Sec. 106. Project criteria. 
TITLE II—MITIGATION 
Sec. 201. Full mitigation. 
Sec. 202. Concurrent mitigation. 
Sec. 203. Mitigation tracking system.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES. 
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 
(1) The Army Corps of Engineers is the pri-
mary Federal agency responsible for developing and 
managing the Nation’s harbors, waterways, shore-
lines, and water resources. 
(2) Scarce Federal resources require more effi-
cient use of Corps of Engineers funding and greater 
oversight of Corps of Engineers analyses. 
(3) Demand for recreation, clean water, and 
healthy wildlife habitat must be reflected in the 
Corps of Engineers project planning process. 
(4) The social and environmental impacts of 
dams, levees, shoreline stabilization structures, and 
other projects must be adequately considered and 
fully mitigated. 
(5) Affected interests must play a larger role in 
the oversight of Corps of Engineers project develop-
ment. 
(b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are as fol-
lows:
(1) To ensure that the Nation’s water resources 
investments are economically justified and enhance 
the environment. 
(2) To provide independent review of Corps of 
Engineers feasibility studies, general reevaluation 
studies, and environmental impact statements. 
(3) To ensure that mitigation for Corps of En-
gineers projects is successful and cost-effective. 
(4) To enhance the involvement of affected in-
terests in Corps of Engineers feasibility studies, gen-
eral reevaluation studies, and environmental impact 
statements. 
(5) To revise Corps of Engineers planning prin-
ciples to meet the economic and environmental needs 
of riverside and coastal communities. 
(6) To ensure that environmental analyses be 
considered as co-equal to economic analyses in the 
assessment of Corps of Engineers projects, recog-
nizing the need for sound science in the evaluation 
of the impacts on the health of aquatic ecosystems. 
(7) To ensure that the Corps of Engineers is 
making appropriate, up-to-date calculations in con-
ducting cost-benefit analyses of Corps of Engineers 
projects.
SEC. 3. SECRETARY DEFINED. 
In this Act, the term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Sec-
retary of the Army. 
TITLE I—PROJECT PLANNING 
REFORM 
SEC. 101. PRINCIPLES AND GUIDELINES. 
Section 209 of the Flood Control Act of 1970 (42 
U.S.C. 1962–2) is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘SEC. 209. CONGRESSIONAL STATEMENT OF OBJECTIVES. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—It is the intent of Congress that 
economic development and environmental protection and 
restoration be co-equal goals of water resources planning 
and development. 
‘‘(b) REVISION OF PRINCIPLES AND GUIDELINES.—
Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of the 
Army Corps of Engineers Reform Act of 2003, the Sec-
retary shall revise the principles and guidelines of the 
Corps of Engineers for water resources projects—
‘‘(1) to provide for the consideration of ecologi-
cal restoration costs under Corps of Engineers eco-
nomic models; 
‘‘(2) to incorporate new techniques in risk and 
uncertainty analysis;
‘‘(3) to eliminate biases and disincentives for 
nonstructural flood damage reduction projects; 
‘‘(4) to incorporate new analytical techniques;
‘‘(5) to encourage, to the maximum extent prac-
ticable, the restoration of aquatic ecosystems; and 
‘‘(6) to ensure that water resources projects are 
justified by benefits that accrue to the public at 
large and not to a limited number of private busi-
nesses. 
‘‘(c) UPDATE OF GUIDANCE.—The Secretary shall 
update the Guidance for Conducting Civil Works Planning 
Studies (ER 1105–2–100) to comply with this section.’’. 
SEC. 102. STAKEHOLDER ADVISORY COMMITTEES. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Upon receipt of a written request 
by any person or governmental entity, the Secretary shall 
establish for a water resources project that is authorized 
or substantially modified after the date of enactment of 
this Act a stakeholder advisory committee to assist the 
Secretary with the development of feasibility studies, gen-
eral reevaluation studies, and environmental impact state-
ments for the project. 
(b) DURATION OF REVIEWS.—A stakeholder advisory 
committee established for a project under this section may 
provide advice to the Secretary during planning and de-
sign of the project, beginning with the initiation of the 
project’s draft feasibility study and ending with the 
issuance of the project’s draft environmental impact state-
ment.
