In the nature of a substitute.

SA 3227. Mr. REID (for Mrs. Feinstein (for herself and Ms.
Murkowski)) proposed an amendment to the bill S. 2198, to direct the
Secretary of the Interior, the Secretary of Commerce, the Secretary of
Agriculture, and the Administrator of the Environmental Protection
Agency to take actions to provide additional water supplies to the
State of California due to drought, and for other purposes; as follows:

Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the
following:

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

(a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Emergency
Drought Relief Act of 2014''.
(b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents of this Act
is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Findings.
Sec. 3. Definitions.
Sec. 4. Emergency projects.
Sec. 5. Emergency environmental reviews.
Sec. 6. State revolving funds.
Sec. 7. Effect on State laws.
Sec. 8. Termination of authorities.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

Congress finds that--
(1) as established in the Proclamation of a State of
Emergency issued by the Governor of the State on January 17,
2014, the State is experiencing record dry conditions;
(2) extremely dry conditions have persisted in the State
since 2012, and the drought conditions are likely to persist
into the future;
(3) the water supplies of the State are at record-low
levels, as indicated by a statewide average snowpack of 12
percent of the normal average for winter as of February 1,
2014, and the fact that all major Central Valley Project
reservoir levels are at or below 50 percent of the capacity
of the reservoirs as of April 1, 2014;
(4) the 2013-2014 drought constitutes a serious emergency
posing immediate and severe risks to human life and safety
and to the environment throughout the State;
(5) the emergency requires--
(A) immediate and credible action that respects the
complexity of the water system of the State and the
importance of the water system to the entire State; and
(B) policies that do not pit stakeholders against one
another, which history has shown only leads to costly
litigation that benefits no one and prevents any real
solutions;
(6) Federal law (including regulations) directly authorizes
expedited decisionmaking procedures and environmental and
public review procedures to enable timely and appropriate
implementation of actions to respond to such a type and
severity of emergency; and
(7) the serious emergency posed by the 2013-2014 drought in
the State fully satisfies the conditions necessary for the
exercise of emergency decisionmaking, analytical, and public
review requirements under--
(A) the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et
seq.);
(B) the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42
U.S.C. 4321 et seq.);
(C) water control management procedures of the Corps of
Engineers described in section 222.5 of title 33, Code of
Federal Regulations (including successor regulations); and
(D) the Reclamation States Emergency Drought Relief Act of
1991 (Public Law 102-250; 106 Stat. 53).

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

In this Act:
(1) Central valley project.--The term ``Central Valley
Project'' has the meaning given the term in section 3403 of
the Central Valley Project Improvement Act (106 Stat. 4707).
(2) Klamath project.--The term ``Klamath Project'' means
the Bureau of Reclamation project in the States of California
and Oregon, as authorized under the Act of June 17, 1902 (32
Stat. 388, chapter 1093).
(3) Reclamation project.--The term ``Reclamation Project''
means a project constructed pursuant to the authorities of
the reclamation laws and whose facilities are wholly or
partially located in the State.
(4) Secretaries.--The term ``Secretaries'' means--
(A) the Administrator of the Environmental Protection
Agency;
(B) the Secretary of Agriculture;
(C) the Secretary of Commerce; and
(D) the Secretary of the Interior.
(5) State.--The term ``State'' means the State of
California.
(6) State water project.--The term ``State Water Project''
means the water project described by California Water Code
section 11550 et seq., and operated by the California
Department of Water Resources.

SEC. 4. EMERGENCY PROJECTS.

