PASSAIC RIVER BASIN FLOOD MANAGEMENT, NEW JERSEY.

SEC. 327. PASSAIC RIVER BASIN FLOOD MANAGEMENT, NEW JERSEY. (a) In General.—The project for flood control, Passaic River, New Jersey and New York, authorized by section 101(a)(18) of the Water Resources Development Act of 1990 (104 Stat. 4607), is modified to direct the Secretary to give priority to nonstructural approaches for flood control as alternatives to the construction of the Passaic River tunnel element, while maintaining the integrity of other separable mainstream project elements, wetland banks, and other independent projects that were authorized to be carried out in the Passaic River basin before the date of enactment of this Act. (b) Reevaluation of Floodway Study.—The Secretary shall review the Passaic River floodway buyout study, dated October 1995, to calculate the benefits of a buyout and environmental restoration using the method used to calculate the benefits of structural projects under section 308(b) of the Water Resources Development Act of 1990 (33 U.S.C. 2318(b)). (c) Reevaluation of 10-Year Floodplain Study.—The Secretary shall review the Passaic River buyout study of the 10-year floodplain beyond the floodway of the central Passaic River basin, dated September 1995, to calculate the benefits of a buyout and environmental restoration using the method used to calculate the benefits of structural projects under section 308(b) of the Water Resources Development Act of 1990 (33 U.S.C. 2318(b)). (d) Preservation of Natural Storage Areas.—114 STAT. 2608 (1) In general.—The Secretary shall reevaluate the acquisition, from willing sellers, for flood protection purposes, of wetlands in the central Passaic River basin to supplement the wetland acquisition authorized by section 101(a)918)(C)(vi) of the Water Resources Development Act of 1990 (104 Stat. 4609). (2) Purchase.—If the Secretary determines that the acquisition of wetlands evaluated under paragraph (1) is economically justified, the Secretary shall purchase the wetlands, with the goal of purchasing not more than 8,200 acres. (e) Streambank Erosion Control Study.—The Secretary shall review relevant reports and conduct a study to determine the feasibility of carrying out a project for environmental restoration, erosion control, and streambank restoration along the Passaic River, from Dundee Dam to Kearny Point, New Jersey. (f) Passaic River Flood Management Task Force.— (1) Establishment.—The Secretary, in cooperation with the non-Federal interest, shall establish a task force, to be known as the “Passaic River Flood Management Task Force”, to provide advice to the Secretary concerning all aspects of the Passaic River flood management project. (2) Membership.—The task force shall be composed of 22 members, appointed as follows: (A) Appointment by Secretary.—The Secretary shall appoint 1 member to represent the Corps of Engineers and to provide technical advice to the task force. (B) Appointments by Governor of New Jersey.—The Governor of New Jersey shall appoint 20 members to the task force, as follows: (i) 2 representatives of the New Jersey legislature who are members of different political parties. (ii) 3 representatives of the State of New Jersey. (iii) 1 representative of each of Bergen, Essex, Morris, and Passaic Counties, New Jersey. (iv) 6 representatives of governments of municipalities affected by flooding within the Passaic River basin. (v) 1 representative of the Palisades Interstate Park Commission. (vi) 1 representative of the North Jersey District Water Supply Commission. (vii) 1 representative of each of the Association of New Jersey Environmental Commissions, the Passaic River Coalition, and the Sierra Club. (C) Appointment by Governor of New York.—The Governor of New York shall appoint 1 representative of the State of New York to the task force. (3) Meetings.— (A) Regular meetings.—The task force shall hold regular meetings. (B) Open meetings.—The meetings of the task force shall be open to the public. (4) Annual report.—The task force shall transmit annually to the Secretary and to the non-Federal interest a report describing the achievements of the Passaic River flood management project in preventing flooding and any impediments to completion of the project.114 STAT. 2609 (5) Expenditure of funds.—The Secretary may use funds made available to carry out the Passaic River basin flood management project to pay the administrative expenses of the task force. (6) Termination.—The task force shall terminate on the date on which the Passaic River flood management project is completed. (g) Acquisition of Lands in the Floodway.—Section 1148 of the Water Resources Development Act of 1986 (100 Stat. 4254; 110 Stat. 3718) is amended by adding at the end the following: “(e) Consistency With New Jersey Blue Acres Program.—The Secretary shall carry out this section in a manner that is consistent with the Blue Acres Program of the State of New Jersey”. (h) Study of Highlands Land Conservation.—The Secretary, in cooperation with the Secretary of Agriculture and the State of New Jersey, may study the feasibility of conserving land in the Highlands region of New Jersey and New York to provide additional flood protection for residents of the Passaic River basin in accordance with section 212 of the Water Resources Development Act of 1999 (33 U.S.C. 2332). (i) Restriction on Use of Funds.—The Secretary shall not obligate any funds to carry out design or construction of the tunnel element of the Passaic River flood control project, as authorized by section 101(a)(18)(A) of the Water Resources Development Act of 1990 (104 Stat. 4607).