I 
116TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 358 
To direct the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to estab-
lish a California New River restoration program to build on, and help 
coordinate funding for, restoration and protection efforts relating to 
the New River, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JANUARY 9, 2019 
Mr. VARGAS introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com-
mittee on Natural Resources, and in addition to the Committee on Trans-
portation 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 committee concerned 
A BILL 
To direct the Administrator of the Environmental Protection 
Agency to establish a California New River restoration 
program to build on, and help coordinate funding for, 
restoration and protection efforts relating to the New 
River, 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 ‘‘California New River 
Restoration Act of 2019’’. 
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SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds that— 
(1) the New River was born out of the Colorado 
River’s occasional flows into the Salton Sink and the 
erosion of the New River channel which formed the 
deep river canyon between 1905 and 1907; 
(2) the New River starts in Mexicali, Mexico, 
flows north into the United States through Calexico, 
passes through the Imperial Valley and drains into 
the Salton Sea, roughly 66 miles north of the inter-
national boundary, and the sub-watershed covers ap-
proximately 750 square miles, with 63 percent of 
that in Mexico and 37 percent in the United States; 
(3) the New River has been widely recognized 
for its significant water pollution problems, pri-
marily because of agricultural runoff, raw sewage, 
pesticides, and discharges of wastes from domestic, 
agricultural, and industrial sources in Mexico and 
the Imperial Valley; 
(4) by the 1980s, the New River acquired the 
reputation of being one of the most polluted rivers 
in the United States, with many of the pollutants 
posing serious human health hazards to local popu-
lations, particularly those in Calexico and Mexicali; 
(5) in 1992, the International Boundary Water 
Commission’s Treaty Minute No. 288 established a 
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sanitation strategy for the New River water quality 
problems at the international boundary and divided 
the sanitation projects into two immediate repairs 
projects, the Mexicali I and the Mexicali II, which 
totaled about $50 million dollars and were funded by 
both countries through the North American Develop-
ment Bank; 
(6) in 1995, the Environmental Protection 
Agency provided funds to the California Regional 
Water Quality Control Board to monitor and docu-
ment the water quality at the international boundary 
on a monthly basis; 
(7) in the late 1990s, the United States and 
Mexico spent $100 million (45 percent paid by Mex-
ico and 55 percent paid by the United States) to 
build the Las Arenitas and Zaragoza Wastewater 
Treatment plants, and untreated New River water 
passing through four microbial treatment cells at 
Las Arenitas was then chlorinated and fed into a re- 
forestation project along the desiccated Rio Hardy 
which stretches to the Sea of Cortez; 
(8) a 10-year effort by community groups, law-
yers, regulatory agencies, and politicians addressed 
the problem at the source by federally funding a new 
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sewage treatment plant in Mexicali and developing a 
site plan for the river on the United States side; 
(9) in 2009, the State of California required the 
California-Mexico Border Relations Council to create 
a strategic plan to study, monitor, remediate, and 
enhance the New River’s water quality to protect 
human health and develop a river parkway suitable 
for public use; 
(10) in 2012, the California-Mexico Border Re-
lations Council approved the strategic plan for the 
New River Improvement Project prepared by the 
New River Improvement Project Technical Advisory 
Committee; 
(11) in 2016, the New River Improvement 
Project Technical Advisory Committee revised the 
recommended infrastructure of the New River Im-
provement Project, and the State of California ap-
propriated $1.4 million to provide grants or con-
tracts to implement the necessary planning, design, 
environmental review, and permitting work; 
(12) the revised New River Improvement 
Project includes the installation of a large trash 
screen, a conveyance system, aeration devices, a new 
pump station and managed wetlands; and 
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(13) the existing and ongoing voluntary con-
servation efforts at the New River necessitate im-
proved efficiency and cost effectiveness, as well as 
increased private-sector investments and coordina-
tion of Federal and non-Federal resources. 
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
(1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis-
trator’’ means the Administrator of the Environ-
mental Protection Agency. 
(2) MEXICAN.—The term ‘‘Mexican’’ refers to 
the Federal, State, and local governments of the 
United Mexican States. 
(3) NEW
RIVER.—The term ‘‘New River’’ 
means the river that starts in Mexicali, Mexico, 
flows north into the United States through Calexico, 
passes through the Imperial Valley, and drains into 
the Salton Sea. 
(4) PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘program’’ means 
the California New River restoration program estab-
lished under section 4. 
(5) RESTORATION
AND
PROTECTION.—The 
term ‘‘restoration and protection’’ means the con-
servation, stewardship, and enhancement of habitat 
for fish and wildlife to preserve and improve eco-
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systems and ecological processes on which they de-
pend. 
SEC. 4. CALIFORNIA NEW RIVER RESTORATION PROGRAM 
ESTABLISHMENT. 
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 180 days after 
the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall 
establish a program to be known as the ‘‘California New 
River restoration program’’. 
(b) DUTIES.—In carrying out the program, the Ad-
ministrator shall— 
(1) implement projects, plans, and initiatives 
for the New River supported by the California-Mex-
ico Border Relations Council, and work in consulta-
tion with applicable management entities, including 
representatives of the Calexico New River Com-
mittee, the California-Mexico Border Relations 
Council, the New River Improvement Project Tech-
nical Advisory Committee, the Federal Government, 
State and local governments, and regional and non-
profit organizations, to implement restoration and 
protection activities relating to the New River; 
(2) undertake activities that— 
(A) support the implementation of a 
shared set of science-based restoration and pro-
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tection activities identified in accordance with 
paragraph (1); 
(B) target cost-effective projects with 
measurable results; and 
(C) maximize conservation outcomes with 
no net gain of Federal full-time equivalent em-
ployees; and 
(3) provide grants and technical assistance in 
accordance with section 5. 
(c) COORDINATION.—In establishing the program, 
the Administrator shall consult, as appropriate, with— 
(1) the heads of Federal agencies, including— 
(A) the Secretary of the Interior; 
(B) the Secretary of Agriculture; 
(C) the Secretary of Homeland Security; 
(D) the Administrator of General Services; 
(E) the Commissioner of U.S. Customs 
and Border Protection; 
(F) the Commissioner of the International 
Boundary Water Commission; and 
(G) the head of any other applicable agen-
cy; 
(2) the Governor of California; 
(3) the California Environmental Protection 
Agency; 
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(4) the California State Water Resources Con-
trol Board; 
(5) the California Department of Water Re-
sources; 
(6) the Colorado River Basin Regional Water 
Quality Control Board; 
(7) the Imperial Irrigation District; and 
(8) other public agencies and organizations with 
authority for the planning and implementation of 
conservation strategies relating to the New River in 
both the United States and Mexico. 
(d) PURPOSES.—The purposes of the program in-
clude— 
(1) coordinating restoration and protection ac-
tivities, among Mexican, Federal, State, local, and 
regional entities and conservation partners, relating 
to the New River; and 
(2) carrying out coordinated restoration and 
protection activities, and providing for technical as-
sistance relating to the New River— 
(A) to sustain and enhance fish and wild-
life habitat restoration and protection activities; 
(B) to improve and maintain water quality 
to support fish and wildlife, as well as the habi-
tats of fish and wildlife; 
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(C) to sustain and enhance water manage-
ment for volume and flood damage mitigation 
improvements to benefit fish and wildlife habi-
tat; 
(D) to improve opportunities for public ac-
cess to, and recreation in and along, the New 
River consistent with the ecological needs of 
fish and wildlife habitat; 
(E) to maximize the resilience of natural 
systems and habitats under changing watershed 
conditions; 
(F) to engage the public through outreach, 
education, and citizen involvement, to increase 
capacity and support for coordinated restora-
tion and protection activities relating to the 
New River; 
(G) to increase scientific capacity to sup-
port the planning, monitoring, and research ac-
tivities necessary to carry out coordinated res-
toration and protection activities; and 
(H) to provide technical assistance to carry 
out restoration and protection activities relating 
to the New River. 
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SEC. 5. GRANTS AND ASSISTANCE. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out the program, the 
Administrator shall provide grants and technical assist-
ance to State and local governments, nonprofit organiza-
tions, and institutions of higher education, in both the 
United States and Mexico, to carry out the purposes of 
the program. 
(b) CRITERIA.—The Administrator, in consultation 
with the organizations described in section 4(c), shall de-
velop criteria for providing grants and technical assistance 
under this section to ensure that such activities accomplish 
one or more of the purposes identified in section 4(d)(2) 
and advance the implementation of priority actions or 
needs identified in the New River-wide strategy adopted 
under section 4(b)(2). 
(c) COST SHARING.— 
(1) FEDERAL SHARE.—The Federal share of 
the cost of a project for which a grant is provided 
under this section shall not exceed 55 percent of the 
total cost of the activity, as determined by the Ad-
ministrator. 
(2) NON-FEDERAL
SHARE.—The non-Federal 
share of the cost of a project for which a grant is 
provided under this section may be provided in the 
form of an in-kind contribution of services or mate-
rials. 
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(d) ADMINISTRATION.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—The Administrator may 
enter into an agreement to manage the implementa-
tion of this section with the North American Devel-
opment Bank or a similar organization that offers 
grant management services. 
(2) FUNDING.—If the Administrator enters into 
an agreement under paragraph (1), the organization 
selected shall— 
(A) for each fiscal year, receive amounts to 
carry out this section in an advance payment of 
the entire amount on October 1, or as soon as 
practicable thereafter, of that fiscal year; 
(B) invest and reinvest those amounts for 
the benefit of the program; and 
(C) otherwise administer the implementa-
tion of this section to support partnerships be-
tween the public and private sectors in accord-
ance with this Act. 
SEC. 6. ANNUAL REPORTS. 
Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment 
of this Act, and annually thereafter, the Administrator 
shall submit to Congress a report on the implementation 
of this Act, including a description of each project that 
has received funding under this Act and the status of all 
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such projects that are in progress on the date of submis-
sion of the report. 
Æ 
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