,,ii #aaith ,,congress #b;d ,session ,s4 #dedi ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,may #ad1 #bjbf,mr4 ,cornyn introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,foreign ,relations ,a ,,bill ,to ensure the reliable delivery of water to the ,united ,states under the #aidd ,water ,treaty1 to provide a mechanism to compensate ,united ,states agricultural producers for economic losses resulting from delivery shortfalls1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,water ,assurance and ,treaty ,enforcement for ,rio ,grande ,farmers ,act or the ,,water for ,farmers ,act4 #b4 ,findings ,congress makes the following findings3 7#a7 ,the ,treaty relating to the ,utilization of ,waters of the ,colorado and ,tijuana ,rivers and of the ,rio ,grande1 signed at ,washington ,february #c1 #aidd 7#i ,bevans #aaff71 between the ,united ,states and ,mexico 7in this ,act referred to as the #aidd ,water ,treaty or the ,treaty71 intends for ,mexico to deliver annually to the ,united ,states a minimum of #cej1jjj acre-feet of water from the ,rio ,grande basin1 measured in cycles of #e consecutive years4 7#b7 ,the practice of relying on storm events to comply with the terms of the ,treaty1 unpredictable yearly deliveries1 and accumulating large deficits1 create profound uncertainty and have inflicted severe economic harm on ,united ,states agricultural producers and communities in ,south ,texas who rely on regular delivery of water under the ,treaty4 7#c7 ,those annual economic harms have a direct impact on interstate and international commerce1 distort agricultural markets1 and create unfair competitive conditions for ,united ,states agricultural producers4 7#d7 ,recent diplomatic agreements between the ,united ,states and ,mexico1 including ,minutes #cbe and #cca of the ,international ,boundary and ,water ,commission1 do not contain sufficient enforcement mechanisms to guarantee the reliable delivery of water necessary for agricultural planning and production4 7#e7 ,new enforcement mechanisms are necessary to ensure the benefits of the #aidd ,water ,treaty are fully realized by the ,united ,states4 #c4 ,determination of water delivery shortfalls 7a7 ,in general ,not later than #cj days after the end of each year of a five-year water delivery cycle under the #aidd ,water ,treaty1 the ,secretary of ,state1 in consultation with the ,united ,states ,commissioner of the ,international ,boundary and ,water ,commission and the ,secretary of ,agriculture1 shall determine whether ,mexico has delivered the quantity of water for that year required under subsection 7b74 ,if it is determined that ,mexico has not delivered that quantity of water for that year1 ,mexico shall be considered in a water delivery shortfall for that year4 7b7 ,annual delivery requirement 7#a7 ,in general ,the minimum quantity of water required to be delivered by ,mexico by the end of each year of a cycle of #e consecutive years under the #aidd ,water ,treaty shall be #cej1jjj acre-feet4 7#b7 ,actions by ,secretary of ,state ,the ,secretary of ,state shall take such actions as are necessary to formalize the requirement described in paragraph 7#a74 #d4 ,imposition of duties during period of water delivery shortfalls 7a7 ,in general ,the ,united ,states ,trade ,representative1 in consultation with the ,secretary of ,state1 the ,secretary of ,agriculture1 and the ,united ,states ,commissioner of the ,international ,boundary and ,water ,commission1 shall impose duties with respect to imports of goods from ,mexico during the period-- 7#a7 beginning on the date that is #ij days after a determination is made under section #c7;a7 that ,mexico is in a water delivery shortfall for a year2 and 7#b7 ending on the date that is #cj days after the ,secretary of ,state1 in consultation with the ,secretary of ,agriculture1 the ,united ,states ,trade ,representative1 and the ,united ,states ,commissioner of the ,international ,boundary and ,water ,commission1 determines and certifies to ,congress that ,mexico has remedied the water delivery shortfalls for all preceding years4 7b7 ,goods subject to duties ,the ,united ,states ,trade ,representative shall determine the goods imported from ,mexico to be subject to duties under subsection 7a71 prioritizing the imposition of such duties with respect to-- 7#a7 agricultural products or other goods for which such duties are likely to have a significant economic impact on ,mexico2 and 7#b7 goods produced in areas that use water from-- 7,a7 the ,rio ,grande ,river2 or 7,b7 tributaries that should flow to the ,rio ,grande ,river4 7c7 ,increased duties for shortfall carryovers ,if ,mexico is in a water delivery shortfall for a second or subsequent consecutive year1 the ,united ,states ,trade ,representative shall increase the duties imposed with respect to imports of goods from ,mexico1 by-- 7#a7 increasing the rates of duty applicable to such goods2 or 7#b7 expanding the categories of goods to which such duties apply4 #e4 ,south ,texas ,agricultural ,compensation ,trust ,fund 7a7 ,in general ,there is established in the ,treasury of the ,united ,states a trust fund1 to be known as the ,south ,texas ,agricultural ,compensation ,trust ,fund 7in this section referred to as the ,trust ,fund71 consisting of-- 7#a7 amounts transferred to the trust fund under subsection 7b72 and 7#b7 any amounts that may be credited to the trust fund under subsection 7c74 7b7 ,transfer of amounts ,the ,secretary of the ,treasury shall transfer to the ,trust ,fund1 from the general fund of the ,treasury1 an amount equivalent to the amount received into the general fund and attributable to duties collected under section #d4 7c7 ,investment of amounts 7#a7 ,investment of amounts ,the ,secretary shall invest such portion of the ,trust ,fund as is not required to meet current withdrawals in interest-bearing obligations of the ,united ,states or in obligations guaranteed as to both principal and interest by the ,united ,states4 7#b7 ,interest and proceeds ,the interest on1 and the proceeds from the sale or redemption of1 any obligations held in the ,trust ,fund shall be credited to and form a part of the ,trust ,fund4 7d7 ,availability of amounts ,amounts in the ,trust ,fund shall be available1 without further appropriation1 to the ,secretary of ,agriculture to provide direct financial compensation to agricultural producers who have suffered economic losses as determined under section #f4 #f4 ,compensation of ,united ,states agricultural producers harmed by water delivery shortfalls 7a7 ,in general ,not later than #ij days after a determination is made under section #c7;a7 that ,mexico is in a water delivery shortfall for a year1 the ,secretary of ,agriculture1 in consultation with the ,secretary of ,state and the ,united ,states ,commissioner of the ,international ,boundary and ,water ,commission1 shall calculate the direct economic losses incurred by ,united ,states agricultural producers in the ,rio ,grande ,valley as a result of the shortfall4 7b7 ,compensation formula ,the ,secretary shall calculate direct economic losses under subsection 7a7 at the amount equal to the product of-- 7#a7 the shortfall volume in acre-feet1 multiplied by 7#b7 the economic value per acre-foot1 multiplied by 7#c7 the impact multiplier4 7c7 ,definitions ,in this section3 7#a7 ,economic value per acre-foot ,the term economic value per acre-foot means the value derived by the ,secretary of ,agriculture by considering comprehensive and regularly updated studies of ,south ,texas agricultural economics1 including direct crop revenue losses1 increased costs for alternative water sources1 elevated water rates1 the higher value and vulnerability of specialty crops1 and regional variations in water value4 7#b7 ,impact multiplier ,the term impact multiplier means the multiplier derived by the ,secretary of ,agriculture by considering indirect and cascading economic impacts beyond direct farm gate losses1 including job losses in agriculture and related sectors1 reduced supplies to downstream industries1 and closures of agricultural processing businesses4 7#c7 ,shortfall volume in acre-feet ,the term shortfall volume in acre-feet means the difference between ,mexico's required water delivery under section #c7;b7 for a year and the actual volume of water delivered to the ,united ,states in acre-feet during that year4 #g4 ,data collection and review ,the ,united ,states ,section of the ,international ,boundary and ,water ,commission1 in coordination with the ,secretary of ,agriculture and the ,secretary of ,state1 shall collect1 monitor1 and publicly report1 on a monthly basis1 detailed1 real-time data on-- 7#a7 the delivery of water under the #aidd ,water ,treaty2 7#b7 precise calculations of water delivery shortfalls2 and 7#c7 the status of compensation payments made under section #f4 #h4 ,interaction with ,treaty and other laws 7a7 ,treaty ,this ,act is intended to be construed and applied in a manner consistent with the obligations of the ,united ,states under the #aidd ,water ,treaty4 7b7 ,other laws ,nothing in this ,act shall be construed to diminish or impair any right or remedy available under-- 7#a7 any other provision of ,federal or ,state law1 except as required by this ,act2 or 7#b7 any other international agreement4