Water Resources Planning Act Amendments of 1979
Latest action. Referred to House Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs.
Water Resources Planning Act Amendments of 1979 - Amends the Water Resources Planning Act of 1965 to provide that such Act will not diminish (instead of change) the authority of any Federal agency or official. Changes the composition of the Water Resources Council. Provides for a Chairman to be appointed by the President. Requires the Council to report annually to the President and Congress. Authorizes the Council to provide technical assistance to Federal, State, and local agencies to assist them in implementing principles, standards, and procedures established by the Council. Limits the technical review by the Council. Provides for congressional review of the Council implementation of specified provisions. Makes the Council Chairman responsible for the appointment of a staff director. Establishes a State Water Advisory Council to provide for broad national representation in the area of water management, which will meet periodically with the Water Resources Council. Provides for the appointment and supervision of the river basin commission chairmen by the Council Chairman (instead of the President). Establishes a Federal program to assist States in water management activities and the development and use of water and related land resources. Conditions such assistance on the State designating an agency to develop a State water management program which meets specified standards. Requires the State's application for assistance to set forth a specific work plan for developing, implementing, or modifying the State program. Sets forth the formula and standards for making allocations to the States. Requires those States receiving assistance to submit annual reports to the Council.
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in House" stage on February 8, 1979. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on February 8, 1979: Referred to House Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the House
- Passage by the Senate
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 96th Congress (1979-80), 613 of the 12,581 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 4.9 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
BRUCE VENTO (D-MN) introduced it on February 8, 1979, and 6 members have since signed on as cosponsors.
They come from both major parties: 3 Democrats, 2 Republicans, 1 independent.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on February 8, 1979, 17381 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 17381 days ago, on February 8, 1979.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 96th Congress has not finished by January 3, 1981 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseIn committee, no floor vote yet
- SenateAwaits House passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers