The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
“STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS” mentioning the Department of Interior was published in the Senate section on pages S7333-S7338 on July 11, 2006.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS
By Mr. HATCH (for himself and Mr. Bennett):
S. 3632. A bill to provide for the sale of approximately 25 acres of public land to the Turn-About Ranch, Escalante, Utah, at fair market value; to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, I rise to introduce legislation that would correct a property trespass question involving a 25-acre parcel of Bureau of Land Management, BLM, land in Garfield County, UT. The parcel is part of the Turn-About Ranch, which hosts a successful and popular program to rehabilitate troubled youth.
The trespass conflict is the result of an erroneous survey at the time that Congress approved a major land exchange--Public Law 105-335--
between the State of Utah and the BLM in January 1999. The legislation at hand would grant the owners of the ranch the opportunity to purchase the erroneously surveyed land at fair market value so that this very important program for at-risk youth can continue unimpeded.
Since 1995, Turn-About Ranch has graduated some 500 troubled and at-
risk teenagers through an intense program of training and rehabilitation. The ranch employs some 35 Garfield County residents, and the Turn-About Ranch program has strong support from the local community and the local civic leaders in the area.
Historically used for agriculture and grazing purposes, it was purchased by the Townsend Family and leased to Turn-About Ranch, Inc., for the purpose of restoring dignity and self-esteem to wayward teenagers. Because Government-owned land administered by the BLM surrounds the private land, the only way to resolve the trespass is to ask for the blessing of Congress.
Mr. President, this legislation offers a simple and fair solution to a fairly technical problem on our public lands. I hope Congress can use this legislation to resolve this problem in the very near future.
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By Mr. INHOFE (for himself, Mr. Nelson of Nebraska, Ms. Snowe,
Mr. Warner, Mr. Graham, Mr. DeWine, Mr. Stevens, Mr. Martinez,
Mr. Bunning, Mr. Crapo, Mr. Craig, Mr. Kyl, Mr. Ensign, Mr.
Coburn, Mr. Shelby, Mr. Thomas, Mr. DeMint, Mr. Chambliss, Mrs.
Hutchison, Mr. Vitter, Mr. Isakson, Mr. Sessions, Mr. Thune,
Mr. Bond, Mr. Smith, Mr. Cochran, Mr. Gregg, Mr. Burns, Mr.
Talent, Mr. Burr, Mr. Allen, and Mrs. Dole):
S. 3633. A bill to require the withholding of United States contributions to the United Nations until the President certifies that the United Nations is not engaged in global taxation schemes; to the Committee on Foreign Relations.
Mr. INHOFE. Mr. President, today I introduce to you a bill to prevent the imposition of global taxes on the United States. The current efforts of the United Nations and other international organizations to develop, advocate, endorse, promote, and publicize proposals to raise revenue by instituting international taxes are unacceptable.
The United Nations is not a sovereign nation and, therefore, does not have the legal capacity to levy taxes. Furthermore, paying taxes to an international organization like the UN would impair global commerce, hinder the defense capabilities of the United States, and continue to line the pockets of an organization that has historically been replete with mismanagement and corruption, especially in recent years. In order to avoid these consequences, the bill I bring before you will withhold 20 percent of dues from the United Nations and other international organizations if they continue to promote global taxes. Its passage will help preserve the sovereignty of our Nation and save American taxpayers from potentially paying billions of dollars every year to international organizations.
The United Nations' record of developing and advocating global taxation goes back for more than a decade. Usually the organization's efforts have been done quietly so as not to elicit the ire of the United States. However, in 1996 Secretary General Boutros-Boutros Ghali delivered a speech at Oxford University in which he openly embraced the concept of global taxes and authoritarian world government. Specifically, the Secretary General expressed a desire for the United Nations to ``not be under the daily financial will of the member states.'' Though the U.N. had tried to circumvent the Security Council and avoid member state scrutiny for many years by borrowing from international financial institutions, assuming control of bonds issued by Member States, and imposing fees on an extensive range of transactions, goods and services, this was the first time the concept of global taxation was so explicitly advocated.
In response to the United Nations' actions, Senator Bob Dole and Representative Gerald Solomon introduced bills in both Houses of Congress in January of 1996 to put a stop to the United Nations' antics. These bills prohibited any voluntary or assessed contributions from the United States to the United Nations if the United Nations continued to develop and promote proposals for international taxes and fees. That legislation passed through the 104th and the 105th Congresses to become public law.
Still, the United Nations continued to pursue global taxation. Later in 1996, the United Nations Economic and Social Council fully debated international taxation. After that, a United Nations Development Programme research project resulted in the publishing of a text entitled ``The Tobin Tax,'' which proposed a currency transaction tax. Global taxation was discussed in ``The Human Development Report'' in 1999 as well as at the United Nations Preparatory Committee for the International Conference on Financing for Development in 2001. Also in 2001, Ernesto Zedillo published a report which concluded ``there is a genuine need to establish, by international consensus, stable and contractual new sources of multilateral finance.'' Dialog arose at the Conference on Sharing Global Prosperity in Helsinki in 2003. In 2004, the United Nations University-World Institute for Development Economics Research issued a study on global taxation.
