1961
Cape Cod Recreation Area
S. 857 — Public Law 87-126, approved August 7, 1961
This measure provides for the establishment on Cape Cod of a unit of the national park system to preserve the great beach area of Cape Cod as well as contiguous lands suitable and desirable for recreational purposes.
The basic idea behind this proposal is to promote the area's unique cultural, scenic, historic, scientific, and recreational values. The area of about 26,670 acres will contain sections of Provincetown, Truro, Wellfleet, Eastham, Orleans, and Chatham and about 53 miles of beaches, 8 square miles of sand dunes, 20 freshwater lakes and important historic sites. Authorizes $16 million in contract authority to acquire land in the seashore.
Delaware River Basin Compact
House Joint Resolution 225 — Public Law 87-328, approved September 27, 1961
Establishes the Delaware River Commission as a regional agency with jurisdiction over the Delaware River Basin including territory of each of the States of New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware. The Commission is to have the character of both a State agency of each of the four States as well as an agency of the Federal Government, and its membership is to consist of the four Governors, ex officio, and one commissioner to be appointed by the President. Each member is to have a single vote, and in most instances, majority vote would control.
Lead-Zinc Subsidies
H.R. 84 — Public Law 87-347, approved October 3, 1961
Authorizes the Secretary of Interior to pay small producers of lead 75 percent of the difference between 14 ½ cents a pound and the market price, and 55 percent of the difference between 14 ½ cents a pound and the market price of zinc.
Migratory Waterfowl—Conservation
H.R. 7391 — Public Law 87-383, approved October 4, 1961
This measure authorizes for a 7-year period, beginning with fiscal 1962, an appropriation not to exceed $105 million to purchase wet lands to be used by wild birds, particularly waterfowl.
This appropriation is merely an advance to enable the Federal Government and the State to purchase the necessary lands as a conservation measure to preserve the migratory waterfowl. The $50 million will be repaid to the Treasury from the proceeds of the revenue received from the sale of the so-called duck stamp which, at present, amounts to some $4 million a year. It is estimated that receipts in future years will average between $5 and $6 million a year and, as required by this act, 75 percent of the duck stamp fund will be used to reimburse the Treasury until the entire amount is repaid.
The bill requires approval by the Governor of the State involved or the appropriate State agency before funds from the migratory bird conservation fund can be used to purchase the necessary land.
National Fuels Policy
Senate Resolution 105 — Senate adopted September 11, 1961
Authorizes the Senate Interior and Insular Affairs Committee to (1) make a complete investigation and study of the current and prospective fuel and energy resources of the United States and their future consumption; (2) study existing and prospective governmental policies and laws affecting fuels to determine what changes should be made in order to provide an effective national fuels policy now and for the future.
The committee is to make a report of its findings by January 31, 1962.
Saline Water Conversion Program
H.R. 7916 — Public Law 295, approved September 22, 1961
This measure extends the saline water conversion program, enacted in 1952, from 1962 through 1967 and authorizes a total appropriation of $75 million but does not limit the annual appropriation to a pro rata share of the total amount.
1962
Arbuckle Reclamation Project, Oklahoma
H.R. 23 — Public Law 87-594, approved August 24, 1962
Authorized Federal construction of multiple-purpose Arbuckle project in south-central Oklahoma to provide municipal, domestic, industrial water supplies, and food control at a cost of $13.3 million, of which $10.5 million is reimbursable.
Baker Reclamation Project, Oregon
H.R. 575 — Public Law 87-706, approved March 31, 1962
Authorized Federal construction of Baker Federal reclamation project in Oregon at an estimated cost of $6,168,000. Of this amount, $4,354,600 is for irrigation purposes which is repayable and returnable to the reclamation fund over a 50-year repayment period.
A part of the multipurpose project is for flood control in the Baker Valley caused by an overflow in the Powder River.
The flood control, fish and wildlife benefits and recreational activities will be non-reimbursable.
Chief Joseph Dam Project, Washington
S. 1060 — Public Law 87-762, approved October 9, 1962
Authorized $3,210,000 to construct control works and a pumping plant at Palmer Lake to enlarge the facilities to irrigate an additional 1,500 acres and supply about 3,650 acre-feet of supplemental water annually to the remaining irrigable area.
