PlainBillCongress, translated.Legislation. Context. Public interest.Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S12905-12906)
Congressional Research Service
Version 00 · Introduced in Senate · Mar 5, 1998
Sonny Bono Memorial Salton Sea Restoration Act - Directs the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Commissioner of Reclamation, to prepare an action plan to restore the Salton Sea, located in Imperial and Riverside Counties, California. Outlines plan requirements, including reducing and stabilizing salinity, stabilizing surface elevation, restoring fish and wildlife resources, and enhancing recreational use and economic development. Requires the plan to include a feasibility study of the various alternatives for such remediation, the development of one or more of such options, and the development of a remediation plan implementing such options. Requires the feasibility study to be completed under a memorandum of understanding between the Secretary, the Salton Sea Authority, and the Governor of California. Preserves all current rights and obligations concerning Colorado River water use. Requires an interim and final report from the Secretary to the Congress on the findings and recommendations of the action plan. Authorizes appropriations. Authorizes the Secretary, 30 days after submission of such final report, to carry out a Salton Sea remediation project based on the preferred option recommended in the final report, unless otherwise directed by the Congress. Authorizes appropriations. Directs the Secretary, concurrently with the action plan, to enter into contracts, cooperative grants and agreements with Federal and non-federal entities to conduct studies of hydrology, wildlife pathology, and toxicology relating to wildlife resources of the Salton Sea. Directs the Secretary to establish the Salton Sea Research Management Committee to make recommendations to the Secretary on study topics and their management. Authorizes appropriations. Renames the Salton Sea National Wildlife Refuge as the Sonny Bono Salton Sea National Wildlife Refuge. Requires the Secretary, if it is determined during such studies that environmental conditions at the Salton Sea warrant immediate emergency action to stabilize salinity, to report to the Congress on such conditions and make recommendations for remediation.
People & committees
Sen. Boxer, Barbara [D-CA] · D–CA
Legislative record
A procedural vote is different from passage. Passage in one chamber does not establish enactment. Explore the glossary.
Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S12905-12906)
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.
Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S1441-1442)
Introduced in Senate
Primary sources
Text links open the official source. We currently store references to these documents.
No related bills are listed in this snapshot. This does not establish whether the proposal has appeared in earlier Congresses.
Source last updated: Sep 8, 2026. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
AI Conversation Starters
Choose a perspective, copy a prompt, and paste it into your preferred AI. Each prompt includes the bill version and available official source links, and asks for counterarguments as well as supporting evidence.
Analyze S.1716 as objectively as possible. Explain its main provisions, who would be affected, possible benefits and harms, implementation, exceptions, and uncertainties. Present the strongest arguments for and against it, and identify evidence needed to assess its public impact.
Examine S.1716 through a progressive lens, focusing on fairness, access, economic inequality, and effects on vulnerable communities. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and distinguish stated goals from demonstrated outcomes.
Examine S.1716 through a conservative lens, focusing on fiscal responsibility, institutional stability, federalism, and the scope of government. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and any provisions that challenge this perspective.
Examine S.1716 through a civil-liberties and limited-government lens. Consider individual rights, privacy, voluntary choice, accountability, and government power. Explain tradeoffs, possible safeguards, and the strongest counterarguments without assuming the proposal is beneficial or harmful.