zli12321/Bills huggingface dataset:
Federal Regulatory Certainty for Water Act

This bill nullifies the Environmental Protection Agency's Clean Water Rule signed on May 27, 2015, which describes the scope of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act).

Under this bill, the Clean Water Act applies to waters of the United States that are: (1) navigable-in-fact; or (2) permanent or continuously flowing bodies of water that form geographical features commonly known as streams, oceans, rivers, and lakes that are connected to waters that are navigable-in-fact.

Under this bill, the Act does not apply to: (1) waters that do not physically abut those waters of the United States through an actual and continuous surface water connection; (2) man-made or natural structures or channels through which water flows intermittently or ephemerally; or (3) wetlands (including playa lakes, prairie potholes, wet meadows, wet prairies, and vernal pools) that lack that continuous surface water connection.

The aggregation of wetlands or waters may not be used to determine whether the wetlands or waters are navigable waters.

Date: 2015-06-09
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection
Federal Ocean Acidification Research and Monitoring Act of 2015

This bill amends the Federal Ocean Acidification Research and Monitoring Act of 2009 to revise and reauthorize the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) and the National Science Foundation's (NSF) ocean acidification programs through FY2019.

The scope of the Act is expanded to cover acidification in estuaries and the Great Lakes, not just oceans. Acidification is the decrease in pH of those waters and changes in their chemistry caused by chemical inputs, including carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

The National Science and Technology Council's Subcommittee on Ocean Science and Technology must: (1) oversee the development of adaptation and mitigation strategies to address socioeconomic impacts resulting from ocean acidification, (2) ensure that agencies represented on the interagency working group on ocean acidification deliver data and information to support the Ocean Acidification Information Exchange and a data archive, and (3) establish an Ocean Acidification Advisory Board to provide advice to the subcommittee and the interagency working group and certain information to Congress and the public.

The strategic plan for federal research and monitoring on ocean acidification must include: (1) modeling to determine impacts of acidification on marine food webs, and (2) research to understand related and cumulative stressors and other biogeochemical processes occurring in conjunction with ocean acidification.

NOAA must establish data processing, storage, and archive facilities and procedures to provide for the long-term stewardship of environmental data, products, and information necessary for carrying out the Act.

Date: 2015-06-10
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection
Tribal Coastal Resiliency Act

This bill amends the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972 to authorize the Department of Commerce to award grants to qualified Indian tribes to further achievement of any of the following tribal coastal zone objectives:

 protecting, restoring, or preserving areas in the zone that hold important ecological, cultural, or sacred significance for the tribes, or traditional, historic, and esthetic values essential to the tribes; preparing and implementing a special area management plan and technical planning for important coastal areas; and implementing any coastal or shoreline stabilization measure for the purpose of public safety, public access, or cultural or historical preservation.

Date: 2015-06-10
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Integrated Coastal and Ocean Observation System Act Amendments of 2015

This bill reauthorizes through FY2019 and revises the Integrated Coastal and Ocean Observation System Act of 2009.

Date: 2015-06-11
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Great Lakes Water Protection Act 

This bill amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to prohibit a publicly owned treatment works (POTW) from discharging untreated or partially treated sewage into the Great Lakes or a tributary of the Great Lakes when the discharge is the result of the POTW intentionally diverting waste streams to bypass any portion of a treatment facility. A bypass is allowed if: (1) it is unavoidable to prevent loss of life, personal injury, or severe property damage, there is no feasible alternative, and the treatment works provides notice; or (2) it does not cause effluent (waste) limitations to be exceeded and is for essential maintenance to ensure efficient operation of the treatment facility.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) must work with relevant states to create requirements for providing immediate notice to the public about discharges.

The EPA must establish procedures to ensure that permits issued to POTWs under the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System include requirements to comply with this bill.

This bill establishes a maximum civil penalty of $100,000 per day for violations of the bill occurring on or after January 1, 2035. The penalties must be deposited into the Great Lakes Cleanup Fund, which is established by this bill. The Fund must be used for improving wastewater discharges.

Date: 2015-06-17
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection
Long Island Sound Restoration and Stewardship Act

This bill reauthorizes the Management Conference of the Long Island Sound Study, the Long Island Sound Stewardship Act of 2006, the Long Island Sound Grants, and Long Island Sound Stewardship Grants through FY2020.

The bill amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to direct the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Office of the Management Conference of the Long Island Sound Study to include in studies on strengthening the implementation of the Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan for Long Island Sound: (1) environmental impacts on the Sound watershed; and (2) planning initiatives that identify areas most suitable for various activities in order to reduce conflicts among uses, reduce adverse environmental impacts, facilitate compatible uses, or preserve critical ecosystem services.

The Office must: (1) develop and implement strategies to increase education and awareness about the ecological health and water quality of the Sound; and (2) monitor progress toward meeting the goals, actions, and schedules of the Plan.

The limit on the federal share for certain grants for projects and studies to help implement the Plan is revised by increasing the limit for grants other than citizen involvement and education grants.

A federal agency that owns or occupies real property, or carries out activities, within the Sound watershed must: (1) participate in regional and subwatershed planning, protection, and restoration activities; and (2) ensure that the property and activities are consistent with the Plan to the maximum extent practicable.

Date: 2015-06-25
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection
Great Lakes Assurance Program Verification Act of 2015

This bill amends the Food Security Act of 1985 to require the Department of Agriculture (USDA) to establish a Great Lakes basin initiative for agricultural nonpoint source pollution prevention. (Nonpoint source pollution comes from diffuse sources and is caused by precipitation moving over or through the ground and carrying pollution.)

In implementing the initiative, USDA must:

 provide grants to Great Lakes states (Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, or Wisconsin) for education and outreach, technical assistance, and voluntary programs to verify implementation of practices to reduce nonpoint pollution from agricultural activities; establish a funding priority within the Great Lakes basin for payments to producers that participate in the initiative to achieve verification through a state verification program; and use existing data. In carrying out the initiative, states may collaborate with entities that have agricultural or environmental expertise, including academic or nonprofit organizations.

Date: 2015-07-21
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Agriculture and food
This bill amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to exempt Indian tribes from any requirement to provide compensatory mitigation as a condition of a permit to discharge dredged or fill material into waters of the United States when the permitted activity is conducted on Indian land. If the Indian tribe ceases to maintain the permitted activity on that land, or seeks to abandon that activity without a good faith transfer, the Indian tribe must obtain a permit modification from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The Corps of Engineers may require restoration and rehabilitation of the area.

Date: 2015-07-28
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection
This bill amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to allow a permittee under the Act to satisfy compensatory mitigation requirements for discharging dredged or fill material into the waters of the United States (permitted activity) by entering into a preservation lease with a state or Indian tribe whose wetlands are affected.

A preservation lease is an agreement under which a permittee leases wetlands or other aquatic sites on state or Indian land for the sole purpose of preserving the wetlands or other aquatic sites in an undisturbed state during the term of the lease to mitigate for a permitted activity. The term of the lease may not be less than the life of the permitted activity and must be adjusted to account for the cessation of the impacts caused by such activity.

If a permittee enters into a preservation lease and subsequently ceases to maintain the permitted activity, or seeks to abandon the permitted activity without a good faith transfer, the permittee must obtain a permit modification from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which may require restoration and rehabilitation of the area.

Date: 2015-07-28
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection
Commonsense Permitting for Job Creation Act of 2015 

This bill amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to revise requirements for permit guidelines applicable to the designation of disposal sites for discharges of dredged or fill material into waters of the United States. Those guidelines may not prohibit the designation of a disposal site due to the lack of a final site plan because there is not an identified end user, industry, or industrial classification for the site.

Date: 2015-07-31
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection
Save our Bays Act 

This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow a new tax credit, through 2020, for developing and implementing a plan to address non-point pollution carried by surface water runoff on real property located in the United States within the boundaries of an estuary of national significance.

Date: 2015-09-10
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Taxation
Great Bay Regulatory Improvement Act of 2015

This bill directs the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to postpone for five years establishing water quality standards or effluent limitations under the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) if those standards or limitations reduce nitrogen discharges into the Great Bay Estuary. That estuary extends from the mouth of Portsmouth Harbor, in the vicinity of Portsmouth, New Hampshire, to the head-of-tide for the eight rivers (including the tributaries of those rivers) that flow into Great Bay, Little Bay, and the Piscataqua River.

During that five-year period, the EPA may not require a publicly owned treatment works (POTW) to commence construction on any upgrade of a facility for the purpose of enforcing those standards or limitations if the POTW contributes nitrogen loadings in that estuary.

The EPA must study eelgrass levels and the causes of any loss of eelgrass habitat in the Great Bay Estuary, and allow public participation in the development of the study.

Date: 2015-09-25
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection
Promoting United Government Efforts to Save Our Sound Act or the PUGET SOS Act

This bill amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to provide for the coordination of federal Puget Sound recovery efforts with state, local and tribal recovery efforts, including by establishing:

 conditions for approval by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) of the Comprehensive Conservation Management Plan for the Puget Sound region; a Puget Sound Recovery National Program Office within the EPA; a Puget Sound Federal Leadership Task Force; a Save America's Puget Sound Fund in the Department of the Treasury for certain Puget Sound recovery and protection efforts that are included in the Puget Sound Partnership's Action Agenda; and reporting requirements on the status of Puget Sound's recovery. The Puget Sound is an estuary in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Washington.

Date: 2015-09-28
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection
Offending Oil Polluters Act 

This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to deny any tax credit or deduction to an offending oil polluter. The bill defines "offending oil polluter" as any person who is responsible for a vessel or facility from which oil or a hazardous substance is discharged and any person who is a member of the same expanded affiliated group as the offending oil polluter.

Specifically, the bill denies a tax benefit for any amount paid or incurred: (1) in connection with a discharge of oil or a hazardous substance, (2) for any attorney fees and court costs in connection with any legal action involving such discharge, (3) as a payment or restitution related to such discharge, and (4) for any costs or penalties required by federal law or certified in a settlement by a federal court.

The bill requires the Department of the Treasury to conduct, and report on, an annual study to determine: (1) the revenue loss as a result of tax deductions allowed for cleaning up oil that is discharged after April 19, 2010, and (2) the amount of revenue savings resulting from this Act.

Date: 2015-10-16
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Taxation
Imperial Valley Desert Conservation and Recreation Act of 2015

This bill directs the Department of the Interior to convey to the state of California approximately 934 acres of specified public lands administered by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) in San Diego County in order to allow California to include it as part of the Anza-Borrego Desert State Park.

The Department of Transportation shall seek a conveyance from Interior of approximately 3,500 acres of BLM-administered land adjacent to the Imperial County Holtville Airport in Imperial County, California, to allow the county to expand the airport.

The bill establishes the Vinagre Wash Special Management Area in California, which shall consist of approximately 81,880 acres of certain public lands in Imperial County. Interior shall manage specified lands in the Management Area to preserve their character for eventual inclusion in the National Wilderness Preservation System.

Date: 2015-11-18
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Beach Act of 2015

This bill amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to revise and reauthorize through FY2020 a grant program for monitoring, and notifying the public of, any pathogens in coastal recreation waters bordering public beaches.

The bill reauthorizes through FY2018 the Beaches Environmental Assessment and Coastal Health Act of 2000.

The bill establishes requirements with respect to: (1) using rapid testing methods to detect unsafe levels of pathogens or pathogen indicators in those waters, and (2) notifying governmental agencies when pathogens exceed water quality standards. Those methods must provide testing results within four hours of receiving a sample. Communication with governments must occur within two hours of the receipt of the results of water quality samples.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) must assess state and local compliance with coastal recreation water quality monitoring and notification legal requirements and grant conditions. The bill limits federal support of grants to non-compliant state or local governments. The Government Accountability Office must review the EPA's compliance assessments and corrective actions.

States with coastal recreation waters must adopt the most protective water quality criteria and standards practicable for pathogens.

The EPA must: (1) update the national list of beaches that are used by the public regardless of the presence of a lifeguard within 12 months and biennially thereafter (currently, periodically); (2) study the long-term impact of climate change on pathogenic contamination of coastal recreation waters; and (3) study the impacts of excess nutrients on coastal recreation waters.

Date: 2015-11-30
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection
Discouraging Frivolous Lawsuits Act

This bill amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to revise requirements concerning citizen suits. Litigation costs (including reasonable attorney and expert witness fees) must be awarded to the prevailing party, thus the bill removes a court's discretion to award the fees. A prevailing party is defined as the party that prevails on more than half of the claims at issue.

The bill repeals the authority of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to deny or restrict the use of any area as a disposal site for dredged or fill material when the discharge of such materials would have an unacceptable adverse effect on municipal water supplies, shellfish beds and fishery areas, wildlife, or recreational areas.

Current law requires compensatory mitigation to replace the loss of aquatic resource functions in a watershed when a permit to discharge dredged or fill materials into navigable waters has unavoidable impacts on aquatic resources. This bill prohibits government entities from carrying out compensatory mitigation in excess of existing regulatory requirements.

Date: 2015-12-01
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection
This bill makes permanent the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF).

 Of the appropriations from the LWCF: (1) at least 40% shall be used collectively for federal purposes for certain land and water acquisitions (as currently); (2) at least 40% shall be used collectively to provide financial assistance to states for LWCF purposes and for outdoor recreation, for the Forest Legacy Program, for cooperative endangered species grants, and for the American Battlefield Protection Program; and (3) at least 1.5% or $10 million, whichever is greater, shall be used for projects that secure recreational public access to federal public land for hunting, fishing, or other recreational purposes.

The Department of the Interior and the Department of Agriculture shall consider the acquisition of conservation easements and other similar interests in land where it is appropriate and feasible, taking specified considerations into account.

The bill establishes a National Park Service Critical Maintenance and Revitalization Conservation Fund in the Treasury for the deposit of specified amounts from revenues due and payable to the United States under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act.

Amounts deposited in the Fund shall: (1) be used only for the high priority deferred maintenance needs of the National Park Service that support critical infrastructure and visitor services, and (2) be available for expenditure only after amounts are appropriated for such purposes.

Amounts in the Fund shall not be used for acquiring land.

Date: 2015-12-01
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Groundwater Conservation Incentive Act of 2015

This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to expand the tax deduction for soil and water conservation expenditures to include expenditures to reduce groundwater use and for the conversion from groundwater use to surface water use.

Date: 2015-12-03
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Taxation
This bill makes certain rocks, pinnacles, reefs, and islands in the Pacific Ocean within a mile of the coast of Orange County, California, part of the California Coastal National Monument and repeals their current temporary reservation.

The Department of the Interior shall ensure that economic and recreational activities conducted on the lands added to the California Coastal Monument shall continue to be allowed to the same extent they were authorized and ongoing on the day before such lands were added.

Likewise repealed is the lighthouse reservation with respect to the San Juan and San Mateo Rocks and the two rocks in the vicinity of Laguna Beach, off the coast of Orange County.

Date: 2015-12-10
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
This bill revises the boundaries of the John H. Chafee Coastal Barrier Resources System Unit M13 in Daufuskie Island, South Carolina.

Date: 2016-02-03
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
This bill amends the Estuary Restoration Act of 2000 to authorize a nongovernmental organization, that is allowed to serve as a non-federal interest for an estuary habitat restoration project, to provide lands owned and managed by a legally constituted public body (including a federally recognized Indian tribe) for habitat or fish and wildlife conservation. Such body must agree to: (1) operate and maintain, or allow the nongovernmental organization to operate and maintain, the project; and (2) retain the land in public ownership for uses compatible with the project.

The Secretary of the Army may not carry out such a project unless a non-federal interest has agreed to provide for operation, maintenance, and monitoring of the project (current law requires that such interest has agreed to provide for long-term maintenance and monitoring of the project).

The bill authorizes a nongovernmental organization serving as the non-federal interest for a project to pay the operation, maintenance, and replacement and rehabilitation costs of the project and the non-federal share of the costs of construction of the project.

The Secretary shall: (1) issue guidelines for implementing such projects, making every effort to streamline implementation requirements and reduce overhead costs, including by maximizing consistency with the requirements of restoration programs administered by other federal agencies; and (2) develop and revise the guidelines through a public process.