Delaware-New Jersey Compact
House Joint Resolution 783 — Public Law 87-678, approved July 31, 1962
Granted consent of Congress to the States of Delaware and New Jersey to enter into a compact to establish the Delaware River and Bay Authority for developing the area in both States bordering the Delaware River and Bay. The compact has been adopted by identical legislation of the two States.
FryingPan-Arkansas Project, Colorado
H.R. 2206 — Public Law 87-590, approved August 16, 1962
Authorized Department of the Interior to spend up to $170 million to construct facilities for the diversion of water from the Colorado River Basin in western Colorado to the Arkansas River Basin. The water will be used for irrigation, flood control, power, and to meet the municipal water needs of Colorado Springs and other cities.
Mann Creek Reclamation Project, Idaho
S. 405 — Public Law 87-589, approved August 16, 1962
Authorized Federal construction of Mann Creek Federal reclamation project in Idaho to provide supplemental irrigation water for 4,465 acres and a full supply for 595 acres of land on Mann and Monroe Creeks near the town of Weiser in western Idaho.
National Fisheries and Aquarium Center in the District of Columbia
H.R. 8181 — Public Law 87-758, approved October 9, 1962
Authorized the Federal construction and operation of a $10 million National Fisheries Center and Aquarium in the District of Columbia or its vicinity.
The Center will display fresh-water, marine, and shellfishes and other aquatic resources for educational, recreational, cultural, and scientific purposes.
Responsibility for operation and maintenance of the Center is lodged with the Department of the Interior.
Established a nonpartisan advisory board to advise and confer with the Department concerning management and operation.
Navajo-San Juan-Chama Projects
S. 107 — Public Law 87-483, approved June 13, 1962
This measure authorized $221 million in appropriations to construct the Navajo Indian irrigation project and the San Juan-Chama project to irrigate a total of 231,530 acres of land, to supplement water supplies for domestic and industrial uses, and to provide recreation and fish and wildlife benefits. The Navajo project is in New Mexico and the San Juan-Chama project is in Colorado and New Mexico.
The primary purpose of the Navajo project is to provide approximately 17,000 Navajo Indians with an economy equal to the non-Indians. The San Juan-Chama project will improve and stabilize the economy of the water-deficient Rio Grande and Canadian Basins of New Mexico by providing supplemental water to meet rapidly expanding needs.
Approximately $106,600,000 of the $221 million is reimbursable, with interest, over a 50-year period.
Padre Island National Seashore, Tex.
S. 4 — Public Law 87-712, approved September 28, 1962
This measure carries out a Presidential recommendation preserving Padre Island National Seashore as a seashore recreational area. Padre Island stretches along the Texas gulf coast from Corpus Christi on the north almost to Mexico on the south for some 117 miles. Causeways at each end of the island make it readily accessible for recreational use. These approaches to the island—at Corpus Christi and Brownsville—are served by a network of high standard Federal and State highways; however, further highway development will be necessary following enactment of this measure. Limits to 80.5 miles the total mileage of the island to be taken for seashore area.
Point Reyes National Seashore, Calif.
S. 476 — Public Law 87-657, approved September 13, 1962
To preserve a portion of the few remaining shoreline areas for public recreation, this bill established a 53,000-acre area of the Point Reyes Peninsula, beginning approximately 15 miles north of the entrance to the Golden Gate Channel of San Francisco Bay and extending northward for 45 miles. Approximately 26,000 acres within the 53,000-acre national seashore have been set aside to preserve most of the ranching and dairying lands as a pastoral zone. Thus, as long as this 26,000 acres are maintained for their present purposes, the Department of the Interior will not acquire this land, except for approximately 500 acres for access purposes.
Rivers and Harbors and Flood Control
H.R. 13273 — Public Law 87-874, approved Oct. 23, 1962
Authorized $2.3 billion for 91 rivers and harbors projects and 105 flood control projects.
This is a comprehensive measure designed to carry forward important programs for development and improvement of the rivers and harbors, for the protection of lives and property against ravages of flood waters, for protection of beaches against erosion, for development of hydroelectric power, and for the general development for all uses of our water resources.
1963
Alaska Public Works Act Amendments
S. 1756 — Public Law 88-229, approved December 23, 1963
Authorizes the Secretary of Interior, either directly or through another appropriate Federal agency, to collect or settle by compromise or release, claims of the United States against cities and other Alaska public bodies arising out of agreements entered into between the United States and such public bodies pursuant to the Alaska Public Works Act held by him on June 30, 1963.
The Alaska Public Works Act of 1949 authorized a program of useful public works to assist in developing Alaska. Under the provisions of the act, the Administrator of General Services was authorized to construct various public works and transfer these to applicant public bodies in Alaska pursuant to agreements under which the applicant agrees to pay not less than 25 percent and not more than 75 percent of the cost of such works. The act further required that the aggregate amount to be recovered under all agreements should not be less than 50 percent of the aggregate cost of all works provided by the United States.
In certain cases, because of the work transferred, or the unusually difficult state of the city's finances, repayment of indebtedness according to the terms of the original agreement involves a particular hardship for the community concerned. This bill will permit the Secretary of Interior to negotiate and make such final settlement as he considers justified.
Big Flat Irrigation District, Montana
S. 1687 — Passed Senate October 21; pending in House Interior and Insular Affairs Committee
Authorizes Secretary of Interior to negotiate and execute an amendment contract with the Big Flat Irrigation District of the Missoula Valley project, Montana. The amendatory contract will reduce the construction charge obligation of the district by $7,190, which represents the unmatured charges as of December 30, 1962, against 164.3 acres of land which have been classified as permanently nonproductive.
Bureau of Reclamation Investigations
S. 46 — Passed Senate August 28; pending in House Interior and Insular Affairs Committee
This bill makes non-reimbursable all costs of investigations of a general nature or investigations leading to authorization of reclamation projects or works to provide for uniformity throughout the Bureau of Reclamation and the entire Federal Government.
Canyonlands National Park, Utah
S. 27 — Passed Senate August 2; pending in House Interior and Insular Affairs Committee
This bill authorizes the establishment of the "Canyonlands" of Utah as the Canyonlands National Park, to be comprised of some 257,000 acres near the confluence of the Colorado and Green Rivers in San Juan County, Utah.
Authorizes the Secretary of Interior to acquire lands and interests in lands within the established boundary.
Authorizes the continuation of livestock grazing and mining under regulations of the Secretary of the Interior with provisions for their eventual termination.
Authorizes the Secretary to provide suitable access roads to the proposed park and to certain facilities and services required in the operation and administration of the park.
Cochiti Reservoir
S. 614 — Passed Senate June 19; pending in House Interior and Insular Affairs Committee
Authorizes approximately 50,000 acre-feet of water from the San Juan-Chama unit of the Colorado River storage project for filling a permanent pool for recreational purposes at Cochiti Reservoir of the Rio Grande Basin.
Commercial Fisheries Research and Development Act of 1963
S. 627 — Passed Senate July 22; pending in House Merchant Marine and Fisheries Committee
Provides a 5-year $28,250,000 program of coordinated aid to the States to develop their commercial fisheries by stimulating research and development on the local level.
To achieve this purpose, the Secretary of Interior is authorized to apportion among the States for 5 years an annual amount of $5 million on the basis of a formula designed to give each State a share proportionate with its commercial fishery activity as compared with total commercial fishery activity in the United States.
In addition, the sum of $500,000 for each of the first 2 years of the program and $750,000 for each of the last 3 years of the program will be available to the Secretary for allocation to the States as he may determine but giving a preference to those States suffering a commercial fishery failure due to a resource disaster arising from natural causes and to those States in which a new commercial fishery can be developed where none existed before.
Des Moines River — Reservoir and Dam
H.R. 1135 — Public Law 88-117, approved September 6, 1963
Designates the dam being constructed and the reservoir to be formed on the Des Moines River, Iowa, as the Red Rock Dam and Lake Red Rock.
Dixie Project, Utah
S. 26 — Passed Senate October 30; pending in House Interior and Insular Affairs Committee
Authorized the Federal construction of the Dixie multipurpose project at an approximate cost of $44 million with almost $40 million reimbursable.
The Dixie project will provide supplemental irrigation water to 9,445 acres of presently developed land and full irrigation for 11,615 acres of dry land. The project will provide for the production of electric energy, furnish municipal and industrial water supplies, provide fish and wildlife conservation, recreation, flood control, and sediment control.
Gas and Oil Compact
Senate Joint Resolution 33 — Public Law 88-115, approved September 6, 1963
Grants congressional consent to a 4-year renewal and extension from September 1, 1963, to September 1, 1967, of the interstate compact to conserve oil and gas.
