Sec. 7. Environmental restoration priority list
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The Lake Tahoe Restoration Act ( Public Law 106–506 ; 114 Stat. 2351) is amended— by striking sections 8 and 9; by redesignating sections 10, 11, and 12 as sections 15, 16, and 17, respectively; and by inserting after section 7 the following: Not later than February 15 of the year after the date of enactment of the Lake Tahoe Restoration Act of 2013 , the Chair, in consultation with the Secretary, the Administrator, the Directors, the Planning Agency, the States of California and Nevada, the Federal Partnership, the Washoe Tribe, the Lake Tahoe Federal Advisory Committee, and the Tahoe Science Consortium shall submit to Congress a prioritized list of all Environmental Improvement Program projects for the Lake Tahoe Basin for each program category described in section 6(d).
The priority of projects included in the Priority List shall be based on the best available science and the following criteria: The 5-year threshold carrying capacity evaluation. The ability to measure progress or success of the project. The potential to significantly contribute to the achievement and maintenance of the environmental threshold carrying capacities identified in the Compact for— air quality; fisheries; noise; recreation; scenic resources; soil conservation; forest health; water quality; and wildlife.
The ability of a project to provide multiple benefits. The ability of a project to leverage non-Federal contributions. Stakeholder support for the project. The justification of Federal interest. Agency priority. Agency capacity. Cost-effectiveness. Federal funding history. In addition to the criteria under paragraph (1), the Chair shall, as the Chair determines to be appropriate, give preference to projects in the Priority List that benefit existing neighborhoods in the Basin that are at or below regional median income levels, based on the most recent census data available.
The Priority List submitted under subsection
(b)shall be revised— every 2 years; or on a finding of compelling need under paragraph (2). If the Secretary, the Administrator, or the Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service makes a finding of compelling need justifying a priority shift and the finding is approved by the Secretary, the Executive Director of the Planning Agency, the California Natural Resources Secretary, and the Director of the Nevada Department of Conservation, the Priority List shall be revised in accordance with this subsection. A finding of compelling need includes— major scientific findings; results from the threshold evaluation of the Planning Agency; emerging environmental threats; and rare opportunities for land acquisition. Of the amount made available under section 17(a), $80,000,000 shall be made available to the Secretary to carry out this section. The Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, in coordination with the Planning Agency, the California Department of Fish and Game, and the Nevada Department of Wildlife, shall deploy strategies consistent with the Lake Tahoe Aquatic Invasive Species Management Plan to prevent the introduction of aquatic invasive species into the Lake Tahoe Basin. The strategies referred to in subsection
(a)shall provide that— combined inspection and decontamination stations be established and operated at not less than 2 locations in the Lake Tahoe Basin; and watercraft not be allowed to launch in waters of the Lake Tahoe Basin if the watercraft has not been inspected in accordance with the Lake Tahoe Aquatic Invasive Species Management Plan. The Planning Agency may certify State and local agencies to perform the decontamination activities described in subsection (b)(3) at locations outside the Lake Tahoe Basin if standards at the sites meet or exceed standards for similar sites in the Lake Tahoe Basin established under this section. The strategies and criteria developed under this section shall apply to all watercraft to be launched on water within the Lake Tahoe Basin. The Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service may collect and spend fees for decontamination only at a level sufficient to cover the costs of operation of inspection and decontamination stations under this section. Any person that launches, attempts to launch, or facilitates launching of watercraft not in compliance with strategies deployed under this section shall be liable for a civil penalty in an amount not to exceed $1,000 per violation. Any penalties assessed under this subsection shall be separate from penalties assessed under any other authority. The strategies and criteria under subsections
(a)and (b), respectively, may be modified if the Secretary of the Interior, in a nondelegable capacity and in consultation with the Planning Agency and State governments, issues a determination that alternative measures will be no less effective at preventing introduction of aquatic invasive species into Lake Tahoe than the strategies and criteria. The authority under this section is supplemental to all actions taken by non-Federal regulatory authorities. Nothing in this title shall be construed as restricting, affecting, or amending any other law or the authority of any department, instrumentality, or agency of the United States, or any State or political subdivision thereof, respecting the control of invasive species. The Assistant Secretary may enter into interagency agreements with non-Federal interests in the Lake Tahoe Basin to use Lake Tahoe Partnership-Miscellaneous General Investigations funds to provide programmatic technical assistance for the Environmental Improvement Program. Before providing technical assistance under this section, the Assistant Secretary shall enter into a local cooperation agreement with a non-Federal interest to provide for the technical assistance. The agreement entered into under paragraph