Recently, the 2005 ``Human Development Report'' discussed proposals to levy international taxes in order to fund the U.N.'s Millennium Development Goals. Some of the taxes the United Nations proposed in this report were taxes on aviation fuel, an airline passenger tax, and a currency transaction tax like the Tobin tax. At other points in time the U.N. has considered a global environmental levy, an ocean freight tax on international trade, and a military expenditures and arms tax.
Innovative development financing mechanisms were the primary topics of discussion at a conference held in Paris on February 28 and March 1 of 2006. As a result of this conference and other discussions, various nations, most notably France, are already implementing an international tax on airline travel, with the approval of Kofi Annan. Plans for global taxes on currency transactions, energy use, and United States companies are also being considered. An official U.N.-sponsored book,
``New Sources of Development Finance,'' says that a proposed tax on oil, gas, coal and other carbon-based fuels could produce $750 billion a year in revenue for the U.N. and other global purposes.
We have frequently reminded the United Nations of our sentiments regarding global taxation after legislation formally passed through Congress in 1996 and 1998. Recently, on August 30, 2005, the U.S. representative to the United Nations, John R. Bolton, clearly stated
``the United States does not accept global aid targets or global taxes.'' Shortly after, on September 13, 2005, 16 Senators joined with me in sending a letter to Kofi Annan which reiterated Mr. Bolton's message. Still, the United Nations has continued to research and promote different forms of international taxation.
Since the United Nations is not listening to the United States, now it is time for Congress to back up our words. The bill I am introducing along with 31 colleagues states that if the United Nations or other international organizations continue to pursue global taxation, the United States will withhold 20 percent of assessed contributions to the regular budget of these organizations. This measure would last until certification is given by the President to Congress that neither the United Nations nor any other international organization has legal taxation authority in the United States, that no taxes or fees have been imposed on the United States, and that no taxes have been proposed by any of these organizations.
The fascination of the United Nations and other international organizations with international taxation has gone on too long. Please join me in taking a stand for the sovereignty of our Nation by supporting this bill.
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By Mr. JEFFORDS (for himself and Mr. Leahy):
S. 3634. A bill to amend the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 to improve the material control and accounting and data management systems used by civilian nuclear power reactors to better account for spent nuclear fuel and reduce the risks associated with the handling of those materials; to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.
Mr. JEFFORDS. Mr. President, today I am introducing the Spent Nuclear Fuel Control and Accounting Act of 2006. I am pleased to be joined by the Senior Senator from Vermont, Mr. Leahy, in introducing this legislation. In the other body, our colleague from Vermont, Congressman Sanders, is introducing a companion measure. This legislation is designed to improve the safety and security of spent nuclear fuel generated by our Nation's nuclear powerplants.
Approximately 2,000 metric tons of spent nuclear fuel are generated by the Nation's 103 nuclear powerplants each year. Spent nuclear fuel is no longer able to generate power but is still intensely radioactive and continues to generate heat for tens of thousands of years. Radiation produced by the fuel can kill a person within minutes if they are directly exposed.
Terrorist attacks in the U.S. have heightened public concern generally about whether this highly radioactive material could be stolen and used maliciously. Although the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, NRC, argues that spent nuclear fuel is ``self-protecting'' because of its high radioactivity, the potential for harm to human health and the environment warrants close attention to the control and accounting of this material.
I am introducing this legislation because there have been several instances of lost spent nuclear fuel at operating plants in the past few years, including in my own home State. Such losses have eroded public confidence in the job the NRC is doing. Following the loss of spent fuel rod fragments at Vermont Yankee in 2004, I requested that GAO study the issue of how the NRC controls such material. In its April 2005 report, the GAO recommended that the NRC establish requirements for the control of individual fuel rods and fragments and develop inspection procedures to verify plants' compliance.
NRC currently has no regulations that specifically deal with the tracking and recordkeeping of spent nuclear fuel of this type. While the NRC generally has regulations requiring plant operators to maintain records of their spent nuclear fuel they do not specify how individual fuel rods and fragments should be tracked. Additionally, the NRC requires plant operators to inventory spent fuel at least once a year, but does not specify how that inventory should be conducted. Because of this lack of specificity in its regulations, there is considerable variation among nuclear powerplants in how regulations are implemented. Plus, the NRC no longer monitors plants' compliance with its tracking and accounting regulations.
While the NRC has been working administratively to address the issues identified in the GAO report, the proposed legislation would require the NRC to more effectively control and account for spent nuclear fuel. The NRC needs to redouble its efforts to shore up public confidence in its regulatory efforts. This is a difficult task, but one that is critically important.
