To further continued economic viability in the communities on the High Plains by promoting sustainable groundwater management of the Ogallala Aquifer.

To further continued economic viability in the communities on the High Plains by promoting sustainable groundwater management of the Ogallala Aquifer.

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 `High Plains Groundwater Resource Conservation Act'.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

(a) FINDINGS- Congress finds that--

(1) a reliable source of groundwater is an essential element of the economy of the communities on the High Plains;

(2) the High Plains Aquifer consists largely of the Ogallala Aquifer with small components of other geologic units;

(3) the High Plains Aquifer experienced a dramatic decline in water table levels in the latter half of the twentieth century;

(4) the decline in water table levels is especially pronounced in the Southern Ogallala Aquifer, with areas in the States of Kansas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas experiencing declines of over 100 feet from 1950 to 1997;

(5) the saturated thickness of the High Plains Aquifer has declined by over 50 percent in some areas. Furthermore, the percentage of the High Plains Aquifer which has a saturated thickness of 100 feet or more declined from 54 percent to 51 percent in the period from 1980 to 1997;

(6) the decreased water levels in the High Plains Aquifer coupled with higher pumping lift costs raise concerns about the long-term sustainability of irrigated agriculture in the High Plains;

(7) hydrological modeling by the United States Geological Survey indicates that in the context of sustained high groundwater use in the surrounding region, reductions in groundwater pumping at the single farm level or at a local level of up to 100 square miles, have a very time limited impact on conserving the level of the local water table, thus creating a disincentive for individual water users to invest in water conservation measures;

(8) incentives must be created for conservation of groundwater on a regional scale, in order to achieve an agricultural economy on the High Plains that is sustainable; and

(9) for water conservation incentives to function, Federal, State, tribal, and local water policy makers, and individual groundwater users must have access to reliable information concerning aquifer recharge rates extraction rates, and water table levels at the local and regional levels on an ongoing basis.

(b) PURPOSE- The purpose of this Act is to promote groundwater conservation on the High Plains in order to extend the useable life of the High Plains Aquifer.

SEC. 3. HIGH PLAINS GROUNDWATER CONSERVATION ASSISTANCE.

(a) HIGH PLAINS AQUIFER GROUNDWATER CONSERVATION INCENTIVES PROGRAM- The Food Security Act of 1985 is amended by inserting after section 1240H the following new section:

`SEC. 1240I. HIGH PLAINS AQUIFER GROUNDWATER CONSERVATION INCENTIVES PROGRAM.

`(a) DEFINITIONS- In this section:

`(1) HIGH PLAINS- The term `High Plains' means the approximately 174,000 square miles of land surface overlying the High Plains Aquifer in the States of Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, and Wyoming.

`(2) HIGH PLAINS AQUIFER- The term `High Plains Aquifer' is the groundwater reserve depicted as Figure 1 in the United States Geological Survey Professional Paper 1400-B, titled Geohydrology of the High Plains Aquifer in Parts of Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, New

`(3) HIGH PLAINS AQUIFER STATES- The term `High Plains Aquifer States' means the States of Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, and Wyoming.

`(b) IN GENERAL- In each of the fiscal years 2002 through 2011, the Secretary shall provide cost-share payments, incentive payments, and technical assistance to producers who enter into contracts with the Secretary, through a High Plains Aquifer Groundwater Conservation Incentives Program in accordance with this section. The goal of the program shall be to achieve significant per acre savings of the groundwater resources of the High Plains Aquifer.

`(c) PARTICIPATION- The Secretary shall ensure, to the maximum extent practicable, that producers on lands drawing water from the High Plains Aquifer throughout the High Plains region shall have an opportunity to participate in the program established under this section. The participation of producers in areas experiencing significant aquifer level declines shall be given a priority and that participation shall be limited to producers in ares for which a plan has been certified pursuant to subsection (1).

`(d) ELIGIBLE PRACTICES-

`(1) STRUCTURAL PRACTICES- A producer on lands drawing water from the High Plains Aquifer who implements an on-farm structural practice, which may include the improvement of irrigation systems and the purchase of new equipment, which the Secretary determines will result in a significant and quantifiable per-acre savings of the groundwater resources of the High Plains Aquifer, shall be eligible for cost-share payments, in accordance with this section.

`(2) LAND MANAGEMENT PRACTICES- A producer on lands drawing water from the High Plains Aquifer who performs a land management practice, which may include the conversion of acreage from irrigated agricultural production to dryland production, the modification of cropping patterns from high water intensity crops to low water intensity crops, or the implementation of other groundwater conservation measures, which the Secretary determines will result in a significant and quantifiable per-acre savings of the groundwater resources of the High Plains Aquifer, shall be eligible for incentive payments, in accordance with this section.

`(e) APPLICATION AND TERM- A contract between a producer and the Secretary under this section may--

`(1) apply to one or more structural practices or one or more land management practices, or both; and

`(2) have a term of not less than three, nor more than ten, years as determined appropriate by the Secretary, depending on the practice or practices that are the basis of the contract.

