To direct the Secretary of the Army to develop a comprehensive plan for the deauthorization of deep draft navigation on the Mississippi River Gulf Outlet and address wetland losses and other issues relating to that Outlet.

SA 3750. Ms. LANDRIEU submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by her to the bill H.R. 4939, making emergency supplemental appropriations for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2006, and for other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:

On page 159, strike lines 1 through 10 and insert the following: $7,250,000, to remain available until expended: Provided, That the Secretary of the Army, acting through the Chief of Engineers, shall use $3,500,000 to develop a comprehensive plan, at full Federal expense, that, at a minimum, will deauthorize deep draft navigation on the Mississippi River Gulf Outlet established by Public Law 84-455 (70 Stat. 65, chapter 112) (referred to in this matter as the “Outlet)”, extending from the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway, and address wetland losses attributable to the Outlet, channel bank erosion, hurricane and storm protection, saltwater intrusion, navigation, ecosystem restoration, and related issues: Provided further, That the plan shall include recommended authorization modifications to the Outlet regarding what, if any, navigation should continue, measures to provide hurricane and storm protection, prevent saltwater intrusion, and re-establish the storm buffering properties and ecological integrity of the wetland damaged by construction and operation of the Outlet, and complement restoration of coastal Louisiana: Provided further, That the Secretary shall develop the plan in consultation with the Parish of St. Bernard, Louisiana, the State of Louisiana, the Secretary of the Interior, the Secretary of Commerce, the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, and the National Academy of Sciences: Provided further, That the Secretary shall seek input, review, and comment from the public and the scientific community on the plan: Provided further, That the Secretary shall ensure that an independent panel of experts established by the National Academy of Sciences reviews and provides written comments on the proposed plan: Provided further, That, not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit an interim report to Congress comprising the plan, the written comments of the independent panel of experts, and the written explanation of the Secretary for any recommendation of the independent panel of experts not adopted in the plan: Provided further, That the Secretary shall refine the plan, if necessary, to be fully consistent, integrated, and included in the final technical report to be issued in December 2007 pursuant to the matter under the heading “investigations” under the heading “Corps of Engineers--Civil” of title I of the Energy and Water Development Appropriations Act, 2006 (Public Law 109-103, 119 Stat. 2247; Public Law 109-148, 119 Stat. 2814): Provided further, That the amount provided under this heading is designated as an emergency requirement pursuant to section 402 of H. Con. Res. 05 (109th Congress), the concurrent resolution on the budget for fiscal year 2006: Provided further, That, of the amount made available under this heading, $3,750,000 shall be available only to the extent that an official budget request for a specific dollar amount, that includes designation of the entire amount of the request as an emergency requirement, is transmitted by the President to Congress.