Download Locations:
Summary:
Congress generally authorizes new Army Corps of Engineers water resources studies and projects in a Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) before appropriating funds to them. The 107th, 108th, and 109th Congresses considered but did not enact WRDA legislation; the most recent WRDA was enacted in 2000. Pentup demand for new authorizations is prompting interest in enacting a bill in 2007. The Water Resources Development Act of 2007 (H.R. 1495) was passed by the House on April 19, 2007; on May 16, 2007, the Senate passed its version. On July 27, 2007, conferees met and agreed to a compromise bill; the conference report is available at [http://www.rules.house.gov/110/text/110_hr1495cr.pdf]. The WRDA 2007 bills were based on the WRDA bills considered by the 109th Congress, reportedly to facilitate consideration in their respective chambers. These 109th Congress bills failed to move beyond conference, with a number of issues reportedly complicating negotiations (e.g., independent review, authorizations of municipal water and wastewater projects, concerns about the overall level of authorization). Some of the same issues continue to be part of the debate. The Administration has expressed reservations about the total authorization level of recent WRDA bills and about numerous specific provisions, while supporting other provisions. The Statements of Administration Policy (SAPs) for the WRDA 2007 bills are in strong opposition to the bills' current form, characterizing their levels of authorizations as "unacceptable." The Administration supports limiting the number of authorizations in the bill to projects in the Corps' primary missions (navigation, flood and storm damage reduction, and ecosystem restoration) that demonstrate an economic and environmental justification for federal participation. Other issues shaping WRDA 2007 include different opinions on Corps reform measures (such as independent review and project planning), increases in the federal cost for some water resources activities and nonfederal cost share credits, and expansion of the Corps' authorizations in municipal water and wastewater infrastructure (called environmental infrastructure projects). The WRDA 2007 bills include authorizations for hundreds of projects and studies over the next 15 years. They would authorize more than a billion dollars in construction activities to restore wetlands in coastal Louisiana, as well as actions to improve hurricane protection in New Orleans. Authorization of spending for navigation improvements ($2.0 billion) and ecosystem restoration ($1.6 billion) on the Upper Mississippi River-Illinois Waterway, and Florida Everglades restoration (around $2 billion), also are included. The Senate bill also would create a National Levee Safety Program.