Lake Mead National Recreational Area, Ariz. And Nev.
S. 653 — Passed Senate August 2; H.R. 4010 House Calendar
This bill gives statutory authority to the Lake Mead National Recreation area in Arizona and Nevada created by inter-bureau agreement in 1936.
Provides authority to negotiate administrative arrangements with the Hualapai Indians, who are owners of part of the land in the reclamation withdrawal. It also provides authority to acquire certain in-holdings that have prime recreation character. The Secretary of Interior is authorized to exchange federally owned lands outside the recreation area for private in-holdings, at fair market value, and to accept or pay cash to equalize the value.
Authorizes hunting, fishing, and trapping within the recreation area in accordance with State law but permits the Secretary after consultation with the State fish and game commissions to designate no hunting areas where and when public safety requires.
A major share of the private in-holdings can be acquired through the exchange procedure and it is estimated to acquire the remaining private lands will cost approximately $1,200,000.
Lead-Zinc—Small Producers
H.R. 3845 — Public Law 88-75, approved July 25, 1963
This bill amends the Lead-Zinc Small Producers Stabilization Act of October 3, 1961, to make certain that payments under this act will be made only to small producers whose primary products are lead and zinc. This purpose is achieved by (1) providing that a small producer must have as his principal product or products lead and zinc; and (2) defining the term "principal product and products" to mean that more than 50 percent of the value of metal or minerals produced or sold is lead or zinc or a combination of both.
Under existing law, primary producers of metals and minerals other than lead and zinc, to whom lead and zinc are byproducts, have been eligible to receive payments under the act.
Local Rights in Federally Constructed Reservoirs
H.R. 1696 — Public Law 88-140, approved October 16, 1963
This act makes the rights for storage space acquired by States or local interests in reservoirs constructed by the Corps of Engineers available to such agencies so long as the space designated for their purpose is physically available. This provision applies to all dams and reservoirs which have or will be constructed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in which local interests have or will contribute to the Government, or have or will contract to pay the Government over a specified period of years, money equivalent to the cost of providing space to be used for storage of water.
The interest of the local interests is subject to fulfillment of the conditions under which their contractual agreements were executed.
Michaud Flats Irrigation Project
S. 1582 — Passed Senate August 28; pending in House Interior and Insular Affairs Committee
Amends the act of 1954 providing for the construction, maintenance, and operation of the Michaud Flats project, Idaho, by adding a new subsection to facilitate the execution of contracts for the delivery of water to individual Indian allotments.
Nevada-Colorado River Commission
H.R. 277 — Public Laws 88-15, approved April 26, 1963
Extends to April 22, 1968, the time within which the Nevada-Colorado River Commission may submit its plan for development of approximately 15,000 acres of public lands previously authorized for purchase; and extended to April 22, 1970, the time within which the State may complete the purchase.
Outdoor Recreation Act of 1963
S. 20 — Public Law 88-29, approved May 28, 1963
The Bureau of Outdoor Recreation established in the Department of the Interior in 1962 was given the overall leadership responsibility in the nationwide recreation effort by coordinating various Federal programs and assisting other levels of Government to meet the demands for outdoor recreation. This act implements and expands the work of the Bureau by authorizing it to —
Prepare and maintain a continuing inventory and evaluation of outdoor recreation needs and resources of the United States.
Prepare a classification system to aid in more effective use and management of these resources.
Formulate and maintain a comprehensive plan but take into consideration plans of the various Federal agencies, States and political subdivisions. The comprehensive plan will clarify the needs and demands of the public and focus attention on the current and foreseeable availability in the future of outdoor recreation resources to meet those needs. Plan will identify critical outdoor recreation problems, recommend solutions, and identify the desirable actions to be taken by the Government and private interests. Plan will be submitted to the President and Congress within 5 years; with revised plans at future 5-year intervals.
Provide technical assistance and advice to the states, political subdivisions, and private interests including nonprofit organizations.
Encourage interstate and regional cooperation in planning, acquisition, and development of outdoor recreation resources.
Sponsor and assist in research relating to outdoor recreation, directly or by contract or cooperative agreements; undertake studies and assemble information, directly or by contract or cooperative agreements, and disseminate information; cooperate with educational institutions and others in order to establish education programs and activities.
