I 
109TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 18
To authorize the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Bureau of 
Reclamation and in coordination with other Federal, State, and local 
government agencies, to participate in the funding and implementation 
of a balanced, long-term groundwater remediation program in California, 
and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JANUARY 4, 2005
Mr. BACA (for himself, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, Mr. CALVERT, and Mr. GARY G. 
MILLER of California) introduced the following bill; which was referred 
to the Committee on Resources 
A BILL 
To authorize the Secretary of the Interior, acting through 
the Bureau of Reclamation and in coordination with 
other Federal, State, and local government agencies, to 
participate in the funding and implementation of a bal-
anced, long-term groundwater remediation program in 
California, 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 ‘‘Southern California 
Groundwater Remediation Act’’.
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 
For the purposes of this Act: 
(1) GROUNDWATER REMEDIATION.—The term 
‘‘groundwater remediation’’ means actions that are 
necessary to prevent, minimize, clean up, or mitigate 
damage to groundwater. 
(2) LOCAL
WATER
AUTHORITY.—The term 
‘‘local water authority’’ means a currently existing 
(on the date of the enactment of this Act) public 
water district, public water utility, public water plan-
ning agency, municipality, or Indian Tribe located 
within the natural watershed of the Santa Ana River 
in the State of California. 
(3) REMEDIATION FUND.—The term ‘‘Remedi-
ation Fund’’ means the Southern California Ground-
water Remediation Fund established pursuant to 
section 3(a). 
(4) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 
the Secretary of the Interior. 
SEC. 3. SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA GROUNDWATER REMEDI-
ATION. 
(a) SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA GROUNDWATER REME-
DIATION.—
(1) 
ESTABLISHMENT
OF
REMEDIATION 
FUND.—There shall be established within the Treas-
ury of the United States an interest bearing account
to be known as the ‘‘Southern California Ground-
water Remediation Fund’’. 
(2) 
ADMINISTRATION
OF
REMEDIATION 
FUND.—The Remediation Fund shall be adminis-
tered by the Secretary, acting through the Bureau of 
Reclamation. The Secretary shall administer the Re-
mediation Fund in cooperation with the local water 
authority. 
(3) PURPOSES OF REMEDIATION FUND.—
(A) IN
GENERAL.—Subject to subpara-
graph (B), the amounts in the Remediation 
Fund, including interest accrued, shall be used 
by the Secretary to provide grants to the local 
water authority to reimburse the local water au-
thority for the Federal share of the costs associ-
ated with designing and constructing ground-
water remediation projects to be administered 
by the local water authority. 
(B) COST-SHARING LIMITATION.—
(i) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may 
not obligate any funds appropriated to the 
Remediation Fund in a fiscal year until 
the Secretary has deposited into the Reme-
diation Fund an amount provided by non-
Federal interests sufficient to ensure that
at least 35 percent of any funds obligated 
by the Secretary for a groundwater reme-
diation project are from funds provided to 
the Secretary for that project by the non-
Federal interests. 
(ii) 
NON-FEDERAL
RESPONSI-
BILITY.—Each local water authority shall 
be responsible for providing the non-Fed-
eral amount required by clause (i) for 
projects under that local water authority. 
The State of California, local government 
agencies, and private entities may provide 
all or any portion of the non-Federal 
amount. 
(iii) CREDITS TOWARD NON-FEDERAL 
SHARE.—For purposes of clause (ii), the 
Secretary shall credit the appropriate local 
water authority with the value of all prior 
expenditures 
by 
non-Federal 
interests 
made after January 1, 2000, that are com-
patible with the purposes of this section, 
including—
(I) all expenditures made by non-
Federal interests to design and con-
struct 
groundwater 
remediation
projects, including expenditures asso-
ciated with environmental analyses, 
and public involvement activities that 
were 
required 
to 
implement 
the 
groundwater remediation projects in 
compliance with applicable Federal 
and State laws; and 
(II) all expenditures made by 
non-Federal interests to acquire lands, 
easements, rights-of-way, relocations, 
disposal areas, and water rights that 
were required to implement a ground-
water remediation project. 
(b) COMPLIANCE WITH APPLICABLE LAW.—In car-
rying out the activities described in this section, the Sec-
retary shall comply with any applicable Federal and State 
laws. 
(c) RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER ACTIVITIES.—Nothing 
in this section shall be construed to affect other Federal 
or State authorities that are being used or may be used 
to facilitate remediation and protection of the groundwater 
the natural watershed of the Santa Ana River in the State 
of California. In carrying out the activities described in 
this section, the Secretary shall integrate such activities 
with ongoing Federal and State projects and activities.
None of the funds made available for such activities pursu-
ant to this section shall be counted against any Federal 
authorization ceiling established for any previously author-
ized Federal projects or activities. 
(d) FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
AND AUDITS.—The 
Secretary shall ensure that all funds obligated and dis-
bursed under this Act and expended by a local water au-
thority, are accounted for in accordance with generally ac-
cepted accounting principles and are subjected to regular 
audits in accordance with applicable procedures, manuals, 
and circulars of the Department of the Interior and the 
Office of Management and Budget. 
(e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— There is 
authorized to be appropriated to the Remediation Fund 
$50,000,000. Such funds shall remain available until ex-
pended.
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