This bill will focus on the safe operation and management of existing nuclear powerplants. The NRC and the nuclear industry are planning for a ``nuclear renaissance'' with the construction of new nuclear plants. The NRC estimates that it will receive 18 new license requests between now and the year 2012. But, we must maintain continued oversight over existing plants and pay particular attention to the safe management of spent nuclear fuel. The public needs to be confident that the current system operates well, or they will likely not accept a new generation of plants.
The Spent Nuclear Fuel Control and Accounting Act of 2006 directs NRC to develop regulations which would improve the current system of control and accounting for spent nuclear fuel and would help prevent incidents like the one which occurred at Vermont Yankee.
In the case of Vermont Yankee, operated by Entergy, the plant's operators discovered that two pieces of a radioactive fuel rod were missing from the plant's storage facilities on April 21, 2004. During a scheduled fuel outage, the plant conducted a special inspection requested by the NRC to document the location of its fuel rods, both spent and unspent.
The documentation of the pieces' location was requested by the NRC as part of a follow up to the loss of two complete spent fuel rods at the Millstone plant in Connecticut in 2000. At Vermont Yankee, the missing pieces were 7 and 17 inches long, and came from a fuel rod sent to the Vermont Yankee plant by General Electric in 1979 that arrived broken. When the rod broke, the pieces were placed in a lead bucket at the bottom of the spent fuel pool, in which low-level waste was periodically also stored. Later it was learned that a special storage container was ordered from General Electric to house these pieces, and that they were stored in a different part of the fuel pool.
The NRC was involved in Entergy's efforts to use a remote-control camera to see if the misplaced rod pieces were among the spent fuel rods in the plant's spent fuel pool. Entergy also reviewed paper records to see if two missing fuel rods from the plant were shipped to waste storage facilities in South Carolina or the State of Washington. The spent fuel rods were eventually located on July 15, 2004, after a search in which Entergy estimates company employees and outside contractors had spent between 9,000 and 10,000 hours involved in the search.
A similar event occurred at the Millstone nuclear powerplant in Connecticut in 2000 and at the Humboldt Bay plant in California in July 2004. Pacific Gas and Electric officials searched for three missing uranium components of a used nuclear fuel rod in the reactor pool at the decommissioned Humboldt Bay nuclear powerplant near Eureka, CA. Each of the pieces of the missing Humboldt Bay fuel rod is 18 inches long, has the width of a pencil and contains uranium fuel encased in steel. The rods from the Humboldt Bay and Millstone plants are still missing. The Millstone plant paid a $288,000 fine for the loss of its fuel.
When the Millstone incident occurred, the NRC said that fuel rods had never before gone missing in the history of commercial nuclear power in the United States. While I know that the materials at Vermont Yankee were found to be missing due in part to a special inspection the NRC instituted after Millstone, the sad fact is that fuel again went missing. I do not want missing fuel to become the norm. It is not enough to tell the public that we ``think'' it is likely that highly radioactive material went to storage. Certainly it is poor government management not to look carefully at how the utilities conducted these searches for missing fuel rods, draw out lessons, develop best management practices, and safeguard and protect the existing paper trail we have for the waste stored at our Nation's nuclear power plants. We must improve our nuclear materials accounting system, and my legislation is the first step in doing so.
This legislation calls for NRC to pay special attention to loose individual spent fuel rods and rod fragments like those lost at the Vermont Yankee plant. It requires NRC to report when loose fuel rods and fragments result and requires NRC to conduct an annual inspection to make sure that plants are complying with waste tracking requirements. Additionally, the bill instructs NRC to develop best management practices for the safe storage of individual rods and fragments and for the inventory of spent nuclear fuel. The legislation will require NRC to modernize its data management systems by developing an updated electronic system for storing data and for tracking the location of spent nuclear fuel. The creation of an electronic database of spent fuel storage records would help secure this important information from aging plants that are being uprated and relicensed and also require the new fleet of plants to use a uniform electronic system. Finally, this bill would track the movement of spent nuclear fuel onsite at nuclear powerplants and offsite to other facilities by requiring that manifests indicate whether shipments contain fuel rods or fragments.
I believe that this bill will be an important step towards improving security related to one of the most hazardous materials made by humans--spent nuclear fuel. This bill would increase the scrutiny on the tracking of this material and ensure that spent nuclear fuel remains safely stored in appropriate facilities and does not end up in the wrong hands.
I ask unanimous consent that a copy of my bill be printed in the Record.
There being no objection, the text of the bill was ordered to be printed in the Record, as follows:
S. 3634
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 ``Spent Nuclear Fuel Control and Accounting Act of 2006''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds that--
(1) several incidents involving missing or unaccounted-for spent nuclear fuel have occurred at civilian nuclear power reactors, including--
(A) the Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Plant;
(B) the Humboldt Bay Nuclear Power Plant (California); and
(C) the Millstone Nuclear Power Station (Connecticut);
(2) weaknesses in the accounting and control of spent nuclear fuel have been identified at several other civilian nuclear power reactors;
(3) data provided by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission indicate that--
(A) operators of most civilian nuclear power reactors have removed spent fuel rods from their fuel assemblies; and
(B) those rods are stored onsite in spent fuel pools or dry casks or have been shipped offsite to a storage facility;
(4) individual spent fuel rods and fragments may also result from the loading of a new assembly and therefore may be new fuel;
(5) individual spent fuel rods, and especially fragments of spent fuel rods, are--
(A) highly radioactive; and
(B) much smaller and lighter than fuel assemblies;
(6) while regulations promulgated by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission require civilian nuclear power reactors to control and account for spent nuclear fuel, they do not cover--
(A) individual spent fuel rods that have been removed from an assembly; and
(B) fragments of spent fuel rods;
(7) the storage and oversight of individual spent fuel rods at civilian nuclear power reactors have not been managed in a consistent manner;
(8) the lack of specific guidance in the regulations promulgated by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission relating to how civilian nuclear power reactors should conduct physical inventories has resulted in inconsistent compliance with those regulations;
(9) the Nuclear Regulatory Commission does not evaluate the compliance of civilian nuclear power reactors with the material control and accounting regulations promulgated by the Commission;
(10) the Nuclear Regulatory Commission has much to do to implement the recommendations listed in the report published by the Government Accountability Office titled ``NRC Needs to Do More to Ensure that Power Plants Are Effectively Controlling Spent Nuclear Fuel''; and
(11) the effective implementation of material control and accounting regulations by civilian nuclear power reactors is of great importance to the United States because of the potential safety and security consequences for failing to manage spent nuclear fuel, especially in the aftermath of terrorist attacks in the United States.
SEC. 3. MATERIAL CONTROL AND ACCOUNTING OF DISMANTLED FUEL
ASSEMBLY.
The Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (42 U.S.C. 10101 et seq.) is amended by adding after section 137 the following:
``SEC. 138. MATERIAL CONTROL AND ACCOUNTING OF INDIVIDUAL
RODS AND FRAGMENTS FROM A DISMANTLED FUEL
ASSEMBLY.
``(a) Promulgation of Regulations.--The Commission shall promulgate regulations to require each civilian nuclear power reactor to provide to the Commission a report that contains a detailed record of each individual spent fuel rod, and each fragment of a spent fuel rod, that results from the loading or dismantling of a fuel assembly.
``(b) Annual Inspection.--The Commission shall promulgate regulations to require an annual inspection by the Commission of each civilian nuclear power reactor to determine the compliance of the civilian nuclear power reactor with regulations relating to the material control and accounting of spent nuclear fuel promulgated by the Commission.
``SEC. 139. GUIDANCE FOR STORING INDIVIDUAL FUEL RODS AND
FRAGMENTS.
``The Commission shall develop and make available to each civilian nuclear power reactor guidance that describes--
``(1) best management practices relating to--
``(A) the procedures that a civilian nuclear power reactor should use to store individual fuel rods and fragments on site; and
``(B) the selection of suitable locations for the storage of individual fuel rods and fragments; and
``(2) suitable inventory practices relating to--
``(A) the manner in which a civilian nuclear power reactor should conduct an annual inventory of any spent nuclear fuel, including individual fuel rods and fragments; and
``(B) the manner in which a civilian nuclear power reactor should catalogue each item of spent nuclear fuel, including individual rods and fragments located at the civilian nuclear power reactor.
``SEC. 140. ELECTRONIC DATA MANAGEMENT AND WASTE TRACKING
SYSTEM.
``(a) Development of System.--The Commission shall develop an electronic data management and waste tracking system--
``(1) to store and access the records of each civilian nuclear power reactor; and
``(2) to track the location of spent nuclear fuel including individual rods and fragments.
``(b) Adoption of Electronic Data Management and Waste Tracking System by Civilian Nuclear Power Reactors.--The Commission shall promulgate regulations to require each civilian nuclear power reactor--
``(1) in the case of a civilian nuclear power reactor that is licensed before the date of enactment of this section, to digitize the existing records of the civilian nuclear power reactor; and
``(2) in the case of a civilian nuclear power reactor that is licensed on or after the date of enactment of this Act, to implement and use the electronic data management and waste tracking system described in subsection (a).
``(c) Evaluation of Existing Electronic Data Management and Waste Tracking Systems.--The Commission may evaluate existing electronic data management and waste tracking systems to determine whether those systems could be modified for purposes of complying with subsection (a).''.
SEC. 4. MANIFEST REQUIREMENT FOR SPENT NUCLEAR FUEL.
The Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (42 U.S.C. 10101 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 180 the following:
``SEC. 181. MANIFEST REQUIREMENT FOR SPENT NUCLEAR FUEL.
``(a) Development of Manifest.--The Commission shall develop a detailed manifest form for the onsite transportation of spent fuel that indicates whether the package containing the spent fuel contains individual rods or fragments.
``(b) Promulgation of Regulations.--The Commission shall promulgate regulations to require each civilian nuclear power reactor to provide to the Commission a completed detailed manifest form developed under subsection (a) to identify and track any spent fuel rod or rod fragment that is transported within the premises of the civilian nuclear power reactor.
``SEC. 182. IDENTIFICATION OF SPENT FUEL OR ROD FRAGMENTS
TRANSPORTED OUTSIDE PREMISES OF CIVILIAN
NUCLEAR POWER REACTORS.
``The Commission, in consultation with the Department of Transportation, shall identify any spent fuel rod or rod fragment that is transported outside the premises of the civilian nuclear power reactor through use of manifests used by the Department of Transportation.''.
SEC. 5. CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.
The table of contents of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (42 U.S.C. 10101 note; 96 Stat. 2201) is amended--
(1) by adding after the item relating to section 137 the following:
``Sec. 138. Material control and accounting of dismantled fuel assembly.
``Sec. 139. Guidance for storing spent nuclear fuel.
``Sec. 140. Electronic data management and waste tracking system.''.
and;
(2) by adding after the item relating to section 180 the following:
``Sec. 181. Manifest requirement for spent nuclear fuel.
``Sec. 182. Identification of spent fuel or rod fragments transported outside premises of civilian nuclear power reactors.''.
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By Mr. DOMENICI (for himself and Mr. Bingaman):
S. 3635: A bill to direct the Secretary of the Interior to take into trust 2 parcels of Federal land for the benefit of certain Indian Pubelos on the State of New Mexico; to the Committee on Indian Affairs.
Mr. DOMENICI. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce the Albuquerque Indian Schools Act of 2006. I want to thank Senator Bingaman for joining me as a cosponsor of the bill.
The Albuquerque Indian Schools--AIS--Act of 2006 seeks to consolidate two parcels of federal land and take this land into trust for the 19 pueblos--Acoma, Cochiti, Isleta, Jemez, Laguna, Nambe, Ohkay Owingeh, Picuris, Pojoaque, San Felipe, San Ildefonso, Sandia, Santa Ana, Santa Clara, Santo Domingo, Taos, Tesuque, Zia and Zuni. I believe this property, if transferred, would receive greater utilization and benefit the economic development of the 19 pueblos.
In 1981, the 19 New Mexico pueblos petitioned the United States for the transfer of 44 acres from the Albuquerque Indian School site for the purpose of economic development and in 1984 the Assistant Secretary of the Interior conveyed the 44 acres to the pueblos. This land is currently under development by the 19 New Mexico pueblos. They have constructed a 150,000 square foot Department of the Interior building which houses the southern regional office of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, BIA, and a 150,000 square foot Department of the Interior office building that houses the National BIA Training Center and the BIA Data Center. In addition, the pueblos are starting construction on a hotel and are preparing to begin several retail projects.
In 2003, the 19 pueblos requested conveyance of the two remaining tracts of land that are located south of Interstate 40. This land contains various metal buildings, which have deteriorated to the point that they have no value at this time.
The return of these two properties to the 19 pueblos is supported by the southwestern regional office of the BIA. With the addition of these two tracts, the 19 pueblos will be able to continue their successful economic development of the Albuquerque Indian School property, which will benefit not only the 19 New Mexico pueblos, but each individual tribal member.
Mr. President I ask unanimous consent that a copy of the bill be printed in the Record.
There being no objection, the text of the bill was ordered to be printed in the Record, as follows:
S. 3635
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 ``Albuquerque Indian School Act''.
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) 19 pueblos.--The term ``19 Pueblos'' means the New Mexico Indian Pueblos of--
(A) Acoma;
(B) Cochiti;
(C) Isleta;
(D) Jemez;
(E) Laguna;
(F) Nambe;
(G) Ohkay Owingeh (San Juan);
(H) Picuris;
(I) Pojoaque;
(J) San Felipe;
(K) San Ildefonso;
(L) Sandia;
(M) Santa Ana;
(N) Santa Clara;
(O) Santo Domingo;
(P) Taos;
(Q) Tesuque;
(R) Zia; and
(S) Zuni.
(2) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of the Interior (or a designee).
SEC. 3. LAND TAKEN INTO TRUST FOR BENEFIT OF 19 PUEBLOS.
(a) Action by Secretary.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary shall take into trust all right, title, and interest of the United States in and to the land described in subsection (b) (including any improvements and appurtenances to the land) for the benefit of the 19 Pueblos.
(2) Administration.--The Secretary shall--
(A) take such action as the Secretary determines to be necessary to document the transfer under paragraph (1); and
(B) appropriately assign each applicable private and municipal utility and service right or agreement.
(b) Description of Land.--The land referred to in subsection (a)(1) is the 2 tracts of Federal land, the combined acreage of which is approximately 18.3046 acres, that were historically part of the Albuquerque Indian School, more particularly described as follows:
(1) Tract b.--The approximately 5.9211 acres located in sec. 7 and sec. 8 of T. 10 N., R. 3 E., of the New Mexico Principal Meridian in the city of Albuquerque, New Mexico, as identified on the map entitled ``Site Map of the Albuquerque Indian School Property'' (including attachments).