(1)shall— describe the nature of the technical assistance; describe any legal and institutional structures necessary to ensure the effective long-term viability of the end products by the non-Federal interest; and include cost-sharing provisions in accordance with paragraph (3). The Federal share of project costs under each local cooperation agreement under this subsection shall be 65 percent. The Federal share may be in the form of reimbursements of project costs. The non-Federal interest may receive credit toward the non-Federal share for the reasonable costs of related technical activities completed by the non-Federal interest before entering into a local cooperation agreement with the Assistant Secretary under this subsection. The Secretary (acting through the Station Director of the Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Research Station), the Administrator, the Planning Agency, the States of California and Nevada, and the Tahoe Science Consortium, shall develop and implement the Lake Tahoe Basin Science Program that— develops and regularly updates an integrated multiagency programmatic assessment and monitoring plan— to evaluate the effectiveness of the Environmental Improvement Program; to evaluate the status and trends of indicators related to environmental threshold carrying capacities; and to assess the impacts and risks of changing water temperature, precipitation, and invasive species; produces and synthesizes scientific information necessary for— the identification and refinement of environmental indicators for the Lake Tahoe Basin; and the evaluation of standards and benchmarks; conducts applied research, programmatic technical assessments, scientific data management, analysis, and reporting related to key management questions; develops new tools and information to support objective assessments of land use and resource conditions; provides scientific and technical support to the Federal Government and State and local governments in— reducing stormwater runoff, air deposition, and other pollutants that contribute to the loss of lake clarity; and the development and implementation of an integrated stormwater monitoring and assessment program; establishes and maintains independent peer review processes— to evaluate the Environmental Improvement Program; and to assess the technical adequacy and scientific consistency of central environmental documents, such as the 5-year threshold review; and provides scientific and technical support for the development of appropriate management strategies to accommodate changing water temperature and precipitation in the Lake Tahoe Basin. The Secretary, the Administrator, and the Directors will coordinate with the Planning Agency to conduct public education and outreach programs, including encouraging— owners of land and residences in the Lake Tahoe Basin— to implement defensible space; and to conduct best management practices for water quality; and owners of land and residences in the Lake Tahoe Basin and visitors to the Lake Tahoe Basin, to help prevent the introduction and proliferation of invasive species as part of the private share investment in the Environmental Improvement Program. The Director of the United States Geological Survey shall provide scientific and technical guidance to public outreach and education programs conducted under this section. Public outreach and education programs for aquatic invasive species under this section shall— be coordinated with Lake Tahoe Basin tourism and business organizations; and include provisions for the programs to extend outside of the Lake Tahoe Basin. Not later than February 15 of each year, the Secretary, in cooperation with the Chair, the Administrator, the Directors, the Planning Agency, and the States of California and Nevada, consistent with section 6(d)(6), shall submit to Congress a report that describes— the status of all Federal, State, local, and private projects authorized under this Act, including to the maximum extent practicable, for projects that will receive Federal funds under this Act during the current or subsequent fiscal year— the project scope; the budget for the project; and the justification for the project, consistent with the criteria established in section 8(b)(1); Federal, State, local, and private expenditures in the preceding fiscal year to implement the Environmental Improvement Program and projects otherwise authorized under this Act; accomplishments in the preceding fiscal year in implementing this Act in accordance with the performance measures and other monitoring and assessment activities; and public education and outreach efforts undertaken to implement programs and projects authorized under this Act. As part of the annual budget of the President, the President shall submit information regarding each Federal agency involved in the Environmental Improvement Program (including the Forest Service, the Environmental Protection Agency, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service), the United States Geological Survey, and the Corps of Engineers), including— an interagency crosscut budget that displays the proposed budget for use by each Federal agency in carrying out restoration activities relating to the Environmental Improvement Program for the following fiscal year; a detailed accounting of all amounts received and obligated by Federal agencies to achieve the goals of the Environmental Improvement Program during the preceding fiscal year; and a description of the Federal role in the Environmental Improvement Program, including the specific role of each agency involved in the restoration of the Lake Tahoe Basin. .
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- Pub. L. 106-506
- 114 Stat. 2351
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Sec. 7
Environmental restoration priority list
Pub. L.Pub. L. 106-506
Stat.114 Stat. 2351
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