(c) MEMBERSHIP.—A stakeholder advisory com-
mittee established for a project under this section shall 
be composed of representatives of State and local agencies, 
tribal organizations, public interest groups, industry, sci-
entific, and academic organizations, Federal agencies, and 
other interested citizens. The membership shall represent 
a balance of the social, economic, and environmental inter-
ests in the project. 
(d) ROLE.—A stakeholder advisory committee estab-
lished for a project under this section shall advise the Sec-
retary but shall not be required to make a formal rec-
ommendation. 
(e) COSTS.—The costs of a stakeholder advisory com-
mittee established for a project under this section—
(1) shall be a Federal expense; 
(2) shall not exceed $250,000; and 
(3) shall be considered as part of the total cost 
of the project. 
(f) APPLICABILITY
OF FEDERAL ADVISORY COM-
MITTEE ACT.—The Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 
U.S.C. App.) shall apply to a stakeholder advisory com-
mittee established under this section.
SEC. 103. INDEPENDENT REVIEW. 
(a) PROJECTS
SUBJECT
TO
INDEPENDENT
RE-
VIEW.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall ensure 
that feasibility studies, general reevaluation studies, 
and environmental impact statements for each water 
resources project described in paragraph (2) are 
subject to review by an independent panel of experts 
established under this section. 
(2) PROJECTS SUBJECT TO REVIEW.—A project 
shall be subject to review under paragraph (1) if—
(A) the project has an estimated total cost 
of more than $25,000,000, including mitigation 
costs; 
(B) the Governor of an affected State re-
quests the establishment of an independent 
panel of experts for the project; 
(C) the Director of the United States Fish 
and Wildlife Service determines that the project 
is likely to have a significant adverse impact on 
fish or wildlife after implementation of proposed 
mitigation plans; 
(D) the head of a Federal agency charged 
with reviewing the project determines that the 
project is likely to have a signficant adverse im-
pact on environmental, cultural, or other re-
sources under the jurisdiction of the agency
after implementation of proposed mitigation 
plans; or 
(E) the Secretary determines that the 
project is controversial under paragraph (3). 
(3) CONTROVERSIAL PROJECTS.—Upon receipt 
of a written request by an interested party or on the 
initiative of the Secretary, the Secretary shall deter-
mine whether or not a project is controversial under 
paragraph (2)(E). The Secretary shall determine 
that a project is controversial if the Secretary finds 
that—
(A) there is a significant public dispute as 
to the size, nature, or effects of the project; or 
(B) there is a significant public dispute as 
to the economic or environmental costs or bene-
fits of the project. 
(4) AFFECTED STATE DEFINED.—In paragraph 
(2)(B), the term ‘‘affected State’’ means a State 
that is at least partially within the drainage basin in 
which the project is located and would be economi-
cally or environmentally affected as a consequence of 
the project. 
(b) OFFICE OF INDEPENDENT REVIEW.—
(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in 
the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army for
Civil Works an Office of Independent Review (in this 
section referred to as the ‘‘Office’’). 
(2) DIRECTOR.—
(A) APPOINTMENT.—The head of the Of-
fice shall be the Director of the Office of Inde-
pendent Review (in this section referred to as 
the ‘‘Director’’), who shall be appointed by the 
Secretary for a term of 3 years. 
(B) 
QUALIFICATIONS.—The 
Secretary 
shall select the Director from among individuals 
who are distinguished scholars. In making the 
selection, the Secretary shall consider any rec-
ommendations made by the Inspector General 
of the Army. 
(C) LIMITATION ON APPOINTMENTS.—The 
Secretary shall not appoint an individual to 
serve as the Director if the individual has a fi-
nancial or close professional association with 
any organization or group with a strong finan-
cial or organizational interest in an ongoing 
water resources project. 
(D) TERMS.—An individual may not serve 
for more than 1 term as the Director.
(3) DUTIES.—The Director shall establish a 
panel of experts to review each project subject to re-
view under subsection (a). 
(c) ESTABLISHMENT OF PANELS.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—As soon as practicable after 
the Secretary selects a preferred alternative for a 
project subject to review under subsection (a), the 
Director shall establish a panel of experts to review 
the project. 
(2) MEMBERSHIP.—A panel of experts estab-
lished by the Director for a project shall be com-
posed of not less than 5 and not more than 9 inde-
pendent experts who represent a balance of areas of 
expertise, including biologists, engineers, and econo-
mists. 
