I 
114TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 3692 
To provide for environmental restoration activities and forest management 
activities in the Lake Tahoe Basin, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
OCTOBER 6, 2015 
Mr. GARAMENDI (for himself, Mr. FARR, Mr. HONDA, Mr. LOWENTHAL, and 
Mr. THOMPSON of California) introduced the following bill; which was re-
ferred to the Committee on Natural Resources, and in addition to the 
Committees on Agriculture and Transportation and Infrastructure, for a 
period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for 
consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the com-
mittee concerned 
A BILL 
To provide for environmental restoration activities and forest 
management activities in the Lake Tahoe Basin, 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; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 
‘‘Lake Tahoe Restoration Act of 2015’’. 
(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 
this Act is as follows: 
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Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 
Sec. 2. Findings and purposes. 
Sec. 3. Definitions. 
Sec. 4. Improved administration of the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit. 
Sec. 5. Authorized programs. 
Sec. 6. Program performance and accountability. 
Sec. 7. Conforming amendments; updates to related laws. 
Sec. 8. Authorization of appropriations. 
Sec. 9. Land transfers to improve management efficiencies of Federal and 
State land. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES. 
The Lake Tahoe Restoration Act (Public Law 106– 
506; 114 Stat. 2351) is amended by striking section 2 
and inserting the following: 
‘‘SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES. 
‘‘(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that— 
‘‘(1) Lake Tahoe— 
‘‘(A) is one of the largest, deepest, and 
clearest lakes in the world; 
‘‘(B) has a cobalt blue color, a biologically 
diverse alpine setting, and remarkable water 
clarity; and 
‘‘(C) is recognized nationally and world-
wide as a natural resource of special signifi-
cance; 
‘‘(2) in addition to being a scenic and ecological 
treasure, the Lake Tahoe Basin is one of the out-
standing recreational resources of the United States, 
which— 
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‘‘(A) offers skiing, water sports, biking, 
camping, and hiking to millions of visitors each 
year; and 
‘‘(B) contributes significantly to the econo-
mies of California, Nevada, and the United 
States; 
‘‘(3) the economy in the Lake Tahoe Basin is 
dependent on the conservation and restoration of the 
natural beauty and recreation opportunities in the 
area; 
‘‘(4) the ecological health of the Lake Tahoe 
Basin continues to be challenged by the impacts of 
land use and transportation patterns developed in 
the last century; 
‘‘(5) the alteration of wetland, wet meadows, 
and stream zone habitat have compromised the ca-
pacity of the watershed to filter sediment, nutrients, 
and pollutants before reaching Lake Tahoe; 
‘‘(6) forests in the Lake Tahoe Basin suffer 
from over a century of fire damage and periodic 
drought, which have resulted in— 
‘‘(A) high tree density and mortality; 
‘‘(B) the loss of biological diversity; and 
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‘‘(C) a large quantity of combustible forest 
fuels, which significantly increases the threat of 
catastrophic fire and insect infestation; 
‘‘(7) the establishment of several aquatic and 
terrestrial invasive species (including perennial 
pepperweed, milfoil, and Asian clam) threatens the 
ecosystem of the Lake Tahoe Basin; 
‘‘(8) there is an ongoing threat to the economy 
and ecosystem of the Lake Tahoe Basin of the intro-
duction and establishment of other invasive species 
(such as yellow starthistle, New Zealand mud snail, 
Zebra mussel, and quagga mussel); 
‘‘(9) 78 percent of the land in the Lake Tahoe 
Basin is administered by the Federal Government, 
which makes it a Federal responsibility to restore ec-
ological health to the Lake Tahoe Basin; 
‘‘(10) the Federal Government has a long his-
tory of environmental stewardship at Lake Tahoe, 
including— 
‘‘(A) congressional consent to the estab-
lishment of the Planning Agency with— 
‘‘(i) the enactment in 1969 of Public 
Law 91–148 (83 Stat. 360); and 
‘‘(ii) the enactment in 1980 of Public 
Law 96–551 (94 Stat. 3233); 
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‘‘(B) the establishment of the Lake Tahoe 
Basin Management Unit in 1973; 
‘‘(C) the enactment of Public Law 96–586 