(a) Water Supplies.--
(1) In general.--In response to the declaration of a state
of drought emergency by the Governor of the State, the
Secretaries shall provide the maximum quantity of water
supplies possible to Central Valley Project agricultural,
municipal and industrial, and refuge service and repayment
contractors, State Water Project contractors, and any other
locality or municipality in the State, by approving,
consistent with applicable laws (including regulations),
projects and operations to provide additional water supplies
as quickly as possible based on available information to
address the emergency conditions.
(2) Application.--Paragraph (1) applies to projects or
operations involving the Klamath Project if the projects or
operations would benefit Federal water contractors in the
State.
(b) Limitation.--Nothing in this section allows agencies to
approve projects--
(1) that would otherwise require congressional
authorization; or
(2) without following procedures required by applicable
law.
(c) Administration.--In carrying out subsection (a), the
Secretaries shall, consistent with applicable laws (including
regulations)--
(1) authorize and implement actions to ensure that the
Delta Cross Channel Gates shall remain open to the greatest
extent possible, timed to maximize the peak flood tide period
and provide water supply and water quality benefits for the
duration of the drought emergency declaration of the State,
consistent with operational criteria and monitoring criteria
developed pursuant to the California State Water Resources
Control Board's Order Approving a Temporary Urgency Change in
License and Permit Terms in Response to Drought Conditions,
effective January 31, 2014, or a successor order;
(2)(A) collect data associated with the operation of the
Delta Cross Channel Gates described in paragraph (1) and the
impact of the operation on species listed as threatened or
endangered under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16
U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), water quality, and water supply; and
(B) after assessing the data described in subparagraph (A),
require the Director of the National Marine Fisheries Service
to recommend revisions to operations of the Central Valley
Project and the California State Water Project, including, if
appropriate, the reasonable and prudent alternatives
contained in the biological opinion issued by the National
Marine Fisheries Service on June 4, 2009, that are likely to
produce fishery, water quality, and water supply benefits;
(3)(A) implement turbidity control strategies that allow
for increased water deliveries while avoiding jeopardy to
adult delta smelt (Hypomesus transpacificus) due to
entrainment at Central Valley Project and State Water Project
pumping plants; and
(B) manage reverse flow in the Old and Middle Rivers as
prescribed by the biological opinions issued by the United
States Fish and Wildlife Service on December 15, 2008, for
Delta smelt and by the National Marine Fisheries Service on
June 4, 2009, for salmonids, to minimize water supply
reductions for the Central Valley Project and the State Water
Project;
(4) adopt a 1:1 inflow to export ratio for the increased
flow of the San Joaquin River, as measured as a 3-day running
average at Vernalis during the period from April 1 through
May 31, resulting from voluntary transfers and exchanges of
water supplies, among other purposes;

[[Page S3304]]

(5) issue all necessary permit decisions under the
authority of the Secretaries within 30 days of receiving a
completed application by the State to place and use temporary
barriers or operable gates in Delta channels to improve water
quantity and quality for State Water Project and Central
Valley Project South of Delta water contractors and other
water users, which barriers or gates should provide benefits
for species protection and in-Delta water user water quality
and shall be designed such that formal consultations under
section 7 of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C.
1536) would not be necessary;
(6)(A) require the Director of the United States Fish and
Wildlife Service and the Commissioner of the Bureau of
Reclamation to complete all requirements under the National
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and
the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.)
necessary to make final permit decisions on water transfer
requests associated with voluntarily fallowing nonpermanent
crops in the State, within 30 days of receiving such a
request; and
(B) require the Director of the United States Fish and
Wildlife Service to allow any water transfer request
associated with fallowing to maximize the quantity of water
supplies available for nonhabitat uses as long as the
fallowing and associated water transfer are in compliance
with applicable Federal laws (including regulations);
(7) participate in, issue grants, or otherwise provide
funding for, as soon as practicable after the date of
enactment of this Act, under existing authority available to
the Secretary of the Interior, pilot projects to increase
water in reservoirs in regional river basins experiencing
extreme, exceptional, or sustained drought that have a direct
impact on the water supply of the State, including the
Colorado River Basin, provided that any participation, grant,
or funding by the Secretary with respect to the Upper
Division shall be with or to the respective State;
(8) maintain all rescheduled water supplies held in the San
Luis Reservoir and Millerton Reservoir for all water users
for delivery in the immediately following contract water year
unless precluded by reservoir storage capacity limitations;
(9) to the maximum extent possible based on the
availability of water and without causing land subsidence or
violating water quality standards--
(A) meet the contract water supply needs of Central Valley
Project refuges through the improvement or installation of
water conservation measures, water conveyance facilities, and
wells to use groundwater resources, which activities may be
accomplished by using funding made available under the Water
Assistance Program or the WaterSMART program of the
Department of the Interior; and
(B) make a quantity of Central Valley Project surface water
obtained from the measures implemented under subparagraph (A)
available to Central Valley Project contractors;
(10) in coordination with the Secretary of Agriculture,
enter into an agreement with the National Academy of Sciences
to conduct a comprehensive study, to be completed not later
than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, on the
effectiveness and environmental impacts of saltcedar
biological control efforts on increasing water supplies and
improving riparian habitats of the Colorado River and its
principal tributaries, in the State and elsewhere;
(11) make any WaterSMART grant funding allocated to the
State available on a priority and expedited basis for
projects in the State that--
(A) provide emergency drinking and municipal water supplies
to localities in a quantity necessary to meet minimum public
health and safety needs;
(B) prevent the loss of permanent crops;
(C) minimize economic losses resulting from drought
conditions; or
(D) provide innovative water conservation tools and
technology for agriculture and urban water use that can have
immediate water supply benefits;
(12) implement offsite upstream projects in the Delta and
upstream Sacramento River and San Joaquin basins, in
coordination with the California Department of Water
Resources and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife,
that offset the effects on species listed as threatened or
endangered under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16
U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) due to actions taken under this Act; and
(13) use all available scientific tools to identify any
changes to real-time operations of Bureau of Reclamation,
State and local water projects that could result in the
availability of additional water supplies.
(d) Other Agencies.--To the extent that a Federal agency
other than agencies headed by the Secretaries has a role in
approving projects described in subsections (a) and (c), this
section shall apply to those Federal agencies.
(e) Accelerated Project Decision and Elevation.--
(1) In general.--Upon the request of the State, the heads
of Federal agencies shall use the expedited procedures under
this subsection to make final decisions relating to a Federal
project or operation to provide additional water supplies or
address emergency drought conditions pursuant to subsections
(a) and (c).
(2) Request for resolution.--
(A) In general.--Upon the request of the State, the head of
an agency referred to in subsection (a), or the head of
another Federal agency responsible for carrying out a review
of a project, as applicable, the Secretary of the Interior
shall convene a final project decision meeting with the heads
of all relevant Federal agencies to decide whether to approve
a project to provide emergency water supplies.
(B) Meeting.--The Secretary of the Interior shall convene a
meeting requested under subparagraph (A) not later than 7
days after receiving the meeting request.
(3) Notification.--Upon receipt of a request for a meeting
under this subsection, the Secretary of the Interior shall
notify the heads of all relevant Federal agencies of the
request, including the project to be reviewed and the date
for the meeting.
(4) Decision.--Not later than 10 days after the date on
which a meeting is requested under paragraph (2), the head of
the relevant Federal agency shall issue a final decision on
the project.
(5) Meeting convened by secretary.--The Secretary of the
Interior may convene a final project decision meeting under
this subsection at any time, at the discretion of the
Secretary, regardless of whether a meeting is requested under
paragraph (2).

