To amend the Tijuana River Valley Estuary and Beach Sewage Cleanup Act of 2000 to extend the authorization of appropriations, and for other purposes.

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. LaTourette) and the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Costello) for managing this bill. I think they have described it very well, the problem that we have with pollution that sweeps north on to California beaches. Not only is it a public health hazard and one that accrues to the detriment of thousands and thousands of families in the San Diego region, but also has a major impact on our economy. This situation of polluted beaches from raw sewage costs us in excess of some $15 million a year.

In an attempt to look for a better way to address this border sewage problem, the House and the Tijuana River Estuary and Beach Cleanup Act, P.L. 106-457, authorized what we thought was a cutting edge concept involving a public-private partnership approach that will save taxpayer money and ensure that a wastewater treatment facility is brought online as quickly as possible and in complete compliance with the U.S. Clean Water Act regulations.

OMB has certified, incidentally, that the public-private partnership approach will save significant funds over a similar plant built and operated by the Federal Government.

So this is a new approach, Mr. Speaker, but we think it is going to work and work very effectively.

Since the passage of P.L. 106-457, the IBWC, the International Boundary and Water Commission, has completed treaty minute negotiations with Mexico and has begun the process of addressing this decades old problem. As a result, in order to ensure that the project continues to move forward expeditiously, all of us in the San Diego congressional delegation introduced H.R. 4794, which has been well described as the Tijuana River Estuary and Beach Cleanup Reauthorization Act.

This legislation will make necessary technical corrections to the base law to address changing circumstances and bring the law into line with the binational treaty that was negotiated. So this is what we need to get this project moving.

We want to thank all of our friends and good colleagues who have worked on this, including the gentleman from Alaska (Chairman Young) and the subcommittee chairman, the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Duncan), as well as the ranking members, the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Oberstar) and the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Costello), for their help and guidance with this very important bipartisan legislation. The bill represents a real victory for the citizens of San Diego and for the taxpayers.

Mr. Speaker, I urge all my colleagues to strongly support its passage and, again, to the gentlemen managing the bill, I thank them very much for their support.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 4794, which will amend the Tijuana River Valley Estuary and Beach Sewage Cleanup Act of 2000 to bring it up to date to include the International Boundary and Water Commission Treaty Minute No. 311 between the United States and Mexico. Reauthorization will pave the way for an ultimate solution to the long-standing problem of sewage outfall that pollutes the Tijuana River Valley Estuary and the precious beaches of Imperial Beach.

Located on the southwest corner of the United States, Imperial Beach offers its residents and visitors an exceptional coastal experience situated as it is between the wonderful Tijuana Estuary natural wetlands and bird habitat and the mighty Pacific Ocean.

Unfortunately, the metropolitan area of Tijuana and San Diego has grown well beyond the existing capacity to provide for the current sewage volume and allow a healthy and safe environment for the population along the border.

The 2000 Act provided the framework for improving the existing South Bay International Wastewater Treatment Plant, which was constructed by the International Boundary and Water Commission following authorization in a 1987 Water Quality Act. However, the plant was only built to advanced primary standards and not to the required secondary treatment standard as required by the law.

Since that time, the rapid growth in the metropolitan region has resulted in a frequent flow

of untreated or partially treated sewage through the Tijuana River, which flows north from Tijuana across the border to the Pacific Ocean at Imperial Beach. This pollution is a public health threat as well as an environmental danger.

This reauthorization addresses a multitude of details to implement a privately built and operated plant in Tijuana. Although the realization of the new Minute in February took a very long time, I hope that with new leadership now in place on the Commission and with this authorization in place there will be rapid progress toward the fulfillment of this desperately needed public safety facility.

I want to thank my colleague from San Diego, Representative Hunter, for taking the leadership in the time-consuming process of bringing agreement on the details from numerous administration entities.

