MRBA Draft Monitoring
Bill, February 2004
S. or H.R. ____
To direct the Secretary of the Interior to establish the Missouri River Enhancement and Monitoring Program, to authorize the establishment of the Missouri River Basin Stakeholder Committee, and for other purposes.
IN THE SENATE (or HOUSE)
OF THE UNITED STATES
_______________ introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on ญญญญ____________
A BILL
To direct the Secretary of the Interior to establish the Missouri River Enhancement and Monitoring Program, to authorize the establishment of the Missouri River Basin Stakeholder Committee, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of
Representatives of the
This Act may be cited as the `Missouri River Enhancement and Monitoring Act of 2004.
In this Act:
(1) CENTER- The term `Center' means the
(2) STAKEHOLDER COMMITTEE- The term `Committee' means the Missouri River Basin Stakeholder Committee established under section 4(a).
(3) INDIAN TRIBE- The term `Indian tribe' has the meaning given the term in section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 450b).
(4) PROGRAM- The term `program' means the
(5) RIVER- The term `River' means the
(6) SECRETARY- The term `Secretary' means the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Biological Resources Division of the United States Geological Survey.
(7) STATE- The term `State' means--
(A) the State of
(B) the State of
(C) the State of
(D) the State of
(E) the State of
(F) the State of
(G) the State of
(H) the State of
(8)
(a) ESTABLISHMENT- Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall establish the Missouri River Enhancement and Monitoring Program--
(1) to coordinate the collection of
information on the biological and water quality characteristics of the
(2) to evaluate how River characteristics are affected by hydrology and overall River management practices;
(3) to coordinate the monitoring, assessment, and collection of information on the biological and hydrological needs of the River’s threatened and endangered species and their habitat;
(4) to evaluate the social and economic impacts of changes to the current operation and management of the Missouri River Main Stem Dams; and
(5) to make recommendations on means to assist in restoring the ecosystem of the River.
(b) CONSULTATION- In establishing the program under subsection (a), the Secretary shall consult with--
(1) the Director of the
(2) the Director of the
(3) the Chief of Engineers;
(4) the Western Area Power Administration;
(5) the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency;
(6) the Secretary of Agriculture;
(7) the Stakeholder Committee;
(8) the Governors of the States, acting through--
(A) the
(B); and the
(9) the Indian tribes of the
(c) ADMINISTRATION- The Center shall administer the program.
(d) CONTRACTS WITH INDIAN TRIBES-
(1) IN GENERAL- Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary shall enter into contracts in accordance with section 102 of the Indian Self-Determination Act (25 U.S.C. 450f) with Indian tribes that have--
(A) an interest in monitoring and assessing the condition of the River.
(2) REQUIREMENTS- A contract entered into under paragraph (1) shall be for activities that--
(A) carry out the purposes of this Act; and
(B) complement any activities relating to the River that are carried out by--
(i) the Center; or
(ii) the States.
(e) ACTIVITIES- In administering the program, the Center shall oversee the following activities --
(1) establish a baseline of conditions for the River against which future activities may be measured;
(2) monitor biota (including threatened or endangered species), habitats, hydrology, and the water quality of the River;
(3) monitor any adverse social and economic impacts that result from reoperation measures on the River.
(4) Carry out any additional research appropriate to advance the understanding of the ecosystem of the River, including the biological and hydrological needs of the River’s threatened and endangered species;
(5) assimilate the scientific information into a scientific database that shall be widely available to the states, tribes, federal agencies, and Stakeholder Committee members; and
(6) use any scientific information obtained from the monitoring and research to assist in the recovery of the threatened species and endangered species of the River.
(f) MONITORING- The Center shall provide financial assistance to the State agencies and Indian tribes to accomplish the activities outlined in Sec. 3 (e)(1), 3 (e)(2), and 3 (e)(3) above.
(g) RESEARCH OF THREATENED SPECIES AND ENDANGERED SPECIES- The Center, in consultation with the State agencies and Stakeholder Committee, shall provide financial assistance to state, tribal, and federal agencies, and other qualified agencies or entities to accomplish the activities outlined in Sec. 3 (e)(4) above.
(h) DATABASE PREPARATION, ANALYSIS, AND DISTRIBUTION- The Center will oversee the development of the database outlined in subsection (e)(5) above, and assure the information is analyzed and presented in a useful way to the Federal agencies, States, Tribes, Stakeholder Committee members.
(i) DATABASE UTILIZATION – Representatives from the Corps of Engineers and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will meet with the Stakeholder Committee each year to discuss how the data generated by this Program can be utilized to help recover the River’s threatened and endangered species.
(j) PEER REVIEW
(1) IN GENERAL- Each year, the Secretary will select a research institution or other eligible entities or individuals who will peer review the monitoring and research carried out under subsections (f) and (g) above. The Stakeholder Committee shall be responsible each year for providing a list of research institutions and other entities or individuals from which the Secretary will select the peer reviewer.
(k) REPORT- Not later than 3 years after the date on which the program is established under subsection (a), and not less often than every 3 years thereafter, the Secretary, in cooperation with the individuals and agencies referred to in subsection (b), shall--
(1) review the Program;
(2) revise the activities of the Program, as appropriate; and
(3) submit to the appropriate committees of Congress a report on the environmental health of the River, including--
(A) recommendations on means to assist in the comprehensive restoration of the River, including but not limited to the activities described in subsection (e)(6)
(B) an analysis of any adverse social and economic impacts of recent adjustments to the management of the River.
(a) ESTABLISHMENT- Not later than 6 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Missouri River Basin Association will convene separate stakeholder meetings for the purpose of electing representatives to a Missouri River Basin Stakeholder Committee. The groups that will provide representatives to the Missouri River Basin Stakeholder Committee shall include, but not necessarily be limited to the following non-governmental interests: flood control, recreation, navigation, irrigation, water supply, water quality, fish and wildlife, bank stabilization, and hydropower. A stakeholder representative for each interest will be selected at each meeting.
(b) ADMINISTRATION- Within 2 years of its establishment, the Stakeholder Committee shall have its own coordinator and adequate administrative staff. Prior to that, The Missouri River Basin Association shall provide coordination and administrative support for the Stakeholder Committee.
(c) ACTIVITIES – The Stakeholder Committee shall –
(1) work with appropriate state, tribal and federal officials to help design the overall Missouri River Enhancement and Monitoring Program and determine its scope;
(2) work with appropriate state, tribal and federal officials to provide oversight to the Program;
(3) work with appropriate state, tribal and federal officials to prioritize how and where program funds are spent, consistent with the goals, objectives, and requirements of this legislation and applicable state and federal laws;
(4) make recommendations to federal agencies on policies and management activities regarding the recovery of the basin’s threatened and endangered species; and
(5) assist as appropriate with data collection, evaluation, and dissemination.
(a) APPROPRIATIONS- There are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary, and administered by the Director of the U.S. Geological Survey
(1) to carry out section 3--
(A) $6,500,000 for fiscal year 2005
(B) $8,500,000 for fiscal year 2006; and
(C) $15,100,000 for each of fiscal years 2007 through 2019; and
(2) to carry out section 4—
(A) $300,000 for fiscal year 2005
(B) $500,000 for each of the fiscal years 2006 through 2019.
(b) ALLOCATION OF FUNDS-
(1) MONITORING- Of the amount made available to carry out section 3, the Secretary shall use the following percentages of funds to provide assistance to States or Indian tribes to carry out monitoring activities described in section 3 (f):
(A) 65 percent for fiscal year 2005;
(B) 60 percent for fiscal year 2006; and
(C) 50 percent for each of fiscal years 2007 through 2019.
(2) RESEARCH- Of the amounts made available to carry out Section 3, the Center, in consultation with the State agencies, Indian tribes, and the Stakeholder Committee, shall make available the following percentages of funds to be used for the research described in section 3 (g):
(A) 15 percent for fiscal year 2005;
(B) 20 percent for fiscal year 2006; and
(C) 28 percent for fiscal years 2007 through 2019
(3) DATA BASE PREPARATION- Of amounts made available to carry out Section 3, the Secretary shall make the following percentages of funds available to the Center to administer the program and to carry out the data base preparation and distribution activities described in Section 3 (h):
(A) 15 percent for fiscal years 2005 and 2006; and
(B) 20 percent for each of the fiscal years 2007 through 2019.
(4) PEER REVIEW- Of amounts made available to carry out Section 3, the Secretary shall make available the following percentages of funds to be used by research institutions and other eligible entities and individuals to peer review activities described in section 3 (j):
(A) 5 percent for fiscal years 2005 and 2006; and.
(B) 2 percent for each of the fiscal years 2007 through 2019