,i #aacth ,,congress #ast ,session ,h4 ,r4 #gci ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,february #ad1 #bjac ,mr4 ,wittman introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,natural ,resources1 and in addition to the ,committee on ,transportation and ,infrastructure1 for a period to be subsequently determined by the ,speaker1 in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned ,a ,,bill ,to require the ,office of ,management and ,budget to prepare a crosscut budget for restoration activities in the ,chesapeake ,bay watershed1 to require the ,environmental ,protection ,agency to develop and implement an adaptive management plan1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,chesapeake ,bay ,accountability and ,recovery ,act of #bjac4 #b4 ,chesapeake ,bay ,crosscut ,budget 7a7 ,crosscut ,budget ,the ,director1 in consultation with the ,chesapeake ,executive ,council1 the chief executive of each ,chesapeake ,bay ,state1 and the ,chesapeake ,bay ,commission1 shall submit to ,congress a financial report containing-- 7#a7 an interagency crosscut budget that displays-- 7,a7 the proposed funding for any ,federal restoration activity to be carried out in the succeeding fiscal year1 including any planned interagency or intra-agency transfer1 for each of the ,federal agencies that carry out restoration activities2 7,b7 to the extent that information is available1 the estimated funding for any ,state restoration activity to be carried out in the succeeding fiscal year2 7,c7 all expenditures for ,federal restoration activities from the preceding #b fiscal years1 the current fiscal year1 and the succeeding fiscal year2 and 7,d7 all expenditures1 to the extent that information is available1 for ,state restoration activities during the equivalent time period described in subparagraph 7,c72 7#b7 a detailed accounting of all funds received and obligated by all ,federal agencies for restoration activities during the current and preceding fiscal years1 including the identification of funds which were transferred to a ,chesapeake ,bay ,state for restoration activities2 7#c7 to the extent that information is available1 a detailed accounting from each ,state of all funds received and obligated from a ,federal agency for restoration activities during the current and preceding fiscal years2 and 7#d7 a description of each of the proposed ,federal and ,state restoration activities to be carried out in the succeeding fiscal year 7corresponding to those activities listed in subparagraphs 7,a7 and 7,b7 of paragraph 7#a771 including the-- 7,a7 project description2 7,b7 current status of the project2 7,c7 ,federal or ,state statutory or regulatory authority1 programs1 or responsible agencies2 7,d7 authorization level for appropriations2 7,e7 project timeline1 including benchmarks2 7,f7 references to project documents2 7,g7 descriptions of risks and uncertainties of project implementation2 7,h7 adaptive management actions or framework2 7,i7 coordinating entities2 7,j7 funding history2 7,k7 cost-sharing2 and 7,l7 alignment with existing ,chesapeake ,bay ,agreement and ,chesapeake ,executive ,council goals and priorities4 7b7 ,minimum funding levels ,the ,director shall only describe restoration activities in the report required under subsection 7a7 that-- 7#a7 for ,federal restoration activities1 have funding amounts greater than or equal to #ajj1jjj2 and 7#b7 for ,state restoration activities1 have funding amounts greater than or equal to #ej1jjj4 7c7 ,deadline ,the ,director shall submit to ,congress the report required by subsection 7a7 not later than #cj days after the submission by the ,president of the ,president's annual budget to ,congress4 7d7 ,report ,copies of the financial report required by subsection 7a7 shall be submitted to the ,committees on ,appropriations1 ,natural ,resources1 ,energy and ,commerce1 and ,transportation and ,infrastructure of the ,house of ,representatives and the ,committees on ,appropriations1 ,environment and ,public ,works1 and ,commerce1 ,science1 and ,transportation of the ,senate4 7e7 ,effective ,date ,this section shall apply beginning with the first fiscal year after the date of enactment of this ,act for which the ,president submits a budget to ,congress4 #c4 ,adaptive ,management ,plan 7a7 ,in general ,not later than #a year after the date of enactment of this ,act1 the ,administrator1 in consultation with other ,federal and ,state agencies1 shall develop an adaptive management plan for restoration activities in the ,chesapeake ,bay watershed that includes-- 7#a7 definition of specific and measurable objectives to improve water quality1 habitat1 and fisheries2 7#b7 a process for stakeholder participation2 7#c7 monitoring1 modeling1 experimentation1 and other research and evaluation practices2 7#d7 a process for