(2) Tract d.--The approximately 12.3835 acres located in sec. 7 and sec. 8 of T. 10 N., R. 3 E., of the New Mexico Principal Meridian in the city of Albuquerque, New Mexico, as identified on the map entitled ``Site Map of the Albuquerque Indian School Property'' (including attachments).
(c) Use of Land.--The land taken into trust under subsection (a) shall be used for the educational, health, cultural, business, and economic development of the 19 Pueblos.
(d) Limitations and Conditions.--The land taken into trust under subsection (a) shall remain subject to any private or municipal encumbrance, right-of-way, restriction, easement of record, or utility service agreement in effect on the date of enactment of this Act.
SEC. 4. EFFECT OF OTHER LAWS.
(a) In General.--Except as otherwise provided in this section, land taken into trust under section 3(a) shall be subject to Federal laws relating to Indian land.
(b) Gaming.--No gaming activity (within the meaning of the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (25 U.S.C. 2701 et seq.)) shall be carried out on land taken into trust under section 3(a).
Mr. BINGAMAN. Mr. President, I'm pleased today to join my colleague Senator Domenici in sponsoring the Albuquerque Indian School Act. This bill would direct the Secretary of Interior to take lands no longer being used by the Bureau of Indian Affairs in Albuquerque and hold them in trust for the benefit of the 19 pueblos. The bill disallows gaming on the property.
In addition to being a good thing for the pueblos, this transfer promises to be beneficial to the surrounding community, as several deteriorating structures will be renewed and new jobs brought in. Since the bill would not alter the standard public process for taking the lands into trust, I hope this will result in a consensus among all concerned on the best uses of the property.
I am pleased we are taking the first step today on a process that should be beneficial to the pueblos, the Federal Government, and local residents.
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By Mr. KENNEDY:
S. 3637. A bill to require the submittal to Congress of any Presidential Daily Briefing relating to Iraq during the period beginning on January 20, 1997, and ending on March 19, 2003; read the first time.
Mr. KENNEDY. Mr. President, I am introducing legislation on an intelligence issue, p. 3637.
The legislation requires the administration to provide the prewar Presidential daily briefs on Iraq to the Senate Intelligence Committee for its investigation on the way the administration's policymakers used this intelligence in its decision to go to war.
I introduced an identical bill, S. 2175, on December 22 last year, but it has not yet been reported out of the Intelligence Committee.
It is essential that the Intelligence Committee have access to all the information about prewar intelligence in Iraq for its investigation. With threats looming in North Korea and Iran, we need to learn from the mistakes of the past to ensure that we do not repeat them. The PDBs are extremely relevant to this issue, and Congress should have access to them.
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By Mrs. FEINSTEIN:
S. 3638. A bill to encourage the Secretary of the Interior to participate in projects to plan, design, and construct water supply projects and to amend the Reclamation Wastewater and Groundwater Study and Facilities Act to encourage the design, planning, and construction of projects to treat impaired surface water, reclaim and reuse impaired groundwater, and provide brine disposal in the State of California; to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
Mrs. FEINSTEIN. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce legislation to authorize water recycling and other water supply projects by the Inland Empire Utilities Agency, the Cucamonga Valley Water District, the Western Municipal Water District, the Yucaipa Valley Water District, and the City of Corona Water Utility. These projects will produce approximately 161,000 acre-feet of new water annually in one of the most rapidly growing regions in the United States, reducing the need for imported water from the Colorado River and northern California through the California Water Project.
This legislation is intended to be the companion to two House of Representatives bills: H.R. 802, sponsored by David Dreier, Grace Napolitano, Ken Calvert, Joe Baca, and Gary Miller; and H.R. 1008, sponsored by Ken Calvert, Jerry Lewis, Joe Baca and Darrell Issa. H.R. 802 and H.R. 1008 have each passed the House of Representatives twice, in both this Congress and the previous Congress.
Environmental groups such as the Mono Lake Committee, Environmental Defense, Clean Water and Natural Resources Defense Council strongly support the water recycling and groundwater remediation projects in this bill. Business leaders such as Southern Cal Edison and Building Industry Association also support these projects.
I would like to describe the projects in this bill:
The Inland Empire Regional Water Recycling Initiative would authorize two project components. The first will be constructed by the Inland Empire Utilities Agency--IEUA--and will produce approximately 90,000 acre feet of new water annually. The second of these projects, to be constructed by the Cucamonga Valley Water District--CVWD--will produce an additional 5,000 acre feet of new water annually.
The Inland Empire Regional Water Recycling Initiative has the support of all member agencies of IEUA, as well as the water agencies downstream in Orange County. IEUA encompasses approximately 242 square miles and serves the cities of Chino, Chino Hills, Fontana--through the Fontana Water Company--Ontario, Upland, Montclair, Rancho Cucamonga--
through the Cucamonga Valley Water District--and the Monte Vista Water District.
The next project is Western Municipal Water District's Riverside-
Corona Feeder. Western provides supplemental water to a 510 square mile area of growing western Riverside County and serves a population of more than one-half million people. As a member of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California--MWD--Western provides supplemental water to the cities of Corona, Norco, and Riverside and the water agencies of Elsinore Valley and Rancho California. Western also serves customers in the unincorporated areas of El Sobrante, Eagle Valley, Temescal Creek, Woodcrest, Lake Mathews, and March Air Reserve Base.
The purpose of the Riverside--Corona Feeder water supply project is to capture and store new water in wet years in order to increase firm water supplies, reduce water costs, and improve water quality. The project will include about 20 wells and 28 miles of pipeline. Studies have shown the safe annual yield of the aquifer is about 40,000 acre-
feet.
The project would allow locally stored water to replace imported water from Colorado River and the State project sources in times of drought or other shortages. The project proposes to manage the ground water levels by the construction of ground water wells and pumping capacity to deliver the pumped ground water supply to water users. A new water conveyance pipeline is also proposed that will serve western Riverside County.
There are also very important environmental remediation aspects of the project. Up to half of the wells could be placed within plumes of VOCs and perchlorate. These wells would remediate about 20,000 acre-
feet of currently contaminated water per year.
Next, the city of Corona Water Recycling and Reuse Project will consist of three reservoirs and two pump stations along with retrofitted user irrigation systems.
Additionally, 27 miles of pipelines will separate recycled water from drinking water. The reclamation system will enable the city of Corona to provide recycled water to parks, landscape maintenance districts, schools, landscaped freeway frontages and any other project that does not require potable water. It will also reduce the need for increased water imports and construction of additional drinking water infrastructure.
Finally, the Yucaipa Valley Water Supply Renewal Project will maximize the various water resources in the Yucaipa Valley. Federal funds would be used to provide federal assistance for planning, designing, and constructing the new Yucaipa Valley Regional Water Filtration Facility that is part of the renewal project. The new facility will contain a reverse osmosis system and a brine pipeline to remove salinity, contaminants, and organic compounds from the water supply in the Yucaipa Valley. The brine pipeline will extend nearly 20 miles to the existing Santa Ana Regional Interceptor brine pipeline.
This project will minimize the amount of water imported from northern California, maximize the use of higher quality water, reduce withdrawals from ground water supplies, and provide a long-term, drought-proof water supply. The full project is expected to reduce demands on the California State Water Project by over 4 billion gallons per year, which is a sufficient quantity of water for 27,000 families.
I want to say a few words about the importance of water recycling projects.
The development of recycled water can bring significant amounts of water ``on line'' in a relatively short period of time. Recycled water provides our State and region with the ability to ``stretch'' existing water supplies significantly and in so doing, minimize conflict and address the many needs that exist. According to the State of California's Recycled Water Task Force, water recycling is a critical part of California's water future with an estimated 1.5 million acre-
feet of new supplies being developed over the next 25 years.
Water recycling is also a bipartisan initiative in California, as witnessed by the many Republican and Democratic House cosponsors of the House versions of the bill I introduce today.
It also has a long history. In 1991, the Secretary of the Interior in President George H.W. Bush's administration, Manual Lujan, recognized that California would need an alternative water supply source because it was receiving more water from the Colorado River than its allocation.
In a bold and farsighted maneuver, in August 1991, Secretary Lujan launched the Southern California Water Initiative, a program to evaluate and study the feasibility of water reclamation projects. Mr. Lujan's vision was to build replacement water capacity to offset the anticipated Colorado River water supply reductions.
Congress, in 1992, was completing work on major water legislation saw the wisdom of the Lujan initiative too. Lujan's proposal, a year after it was first announced, became title XVI, the Bureau of Reclamation water recycling program that today serves the entire West, not just California. Today, water recycling is the essential water supply element in Albuquerque, Phoenix, Denver, Salt Lake City, Tucson, El Paso, San Antonio, Portland, and other western metropolitan areas.
I urge my colleagues to support this bill to help meet the West's water supply needs and to reduce our dependence on the Colorado River. I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.
There being no objection, the text of the bill was ordered to be printed in the Record, as follows:
S. 3638
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.
(a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``The Water Recycling and Riverside-Corona Feeder Act of 2006''.
(b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act is as follows:
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
TITLE I--THE INLAND EMPIRE REGIONAL WATER RECYCLING INITIATIVE
Sec. 102. Short title.
Sec. 103. Inland Empire and Cucamonga Valley recycling projects.
TITLE II--PROJECTS IN RIVERSIDE AND SAN BERNARDINO COUNTIES
Sec. 201. Planning, design, and construction of the Riverside-Corona
Feeder.
Sec. 202. Project authorizations.
TITLE I--THE INLAND EMPIRE REGIONAL WATER RECYCLING INITIATIVE
SEC. 102. SHORT TITLE.
This title may be cited as the ``The Inland Empire Regional Water Recycling Initiative''.
SEC. 103. INLAND EMPIRE AND CUCAMONGA VALLEY RECYCLING
PROJECTS.
(a) Recycling Projects.--The Reclamation Wastewater and Groundwater Study and Facilities Act (Public Law 102-575, Title XVI; 43 U.S.C. 390h et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:
``SEC. 1637. INLAND EMPIRE REGIONAL WATER RECYCLING PROJECT.
``(a) In General.--The Secretary, in cooperation with the Inland Empire Utilities Agency, may participate in the design, planning, and construction of the Inland Empire regional water recycling project described in the report submitted under section 1606(c).
``(b) Cost Sharing.--The Federal share of the cost of the project described in subsection (a) shall not exceed 25 percent of the total cost of the project.
``(c) Limitation.--Funds provided by the Secretary shall not be used for operation and maintenance of the project described in subsection (a).
``(d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section $20,000,000.
``SEC. 1638. CUCAMONGA VALLEY WATER RECYCLING PROJECT.
``(a) In General.--The Secretary, in cooperation with the Cucamonga Valley Water District, may participate in the design, planning, and construction of the Cucamonga Valley Water District satellite recycling plants in Rancho Cucamonga, California, to reclaim and recycle approximately 2 million gallons per day of domestic wastewater.
``(b) Cost Sharing.--The Federal share of the cost of the project described in subsection (a) shall not exceed 25 percent of the capital cost of the project.
``(c) Limitation.--Funds provided by the Secretary shall not be used for operation and maintenance of the project described in subsection (a).
``(d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section, $10,000,000.''.
(b) Conforming Amendments.--The table of sections in section 2 of Public Law 102-575 is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 1636 the following:
``Sec. 1637. Inland Empire Regional Water Recycling Program
``Sec. 1638. Cucamonga Valley Water Recycling Project''.
TITLE II--PROJECTS IN RIVERSIDE AND SAN BERNARDINO COUNTIES
SEC. 201. PLANNING, DESIGN, AND CONSTRUCTION OF THE
RIVERSIDE-CORONA FEEDER.
(a) In General.--The Secretary of the Interior, in cooperation with the Western Municipal Water District, may participate in a project to plan, design, and construct a water supply project, the Riverside-Corona Feeder, which includes 20 groundwater wells and 28 miles of pipeline in San Bernardino and Riverside Counties, California.
(b) Agreements and Regulations.--The Secretary may enter into such agreements and promulgate such regulations as are necessary to carry out this section.
(c) Federal Cost Share.--
(1) Planning, design, construction.--The Federal share of the cost to plan, design, and construct the project described in subsection (a) shall be the lesser of 35 percent of the total cost of the project or $50,000,000.
(2) Studies.--The Federal share of the cost to complete the necessary planning study associated with the project described in subsection (a) shall not exceed 50 percent of the total study cost.
(d) In-Kind Services.--In-kind services performed by the Western Municipal Water District shall be considered a part of the local cost share to complete the project described in subsection (a).
(e) Limitation.--Funds provided by the Secretary under this section shall not be used for operation or maintenance of the project described in subsection (a).
SEC. 202. PROJECT AUTHORIZATIONS.
(a) In General.--The Reclamation Wastewater and Groundwater Study and Facilities Act (Public Law 102-575, title XVI; 43 U.S.C. 390h et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:
``SEC. 163X. YUCAIPA VALLEY REGIONAL WATER SUPPLY RENEWAL
PROJECT.
``(a) Authorization.--The Secretary, in cooperation with the Yucaipa Valley Water District, may participate in the design, planning, and construction of projects to treat impaired surface water, reclaim and reuse impaired groundwater, and provide brine disposal within the Santa Ana Watershed described in the report submitted under section 1606.
``(b) Cost Sharing.--The Federal share of the cost of the project described in subsection (a) shall not exceed 25 percent of the total cost of the project.
``(c) Limitation.--Funds provided by the Secretary shall not be used for operation or maintenance of the project described in subsection (a).
``(d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section $20,000,000.
``SEC. 163X. CITY OF CORONA WATER UTILITY, CALIFORNIA, WATER
RECYCLING AND REUSE PROJECT.
``(a) Authorization.--The Secretary, in cooperation with the City of Corona Water Utility, California, is authorized to participate in the design, planning, and construction of, and land acquisition for, a project to reclaim and reuse wastewater, including degraded groundwaters, within and outside of the service area of the City of Corona Water Utility, California.
``(b) Cost Share.--The Federal share of the cost of the project authorized by this section shall not exceed 25 percent of the total cost of the project.
``(c) Limitation.--The Secretary shall not provide funds for the operation and maintenance of the project authorized by this section.''.
(b) Conforming Amendments.--The table of sections in section 2 of Public Law 102-575 is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 163_ the following:
``Sec. 163x. Yucaipa Valley Regional Water Supply Renewal Project
``Sec. 163x. City of Corona Water Utility, California, water recycling and reuse project''.
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