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115th Congress } { Rept. 115-278
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
1st Session } { Part 1
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PUBLIC WATER SUPPLY INVASIVE SPECIES COMPLIANCE ACT OF 2017
_______
August 25, 2017.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the
State of the Union and ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Bishop of Utah, from the Committee on Natural Resources, submitted
the following
R E P O R T
together with
DISSENTING VIEWS
[To accompany H.R. 1807]
[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]
The Committee on Natural Resources, to whom was referred
the bill (H.R. 1807) to exempt from the Lacey Act and the Lacey
Act Amendments of 1981 certain water transfers between any of
the States of Texas, Arkansas, and Louisiana, having considered
the same, report favorably thereon without amendment and
recommend that the bill do pass.
PURPOSE OF THE BILL
The purpose of H.R. 1807 is to exempt from the Lacey Act
and the Lacey Act Amendments of 1981 certain water transfers
between any of the States of Texas, Arkansas, and Louisiana.
BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION
H.R. 1807 exempts water transfers between the States of
Texas, Arkansas and Louisiana from certain federal restrictions
associated with the movement of injurious wildlife between
public bodies of water within the three states if certain
criteria are met.
The Lacey Act, originally enacted in 1900 (16 U.S.C. 3371
et seq.), makes it unlawful to import, export, sell, acquire,
or purchase fish, wildlife or plants that are taken, possessed,
transported, or sold in violation of federal, state, tribal or
foreign law or treaty. The Lacey Act includes an ``injurious
wildlife'' category where non-native or invasive wildlife can
be controlled by prohibiting ``the importation into the United
States . . . or any shipment between [the States]'' of these
species. Injurious wildlife includes amphibians, birds,
crustaceans, fish, mammals, mollusks, reptiles and their
offspring deemed harmful ``to human beings, to the interests of
agriculture, horticulture, forestry, or to wildlife or the
wildlife resources of the United States.'' Animals are added to
the list by Congressional amendment or by regulatory actions.
According to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), there
are currently 621 species listed as injurious wildlife,
including 316 species of fish, mollusks and crustaceans, 91
mammal species, nine species of reptiles and four species of
birds.
Exemption from this provision requires a permit from the
FWS or an act of Congress. The federal penalty for an injurious
wildlife violation is up to six months in prison and a $5,000
fine for an individual or a $10,000 fine for an organization.
In recent years, the injurious wildlife provision of the Lacey
Act has resulted in water supply disruptions where the relevant
harmful species is found in all bodies of water involved in the
water transfers.
For example, the Lake Texoma reservoir project was
completed in 1944 to control the floodwaters of the Red River,
and it provides a vital water supply and produces hydropower on
the border between Texas and Oklahoma. In 1989, the U.S. Army
Corps of Engineers granted an easement and permit to the North
Texas Municipal Water District (NTMWD) to construct and operate
an intake/pumping station at Lake Texoma. The NTMWD currently
supplies drinking water to over 1.6 million people in the
Dallas-Fort Worth area.
Since 2009, zebra mussels, listed as an injurious species
in 1990, have been identified in Lake Texoma's water, and in
December 2010, the FWS suspended without notice NTMWD's ability
to pump water from Lake Texoma due to Lacey Act restrictions.
This was a result of a surveyor's error associated with the Red
River Boundary Compact Commission that mistakenly located two-
thirds of NTMWD's Lake Texoma pump station in Oklahoma instead
of Texas. Because of this error, continuing operations at the
pump station would result in a violation of the Lacey Act due
to the presence of invasive zebra mussels that would be
transported across state lines. These restrictions resulted in
the loss of 28% of the NTMWD's water supply in the midst of a
severe drought.
In 2012, Congress restored NTMWD's ability to pump water
from Lake Texoma by enacting the North Texas Zebra Mussel
Barrier Act of 2012 (Public Law 112-237). This law permitted
NTMWD to transfer water out of Lake Texoma without triggering
Lacey Act penalties if the water was transported through a
closed conveyance system to a water treatment plant. The NTMWD
spent $310 million to construct the 46 mile closed barrier
pipeline to its treatment plant. In 2014, Congress enacted the
North Texas Invasive Species Barrier Act of 2014 (Public Law
113-117), which broadened the NTMWD's exemption to include all
injurious species listed under the Lacey Act.
Other nearby communities, including those that use the
Sabine River and Toledo Basin Reservoir on the eastern border
between Louisiana and Texas, are no more than an invasive
species listing away from having their water supplies
interrupted by Lacey Act restrictions. For example, the Sabine
River Authority of Texas is currently constructing a new pump
station located only a few yards away from the Louisiana side
of the Sabine River. There are concerns that the Lacey Act will
similarly disrupt the water supplied by the Sabine River
Authority to its customer water agencies along the Texas Gulf
Coast.
H.R. 1807 provides for the continued transport of water
across Arkansas, Texas and Louisiana if a species listed under
the Lacey Act is located in both of the public water supplies
between which the water is transferred or if the water is
conveyed through a closed barrier conveyance system to
treatment facilities where invasive species will be removed.
The bill provides a path forward to address Lacey Act issues on
a multi-state basis as opposed to the case-by-case basis
represented by Public Law 112-237 and Public Law 113-117. H.R.
1807 provides much needed water supply certainty for affected
communities in these States.
SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS
Section 1. This section establishes the short title of the
bill as the ``Public Water Supply Invasive Species Compliance
Act of 2017''.
Section 2. This section exempts from the Lacey Act
transfers of water containing prohibited species between public
water supplies located on, along, or across the State
boundaries between Texas, Arkansas and Louisiana if: (1) the
water is transferred directly between the public water supplies
and both bodies of water contain all of the prohibited species;
or (2) the water is transferred in a closed barrier conveyance
system directly to treatment facilities that will remove all
prohibited species.
COMMITTEE ACTION
H.R. 1807 was introduced on March 30, 2017, by Congressman
Louie Gohmert (R-TX). The bill was referred to the Committee on
Natural Resources, and within the Committee to the Subcommittee
on Water, Power and Oceans. The bill was additionally referred
to the Committee on the Judiciary. On April 26, 2017, the Full
Natural Resources Committee met to consider the bill. The
Subcommittee on Water, Power and Oceans was discharged by
unanimous consent. Congressman Alan S. Lowenthal (D-CA) offered
an amendment designated 001; it was not adopted by a roll call
vote of 17 ayes to 21 noes, as follows:
No additional amendments were offered and on April 27,
2017, the bill was adopted and ordered favorably reported by a
roll call vote of 19 ayes and 17 noes, as follows:
COMMITTEE OVERSIGHT FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Regarding clause 2(b)(1) of rule X and clause 3(c)(1) of
rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the
Committee on Natural Resources' oversight findings and
recommendations are reflected in the body of this report.
COMPLIANCE WITH HOUSE RULE XIII AND CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET ACT
1. Cost of Legislation and the Congressional Budget Act.
With respect to the requirements of clause 3(c)(2) and (3) of
rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and
sections 308(a) and 402 of the Congressional Budget Act of
1974, the Committee has received the following estimate for the
bill from the Director of the Congressional Budget Office:
U.S. Congress,
Congressional Budget Office,
Washington, DC, May 11, 2017.
Hon. Rob Bishop,
Chairman, Committee on Natural Resources,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 1807, the Public
Water Supply Invasive Species Compliance Act of 2017.
If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Jeff LaFave.
Sincerely,
Keith Hall.
Enclosure.
H.R. 1807--Public Water Supply Invasive Species Compliance Act of 2017
H.R. 1807 would exempt from prosecution under the Lacey Act
entities that make certain transfers of water containing
invasive species between any of the states of Texas, Arkansas,
and Louisiana. The Lacey Act protects plants and wildlife by
creating civil and criminal penalties for various violations,
including transferring invasive species across state borders.
Based on information provided by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service (USFWS), CBO estimates that implementing the
legislation would have no significant effect on the federal
budget. Under current law, federal agencies, including the
USFWS and the Department of Justice, have the authority to
negotiate agreements that would allow for the type of transfers
described in the bill without prosecution.
Enacting H.R. 1807 could reduce revenues from penalties
under the Lacey Act; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures apply.
However, CBO estimates that any such reductions would be
negligible. Enacting the bill would not affect direct spending.
