I
105TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 4585
To establish the Northwest Straits Advisory Commission.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
SEPTEMBER 16, 1998
Mr. METCALF introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Resources
A BILL
To establish the Northwest Straits Advisory Commission.
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 ‘‘Northwest Straits Ma-
rine Conservation Initiative Act’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.
(a) The Congress hereby finds that—
(1) Puget Sound and the inland marine waters
of Washington State, and more specifically the ma-
rine waters and ecosystem of the Northwest Straits
as defined in this Act, represent a unique and un-
paralleled resource of enormous environmental and
economic value to the people of the region and the
Nation in this and future generations;
(2) despite considerable research and regulatory
efforts and financial investments, current efforts
have failed to protect natural habitats and fish and
wildlife populations adequately in these waters;
(3) as a result, species of fish, shellfish,
seabirds, mammals, and marine invertebrates have
undergone substantial declines in regional population
abundance in recent years, in part because the in-
ventory of nearshore habitats has reached critically
low levels, and existing restorative measures are
clearly inadequate to replace lost habitats;
(4) it is the scientific consensus that efforts
should focus on habitat preservation, on assessment
and conservation of stocks of fish, invertebrates,
birds, and marine mammals, on reducing waste dis-
posal and contaminated runoff, and on developing
compatible environmental regulations on both sides
of the international boundary with Canada; and
(5) by the year 2020, human population in this
region of the United States and Canada is projected
to increase by more than 50 percent, so that just to
maintain present quality of life and sustain present
economic activities that are dependent upon a
healthy marine ecosystem, and to keep marine wa-
ters and ecosystem from deteriorating further, re-
quires significantly reducing the collective environ-
mental burdens caused by shoreline development,
fish catch, and waste discharge that impact these
marine waters.
(b) The Congress finds and declares the purposes of
this Act to be—
(1) to develop and test innovative intergovern-
mental arrangements that may prove effective in
helping to reverse the degradation of the marine eco-
system of the Northwest Straits by encouraging and
supporting the concern, initiative, and capabilities of
the people who reside in this area and their local
governments, thus enhancing the collective efforts of
all levels of government; and
(2) to foster improved resource protection, the
preservation of commercial values and diverse ways
of life, full cooperation with Indian tribes, additional
research, education, and interpretation, maximum
cooperation by all Federal agencies with the State
and local governments and Indian tribes, and inter-
national cooperation with Canada, in order to en-
hance the protection and restoration of the natural
habitats and values of the Northwest Straits.
SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT.
There is established a commission to be known as the
Northwest Straits Advisory Commission.
SEC. 4. DUTIES.
The Commission shall coordinate with and com-
plement the activities of appropriate authorities at the
Federal, State, local, and tribal levels to work to achieve
the benchmarks set forth in section 9(b)(2) by—
(1) monitoring the overall health of the marine
ecosystem of the Northwest Straits;
(2) developing scientifically sound economic
measurements of the costs, both direct and indirect,
of ecosystem degradation and environmental protec-
tion with respect to the marine ecosystem of the
Northwest Straits;
(3) identifying trends and activities adversely
affecting, or preventing the restoration of, the health
of the marine ecosystem of the Northwest Straits;
(4) developing scientifically sound restoration
recommendations, informed by the economic meas-
urements, that address such matters for action by
the appropriate authorities;
(5) providing the restoration recommendations
and the economic measurements to the appropriate
authorities;
(6) helping facilitate the successful implementa-
tion of the recommendations by developing broad
support for the recommendations among the appro-
priate authorities, stakeholder groups, and the gen-
eral public;
(7) serving as a public forum for the discussion
of Federal, State, local, tribal, and Canadian policies
and actions with respect to the marine ecosystem of
the Northwest Straits;
(8) informing appropriate authorities and the
general public about the marine ecosystem of the
Northwest Straits and about issues relating to the
marine ecosystem of the Northwest Straits;
(9) consulting with all affected federally recog-
nized tribes in the region of the Northwest Straits
to ensure that the work of the Commission does not
violate tribal treaty rights; and
(10) consulting with and encouraging the par-
ticipation of appropriate Federal agencies and State
and regional entities in the deliberations of the Com-
mission.
SEC. 5. MEMBERSHIP.
(a) NUMBER AND APPOINTMENT.—The Commission
shall be composed of up to 13 members, who shall be ap-
pointed, subject to subsection (b), as follows:
(1) Up to 7 members, each one appointed by a
consensus of the members of a marine resource com-
mittee established in accordance with section 8, 1
each by the following counties in the State of Wash-
ington:
(A) San Juan County.
(B) Island County.
(C) Skagit County.
(D) Whatcom County.
(E) Snohomish County.
(F) Clallam County.
(G) Jefferson County.
(2) 1 member, appointed by the Secretary of
the Interior in trust capacity, to represent the inter-
ests of the affected Indian tribes.
(3) 1 member appointed by the Governor of the
State of Washington to represent the Puget Sound
Water Quality Action Team.
(4) Up to 4 members appointed by the Gov-
ernor of the State of Washington from among citi-
zens of the State of Washington who are not govern-
mental officials.
(b) LIMITATION ON NONCOUNTY APPOINTMENTS.—
The aggregate number of members appointed under para-
graphs (2), (3), and (4) of subsection (a) may not exceed
the number of members appointed under paragraph (1)
of subsection (a).
(c) VACANCIES.—Any member appointed to fill a va-
cancy occurring before the expiration of the term for which
the member’s predecessor was appointed shall be ap-
pointed only for the remainder of that term. A member
may serve after the expiration of that member’s term until
a successor has taken office. A vacancy in the Commission
shall be filled in the manner in which the original appoint-
ment was made. A vacancy in a position to be appointed
under subsection (a)(1) occurring after the first appoint-
ment of a member to that position shall not affect the
number of members authorized under paragraphs (2), (3),
and (4) of subsection (a).
(d) BASIC PAY.—Members shall serve without pay.
(e) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—Each member shall receive
travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence,
in accordance with sections 5702 and 5703 of title 5,
United States Code.
(f) QUORUM.—A majority of the members of the
Commission shall constitute a quorum but a lesser number
may hold hearings.
(g) SUPERMAJORITY.—Unless otherwise specified in
this Act or other law, an action of the Commission must
be approved by at least three-fifths of the members
present at a meeting at which a quorum is present.
(h) CHAIRPERSON.—The Commission shall select a
Chairperson from among its members. Any vacancy in the
office of the Chairperson shall be filled in the manner in
which the original selection was made.
(i) MEETINGS.—The Commission shall meet at the
call of the Chairperson, but not less frequently than quar-
terly.
SEC. 6. DIRECTOR AND STAFF; EXPERTS AND CONSULT-
ANTS.
(a) DIRECTOR.—The Commission shall appoint and
fix the pay of a Director.
(b) STAFF.—The Director may appoint and fix the
pay of additional personnel as the Director considers ap-
propriate.
(c) APPLICABILITY
OF CERTAIN CIVIL SERVICE
LAWS.—The Director and staff of the Commission shall
be appointed without regard to the provisions of title 5,
United States Code, governing appointments in the com-
petitive service, and may be paid without regard to the
provisions of chapter 51 and subchapter III of chapter 53
of that title relating to classification and General Schedule
pay rates, except that an individual so appointed may not
receive pay at a rate in excess of $75,000 per year.