(3) LIMITATION ON APPOINTMENTS.—The Di-
rector shall not appoint an individual to serve on a 
panel of experts for a project if the individual has 
a financial or close professional association with any 
organization or group with a strong financial or or-
ganizational interest in the project. 
(4) CONSULTATION.—The Director shall con-
sult with the National Academy of Sciences in devel-
oping lists of individuals to serve on panels of ex-
perts under this section.
(5) COMPENSATION.—An individual serving on 
a panel of experts under this section shall be com-
pensated at a rate of pay to be determined by the 
Secretary. 
(6) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—An individual serving 
on a panel of experts under this section shall receive 
travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsist-
ence, in accordance with sections 5702 and 5703 of 
title 5, United States Code. 
(d) DUTIES OF PANELS.—A panel of experts estab-
lished for a project under this section shall—
(1) review each feasibility study, general re-
evaluation study, and environmental impact state-
ment prepared for the project; 
(2) assess the adequacy of the economic models 
used by the Secretary in reviewing the project to en-
sure that—
(A) multiple methods of economic analysis 
have been used; and 
(B) any regional effects on navigation sys-
tems have been examined; 
(3) assess the adequacy of the environmental 
models and analyses used by the Secretary in re-
viewing the project;
(4) receive and review written and oral com-
ments of a technical nature concerning the project 
from the public; and 
(5) submit to the Secretary a report containing 
the panel’s economic, engineering, and environ-
mental analysis of the project, including the panel’s 
conclusions on the project’s feasibility studies, gen-
eral reevaluation studies, and environmental impact 
statements, with particular emphasis on areas of 
public controversy. 
(e) DURATION OF PROJECT REVIEWS.—A panel of 
experts shall complete its review of a project under this 
section not later than 180 days after the date of establish-
ment of the panel and shall terminate upon submission 
of a final report to the Secretary under subsection (d)(5). 
(f) RECOMMENDATIONS OF PANEL.—
(1) CONSIDERATION BY SECRETARY.—After re-
ceiving a report on a project from a panel of experts 
under this section and before entering a final record 
of decision for the project, the Secretary shall con-
sider any recommendations contained in the report 
and prepare a written explanation for any rec-
ommendations not adopted. 
(2) PUBLIC
REVIEW; TRANSMITTAL
TO
CON-
GRESS.—After receiving a report on a project from
a panel of experts under this section, the Secretary 
shall—
(A) make a copy of the report and any 
written explanation of the Secretary on rec-
ommendations contained in the report available 
for public review under section 104; and 
(B) transmit to Congress a copy of the re-
port, together with any such written expla-
nation. 
(g) COSTS.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The costs of a panel of ex-
perts established for a project under this section—
(A) shall be a Federal expense; 
(B) shall not exceed $500,000; and 
(C) shall be considered as part of the total 
cost of the project. 
(2) WAIVER.—The Secretary may waive the 
$500,000 limitation contained in paragraph (1)(B) 
in cases that the Secretary determines appropriate. 
(h) APPLICABILITY OF FEDERAL ADVISORY COM-
MITTEE ACT.—The Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 
U.S.C. App.) shall apply to a panel of experts established 
under this section.
SEC. 104. PUBLIC ACCESS TO INFORMATION. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall ensure that 
information related to the analysis of a water resources 
project by the Corps of Engineers, including all supporting 
data, analytical documents, and information that the 
Corps of Engineers has considered in its analysis, is made 
available to any individual upon request and to the public 
on the Internet. 
(b) TYPES OF INFORMATION.—Information about a 
water resources project to be made available under sub-
section (a) shall include any information that had been 
made available to the project sponsor and all data used 
by the Corps of Engineers in its justification and analysis 
of the project. 
(c) EXCEPTION FOR TRADE SECRETS.—
(1) IN
GENERAL.—The Secretary shall not 
make information available under subsection (a) that 
the Secretary determines to be a trade secret of the 
person who supplied the information to the Corps of 
Engineers. 
(2) CRITERIA FOR TRADE SECRETS.—The Sec-
retary shall consider information to be a trade secret 
only if—
(A) the person who supplied the informa-
tion to the Corps of Engineers—
(i) has not disclosed the information 
to any person other than (I) an officer or 
employee of the United States or a State 
or local government, (II) an employee of 
such person, or (III) a person who is 
bound by a confidentiality agreement; and 
(ii) has taken reasonable measures to 
protect the confidentiality of the informa-
tion and intends to continue to take such 
measures; 
(B) the information is not required to be 
disclosed, or otherwise made available, to the 
public under any other Federal or State law; 
and 
(C) disclosure of the information is likely 
to cause substantial harm to the competitive po-
sition of such person. 