SEC. 5. EMERGENCY ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEWS.

To minimize the time spent carrying out environmental
reviews and to deliver water quickly that is needed to
address emergency drought conditions in the State, the head
of each applicable Federal agency shall, in carrying out this
Act, consult with the Council on Environmental Quality in
accordance with section 1506.11 of title 40, Code of Federal
Regulations (including successor regulations) to develop
alternative arrangements to comply with the National
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.)
during the emergency.

SEC. 6. STATE REVOLVING FUNDS.

(a) In General.--The Administrator of the Environmental
Protection Agency, in allocating amounts for each of the
fiscal years during which the emergency drought declaration
of the State is in force to State water pollution control
revolving funds established under title VI of the Federal
Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1381 et seq.) and the
State drinking water treatment revolving loan funds
established under section 1452 of the Safe Drinking Water Act
(42 U.S.C. 300j-12), shall, for those projects that are
eligible to receive assistance under section 603 of the
Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1383) or
section 1452(a)(2) of the Safe Drinking Water Act (42 U.S.C.
300j-12(a)(2)), respectively, that the State determines will
provide additional water supplies most expeditiously to areas
that are at risk of having an inadequate supply of water for
public health and safety purposes or to improve resiliency to
drought--
(1) require the State to review and prioritize funding for
such projects;
(2) issue a determination of waivers within 30 days of the
conclusion of the informal public comment period pursuant to
section 436(c) of title IV of division G of Public Law 113-
76; and
(3) authorize, at the request of the State, 40-year
financing for assistance under section 603(d)(2) of the
Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1383(d)(2)) or
section 1452(f)(2) of the Safe Drinking Water Act (42 U.S.C.
300j-12(f)(2)).
(b) Effect of Section.--Nothing in this section authorizes
the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to
modify any funding allocation, funding criteria, or other
requirement relating to State water pollution control
revolving funds established under title VI of the Federal
Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1381 et seq.) and the
State drinking water treatment revolving loan funds
established under section 1452 of the Safe Drinking Water Act
(42 U.S.C. 300j-12) for any other State.

SEC. 7. EFFECT ON STATE LAWS.

Nothing in this Act preempts any State law in effect on the
date of enactment of this Act, including area of origin and
other water rights protections.

SEC. 8. TERMINATION OF AUTHORITIES.

The authorities under section 4(a), paragraphs (1) through
(6) of section 4(c), paragraphs (8) and (9) of section 4(c),
paragraphs (11) through (13) of section 4(c), section 5, and
section 6 permanently expire on the date on which the
Governor of the State suspends the state of drought emergency
declaration.
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