Cooperate with and provide technical assistance to Federal departments and agencies and obtain from them information, data, reports, advice, and assistance that are needed and can be furnished; promote coordination of Federal plans and activities generally relating to outdoor recreation.
Accept and use donations of money, property, personal services or facilities.
Include within the term "United States," the District of Columbia and, to the extent practicable, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam, and American Samoa.
In signing the bill into law, President Kennedy said:
I am pleased to sign S. 20 into law today-—an act which will promote the coordination and development of effective outdoor recreation programs. The prompt action of the Congress in enacting this legislation which the executive branch recommended is a recognition by the Congress of the vital need to protect and wisely administer this Nation's great heritage of outdoor recreation resources.
The bipartisan Outdoor Recreation Resources Review Commission established by the Congress in 1958 has submitted a valuable report demonstrating in a most persuasive manner the need for an affirmative program to insure the best possible use of those resources which will rapidly be swallowed up for other uses unless adequately protected and utilized. This legislation will enable the Department of the Interior, through its newly formed Bureau of Outdoor Recreation, to undertake the planning, research, and coordination tasks outlined by the Outdoor Recreation Resources Review Commission and the Congress.
Significant as this legislation is, it is primarily an administrative tool permitting more effective and better coordinated procedures for administering the Federal estate and greater cooperation and assistance to the States. In order to implement this planning program and to provide the financial means for preserving our recreation resources, I hope the Congress will also enact the "land and water conservation fund" legislation which we recommended and which is now pending in the Congress. Overwhelming evidence has been received of the interest of the States in this legislation which would permit those who specifically benefit from our outdoor resources to help acquire land and water areas needed for the generations to come through user charges and other related revenues. The conservation fund will permit the States to assume the major role in preserving outdoor recreation opportunities and facilities, at the same time benefiting the national park, national forest, and national wildlife refuge systems.
I believe all Americans will ultimately benefit from the enactment of S. 20, and I am pleased to approve it in the presence of those who were instrumental in its development and passage by the Congress.
Ozark National Rivers
S. 16 — Passed Senate October 22; pending in House Interior and Insular Affairs Committee
Provides for the establishment of the Ozark National Rivers in the State of Missouri as a part of the outdoor recreation program and to conserve and interpret unique scenic and other national values and objects of historic interest.
This bill incorporates 94,000 acres, including 101 miles of the Current River and 39 miles of the Jacks Fork River, into a Federal Ozark National Rivers.
The land will be a relatively narrow strip along the banks of the rivers except for one sizable block on the Current River to preserve a significant example of typical Ozark Mountain landscape and afford sites for administrative and public use developments without disturbing the natural setting of the rivers. The land to be taken is more than 85 percent timbered, 10 percent cropland, and 5 percent pasture. In the case of any farm tract of 500 acres or less, the Department of the Interior must acquire the whole tract unless the owner agrees to sale of a part. Lands acquired in this manner, not essential for park purposes, may be exchanged for other needed lands.
Owners of improved property in the area to be acquired may retain the right of use and occupancy for noncommercial residential purposes until the death of the owner or spouse, or the death of the survivor of either of them.
Establishes an Ozark National Rivers Commission composed of four members appointed on recommendations of the county courts of Carter, Dent, Shannon, and Texas Counties, Mo., two members appointed from recommendations of the Governor of the State, and one designated by the Secretary of the Interior. The life of the Commission is for 10 years and is to be consulted from time to time by the Secretary of the Interior relative to carrying out the establishment, development, and administration of the area.
Pacific Northwest Power Sales
S. 1007 — Conference report filed December 19, 1963
Guarantees electric consumers in the Pacific Northwest first call on electric energy generated at Federal hydroelectric plants of that region and guarantees electric consumers in other regions reciprocal priority.
Purpose.— To define the primary marketing area of the Bonneville Power Administration as the Pacific Northwest and to establish workable, economic ground rules for transfers of hydroelectric energy between the Pacific Northwest and any interconnected regions.
Need.— At present, there is no geographical limitation on the marketing area of the Bonneville Power Administration; only limitation is that of economic transmission distance. If a preference agency in the Pacific Southwest, or elsewhere in the West, has access to the Columbia River power system over an extra high voltage interconnection between the two regions, under existing law it can demand power that is needed in the Pacific Northwest. This applies to both secondary and firm power.