(94 Stat. 3381) in 1980 to provide for the ac-
quisition of environmentally sensitive land and 
erosion control grants in the Lake Tahoe Basin; 
‘‘(D) the enactment of sections 341 and 
342 of the Department of the Interior and Re-
lated Agencies Appropriations Act, 2004 (Pub-
lic Law 108–108; 117 Stat. 1317), which 
amended the Southern Nevada Public Land 
Management Act of 1998 (Public Law 105– 
263; 112 Stat. 2346) to provide payments for 
the environmental restoration programs under 
this Act; and 
‘‘(E) the enactment of section 382 of the 
Tax Relief and Health Care Act of 2006 (Pub-
lic Law 109–432; 120 Stat. 3045), which 
amended the Southern Nevada Public Land 
Management Act of 1998 (Public Law 105– 
263; 112 Stat. 2346) to authorize development 
and implementation of a comprehensive 10-year 
hazardous fuels and fire prevention plan for the 
Lake Tahoe Basin; 
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‘‘(11) the Assistant Secretary was an original 
signatory in 1997 to the Agreement of Federal De-
partments on Protection of the Environment and 
Economic Health of the Lake Tahoe Basin; 
‘‘(12) the Chief of Engineers, under direction 
from the Assistant Secretary, has continued to be a 
significant contributor to Lake Tahoe Basin restora-
tion, including— 
‘‘(A) stream and wetland restoration; and 
‘‘(B) programmatic technical assistance; 
‘‘(13) at the Lake Tahoe Presidential Forum in 
1997, the President renewed the commitment of the 
Federal Government to Lake Tahoe by— 
‘‘(A) committing to increased Federal re-
sources for ecological restoration at Lake 
Tahoe; and 
‘‘(B) establishing the Federal Interagency 
Partnership and Federal Advisory Committee to 
consult on natural resources issues concerning 
the Lake Tahoe Basin; 
‘‘(14) at the 2011 and 2012 Lake Tahoe Fo-
rums, Senator Reid, Senator Feinstein, Senator 
Heller, Senator Ensign, Governor Gibbons, Governor 
Sandoval, and Governor Brown— 
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‘‘(B) to adapt to the impacts of fluctuating 
water temperature and precipitation; and 
‘‘(C) to prevent the introduction and estab-
lishment of invasive species in the Lake Tahoe 
Basin; and 
‘‘(17) the Secretary has indicated that the Lake 
Tahoe Basin Management Unit has the capacity for 
at least $10,000,000 annually for the Fire Risk Re-
duction and Forest Management Program. 
‘‘(b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are— 
‘‘(1) to enable the Chief of the Forest Service, 
the Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife 
Service, and the Administrator, in cooperation with 
the Planning Agency and the States of California 
and Nevada, to fund, plan, and implement signifi-
cant new environmental restoration activities and 
forest management activities in the Lake Tahoe 
Basin; 
‘‘(2) to ensure that Federal, State, local, re-
gional, tribal, and private entities continue to work 
together to manage land in the Lake Tahoe Basin; 
‘‘(3) to support local governments in efforts re-
lated to environmental restoration, stormwater pollu-
tion control, fire risk reduction, and forest manage-
ment activities; and 
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‘‘(4) to ensure that agency and science commu-
nity representatives in the Lake Tahoe Basin work 
together— 
‘‘(A) to develop and implement a plan for 
integrated monitoring, assessment, and applied 
research to evaluate the effectiveness of the En-
vironmental Improvement Program; and 
‘‘(B) to provide objective information as a 
basis for ongoing decisionmaking, with an em-
phasis on decisionmaking relating to resource 
management in the Lake Tahoe Basin.’’. 
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 
The Lake Tahoe Restoration Act (Public Law 106– 
506; 114 Stat. 2351) is amended by striking section 3 
and inserting the following: 
‘‘SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 
‘‘In this Act: 
‘‘(1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘Adminis-
trator’ means the Administrator of the Environ-
mental Protection Agency. 
‘‘(2) ASSISTANT
SECRETARY.—The term ‘As-
sistant Secretary’ means the Assistant Secretary of 
the Army for Civil Works. 
‘‘(3) CHAIR.—The term ‘Chair’ means the 
Chair of the Federal Partnership. 
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‘‘(4) COMPACT.—The term ‘Compact’ means 
the Tahoe Regional Planning Compact included in 
the first section of Public Law 96–551 (94 Stat. 
3233). 
‘‘(5) 
DIRECTORS.—The 
term 
‘Directors’ 
means— 
‘‘(A) the Director of the United States 
Fish and Wildlife Service; and 
‘‘(B) the Director of the United States Ge-
ological Survey. 