Date: 2016-02-24
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Green Stormwater Infrastructure Investment Act

This bill amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to assist state, tribal, and local governments toinvest in green stormwater infrastructure.Green stormwater infrastructure is a stormwater management technique that uses natural or engineered systems designed to promote the uptake and filtration of stormwater at its source to protect habitats and reduce flood risks.

The bill establishes a 20% reserve within each state's Water Pollution Control Revolving Fund for installation, operation, and maintenance of green stormwater infrastructure.

The Department of Transportation must prioritize projects that include green stormwater infrastructure for competitive federal transportation infrastructure grants.

The bill also authorizes the Environmental Protection Agency to extend National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permits for green stormwater infrastructure systems for up to 10 years.

Date: 2016-02-29
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection
This bill directs the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to remove specific properties in Brick, New Jersey, from the John H. Chafee Coastal Barrier Resources System.

Date: 2016-03-14
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Digital Coast Act of 2016

This bill authorizes the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) Office for Coastal Management to establish a Digital Coast program for the sharing of digital information to help coastal communities better prepare for storms, plan for long-term coastal resilience, and manage coastal resources. The program launches the next phase of development at NOAA for the use of coastal mapping. In order for coastal communities to effectively use coastal mapping to solve coastal problems there must be coordination and information sharing among federal, state, local, and private participants in each coastal area.

NOAA's Office for Coastal Management should optimize the development and use of coastal mapping data by:

 integrating the data to make it readily accessible via the internet, developing visualization and predictive tools that makes the data easier to find and use, providing training on how to decipher and use the data to make accurate decisions, making sure the data meets federal standards, and archiving the data at the NOAA data center. In addition, the Digital Coast program requires NOAA's Office for Coastal Management to prioritize the collection of coastal mapping data in critical coastal areas, and support existing efforts to improve the acquisition of the key data sets necessary for coastal communities to effectively solve coastal problems.

Date: 2016-03-14
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Coral Reef Sustainability Through Innovation Act of 2016

This bill amends the Coral Reef Conservation Act to authorize the 12 federal agencies on the U.S. Coral Reef Task Force, which includes the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, to carry out, either individually or cooperatively, prize competitions that promote coral reef research and conservation. The prize competitions should be designed to help the United States achieve its goal of developing new and effective ways to advance the understanding, monitoring, and sustainability of coral reef ecosystems.

Priority is given to establish programs that address communities, environments, or industries that are in distress due to the decline or degradation of coral reef ecosystems.

Date: 2016-03-17
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area Boundary Adjustment Study Act

This bill directs the Department of the Interior to conduct a special resource study of the lands, waters, and interests of the coastline and specified areas adjacent to the Santa Monica Bay in California to evaluate a range of alternatives for protecting the study area's resources, including:

 expanding and redesignating the Santa Monica Mountains Recreation Area as the "Santa Monica Mountains and Coastal Recreation Area," or creating a new coastal recreation area designated as the "Los Angeles Coastal Recreation Area."

Date: 2016-03-23
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Keep America's Waterfronts Working Act

This bill amends the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972 to direct the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to establish a Working Waterfront Grant Program. Under the program, NOAA may award grants to coastal states with approved working waterfront plans in place to preserve and expand access to coastal waters for people engaged in fishing, aquaculture, boat building, and other water-dependent businesses.

In addition, NOAA is authorized to award grants to coastal states for the purpose of developing or revising working waterfront plans.

States are allowed to allocate any grant money received to eligible local governments and other entities. Each state that is awarded a grant must contribute at least 25% of matching funds towards the total cost of the project carried out with the grant, subject to certain exceptions.

The Department of the Interior must establish a Working Waterfront Task Force that will be designed to identify and address critical working waterfront needs with respect to cultural and economic importance, climate change and other environmental threats, and market conditions for water-dependent businesses.

Date: 2016-05-18
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Improving Access to Farm Conservation Act of 2016

 This bill amends the Food Security Act of 1985 to exempt certain recipients of Department of Agriculture (USDA) conservation assistance from specified reporting requirements. The bill exempts producers that receive $450,000 or less in USDA conservation assistance during the year or are Indian tribes from reporting requirements related to subawards, executive compensation, the Universal Identifier, and the System for Award Management.

