
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit
shall be administered by the Secretary in accordance with this
Act and the laws applicable to the National Forest System.
(b) RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER AUTHORITY.—
(1) PRIVATE OR NON-FEDERAL LAND.—Nothing in this Act
grants regulatory authority to the Secretary over private or
other non-Federal land.
(2) PLANNING
AGENCY.—Nothing in this Act affects or
increases the authority of the Planning Agency.
(3) ACQUISITION UNDER OTHER LAW.—Nothing in this Act
affects the authority of the Secretary to acquire land from
willing sellers in the Lake Tahoe basin under any other law.
SEC. 5. CONSULTATION WITH PLANNING AGENCY AND OTHER ENTI-
TIES.
(a) IN GENERAL.—With respect to the duties described in sub-
section (b), the Secretary shall consult with and seek the advice
and recommendations of—
(1) the Planning Agency;