Marketing area.— Under this bill the primary marketing area of the Bonneville Power Administration includes Oregon, Washington, and that part of Montana west of the Continental Divide. Those portions of Nevada, Utah, and Wyoming which are within the Columbia drainage basin may be included if the Secretary of the Interior determines them to be within the marketing area of the Federal Columbia River power system. All or any part of Idaho may be included if the Secretary determines it to be within the marketing area. Also includes limited contiguous areas served by non-generating distribution cooperatives with distribution systems both within and without the region.
Effect of the bill.—Only surplus energy generated at Federal plants in the Pacific Northwest can be marketed outside of the above described area. Contracts for sale of energy outside the area can be terminated after 7-days' notice of the power is needed in the Northwest area. However, marketing areas which sell power to the Northwest will have reciprocal preference for first call on their own power. Secretary of the Interior is required to give Bonneville Power Administration customers at least 30-days' notice of any proposed contract for sale of surplus energy or peaking capacity for use outside the Bonneville Power marketing area.
Pecos River Basin
Senate Joint Resolution 49 — Passed Senate October 22; pending in House Interior and Insular Affairs Committee
Authorizes the Secretary of Interior to undertake a project for the control and reduction of phreatophytes in the Pecos River Basin in order to achieve savings of water.
Rio Grande Dams
H.R. 4062 — Public Law 88-237, approved December 23, 1963
Authorizes the Secretary of Interior to dispose of the power to be generated at the Amistad Dam as he now does with Falcon Dam power. It also authorizes the construction of the necessary transmission lines to integrate the transmission of the two projects for a more effective operation if the interconnection of these two projects is determined to be financial feasible.
River Basin Authorization
H.R. 8667 — Public Law 88-253, approved December 30, 1963
Authorizes a total of $816,847,000 for rivers and harbors and flood control for fiscal 1964 and 1965 as follows:
|
Project |
Documents and Congress |
New projects or modifications |
Increased basin authorizations |
| West Branch Susquehanna River |
--- |
0 |
$2,000,000 |
| Cape Fear River Basin: Cape Fear River, N.C. |
H. Doc. 508, 87th Cong. |
$25,143,000 |
--- |
| Central and southern Florida |
--- |
--- |
21,000,000 |
| Apalachicola River Basin: Flint River, Ga |
H. Doc. 567, 87th Cong. |
63,200,000 |
--- |
| Brazos River Basin |
--- |
--- |
30,000,000 |
| Arkansas River Basin: | |||
| Comprehensive plan |
--- |
--- |
157,000,000 |
| Dardannelle lock and dam |
--- |
404,000 |
--- |
| White River Basin |
--- |
--- |
8,000,000 |
| Red River Basin: Waurika Dam and Reservoir, Okla. |
S. Doc. 33, 88th Cong. |
25,100,000 |
--- |
| Missouri River Basin: (Corps of Engineers) |
--- |
--- |
80,000,000 |
| Comprehensive plan (Dept. of Interior) |
--- |
--- |
16,000,000 |
| Bank stabilization |
--- |
3,000,000 |
--- |
| Ohio River Basin: | |||
| Comprehensive plan |
--- |
--- |
150,000,000 |
| Laurel River, Ky |
H. Doc. 413, 86th Cong. |
0 |
--- |
| Upper Mississippi River Basin |
--- |
--- |
11,000,000 |
| Los Angeles-San Gabriel River Basins |
--- |
--- |
30,000,000 |
| Columbia River Basin: | |||
| Comprehensive plan |
--- |
--- |
195,000,000 |
| Total (5 projects and 11 basins) |
--- |
116,847,000 |
700,000,000 |
| Grand Total |
--- |
816,847,000 |
River Basin Planning
S. 1111 — Passed Senate December 4, pending in House Interior and Insular Affairs Committee
Authorizes a comprehensive long-range Federal-State program for the development of the Nation's natural resources through the coordinated planning of water and related land resources.
Establishes a Federal Water Council composed of the Secretaries of Interior, Agriculture, HEW, and the Chairman of the Federal Power Commission, with the Chairman of the Council designated by the President.
The Council is charged with the responsibility of preparing biennial assessments of water supplies and requirements of the various water resources regions of the United States, and for appraising the interrelationships of water regions and the adequacy of existing and proposed policies and programs to meet the Nation's water needs.