SEC. 105. BENEFIT-COST ANALYSIS. 
Section 308(a) of the Water Resources Development 
Act of 1990 (33 U.S.C. 2318(a)) is amended—
(1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph 
(1)(B); 
(2) by striking the period at the end of para-
graph (2) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 
(3) by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(3) any projected benefit arising from the 
draining, reduction, or elimination of wetlands at-
tributable to increases in the value of privately 
owned property, increases in the quantity of pri-
vately owned property, or increases in the value of 
privately owned services.’’. 
SEC. 106. PROJECT CRITERIA. 
After the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary 
shall not submit to Congress any proposal to authorize or 
substantially modify a water resources project unless the 
proposal contains a certification by the Secretary that the 
project minimizes to the greatest extent practicable ad-
verse impacts on—
(1) the natural hydrologic patterns of aquatic 
ecosystems; and 
(2) the value or native diversity of aquatic eco-
systems. 
TITLE II—MITIGATION 
SEC. 201. FULL MITIGATION. 
Section 906(d) of the Water Resources Development 
Act of 1986 (33 U.S.C. 2283(d)) is amended—
(1) in the first sentence of paragraph (1) by in-
serting ‘‘fully’’ before ‘‘mitigate’’; and 
(2) by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(3) STANDARDS FOR MITIGATION.—To miti-
gate losses to fish and wildlife resulting from a 
water resources project, the Secretary, at a min-
imum, shall acquire and restore an acre of habitat 
to replace each acre of habitat negatively impacted 
by the project. The mitigation plan shall include a 
detailed and specific plan to monitor mitigation im-
plementation and success. 
‘‘(4) DESIGN OF MITIGATION PROJECTS.—The 
Secretary shall design mitigation projects to reflect 
contemporary understanding of the importance of 
spatial distribution of habitat and the natural hy-
drology of aquatic ecosystems, and shall fully miti-
gate the adverse hydrologic impacts of projects. 
‘‘(5) RECOMMENDATION
OF
PROJECTS.—The 
Secretary shall not recommend a water resources 
project alternative or choose a project alternative in 
any final record of decision, environmental impact 
statement, or environmental assessment completed 
after the date of enactment of this paragraph unless 
the Secretary determines that the mitigation plan 
for the alternative has the greatest probability of 
cost-effectively and successfully mitigating the ad-
verse impacts of the project on aquatic resources 
and fish and wildlife.
‘‘(6) COMPLETION
OF
MITIGATION
BEFORE 
CONSTRUCTION OF NEW PROJECTS.—The Secretary 
shall complete all planned mitigation in a particular 
watershed before constructing any new water re-
sources project in that watershed.’’. 
SEC. 202. CONCURRENT MITIGATION. 
Section 906(a)(1) of the Water Resources Develop-
ment Act of 1986 (33 U.S.C. 2283(a)(1)) is amended by 
adding at the end the following: ‘‘To ensure concurrent 
mitigation, the Secretary shall complete 50 percent of re-
quired mitigation before beginning project construction 
and shall complete the remainder of required mitigation 
as expeditiously as practicable and in no case later than 
the last day of project construction.’’. 
SEC. 203. MITIGATION TRACKING SYSTEM. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 6 months after the 
date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall establish 
a record-keeping system to track the following informa-
tion: 
(1) The amount and type of wetlands and other 
habitat types impacted by the operation and mainte-
nance of each water resources project carried out by 
the Secretary.
(2) The amount and type of mitigation required 
for the operation and maintenance of each water re-
sources project carried out by the Secretary. 
(3) The amount and type of mitigation that has 
been completed for the operation and maintenance of 
each water resources project carried out by the Sec-
retary. 
(4) Wetland losses permitted under section 404 
of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 
U.S.C. 1344) and required mitigation for such 
losses. 
(b) REQUIRED INFORMATION AND ORGANIZATION.—
The record-keeping system shall include information on 
impacts and mitigation described in subsection (a) occur-
ring after 1969 and shall be organized by watershed, 
project, permit application, and zip code. 
(c) AVAILABILITY OF INFORMATION.—The Secretary 
shall make information contained in the record-keeping 
system available to the public on the Internet.
Æ