[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 223 Placed on Calendar Senate (PCS)]
<DOC>
Calendar No. 439
114th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 223
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
April 27, 2016
Received; read twice and placed on the calendar
_______________________________________________________________________
AN ACT
To authorize the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, and for other
purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Great Lakes Restoration Initiative
Act of 2016''.
SEC. 2. GREAT LAKES RESTORATION INITIATIVE.
Section 118(c)(7) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33
U.S.C. 1268(c)(7)) is amended--
(1) by striking subparagraphs (B) and (C) and inserting the
following:
``(B) Focus areas.--In carrying out the Initiative,
the Administrator shall prioritize programs and
projects, to be carried out in coordination with non-
Federal partners, that address the priority areas
described in the Initiative Action Plan, including--
``(i) the remediation of toxic substances
and areas of concern;
``(ii) the prevention and control of
invasive species and the impacts of invasive
species;
``(iii) the protection and restoration of
nearshore health and the prevention and
mitigation of nonpoint source pollution;
``(iv) habitat and wildlife protection and
restoration, including wetlands restoration and
preservation; and
``(v) accountability, monitoring,
evaluation, communication, and partnership
activities.
``(C) Projects.--
``(i) In general.--In carrying out the
Initiative, the Administrator shall collaborate
with other Federal partners, including the
Great Lakes Interagency Task Force established
by Executive Order No. 13340 (69 Fed. Reg.
29043), to select the best combination of
programs and projects for Great Lakes
protection and restoration using appropriate
principles and criteria, including whether a
program or project provides--
``(I) the ability to achieve
strategic and measurable environmental
outcomes that implement the Initiative
Action Plan and the Great Lakes Water
Quality Agreement;
``(II) the feasibility of--
``(aa) prompt
implementation;
``(bb) timely achievement
of results; and
``(cc) resource leveraging;
and
``(III) the opportunity to improve
interagency, intergovernmental, and
inter-organizational coordination and
collaboration to reduce duplication and
streamline efforts.
``(ii) Outreach.--In selecting the best
combination of programs and projects for Great
Lakes protection and restoration under clause
(i), the Administrator shall consult with the
Great Lakes States and Indian tribes and
solicit input from other non-Federal
stakeholders.
``(iii) Harmful algal bloom coordinator.--
The Administrator shall designate a point
person from an appropriate Federal partner to
coordinate, with Federal partners and Great
Lakes States, Indian tribes, and other non-
Federal stakeholders, projects and activities
under the Initiative involving harmful algal
blooms in the Great Lakes.'';
(2) in subparagraph (D)--
(A) by striking clause (i) and inserting the
following:
``(i) In general.--Subject to subparagraph
(J)(ii), funds made available to carry out the
Initiative shall be used to strategically
implement--
``(I) Federal projects;
``(II) projects carried out in
coordination with States, Indian
tribes, municipalities, institutions of
higher education, and other
organizations; and
``(III) operations and activities
of the Program Office, including
remediation of sediment contamination
in areas of concern.'';
(B) in clause (ii)(I), by striking ``(G)(i)'' and
inserting ``(J)(i)''; and
(C) by inserting after clause (ii) the following:
``(iii) Agreements with non-federal
entities.--
``(I) In general.--The
Administrator, or the head of any other
Federal department or agency receiving
funds under clause (ii)(I), may make a
grant to, or otherwise enter into an
agreement with, a qualified non-Federal
entity, as determined by the
Administrator or the applicable head of
the other Federal department or agency
receiving funds, for planning,
research, monitoring, outreach, or
implementation of a project selected
under subparagraph (C), to support the
Initiative Action Plan or the Great
Lakes Water Quality Agreement.
``(II) Qualified non-federal
entity.--For purposes of this clause, a
qualified non-Federal entity may
include a governmental entity,
nonprofit organization, institution, or
individual.''; and
(3) by striking subparagraphs (E) through (G) and inserting
the following:
``(E) Scope.--
``(i) In general.--Projects may be carried
out under the Initiative on multiple levels,
including--
``(I) locally;
``(II) Great Lakes-wide; or
``(III) Great Lakes basin-wide.
``(ii) Limitation.--No funds made available
to carry out the Initiative may be used for any
water infrastructure activity (other than a
green infrastructure project that improves
habitat and other ecosystem functions in the
Great Lakes) for which financial assistance is
received--
``(I) from a State water pollution
control revolving fund established
under title VI;
``(II) from a State drinking water
revolving loan fund established under
section 1452 of the Safe Drinking Water
Act (42 U.S.C. 300j-12); or
``(III) pursuant to the Water
Infrastructure Finance and Innovation
Act of 2014 (33 U.S.C. 3901 et seq.).
``(F) Activities by other federal agencies.--Each
relevant Federal department or agency shall, to the
maximum extent practicable--
``(i) maintain the base level of funding
for the Great Lakes activities of that
department or agency without regard to funding
under the Initiative; and
``(ii) identify new activities and projects
to support the environmental goals of the
Initiative.
``(G) Revision of initiative action plan.--
``(i) In general.--Not less often than once
every 5 years, the Administrator, in
conjunction with the Great Lakes Interagency
Task Force, shall review, and revise as
appropriate, the Initiative Action Plan to
guide the activities of the Initiative in
addressing the restoration and protection of
the Great Lakes system.
``(ii) Outreach.--In reviewing and revising
the Initiative Action Plan under clause (i),
the Administrator shall consult with the Great
Lakes States and Indian tribes and solicit
input from other non-Federal stakeholders.
``(H) Monitoring and reporting.--The Administrator
shall--
``(i) establish and maintain a process for
monitoring and periodically reporting to the
public on the progress made in implementing the
Initiative Action Plan;
``(ii) make information about each project
carried out under the Initiative Action Plan
available on a public website; and
``(iii) provide to the House Committee on
Transportation and Infrastructure and the
Senate Committee on Environment and Public
Works a yearly detailed description of the
progress of the Initiative and amounts
transferred to participating Federal
departments and agencies under subparagraph
(D)(ii).
``(I) Initiative action plan defined.--In this
paragraph, the term `Initiative Action Plan' means the
comprehensive, multi-year action plan for the
restoration of the Great Lakes, first developed
pursuant to the Joint Explanatory Statement of the
Conference Report accompanying the Department of the
Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies
Appropriations Act, 2010 (Public Law 111-88).
``(J) Funding.--
``(i) In general.--There is authorized to
be appropriated to carry out this paragraph
$300,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2017
through 2021.
``(ii) Limitation.--Nothing in this
paragraph creates, expands, or amends the
authority of the Administrator to implement
programs or projects under--
``(I) this section;
``(II) the Initiative Action Plan;
or
``(III) the Great Lakes Water
Quality Agreement.''.
Passed the House of Representatives April 26, 2016.
Attest:
KAREN L. HAAS,
Clerk.
Calendar No. 439
114th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 223
_______________________________________________________________________
AN ACT
To authorize the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, and for other
purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
April 27, 2016
Received; read twice and placed on the calendar