Statements on Introduced Bills and Joint Resolutions

STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS

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By Mr. WYDEN:

S. 2003. A bill to make permanent the authorization for watershed restoration and enhancement agreements; to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.

Mr. WYDEN. Mr. President, the legislation I introduce today reauthorizes a very successful cooperative watershed restoration program that I originally sponsored, and that was originally enacted for the Forest Service, in the fiscal year 1999 Interior Appropriations bill. The original legislation lasted through fiscal year 2001 after which it was reauthorized by the Appropriations Committees, at my request, through fiscal year 2005 and then again through fiscal year 2011. It is time this legislation had a full hearing in the Energy and Natural Resources Committee and was made a permanent authority.

The bill making what is commonly referred to as the Wyden amendment permanent authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture to use appropriated Forest Service funds for watershed restoration and enhancement agreements that benefit the ecological health of National Forest System lands and watersheds. The Wyden Amendment does not require additional funding, but allows the Forest Service to leverage scarce restoration dollars thereby allowing the Federal dollars to stretch farther. During the 7 years the program has existed the Forest Service has leveraged three dollars for every Forest Service dollar spent on these agreements.

The Wyden amendment has resulted in countless Forest Service cooperative agreements with neighboring State and local land owners to accomplish high priority restoration, protection and enhancement work on public and private watersheds. The projects authorized by these agreements have improved watershed health and fish habitat through the control of invasive species, culvert replacement, and other riparian zone improvement projects. In addition to ecological restoration, use of the Wyden amendment has improved cooperative relationships between the Forest Service, private land owners, State agencies and other federal agencies.

I am hopeful that my colleagues on the Energy and Natural Resources Committee will have a hearing on this program soon to highlight its successes and that thereafter this legislation can pass the Senate expeditiously.

I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the RECORD.

There being no objection, the bill was ordered to be printed in the RECORD, as follows:

S. 2003

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 ``Watershed Restoration and Enhancement Agreements Act of 2005''.

SEC. 2. WATERSHED RESTORATION AND ENHANCEMENT AGREEMENTS.

Section 323(a) of the Department of the Interior and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 1999 (16 U.S.C. 1011 note; Public Law 105-277), is amended by striking ``each of fiscal years 2006 through 2011'' and inserting ``fiscal year 2006 and each fiscal year thereafter''.

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