‘‘(6) ENVIRONMENTAL
IMPROVEMENT
PRO-
GRAM.—The term ‘Environmental Improvement Pro-
gram’ means— 
‘‘(A) the Environmental Improvement Pro-
gram adopted by the Planning Agency; and 
‘‘(B) any amendments to the Program. 
‘‘(7) ENVIRONMENTAL THRESHOLD CARRYING 
CAPACITY.—The term ‘environmental threshold car-
rying capacity’ has the meaning given the term in 
Article II of the Compact. 
‘‘(8) FEDERAL PARTNERSHIP.—The term ‘Fed-
eral Partnership’ means the Lake Tahoe Federal 
Interagency Partnership established by Executive 
Order 13057 (62 Fed. Reg. 41249) (or a successor 
Executive order). 
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‘‘(9) FOREST
MANAGEMENT
ACTIVITY.—The 
term ‘forest management activity’ includes— 
‘‘(A) prescribed burning for ecosystem 
health and hazardous fuels reduction; 
‘‘(B) mechanical and minimum tool treat-
ment; 
‘‘(C) stream environment zone restoration 
and other watershed and wildlife habitat en-
hancements; 
‘‘(D) nonnative invasive species manage-
ment; and 
‘‘(E) other activities consistent with Forest 
Service practices, as the Secretary determines 
to be appropriate. 
‘‘(10) MAPS.—The term ‘Maps’ means the 
maps— 
‘‘(A) entitled— 
‘‘(i) ‘LTRA USFS-CA Land Ex-
change/North Shore’; 
‘‘(ii) ‘USFS-CA Land Exchange/West 
Shore’; and 
‘‘(iii) ‘USFS-CA Land Exchange/ 
South Shore’; and 
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‘‘(B) dated April 12, 2013, and on file and 
available for public inspection in the appro-
priate offices of— 
‘‘(i) the Forest Service; 
‘‘(ii) the California Tahoe Conser-
vancy; and 
‘‘(iii) the California Department of 
Parks and Recreation. 
‘‘(11) NATIONAL WILDLAND FIRE CODE.—The 
term ‘national wildland fire code’ means— 
‘‘(A) the most recent publication of the 
National Fire Protection Association codes 
numbered 1141, 1142, 1143, and 1144; 
‘‘(B) the most recent publication of the 
International Wildland-Urban Interface Code of 
the International Code Council; or 
‘‘(C) any other code that the Secretary de-
termines provides the same, or better, stand-
ards for protection against wildland fire as a 
code described in subparagraph (A) or (B). 
‘‘(12) 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). 
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‘‘(13) PRIORITY LIST.—The term ‘Priority List’ 
means the environmental restoration priority list de-
veloped under section 5(b). 
‘‘(14) 
SECRETARY.—The 
term 
‘Secretary’ 
means the Secretary of Agriculture, acting through 
the Chief of the Forest Service. 
‘‘(15) 
STREAM
ENVIRONMENT
ZONE.—The 
term ‘Stream Environment Zone’ means an area 
that generally owes the biological and physical char-
acteristics of the area to the presence of surface 
water or groundwater. 
‘‘(16) TOTAL
MAXIMUM
DAILY
LOAD.—The 
term ‘total maximum daily load’ means the total 
maximum daily load allocations adopted under sec-
tion 303(d) of the Federal Water Pollution Control 
Act (33 U.S.C. 1313(d)). 
‘‘(17) WATERCRAFT.—The term ‘watercraft’ 
means motorized and non-motorized watercraft, in-
cluding 
boats, 
seaplanes, 
personal 
watercraft, 
kayaks, and canoes.’’. 
SEC. 4. IMPROVED ADMINISTRATION OF THE LAKE TAHOE 
BASIN MANAGEMENT UNIT. 
Section 4 of the Lake Tahoe Restoration Act (Public 
Law 106–506; 114 Stat. 2353) is amended— 
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(1) in subsection (b)(3), by striking ‘‘basin’’ 
and inserting ‘‘Basin’’; and 
(2) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(c) FOREST MANAGEMENT ACTIVITIES.— 
‘‘(1) COORDINATION.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In conducting forest 
management activities in the Lake Tahoe Basin 
Management Unit, the Secretary shall, as ap-
propriate, coordinate with the Administrator 
and State and local agencies and organizations, 
including local fire departments and volunteer 
groups. 
‘‘(B) GOALS.—The coordination of activi-
ties under subparagraph (A) should aim to in-
crease efficiencies and maximize the compat-
ibility of management practices across public 
property boundaries. 
‘‘(2) MULTIPLE BENEFITS.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In conducting forest 
management activities in the Lake Tahoe Basin 
Management Unit, the Secretary shall conduct 
the activities in a manner that— 
‘‘(i) except as provided in subpara-
graph (B), attains multiple ecosystem ben-
efits, including— 
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‘‘(I) reducing forest fuels; 
‘‘(II) maintaining biological di-
versity; 
‘‘(III) improving wetland and 
water quality, including in Stream 
Environment Zones; and 
‘‘(IV) increasing resilience to 
changing water temperature and pre-
cipitation; and 
‘‘(ii) helps achieve and maintain the 
environmental threshold carrying capacities 
established by the Planning Agency. 
‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—Notwithstanding sub-
paragraph (A)(i), the attainment of multiple 
ecosystem benefits shall not be required if the 
Secretary determines that management for mul-
tiple ecosystem benefits would excessively in-
crease the cost of a program in relation to the 
additional ecosystem benefits gained from the 
management activity. 
‘‘(3) GROUND DISTURBANCE.—Consistent with 
applicable Federal law and Lake Tahoe Basin Man-
agement Unit land and resource management plan 
direction, the Secretary shall— 
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‘‘(A) establish post-program ground condi-
tion criteria for ground disturbance caused by 
forest management activities; and 
‘‘(B) provide for monitoring to ascertain 
the attainment of the post-program conditions. 
‘‘(d) WITHDRAWAL OF FEDERAL LAND.— 
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—Subject to valid existing 
rights and paragraph (2), the Federal land located 
in the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit is with-
drawn from— 
‘‘(A) all forms of entry, appropriation, or 
disposal under the public land laws; 
‘‘(B) location, entry, and patent under the 
mining laws; and 
‘‘(C) disposition under all laws relating to 
mineral and geothermal leasing. 
‘‘(2) EXCEPTIONS.—A conveyance of land shall 
be exempt from withdrawal under this subsection if 
carried out under— 
‘‘(A) this Act; or 
‘‘(B) Public Law 96–586 (94 Stat. 3381) 
(commonly known as the ‘Santini-Burton Act’). 
‘‘(e) ENVIRONMENTAL THRESHOLD CARRYING CA-
PACITY.—The Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit shall 
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support the attainment of the environmental threshold 
carrying capacities. 
‘‘(f) COOPERATIVE AUTHORITIES.—During the 4 fis-
cal years following the date of enactment of the Lake 
Tahoe Restoration Act of 2015, the Secretary, in conjunc-
tion with land adjustment programs, may enter into con-
tracts and cooperative agreements with States, units of 
local government, and other public and private entities to 
provide for fuel reduction, erosion control, reforestation, 
Stream Environment Zone restoration, and similar man-
agement activities on Federal land and non-Federal land 
within the programs.’’. 
SEC. 5. AUTHORIZED PROGRAMS. 
The Lake Tahoe Restoration Act (Public Law 106– 
506; 114 Stat. 2351) is amended by striking section 5 
and inserting the following: 
‘‘SEC. 5. AUTHORIZED PROGRAMS. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, the Assistant 
Secretary, the Directors, and the Administrator, in coordi-
nation with the Planning Agency and the States of Cali-
fornia and Nevada, may carry out or provide financial as-
sistance to any program that— 
‘‘(1) is described in subsection (d); 
‘‘(2) is included in the Priority List under sub-
section (b); and 
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‘‘(3) furthers the purposes of the Environ-
mental Improvement Program if the program has 
been subject to environmental review and approval, 
respectively, as required under Federal law, Article 
VII of the Compact, and State law, as applicable. 
‘‘(b) PRIORITY LIST.— 
‘‘(1) DEADLINE.—Not later than March 15 of 
the year after the date of enactment of the Lake 
Tahoe Restoration Act of 2015, the Chair, in con-
sultation with the Secretary, the Administrator, the 
Directors, the Planning Agency, the States of Cali-
fornia and Nevada, the Federal Partnership, the 
Washoe Tribe, the Lake Tahoe Federal Advisory 
Committee, and the Tahoe Science Consortium (or a 
successor organization) shall submit to Congress a 
prioritized Environmental Improvement Program list 
for the Lake Tahoe Basin for each program category 
described in subsection (d). 
‘‘(2) CRITERIA.—The ranking of the Priority 
List shall be based on the best available science and 
the following criteria: 
‘‘(A) The 4-year threshold carrying capac-
ity evaluation. 
‘‘(B) The ability to measure progress or 
success of the program. 
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