`(f) Structural Practices-

`(1) OFFER SELECTION PROCESS- The Secretary shall, to the maximum extent practicable, establish a process for selecting applications for financial assistance if their are numerous applications for assistance for structural practices that would provide substantially the same level of groundwater conservation benefits. The process shall be based on--

`(A) a reasonable estimate of the projected cost of the proposals and other factors identified by the Secretary for determining which applications will result in the least cost to the program authorized by this section; and

`(B) the priorities established under this section and such other factors determined by the Secretary that maximize groundwater conservation benefits per dollar expended.

`(2) CONCURRENCE OF OWNER- If the producer making an offer to implement a structural practice is a tenant of the land involved in agricultural production, for the offer to be acceptable, the producer shall obtain the concurrent of the owner of the land with respect to the offer.

`(g) LAND MANAGEMENT PRACTICES- The Secretary shall establish an application and evaluation process for awarding incentive payments to a producer in exchange for the performance of one or more land management practices by the producer.

`(h) Payments-

`(1) COST-SHARE PAYMENTS- The Federal share of cost-share payments to a producer proposing to implement one or more structural practices shall be not more than 50 percent of the projected cost of the practice, as determined by the Secretary, taking into consideration any payment received by the producer from a State or local government.

`(2) INCENTIVE PAYMENTS- The Secretary shall make incentive payments in an amount and at a rate determined by the Secretary to be necessary to encourage a producer to perform one or more land management practices.

`(3) NET SAVINGS- Payment may be made to producers only if the Secretary determines

`(i) Modifications or Termination of Contracts-

`(1) VOLUNTARY MODIFICATION OR TERMINATION- The Secretary may modify or terminate a contract entered into with a producer under this section if--

`(A) the producer agrees to the modification or termination;

`(B) the Secretary determines that the modification or termination is in the public interest.

`(2) INVOLUNTARY TERMINATION- The Secretary may terminate a contract under this section if the Secretary determines that the producer violated the contract.

`(j) Duties-

`(1) DUTIES OR PRODUCERS- To receive cost-share payments, incentive payments, or technical assistance under this section, a producer shall agree to implement the structural practice or land management practice as agreed to in the contract with the Secretary and to comply with such additional conditions as the Secretary determines are necessary to carry out the intent of this section.

`(2) DUTIES OF THE SECRETARY- The Secretary shall provide cost-share payments or incentive payments for developing and implementing one or more structural practices or one or more land management practices, as agreed to in the contract with the producer.

`(k) LIMITATION OF PAYMENTS- The total amount of cost-share payments paid to any one producer under this section may not exceed $50,000 for any multi-year contract. The Secretary shall set a limitation on the amount of inventive payments paid to any one producer under this section at a level which, in the Secretary's discretion, will maximize the conservation of groundwater resources from the High Plains Aquifer.

`(l) High Plains Groundwater Conservation Planning-

`(1) PLANNING ASSISTANCE- The Secretary shall provide financial and technical assistance, including modeling and engineering design to States, tribes, and counties, conservation districts, or other political subdivisions recognized under State law, for the development of comprehensive groundwater conservation plans within the High Plains. This assistance shall be provided on a cost-share basis ensuring that:

`(A) the Federal funding for the development of any given plan shall not exceed 50 percent of the total cost; and

`(B) the Federal funding for groundwater water conservation planning for any one county, conservation district, or similar political subdivision recognized under State law shall not exceed $50,000.

`(2) STATE ADMINISTRATION- Upon application by a High Plains Aquifer State, and approval by the Secretary, the Secretary may provide funding on an annual basis to the State to carry out, in lieu of the Secretary, the activities set forth in paragraph (1), including assistance to counties, conservation districts, or other political subdivisions recognized under the law of that State, for the development of the conservation plans described in paragraph (1).

`(3) CERTIFICATION- The Secretary shall create a certification process for comprehensive groundwater conservation plans developed under this program, or developed independently by States, tribes, counties, conservation districts, or other political subdivisions recognized under State law. To be certified, a plan must achieve significant per acre savings of groundwater from the High Plains Aquifer and must:

`(A) cover a sufficient geographic area to provide a benefit to the groundwater resource over at least a 20 year time period;

`(B) include a set of goals and objectives for groundwater conservation and a timetable for achieving the goals and objectives;

`(C) identify specific measures for achieving the groundwater conservation goals and objectives;

`(D) define a plan of action for achieving the groundwater conservation goals and objectives;

`(E) include a process for an annual evaluation of the implementation of the plan of action; and

`(F) provide a process for modification of the plan if the conservation goals and objectives are not being met or for purposes of updating the plan.

`(m) FUNDING- Of the funds of the Commodity Credit Corporation, the Corporation shall make available to carry out this subsection, $75,000,000 in each of fiscal years 2002 through 2003, $100,000,000 in each of fiscal years 2004 through 2006 and $125,000,000 in each of fiscal years 2007 through 2011.'.

(b) CONSERVATION RESERVE PROGRAM ENHANCEMENT- Lands eligible for the Conservation Reserve Program established under section 1231 of the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3831) which would result in significant per acre savings of groundwater resources of the High Plains Aquifer, as defined in section 1240I(a) of the Food Security Act of 1985, if removed from agricultural production shall be awarded 90 Conservation Reserve Program bid points, to be designated as groundwater conservation points, in addition to any other ratings the lands may receive.

SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

There is authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this Act.