CBO estimates that enacting the legislation would not
increase net direct spending or on-budget deficits in any of
the four consecutive 10-year periods beginning in 2028.
H.R. 1807 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Jeff LaFave. The
estimate was approved by H. Samuel Papenfuss, Deputy Assistant
Director for Budget Analysis.
2. General Performance Goals and Objectives. As required by
clause 3(c)(4) of rule XIII, the general performance goal or
objective of this bill is to exempt from the Lacey Act and the
Lacey Act Amendments of 1981 certain water transfers between
any of the States of Texas, Arkansas and Louisiana.
EARMARK STATEMENT
This bill does not contain any Congressional earmarks,
limited tax benefits, or limited tariff benefits as defined
under clause 9(e), 9(f), and 9(g) of rule XXI of the Rules of
the House of Representatives.
COMPLIANCE WITH PUBLIC LAW 104-4
This bill contains no unfunded mandates.
COMPLIANCE WITH H. RES. 5
Directed Rule Making. This bill does not contain any
directed rule makings.
Duplication of Existing Programs. This bill does not
establish or reauthorize a program of the federal government
known to be duplicative of another program. Such program was
not included in any report from the Government Accountability
Office to Congress pursuant to section 21 of Public Law 111-139
or identified in the most recent Catalog of Federal Domestic
Assistance published pursuant to the Federal Program
Information Act (Public Law 95-220, as amended by Public Law
98-169) as relating to other programs.
PREEMPTION OF STATE, LOCAL OR TRIBAL LAW
This bill is not intended to preempt any State, local or
tribal law.
CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW
If enacted, this bill would make no changes in existing
law.
DISSENTING VIEWS
We oppose H.R. 1807 because it would weaken the protections
put in place by the Lacey Act to prevent the spread of harmful
invasive species. H.R. 1807 exempts water transfers between the
States of Texas, Arkansas and Louisiana from Lacey Act
restrictions. The Lacey Act, among other things, makes it
illegal to import or ship between states any species listed
under the Act without a permit issued by the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service (FWS).
Representative Louie Gohmert (R-TX) introduced H.R. 1807 to
address concerns that the Lacey Act would disrupt the water
supplied by the Sabine River Authority to its customer water
agencies along the Texas Gulf Coast. However, unlike similar
enacted legislation that addressed Lacey Act water transfer
issues on a case-by-case basis, this bill would provide for a
multi-state exemption with less protections.\1\
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\1\For example, the ``North Texas Zebra Mussel Barrier Act of
2012'' (P.L. 112-237) and the ``North Texas Invasive Species Barrier
Act of 2014'' (P.L. 113-117).
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We have worked with Committee Republicans and water
districts in the past to craft narrow exemptions to the Lacey
Act allowing transfers of water across state lines when
invasive species could be present. In those cases, we have
required that the water be transferred through a closed
conveyance, and all invasive species be eradicated at a
treatment facility before the transfer is completed. Those
requirements have allowed the transfers to take place without
risking the spread of invasive species like zebra mussels,
which have done massive ecological and economic harm to
waterways and infrastructure in many parts of the country.
H.R. 1807 envisions a broader exemption for water transfers
between Texas, Louisiana, and Arkansas. The bill would allow
interstate water transfers that carry invasive species to occur
without the safeguards of a closed conveyance system or water
treatment, opening the environment and taxpayers up to
significant harm. Energy and Mineral Resources Subcommittee
Ranking Member Lowenthal (D-CA) offered an amendment at
Committee markup that would have put those safeguards in place
but the amendment was rejected. Therefore we cannot support
this bill.
Raul M. Grijalva,
Ranking Member,
House Committee on
Natural Resources.
Jared Huffman,
Ranking Member,
Subcommittee on Water,
Power and Oceans.
Colleen Hanabusa,
Member of Congress.
Darren Soto,
Member of Congress.
A. Donald McEachin,
Ranking Member,
Subcommittee on Oversight
and Investigations.
Grace F. Napolitano,
Ranking Member.
Donald S. Beyer, Jr.
Member of Congress.
Nanette Diaz Barragan,
Member of Congress.
Jimmy Panetta,
Member of Congress.