Date: 2016-06-10
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Agriculture and food
Wetland Determinations Efficiency and Transparency Act 

This bill amends the Food Security Act of 1985 to revise the process that the Department of Agriculture's (USDA's) Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) uses to make a wetland determination, delineation, or certification.

The NRCS must make a determination, delineation, or certification within 60 days. If the NRCS misses the deadline, it must provide a reasonable transition period for a person to come into compliance with the decision without losing eligibility for certain payments and loans.

A decision is subject to judicial review, and a person is not required to exhaust all administrative remedies prior to bringing a suit in federal court. In the case of a dispute, the NRCS must bear the burden of proof by a preponderance of the evidence and provide a copy of the agency record upon request.

USDA must permit a person to secure technical assistance from an approved source, other than the NRCS, for the preparation of: (1) a conservation plan or similar plan required as a condition for USDA assistance, and (2) a wetland delineation or determination.

Date: 2016-06-28
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Agriculture and food
Increasing Local Autonomy for Shore Protection Act of 2016

This bill amends the Water Resources Development Act of 1986 to increase the non-federal share of the cost of the periodic nourishment of any water resources development project or any measure for shore protection or beach erosion control for such project to 65% (current law sets such non-federal share at lower levels of up to 50% based on the dates after which the projects are carried out).

Date: 2016-07-07
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Water resources development
Advancing Conservation and Education Act of 2016

 This bill allows the states of Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Washington, or Wyoming (western states) to relinquish state land grant parcels wholly or primarily within eligible areas and select, in exchange, public land within the state.

The bill defines "eligible areas" as lands within the outer boundaries of units of the National Park, National Wilderness Preservation, National Wildlife Refuge, or National Landscape Conservation Systems, areas identified by the Bureau of Land Management of the Department of the Interior as having wilderness characteristics, and certain designated lands within the National Forest System.

 Interior shall create a process for the relinquishment of such parcels.

 A western state may select, and Interior may convey, lands that are mineral in character.

 The overall value of the state land grant parcels and the public land to be conveyed shall be equal.

The bill sets forth requirements regarding hazardous materials on land conveyed, water rights, and grazing permits.

Date: 2016-07-13
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Restoration Act of 2016

This bill reauthorizes for FY2016-FY2021 the Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Restoration Act of 1990 and revises requirements for: (1) funding requests to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for proposals and regional projects that restore the fish and wildlife resources and habitat of the Great Lakes Basin, and (2) cost-share requirements for the proposals and projects.

The bill renames: (1) the Lower Great Lakes Fishery Resources Office as the Lower Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Conservation Office, and (2) the Upper Great Lakes Fishery Resources Office as the Upper Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Conservation Office.

Date: 2016-07-13
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection
California Seamounts and Ridges National Marine Conservation Area Designation and Management Act

This bill establishes the California Seamounts and Ridges National Marine Conservation Area to protect certain seamounts, ridges, and banks locatedin federal waters off the coast of California.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)and the Department of the Interior shall have joint responsibility for managing the conservation area.Development of a management plan must include a public consultation process with tribes, fisherman, and other stakeholders to better understand the activities occurring in the conservation area.

Additionally, any management plan developed by NOAA and Interior must prohibit oil and gas development, deep sea-mining, aquaculture, and damaging fishing practices in the area.Certain activities including recreational fishing and exercises by the Armed Forces are allowed to be conducted in the area.

Date: 2016-07-14
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Flood Prevention Act of 2016 

This bill amends the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972 to make the District of Columbia eligible to receive federal coastal zone management funding, including flood mitigation and prevention funds.

Date: 2016-09-14
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Great Lakes Maritime Heritage Assessment Act

This bill directs the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)to assess and report on the cultural and historic resources in the waters of the Great Lakes.

NOAA must recommend in its report whether: (1) underwater geographic areas in the Great Lakes should be designated as national marine sanctuaries to protect resources of historical and archeological significance; and (2) the designation of a network of underwater Great Lakes areas that protect those resources could bring significant educational opportunities, economic development, jobs, and tourism to the Great Lakes region.

