I
107TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 5396
To amend the Nonindigenous Aquatic Nuisance Prevention and Control Act
of 1990 to reauthorize and improve that Act.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
SEPTEMBER 18, 2002
Mr. GILCHREST (for himself, Mr. EHLERS, Mr. BAIRD, Mr. HOEKSTRA, Mr.
SCOTT, Mr. KIRK, Mr. BALDACCI, Mr. ALLEN, Ms. BALDWIN, Mr. BAR-
CIA, Mr. BONIOR, Ms. BROWN of Florida, Mr. BROWN of Ohio, Mr.
CAMP, Mr. CARDIN, Mr. CUMMINGS, Mr. DICKS, Mr. EHRLICH, Mr.
ENGLISH, Mr. FARR of California, Mr. GREENWOOD, Ms. KAPTUR, Mr.
KILDEE, Ms. KILPATRICK, Mr. KIND, Mr. KUCINICH, Mr. LATOURETTE,
Mr. LEVIN, Mr. MCHUGH, Mrs. MORELLA, Ms. RIVERS, Mr. ROGERS of
Michigan, Ms. SLAUGHTER, Mr. STUPAK, Mrs. BIGGERT, Mr. PALLONE,
Mr. BLUMENAUER, Mr. UNDERWOOD, Mrs. MALONEY of New York, Mr.
ORTIZ, Mr. UPTON, and Ms. MCCOLLUM) introduced the following bill;
which was referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastruc-
ture, and in addition to the Committee on Resources, 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 committee con-
cerned
A BILL
To amend the Nonindigenous Aquatic Nuisance Prevention
and Control Act of 1990 to reauthorize and improve
that Act.
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
‘‘National Aquatic Invasive Species Act of 2002’’.
(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of
this Act is as follows:
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Findings.
Sec. 3. Definitions.
TITLE I—AQUATIC INVASIVE SPECIES MANAGEMENT
Sec. 101. Program coordination.
Sec. 102. Federal consistency.
Sec. 103. International coordination.
Sec. 104. Prevention of introduction of aquatic invasive species into waters of
the United States by vessels.
Sec. 105. Prevention of the introduction of aquatic invasive species into waters
of the United States by other pathways.
Sec. 106. Early detection and monitoring.
Sec. 107. Containment and control.
Sec. 108. Brown tree snake control program.
Sec. 109. Information, education, and outreach.
TITLE II—AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS
Sec. 201. Authorization of appropriations.
TITLE III—CONFORMING AMENDMENTS
Sec. 301. Conforming amendments.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds that—
(1) invasive species can cause devastating de-
clines in local, regional, and national species diver-
sity;
(2) aquatic invasive species continue to be in-
troduced into water of the United States;
(3) aquatic invasive species damage infrastruc-
ture, disrupt commerce, outcompete native species,
reduce biodiversity, and threaten human health;
(4) the direct and indirect costs of aquatic
invasive species to the economy of the United States
amount to billions of dollars per year;
(5) in the Great Lakes region, approximately
$3,000,000,000 has been spent in the past 10 years
to mitigate the damage caused by a single invasive
species, the zebra mussel;
(6) recent studies have—
(A) demonstrated that, in addition to eco-
nomic damage, invasive species can cause enor-
mous ecological damage; and
(B) cited invasive species as the second
leading threat to endangered species;
(7) over the past 200 years, the rate of detected
marine and freshwater invasions in North America
has increased exponentially;
(8) wetlands suffer compound impacts from—
(A) terrestrial infestations (such as Nu-
tria);
(B) aquatic infestations (such as Hydrilla);
and
(C) riparian infestations (such as Purple
Loosestrife);
(9) the rate of invasions continues to be unac-
ceptable;
(10) infestations by aquatic invasive species
often spread and cause significant, negative regional,
national, and international effects;
(11) prevention of aquatic invasive species is
the most environmentally sound and cost-effective
management approach because once established,
aquatic invasive species are costly, and sometimes
impossible to control;
(12) to be effective, the prevention, early detec-
tion, and control of and rapid response to aquatic
invasive species should be coordinated regionally, na-
tionally, and internationally;
(13) research underlies every aspect of detect-
ing, preventing, controlling, and eradicating invasive
species, educating citizens and stakeholders, and re-
storing ecosystems;
(14) pathway management is the most prom-
ising approach to reducing unplanned introductions
of aquatic invasive species;
(15) consistent national screening criteria are
needed to evaluate the potential risk of nonnative
aquatic species;
(16) States and regions have specific problems
with respect to aquatic invasive species and re-
sources for addressing aquatic invasive species;
(17) an emphasis on research, development, and
demonstration to support prevention efforts would
likely result in a more cost-effective and successful
approach to combating invasive species through pre-
venting initial introduction;
(18) research, development, and demonstration
to support prevention includes monitoring of path-
ways and ecosystems to track the introduction and
establishment of invasive species, analysis of that
data, and development and testing of technologies to
prevent introduction through known pathways;
(19) the Aquatic Invasive Species Task Force
established by section 1201(a) of the Nonindigenous
Aquatic Nuisance Prevention and Control Act of
1990 (16 U.S.C. 4721(a)) has been directed by Con-
gress to coordinate interagency responses to aquatic
invasive species, but the provision of additional di-
rection, and assignment of specific responsibilities,
to various Federal agencies would accelerate those
responses; and
(20) it is in the interest of the United States
to conduct a comprehensive and thorough research,
development, and demonstration program on aquatic
invasive species in order to better understand how
aquatic invasive species are introduced and become
established and to support efforts to prevent the in-
troduction and establishment of those species.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
Section 1003 of the Nonindigenous Aquatic Nuisance
Prevention and Control Act of 1990 (16 U.S.C. 4702) is
amended to read as follows:
‘‘SEC. 1003. DEFINITIONS.
‘‘In this Act:
‘‘(1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘Adminis-
trator’ means the Administrator of the Environ-
mental Protection Agency.
‘‘(2) AQUATIC
ECOSYSTEMS
IN
THE
UNITED
STATES.—The term ‘aquatic ecosystems in the
United States’ means freshwater, marine, and estua-
rine environments (including inland waters and wet-
lands), located wholly or in part, in the United
States.