Upper Mississippi River Basin Protection Act

Bill: 110-hr-2381
Sponsor: Rep. Kind, Ron [D-WI-3]
Introduced: 2007-05-17 in the House
Policy area: Water Resources Development
Subjects: Administrative procedure
Agricultural pollution
Agriculture and Food
Civil Rights and Liberties, Minority Issues
Commerce
Computer simulation
Congress
Congressional reporting requirements
Data banks
Department of the Interior
Economics and Public Finance
Electronic government information
Environmental Protection
Environmental assessment
Environmental monitoring
Environmental research
Estuaries
Eutrophication
Federal aid to research
Federal aid to water pollution control
Federal-Indian relations
Federal-local relations
Federal-state relations
Government Operations and Politics
Government paperwork
Government publicity
Hydrology
Illinois
Internet
Iowa
Land use
Landscape protection
Law
Marine and coastal resources, fisheries
Marine pollution
Minnesota
Minorities
Mississippi River
Missouri
Nature conservation
Performance measurement
Public Lands and Natural Resources
Public-private partnerships
Remote sensing
Right of privacy
Rivers
Science, Technology, Communications
Sediment control
Sedimentation
Soil conservation
Soil erosion
Space activities
Water pollution control
Water quality
Watersheds
Wisconsin

Summary:
action_date: 2007-05-17
text: 
Upper Mississippi River Basin Protection Act - Directs the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the United States Geological Survey (USGS), to establish a nutrient and sediment monitoring network for the Upper Mississippi River Basin.
 
Directs the Secretary to: (1) establish guidelines for related data collection and storage activities; (2) inventory the sediment and monitoring efforts of governmental and nongovernmental entities for the purpose of creating a baseline understanding of overlap, data gaps, and redundancies; and (3) collaborate with other public and private monitoring efforts in establishing the monitoring program.
Directs the National Research Council of the National Academy of Sciences to conduct a water resources assessment of the Basin. 
Requires the Director of the USGS to establish: (1) a computer modeling program of nutrient and sediment sources in the Basin; and (2) an Internet-based system to distribute information about nutrient and sediment loss reduction projects and nutrient and sediment levels in the Upper Mississippi River and its tributaries.
action_date: 2007-07-10
text: 

(This measure has not been amended since it was introduced. The summary has been expanded because action occurred on the measure.)

Upper Mississippi River Basin Protection Act - 
Title I: Sediment and Nutrient Monitoring Network 
 - (Sec. 101) Directs the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Director of the United States Geological Survey (USGS), to establish a sediment and nutrient monitoring network for the Upper Mississippi River Basin.
 
(Sec. 102) Directs the Secretary to: (1) establish guidelines for related data collection and storage activities; (2) inventory the sediment and monitoring efforts of governmental and nongovernmental entities for the purpose of creating a baseline understanding of overlap, data gaps, and redundancies; (3) integrate the existing monitoring efforts into the network; (4) make maximum use of existing data and ongoing programs and efforts in developing the network; (5) carry out this section in coordination with the long-term estuary assessment project authorized by the Estuaries and Clean Waters Act of 2000; (6) collaborate with other public and private monitoring programs; and (7) report to Congress on the network's development. 
(Sec. 106) Directs the National Research Council of the National Academy of Sciences to conduct a water resources assessment of the Basin. 

Title II: Computer Modeling and Research 
- (Sec. 201) Requires the Director to establish: (1) a computer modeling program to identify nutrient and sediment sources in the Basin; and (2) an Internet-based system to provide information about nutrient and sediment loss reduction programs and projects and nutrient and sediment levels in the Upper Mississippi River and its tributaries. 
(Sec. 203) Requires the Director to provide to Congress and make available to the public: (1) an annual report regarding monitoring activities conducted in the Upper Mississippi River Basin; and (2) a progress report every three years regarding modeling activities.

Title III: Authorization of Appropriations and Related Matters
 - (Sec. 301) Authorizes appropriations to: (1) the USGS each fiscal year to carry out this Act, requiring one-third of the appropriated funds for the Cooperative Water Program and the remainder for the Hydrologic Networks and Analysis Program; and (2) the National Research Council for the water resources assessment.
(Sec. 302) Makes funds available for the Cooperative Water Program subject to the same cost-sharing requirements as specified in the Department of the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2006.

Legislative actions:
action_date: 2008-02-28
text: Committee on Energy and Natural Resources Senate Subcommittee on Water and Power. Hearings held.
action_date: 2007-07-11
text: Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
action_date: 2007-07-10
text: Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
action_date: 2007-07-10
text: On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by voice vote. (text: CR H7447-7448)
action_date: 2007-07-10
text: Passed/agreed to in House: On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by voice vote.(text: CR H7447-7448)
action_date: 2007-07-10
text: DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on H.R. 2381.
action_date: 2007-07-10
text: Considered under suspension of the rules. (consideration: CR H7447-7448)
action_date: 2007-07-10
text: Mr. Sarbanes moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill.
action_date: 2007-05-21
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on Water and Power.
action_date: 2007-05-17
text: Referred to the House Committee on Natural Resources.
action_date: 2007-05-17
text: Introduced in House
action_date: 2007-05-17
text: Introduced in House