Date: 2016-12-02
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Regulatory Fairness Act of 2015

This bill amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to define the period of time in which the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is authorized to restrict or deny a permit for the discharge of dredged or fill materials into navigable waters as the period that:

 begins on the date that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers publishes a notice for the discharge of dredged or fill material into navigable waters at specified disposal sites, and ends on the date that the Army Corps issues the permit. The EPA must make all the information and data that it reviewed in making a determination publicly available.

The EPA's authority to withdraw a specification of a defined area as a disposal site for the discharge of dredged or fill materials is eliminated.

Any previous action by the EPA that occurred outside of this period to deny or restrict a permit or to prohibit the specification of any defined area as a disposal site is nullified.

Date: 2015-01-07
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection
Ending Legacy Lawsuit Abuse Act

This bill amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to allow a defendant to remove from a state court to the U.S. district court a civil action involving a claim of environmental contamination that impacts or threatens to impact waters of the United States subject to the jurisdiction of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Date: 2015-01-07
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection
Regulatory Fairness Act of 2015

This bill amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to define the period of time in which the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is authorized to restrict or deny a permit for the discharge of dredged or fill materials into navigable waters as the period that:

 begins on the date that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers publishes a notice for the discharge of dredged or fill material into navigable waters at specified disposal sites, and ends on the date that the Army Corps issues the permit. The EPA must make all the information and data that it reviewed in making a determination publicly available.

The EPA's authority to withdraw a specification of a defined area as a disposal site for the discharge of dredged or fill materials is eliminated.

Any previous action by the EPA that occurred outside of this period to deny or restrict a permit or to prohibit the specification of any defined area as a disposal site is nullified.

Date: 2015-01-22
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection
Conservation Easement Incentive Act of 2015

Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) make permanent the tax deduction for charitable contributions by individuals and corporations of real property interests for conservation purposes, and (2) allow Native Corporations an increased tax deduction for donations of conservation easements related to lands conveyed under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act.

Date: 2015-02-02
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Taxation
Amends the Land and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965 to make permanent the authorization for the Land and Water Conservation Fund. Requires not less than 1.5% of the annual authorized funding amount or $10 million, whichever is greater, to be used for projects that secure recreational public access to existing federal public land for hunting, fishing, and other recreational purposes.

Date: 2015-02-02
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Water and Agriculture Tax Reform Act of 2015

Amends the Internal Revenue Code to permit tax-exempt mutual ditch or irrigation companies to earn income from dispositions of certain real property and stock interests without affecting their tax-exempt status. Requires that such income be used to pay the costs of operations, maintenance, and capital improvements of such a company.

Date: 2015-02-05
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Taxation
Making Public Land Public Access Act

Requires the Department of the Interior and the Department of Agriculture (USDA) to ensure that a specified portion of the Land and Water Conservation Fund is allocated to secure recreational public access to existing federal public land that has significantly restricted access for hunting, fishing, and other recreational purposes. Requires Interior and USDA to annually develop a priority list for sites for such funds.

Date: 2015-02-05
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Great Lakes Ecological and Economic Protection Act of 2015

This bill amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to expand the purpose of the Act to include achieving the goals established in the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative Action Plan and the Great Lakes Regional Collaboration Strategy.

This bill reauthorizes through FY2020 the Great Lakes Legacy Act for the remediation of sediment contamination in areas of concern, the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA's) Great Lakes National Program Office, and EPA's Great Lakes Restoration Initiative.

The Initiative must prioritize work done by non-federal partners in specified focus areas. Initiative funding may not be used for a water infrastructure activity that is implemented using funds made available under the clean water or drinking water state revolving fund programs, except green infrastructure projects that improve habitat and other ecosystem functions in the Great Lakes.

Federal agencies must maintain the base level of funding for their Great Lakes activities and identify new activities to support the environmental goals of the Initiative.

The bill codifies the establishment of the Great Lakes Advisory Board and the Great Lakes Interagency Task Force, which were previously established by the EPA. The Board must provide advice and recommendations to the EPA on matters pertaining to Great Lakes restoration and protection. The Task Force must collaborate with Canada and coordinate the development of federal policy on Great Lakes restoration and protection.

