I 118TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 2855 To direct the Director of the United States Geological Survey to establish a program to map zones that are at greater risk of sinkhole formation, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES APRIL 25, 2023 Mr. SOTO (for himself and Mr. BILIRAKIS) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources A BILL To direct the Director of the United States Geological Survey to establish a program to map zones that are at greater risk of sinkhole formation, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Sinkhole Mapping Act 4 of 2023’’. 5 SEC. 2. SINKHOLE HAZARD IDENTIFICATION. 6 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Director of the United States 7 Geological Survey shall establish a program to— 8 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:14 May 02, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2855.IH H2855 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 2855 IH (1) study the short-term and long-term mecha- 1 nisms that cause sinkholes, including extreme storm 2 events, prolonged droughts causing shifts in water 3 management practices, aquifer depletion, and other 4 major changes in water use; and 5 (2) develop maps that depict zones that are at 6 greater risk of sinkhole formation. 7 (b) REVIEW OF MAPS.—Once during each 5-year pe- 8 riod, or more often as the Director of the United States 9 Geological Survey determines is necessary, the Director 10 shall assess the need to revise and update the maps devel- 11 oped under this section. 12 (c) WEBSITE.—The Director of the United States 13 Geological Survey shall establish and maintain a public 14 website that displays the maps developed under this sec- 15 tion and other relevant information critical for use by com- 16 munity planners and emergency managers. 17 (d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 18 are hereby authorized $40,000,000 for each of fiscal years 19 2024 through 2028 to be appropriated to the Director of 20 the United States Geological Survey for purposes of car- 21 rying out this section. 22 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:14 May 02, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H2855.IH H2855 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS