I 
109TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 792
To authorize appropriations for State programs and activities for the 
restoration of the Great Lakes, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 14, 2005
Mr. EMANUEL (for himself, Mr. REYNOLDS, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. GUTIERREZ, 
Mr. DAVIS of Illinois, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. EVANS, Mr. STUPAK, Mr. 
KILDEE, Mr. DINGELL, Mr. ISRAEL, Mr. MEEKS of New York, Mrs. 
MALONEY, Mr. MCNULTY, Ms. SLAUGHTER, Mr. STRICKLAND, Ms. KAP-
TUR, Mrs. JONES of Ohio, Mr. BROWN of Ohio, Mr. RYAN of Ohio, Mr. 
DOYLE, Ms. BALDWIN, Mr. JOHNSON of Illinois, Mr. CHOCOLA, Mr. 
SOUDER, Mr. HOEKSTRA, Mr. CAMP, Mr. ROGERS of Michigan, Mr. 
MCCOTTER, Mr. KENNEDY of Minnesota, Mr. BOEHLERT, Mr. GILLMOR, 
Mr. ENGLISH of Pennsylvania, Mr. SENSENBRENNER, Mr. PETRI, Mr. 
GREEN of Wisconsin, Ms. BEAN, Mr. LEVIN, Ms. MCCOLLUM of Min-
nesota, Mr. SABO, Mr. NADLER, Mr. OWENS, Mr. MURTHA, Ms. MOORE 
of Wisconsin, Mr. KIRK, Mr. KING of New York, Mr. MCHUGH, Ms. 
HART, and Mr. GERLACH) introduced the following bill; which was re-
ferred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and in ad-
dition to the Committee on Resources, for a period to be subsequently 
determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provi-
sions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To authorize appropriations for State programs and activities 
for the restoration of the Great Lakes, 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 ‘‘Great Lakes Restora-
tion Act of 2005’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
(1) The Great Lakes, and their connecting 
channels, form the largest freshwater system on 
Earth, holding 1⁄5 of the fresh surface water supply 
of the world and 9⁄10 of the fresh surface water sup-
ply of the United States. 
(2) More than 30 years after enactment of the 
Clean Water Act, water quality in the Great Lakes 
has improved, but the Great Lakes remain in a cri-
sis state. 
(3) Evidence of such deterioration includes—
(A) a record 1,473 beach closings in 2003 
on Lake Michigan alone; 
(B) an increase to 20 percent in the per-
centage of Great Lakes shoreline that contains 
polluted sediments; and 
(C) 1,500 fish consumption advisories re-
lating to the Great Lakes issued by State and 
local authorities. 
(4) The Great Lakes are the source of drinking 
water for 28,000,000 people in the United States
and 40,000,000 people in both the United States 
and Canada. 
(5) It is the responsibility of all governments, 
local, State, and Federal, to ensure that the Great 
Lakes remain a source of clean and safe drinking 
water, fish that are safe to eat, and beaches that are 
safe for swimming. 
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act, the following definitions apply: 
(1) AREA OF CONCERN.—The term ‘‘area of 
concern’’ means a geographic area located within the 
Great Lakes, in which beneficial uses are impaired 
and which has been officially designated as such 
under Annex 2 of the Great Lakes Water Quality 
Agreement. 
(2) GREAT LAKES.—The term ‘‘Great Lakes’’ 
means Lake Ontario, Lake Erie, Lake Huron (in-
cluding Lake Saint Clair), Lake Michigan, and Lake 
Superior, and the connecting channels (Saint Marys 
River, Saint Clair River, Detroit River, Niagara 
River, and Saint Lawrence River to the Canadian 
Border). 
(3) GREAT LAKES SYSTEM.—The term ‘‘Great 
Lakes System’’ means all the streams, rivers, lakes, 
and other bodies of water within the drainage basin
of the Great Lakes, including ground water that 
flows into those bodies of water. 
(4) GREAT
LAKES
WATER
QUALITY
AGREE-
MENT.—The term ‘‘Great Lakes Water Quality 
Agreement’’ means the bilateral agreement, between 
the United States and Canada which was signed in 
1978 and amended by the Protocol of 1987. 
(5) INTERNATIONAL JOINT COMMISSION.—The 
term ‘‘International Joint Commission’’ means the 
International Joint Commission established by the 
Treaty between the United States and Great Britain 
Relating to Boundary Waters, and Questions Arising 
Between the United States and Canada, signed at 
Washington on January 11, 1909. 
(6) LAKEWIDE MANAGEMENT PLAN.—The term 
‘‘Lakewide Management Plan’’ means a written doc-
ument which embodies a systematic and comprehen-
sive ecosystem approach to restoring and protecting 
the beneficial uses of the open waters of each of the 
Great Lakes, in accordance with article VI and 
Annex 2 of the Great Lakes Water Quality Agree-
ment. 
(7) REMEDIAL ACTION PLAN.—The term ‘‘Re-
medial Action Plan’’ means a written document 
which embodies a systematic and comprehensive eco-
system approach to restoring and protecting the 
beneficial uses of areas of concern, in accordance 
with article VI and Annex 2 of the Great Lakes 
Water Quality Agreement. 
SEC. 4. GREAT LAKES ADVISORY BOARD. 
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established the 
Great Lakes Advisory Board. 
(b) DUTIES.—Subject to the requirements of this 
Act, the Board shall—
(1) develop a biennial comprehensive Great 
Lakes management plan under section 5; 
(2) coordinate Great Lakes restoration efforts; 
and 
(3) implement a public awareness campaign. 
(c) MEMBERSHIP.—
(1) NUMBER AND APPOINTMENT.—The Board 
shall be composed of the following members (or des-
ignees of the members): 
(A) 8 shall be the Governors of the Great 
Lakes States. 
(B) 1 shall be a representative of the 
International Joint Commission, to be ap-
pointed by the International Joint Commission.
(C) 1 shall be the Director of the Great 
Lakes National Program Office of the Environ-
mental Protection Agency. 
(D) 1 shall be the Chief of Engineers. 
(E) 1 shall be the Director of the United 
States Fish and Wildlife Service. 
(F) 1 shall be the Secretary of Agriculture. 
(G) 1 shall be the Administrator of the 
National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Ad-
ministration. 
(H) 1 shall be the Secretary of the depart-
ment in which the Coast Guard is operating. 
(I) 3 shall be representatives of the 3 larg-
est Indian tribes in the Great Lakes States (ex-
cept that each of the 3 representatives must be 
from a different State), to be appointed by the 
President. 
(J) 3 shall be representatives of businesses 
with a direct effect on the Great Lakes (includ-
ing 1 representative of a large company and one 
representative of a small business), to be ap-
pointed by the President. 
(K) 3 shall be representatives of private 
non-profit organizations that are active in 
Great Lakes restoration work and have at least