Date: 2015-02-12
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection
Highway Runoff Management Act

 Requires each state to develop for approval a state highway stormwater management program consisting of management measures to prevent, reduce, or control highway runoff from federal-aid highway projects.

Directs the Secretary of Transportation to publish guidance to assist states in the establishment of such measures.

Date: 2015-02-12
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Transportation and public works
Water Infrastructure Resiliency and Sustainability Act of 2015

This bill requires the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to establish the Water Infrastructure Resiliency and Sustainability Program to provide grants in each of FY2015-FY2019 for programs or projects to increase the resiliency or adaptability of water systems to any ongoing or forecasted changes to the hydrologic conditions of a U.S. region. A water system is a community water system, a treatment works, a decentralized wastewater treatment system for domestic sewage, a groundwater storage and replenishment system, a system for transport and delivery of water for irrigation or conservation, or a natural or engineered system that manages floodwater.

The EPA must give priority to owners or operators of water systems that are at the greatest and most immediate risk of facing significant negative impacts due to changing hydrologic conditions.

The EPA must ensure, to the maximum extent practicable, that the list of grant applications funded includes a substantial number that propose to use innovative approaches that meet at least one of these goals:

 promote more efficient water use, conservation, reuse, or recycling; use decentralized, low-impact development technologies and nonstructural approaches; reduce stormwater runoff or flooding by protecting or enhancing natural ecosystem functions; modify, upgrade, enhance, or replace existing water system infrastructure in response to changing hydrologic conditions; improve water quality or quantity for agricultural and municipal uses; and provide multiple benefits, including water supply enhancement or demand reduction, water quality protection or improvement, increased flood protection, and ecosystem protection or improvement.

Date: 2015-03-16
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Water resources development
Land and Water Conservation Authorization and Funding Act of 2015

Amends the Land and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965 to make permanent the authorization for the Land and Water Conservation Fund(LWCF).

Permits funds deposited into the LWCF to be spent without being subject to the appropriations process. Provides that the funds are in addition to amounts made available by the Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act of 2006 or otherwise appropriated from the LWCF.

Directs the President to submit to Congress specified details regarding the allocation of funds provided by this bill. Permits Congress to provide for alternate allocations using specified procedures.

 Requires at least 1.5% of the annual authorized funds to be used for projects that secure recreational public access to existing federal public land for hunting, fishing, and other recreational purposes.

Date: 2015-03-26
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Innovative Stormwater Infrastructure Act of 2015

This bill requires the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to provide grants to eligible higher education institutions and research institutions to establish and maintain between three and five centers of excellence for innovative stormwater control infrastructure, which is any stormwater management technique that: (1) uses natural systems or engineered systems that mimic natural processes to infiltrate, evapotranspire, or capture stormwater; and (2) preserves, enhances, or mimics natural hydrology to protect or restore water quality. One of the centers must be the national electronic clearinghouse center and operate a website and a public database on the infrastructure.

The EPA must: (1) provide grants to eligible entities that manage stormwater, water resources, or wastewater resources to carry out innovative stormwater control infrastructure projects; and (2) give priority to applications from a community that has combined storm and sanitary sewers in its collection system or is low-income or disadvantaged, or from an eligible entity that will use at least 10% of the grant for a low-income or disadvantaged community.

The EPA must ensure that: (1) EPA's Office of Water, Office of Enforcement and Compliance, Office of Research and Development, and Office of Policy promote the use of the infrastructure in, and coordinate its integration into, permitting programs, planning efforts, research, technical assistance, and funding guidance; and (2) the Office of Water supports establishing innovative financing mechanisms in the implementation of the infrastructure. The EPA must: (1) direct each EPA regional office to promote and integrate the use of the infrastructure within the region, and (2) promote sharing information about the infrastructure approaches.

The EPA must establish the innovative stormwater control infrastructure portfolio standard of voluntary, measurable goals to increase the percentage of annual water managed by entities that use the infrastructure.

Date: 2015-04-13
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection