[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1674 Introduced in House (IH)]
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115th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 1674
To amend and reauthorize certain provisions relating to Long Island
Sound restoration and stewardship.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
March 22, 2017
Ms. DeLauro (for herself, Mr. Zeldin, and Mr. Suozzi) introduced the
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Transportation
and Infrastructure, and in addition to the Committee on Natural
Resources, 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 amend and reauthorize certain provisions relating to Long Island
Sound restoration and stewardship.
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 ``Long Island Sound Restoration and
Stewardship Act''.
SEC. 2. AMENDMENTS.
(a) Long Island Sound Restoration Program.--Section 119 of the
Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1269) is amended--
(1) in subsection (b), by striking the subsection
designation and heading and all that follows through ``The
Office shall'' and inserting the following:
``(b) Office.--
``(1) Establishment.--The Administrator shall--
``(A) continue to carry out the conference study;
and
``(B) establish an office, to be located on or near
Long Island Sound.
``(2) Administration and staffing.--The Office shall'';
(2) in subsection (c)--
(A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by
striking ``Management Conference of the Long Island
Sound Study'' and inserting ``conference study'';
(B) in paragraph (2)--
(i) in each of subparagraphs (A) through
(G), by striking the commas at the end of the
subparagraphs and inserting semicolons;
(ii) in subparagraph (H), by striking ``,
and'' and inserting a semicolon;
(iii) in subparagraph (I), by striking the
period at the end and inserting a semicolon;
and
(iv) by adding at the end the following:
``(J) environmental impacts on the Long Island
Sound watershed, including--
``(i) the identification and assessment of
vulnerabilities in the watershed;
``(ii) the development and implementation
of adaptation strategies to reduce those
vulnerabilities; and
``(iii) the identification and assessment
of the impacts of sea level rise on water
quality, habitat, and infrastructure; and
``(K) planning initiatives for Long Island Sound
that identify the areas that are most suitable for
various types or classes of activities in order to
reduce conflicts among uses, reduce adverse
environmental impacts, facilitate compatible uses, or
preserve critical ecosystem services to meet economic,
environmental, security, or social objectives;'';
(C) by striking paragraph (4) and inserting the
following:
``(4) develop and implement strategies to increase public
education and awareness with respect to the ecological health
and water quality conditions of Long Island Sound;'';
(D) in paragraph (5), by inserting ``study'' after
``conference'';
(E) in paragraph (6)--
(i) by inserting ``(including on the
Internet)'' after ``the public''; and
(ii) by inserting ``study'' after
``conference''; and
(F) by striking paragraph (7) and inserting the
following:
``(7) monitor the progress made toward meeting the
identified goals, actions, and schedules of the Comprehensive
Conservation and Management Plan, including through the
implementation and support of a monitoring system for the
ecological health and water quality conditions of Long Island
Sound; and'';
(3) in subsection (d)(3), in the second sentence, by
striking ``50 per centum'' and inserting ``60 percent'';
(4) by redesignating subsection (f) as subsection (i); and
(5) by inserting after subsection (e) the following:
``(f) Report.--
``(1) In general.--Not later than 2 years after the date of
enactment of the Long Island Sound Restoration and Stewardship
Act, and biennially thereafter, the Director of the Office, in
consultation with the Governor of each Long Island Sound State,
shall submit to Congress a report that--
``(A) summarizes and assesses the progress made by
the Office and the Long Island Sound States in
implementing the Long Island Sound Comprehensive
Conservation and Management Plan, including an
assessment of the progress made toward meeting the
performance goals and milestones contained in the Plan;
``(B) assesses the key ecological attributes that
reflect the health of the ecosystem of the Long Island
Sound watershed;
``(C) describes any substantive modifications to
the Long Island Sound Comprehensive Conservation and
Management Plan made during the 2-year period preceding
the date of submission of the report;
``(D) provides specific recommendations to improve
progress in restoring and protecting the Long Island
Sound watershed, including, as appropriate, proposed
modifications to the Long Island Sound Comprehensive
Conservation and Management Plan;
``(E) identifies priority actions for
implementation of the Long Island Sound Comprehensive
Conservation and Management Plan for the 2-year period
following the date of submission of the report; and
``(F) describes the means by which Federal funding
and actions will be coordinated with the actions of the
Long Island Sound States and other entities.
``(2) Public availability.--The Administrator shall make
the report described in paragraph (1) available to the public,
including on the Internet.
``(g) Annual Budget Plan.--The President shall submit, together
with the annual budget of the United States Government submitted under
section 1105(a) of title 31, United States Code, information regarding
each Federal department and agency involved in the protection and
restoration of the Long Island Sound watershed, including--
``(1) an interagency crosscut budget that displays for each
department and agency--
``(A) the amount obligated during the preceding
fiscal year for protection and restoration projects and
studies relating to the watershed;
``(B) the estimated budget for the current fiscal
year for protection and restoration projects and
studies relating to the watershed; and
``(C) the proposed budget for succeeding fiscal
years for protection and restoration projects and
studies relating to the watershed; and
``(2) a summary of any proposed modifications to the Long
Island Sound Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan for
the following fiscal year.
``(h) Federal Entities.--
``(1) Coordination.--The Administrator shall coordinate the
actions of all Federal departments and agencies that impact
water quality in the Long Island Sound watershed in order to
improve the water quality and living resources of the
watershed.
``(2) Methods.--In carrying out this section, the
Administrator, acting through the Director of the Office, may--
``(A) enter into interagency agreements; and
``(B) make intergovernmental personnel
appointments.
``(3) Federal participation in watershed planning.--A
Federal department or agency that owns or occupies real
property, or carries out activities, within the Long Island
Sound watershed shall participate in regional and subwatershed
planning, protection, and restoration activities with respect
to the watershed.
``(4) Consistency with comprehensive conservation and
management plan.--To the maximum extent practicable, the head
of each Federal department and agency that owns or occupies
real property, or carries out activities, within the Long
Island Sound watershed shall ensure that the property and all
activities carried out by the department or agency are
consistent with the Long Island Sound Comprehensive
Conservation and Management Plan (including any related
subsequent agreements and plans).''.
(b) Long Island Sound Stewardship Program.--
(1) Long island sound stewardship advisory committee.--
Section 8 of the Long Island Sound Stewardship Act of 2006 (33
U.S.C. 1269 note; Public Law 109-359) is amended--
(A) in subsection (g), by striking ``2011'' and
inserting ``2023''; and
(B) by adding at the end the following:
``(h) Nonapplicability of FACA.--The Federal Advisory Committee Act
(5 U.S.C. App.) shall not apply to--
``(1) the Advisory Committee; or
``(2) any board, committee, or other group established
under this Act.''.
(2) Reports.--Section 9(b)(1) of the Long Island Sound
Stewardship Act of 2006 (33 U.S.C. 1269 note; Public Law 109-
359) is amended in the matter preceding subparagraph (A) by
striking ``2011'' and inserting ``2023''.
(3) Authorization.--Section 11 of the Long Island Sound
Stewardship Act of 2006 (33 U.S.C. 1269 note; Public Law 109-
359) is amended--
(A) by striking subsection (a);
(B) by redesignating subsections (b) through (d) as
subsections (a) through (c), respectively; and
(C) in subsection (a) (as so redesignated), by
striking ``under this section each'' and inserting ``to
carry out this Act for a''.
(4) Effective date.--The amendments made by this subsection
take effect on October 1, 2011.
SEC. 3. REAUTHORIZATION.
(a) In General.--There are authorized to be appropriated to the
Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency such sums as are
necessary for each of fiscal years 2018 through 2023 for the
implementation of--
(1) section 119 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act
(33 U.S.C. 1269), other than subsection (d) of that section;
and
(2) the Long Island Sound Stewardship Act of 2006 (33
U.S.C. 1269 note; Public Law 109-359).
(b) Long Island Sound Grants.--There is authorized to be
appropriated to the Administrator of the Environmental Protection
Agency to carry out section 119(d) of the Federal Water Pollution
Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1269(d)) $40,000,000 for each of fiscal years
2018 through 2023.
(c) Long Island Sound Stewardship Grants.--There is authorized to
be appropriated to the Administrator of the Environmental Protection
Agency to carry out the Long Island Sound Stewardship Act of 2006 (33
U.S.C. 1269 note; Public Law 109-359) $25,000,000 for each of fiscal
years 2018 through 2023.
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