I urge your support for this measure, which has been co-sponsored by the bipartisan San Diego delegation.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 4794) to amend the Tijuana River Valley Estuary and Beach Sewage Cleanup Act of 2000 to extend the authorization of appropriations, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 4794, to amend the Tijuana River Valley Estuary and Beach Sewage Cleanup Act of 2000.

For years the United States Congress has been trying to address a public health and environmental problem that exists along the U.S.- Mexican border. Raw or partially treated sewage from the Tijuana, Mexico area flows spot United States and ends up on California beaches.

In 2000, Congress addressed this problem by authorizing the United States to contract with a plant in Mexico for waste water treatment services that would meet the clean water standards. That law required the United States and Mexico to negotiate a new treaty. That negotiation was completed in February of this year. Now the United States must negotiate a contract.

It is my understanding that those negotiations are finally underway, but before a contract can be signed, the Tijuana Valley Estuary and Beach Sewage Cleanup Act authorization must be extended and updated. H.R. 4794 provides that authority.

I want to congratulate and commend the gentleman from California (Mr. Hunter), the gentleman from California (Mr. Filner), the gentleman from California (Mr. Cunningham), the gentleman from California (Mr. Issa) and the gentlewoman from California (Mrs. Davis) for their persistence. This is a good piece of legislation. I urge my colleagues to support it.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure to yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from California (Mr. Hunter), one of the champions of this legislation

Mr. Speaker, I have no additional speakers, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, in 2002, the City of San Diego declared a local emergency regarding the flow of sewage across the border from Tijuana to San Diego. It is estimated that 70 million gallons per day of sewage is released into the Tijuana River Valley and flows into the Pacific Ocean.

It is imperative that something be done to stop the flow of sewage from Tijuana into the Pacific. This legislation is a positive and significant step forward in ensuring that the requirements of the Clean Water Act are met. It makes the necessary changes that would effectively allow for the building of a waster water sewage treatment facility in Mexico that will process 50+ million gallons of water per day in compliance with the Clean Water Act.

I have been working for years now to ensure a solution to this problem, and I believe the proposal to construct a treatment plant in Mexico is the most cost-effective solution. This bill will enable that to occur, and to eliminate the potential threat to the quality of water in the San Diego-Tijuana border at zero cost to taxpayers. This bill will ensure major environmental benefits for California and is the best option to address this serious public health and safety concern for San Diego.

OMB certified that the public-private partnership approach will save significant funds. The International Boundary and Water Commission (IBWC) has completed treaty minute negotiations with Mexico. This process has taken years, and I would like to thank the IBWC for working on the issue. I would like to thank Duncan Hunter, Darrel Issa and Susan Davis for all their hard work. H.R. 4794's introduction by this delegation makes technical corrections to the base law. I would like to thank Chairman Don Young, the Ranking Member James Oberstar and Jerry Costello for all their help. This bill is a victory for San Diego, Mexico and the environment.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 4794. This critical bipartisan bill would reauthorize and update legislation to address the ongoing problem of sewage that migrates across the U.S.-Mexican border into the waters off of San Diego, California. In light of recent efforts of the International Boundary Water Commission to successfully negotiate a treaty minute on this issue, the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, working with the gentleman from California (Mr. Filner) and the gentleman from California (Mr. Hunter), developed this legislation to amend existing law to reflect the terms of the new treaty minute.

Other than annual appropriations, this legislation should be the last legislative hurdle necessary for the construction of the treatment facilities to protect the public and the ecological health of the San Diego region.

I commend our committee colleague the gentleman from California (Mr. Filner) who first brought this issue to our committee's attention in the 106th Congress, as well as my friend the gentleman from California (Mr. Hunter) for their efforts in pursuing this legislation.

Mr. Speaker, time is of the essence for this legislation. The United States will face court-ordered sanctions unless we get about the business of cleaning up this sewage. But even more importantly, every day's delay is another day that the United States citizens are faced with raw sewage in the river and off the California coast. It is time for our work to begin and for this project to move forward.

Mr. Speaker, I strongly urge this legislation and urge my colleagues to support it.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, and I yield back the balance of my time.