modification of restoration activities that have not attained or will not attain the specific and measurable objectives set forth under paragraph 7#a72 and 7#e7 a process for prioritizing restoration activities and programs to which adaptive management shall be applied4 7b7 ,implementation ,the ,administrator shall implement the adaptive management plan developed under subsection 7a74 7c7 ,updates ,the ,administrator shall update the adaptive management plan developed under subsection 7a7 every #b years4 7d7 ,report to ,congress 7#a7 ,in general ,not later than #fj days after the end of a fiscal year1 the ,administrator shall transmit to ,congress an annual report on the implementation of the adaptive management plan required under this section for such fiscal year4 7#b7 ,contents ,the report required under paragraph 7#a7 shall contain information about the application of adaptive management to restoration activities and programs1 including programmatic and project level changes implemented through the process of adaptive management4 7#c7 ,effective date ,paragraph 7#a7 shall apply to the first fiscal year that begins after the date of enactment of this ,act4 7e7 ,inclusion of plan in ,annual ,action ,plan and ,annual ,progress ,report ,the ,administrator shall ensure that the ,annual ,action ,plan and ,annual ,progress ,report required by section #bje of ,executive ,order #acejh includes the adaptive management plan outlined in subsection 7a74 #d4 ,independent ,evaluator for the ,chesapeake ,bay ,program 7a7 ,in general ,there shall be an ,independent ,evaluator for restoration activities in the ,chesapeake ,bay watershed1 who shall review and report on restoration activities and the use of adaptive management in restoration activities1 including on such related topics as are suggested by the ,chesapeake ,executive ,council4 7b7 ,appointment 7#a7 ,in general ,the ,independent ,evaluator shall be appointed by the ,administrator from among nominees submitted by the ,chesapeake ,executive ,council4 7#b7 ,nominations ,the ,chesapeake ,executive ,council may submit to the ,administrator #d nominees for appointment to any vacancy in the office of the ,independent ,evaluator4 7c7 ,reports ,the ,independent ,evaluator shall submit a report to the ,congress every #b years in the findings and recommendations of reviews under this section4 7d7 ,chesapeake ,executive ,council ,in this section1 the term ,chesapeake ,executive ,council has the meaning given that term by section #cjg of the ,national ,oceanic and ,atmospheric ,administration ,authorization ,act of #aiib 7,public ,law #ajb-efg2 #ae ,u4,s4,c4 #aeaa;d74 #e4 ,definitions ,in this ,act1 the following definitions apply3 7#a7 ,adaptive ,management ,the term adaptive management means a type of natural resource management in which project and program decisions are made as part of an ongoing science-based process4 ,adaptive management involves testing1 monitoring1 and evaluating applied strategies and incorporating new knowledge into programs and restoration activities that are based on scientific findings and the needs of society4 ,results are used to modify management policy1 strategies1 practices1 programs1 and restoration activities4 7#b7 ,administrator ,the term ,administrator means the ,administrator of the ,environmental ,protection ,agency4 7#c7 ,chesapeake ,bay ,state ,the term ,chesapeake ,bay ,state or ,state means the ,states of ,maryland1 ,west ,virginia1 ,delaware1 and ,new ,york1 the ,commonwealths of ,virginia and ,pennsylvania1 and the ,district of ,columbia4 7#d7 ,chesapeake ,bay ,watershed ,the term ,chesapeake ,bay watershed means the ,chesapeake ,bay and the geographic area1 as determined by the ,secretary of the ,interior1 consisting of #cf tributary basins1 within the ,chesapeake ,bay ,states1 through which precipitation drains into the ,chesapeake ,bay4 7#e7 ,chief ,executive ,the term chief executive means1 in the case of a ,state or ,commonwealth1 the ,governor of each such ,state or ,commonwealth and1 in the case of the ,district of ,columbia1 the ,mayor of the ,district of ,columbia4 7#f7 ,director ,the term ,director means the ,director of the ,office of ,management and ,budget4 7#g7 ,restoration ,activities ,the term restoration activities means any ,federal or ,state programs or projects that directly or indirectly protect1 conserve1 or restore living resources1 habitat1 water resources1 or water quality in the ,chesapeake ,bay watershed1 including programs or projects that promote responsible land use1 stewardship1 and community engagement in the ,chesapeake ,bay watershed4 ,restoration activities may be categorized as follows3 7,a7 ,physical restoration4 7,b7 ,planning4 7,c7 ,feasibility studies4 7,d7 ,scientific research4 7,e7 ,monitoring4 7,f7 ,education4 7,g7 ,infrastructure ,development4