Provides that the President may declare the establishment of a river basin water planning commission on request of the Water Resources Council and half of the States involved. The commission may be established in (1) a region, (2) a river basin, or (3) a group of river basins. Provides the commission with the necessary power to hold hearings, take testimony, and with the general authority to accomplish its purpose.
Authorizes $5 million a year for 10 years as matching funds to aid States in intrastate and interstate water resources planning.
Riverton Reclamation Project, Wyoming
H.R. 4423 — Public Law 88-10, approved April 19, 1963
Authorized the Secretary of Interior to continue furnishing water to irrigate lands in the Third division Riverton Reclamation project Wyoming, during calendar year 1963, pending a permanent solution to the repayment and drainage problems.
Sleeping Bear Dunes
S. 792 — Passed Senate December 20, 1963; pending in House Interior and Insular Affairs Committee
Authorizes the Department of Interior to establish in Leelanau and Benzie Counties, Mich., the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore.
The area includes some 32 miles along bays and bluffs, beaches, and dunes on the mainland, and 13 miles of varied shoreline on South Manitou Island. This encompasses about 77,000 acres including inland lakes which comprise about 11,000 acres and South Manitou Island which contains about 5,300 acres.
Establishes an Advisory Commission with which the Secretary is required to consult on matters relating to the development of the lakeshore and the condemnation of property. Authorizes appropriations of not more than $4,750,000 for acquisition of necessary lands for the lakeshore.
Small Reclamation Projects Act Amendments
S. 283 — Passed Senate October 17; pending in House Interior and Insular Affairs Committee
Amends the Small Reclamation Project Act of 1956 to increase the authorization ceiling from $100 to $200 million and to provide that where an interest charge is required on any portion of the proposed works that it conform with the Water Supply Act of 1958.
Adds a new section permitting the Secretary to advance up to half the funds necessary to planning a project and preparing a loan application. It permits the funds so advanced to be non-reimbursable in the even the project is not constructed. This provision is comparable with the current practices of the regular Federal reclamation programs where local organizations are required to provide half of the investigation funds and Federal expenditures are not recoverable if the project is not developed. These advances will be repaid in full if the project is built.
The new section also provides authority to consolidate for repayment any loan that may have been made for planning purposes by another Federal agency, in order to avoid separate outstanding loans from two different agencies relating to the same project.
The Small Reclamation Project Act of 1956 was enacted to supplement the Federal reclamation laws by providing for Federal loans to non-Federal irrigation or multiple purpose projects in the 17 Western States. It limits loans by the Secretary on irrigation developments to $5 million on a single project but provides for grants for flood control on projects where the cost does not exceed $10 million.
Wapato Indian Irrigation Project, Washington
H.R. 641 — Public Law 88-159, approved October 28, 1963
Approves an order of the Secretary of Interior canceling and deferring certain delinquent irrigation charges and penalties amounting to $4,494.58 and $10,356.03, respectively, owed by non-Indian landowners served by the Wapato Indian irrigation project, Washington, and eliminated 78.12 acres of non-irrigable land from that project.
Wilderness Act
S. 4 — Passed Senate April 9, 1963: pending in House Interior and Insular Affairs Committee
Authorized "setting aside" some 35 million acres of the estimated 700 to 800 million acres of federally owned lands as a wilderness unavailable for commercial use or development on a lease or rental basis.
Major provisions of the Wilderness Act:
Policy declaration.— Establishes a National Wilderness Preservation System, composed of appropriate federally owned land, to assure the Nation of an enduring resource of wilderness.
Wilderness definition as related to the bill.— Areas where man's work is substantially unnoticeable, where there is outstanding opportunity for solitude or a primitive or unconfined type of recreation, which are of adequate size to make practicable preservation as wilderness, and which may have ecological, geological, or other scientific, educational, scenic, and historical values.
Areas included.— Four categories of wilderness-type areas in the national forests will become units of the wilderness preservation system: Wild, wilderness, roadless (canoe), primitive. Wild, wilderness, and roadless areas have been reviewed by the Forest Service and reclassified as such areas by the Secretary of Agriculture; thus the bill completes their designation as part of the new wilderness system. The 37 unreviewed primitive areas are subject to review by Secretary of Agriculture and recommendation to Congress by the President with boundary adjustments considered proper to include only areas of predominant wilderness value. President may recommend exclusion of parts of any primitive area not of predominant wilderness value, and he may recommend inclusion of national forest lands adjacent to the primitive area which are of predominant wilderness value but not to exceed the original size of the primitive area. President's recommendation may be disapproved by either the House or Senate at any time during the next following complete session of Congress. If disapproved, the primitive area may be reviewed and resubmitted to Congress within 2 years. All primitive areas must be reviewed and recommendations submitted to Congress within 10 years. All areas not continued in the wilderness system under the procedure within 14 years—10 years for review plus time for congressional consideration and a resubmittal—return to the same status as other national forest lands.
National park areas.— Directs Secretary of Interior to review the park system units containing 5,000 acres or more of contiguous, roadless lands, and to report his recommendation for incorporation of each such unit into the wilderness system. Before Congress convenes each year, the President is to advise Congress of his recommendations and, as in the case of national forest areas, either the House or Senate, may disapprove.
Wilderness refugees and game ranges.— Provides for inclusion of portions of such areas as Secretary of Interior may recommend to the President within 10 years; the President recommends to Congress, and neither House may disapprove. Under similar procedure, the Secretary of Interior may recommend inclusion of portions of new refuges or ranges added to his jurisdiction in the next 15 years, but such recommendation by the Secretary must be made within 2 years after the addition of the new unit.
Area protection.— Provides protection for areas intended to be proposed for wilderness from any and all appropriation under public land laws, to the extent considered necessary by the appropriate Secretary, pending their review and consideration for wilderness status. However, such segregation ends in 5 years if no proposal has been submitted to Congress or on rejection of the proposal by the President or Congress.
Area limitation.— No area, other than national forest, park system, and wildlife refuge and game rangelands specifically provided for in the act, can be added to or eliminated from the wilderness system except by "specific, affirmative authorization by law."
Hearings.— Provides for public hearings prior to submission of recommendations to Congress on permanent inclusion of areas in the wilderness system, thus assuring that interested States, counties, and Federal agencies will be notified and given an opportunity to submit data on potential alternative uses of the area.
Commercial use.— Prohibits any commercial enterprise in the wilderness, except as provided in the act, i.e., continuation of grazing in some areas and mining as stated below, and subject to existing private rights. Prohibits permanent road construction, use of motor vehicles or motorized equipment, motorboats, landing of aircraft, or use of any other mechanical transport. In the case of emergencies, these prohibitions could be relaxed briefly.
Mining.— Mining activities may continue in Mount McKinley National Park, Death Valley, Organ Pipe Cactus, and Glacier National Monuments.
Commissions.— Authorizes establishment of a fivemember Presidential Land Use Commission in any State having more than 90 percent of its total area owned by the Federal Government; thus, this section is applicable only to Alaska, where 99 percent of the land is federally owned.
Wildlife Conservation in Oregon and California
S. 793 — Passed Senate July 15; House Calendar
Provides a permanent basis for administration of the Tule Lake, Lower Klamath, and Upper Klamath National Wildlife Refuges in Oregon and California to promote the conservation of wildlife resources on the Pacific flyway.
Water Resources Research Act
S. 2 — Passed Senate April 23, pending in House Interior and Insular Affairs Committee
Authorizes up to a $20 million a year Federal aid program to colleges and universities to stimulate and expand water resources research and scientific training.
Policy statement.— To assure an abundance of water both as to quality and quantity, to stimulate research, investigations, and experimentation, and to encourage training of needed scientists.
Title I.— Authorizes payments starting at $75,000 and increasing to $100,000 a year to land-grant college, State university, or other institution of higher education in each State to establish a water resources research institute or center for research work in the water resources field. Authorizes an additional $1 million, increasing $1 million annually to $5 million in fiscal 1968 and thereafter on a dollar-for-dollar matching basis to be made available to State institutes or centers for water research projects. Places responsibility for administering the program under the Secretary of the Interior. Secretary must make an annual progress report to Congress.
Title II.— Establishes a second grant, matching, and contract fund for aid to educational institutions, private foundations, private firms or individuals or with local, State and Federal agencies to undertake research in water resources problems.
Authorizes an appropriation of $5 million to the Secretary in 1964, increasing $1 million a year for 5 years and continuing at $10 million a year thereafter for grants, contracts, matching, or other arrangement for water resources research. Allocation of these funds not restricted to the centers or institutions established under title I but are to assure that any center of competence which can contribute to such needs will have an opportunity to do so within the dollar limits of the program.