National Water-Quality Monitoring Council
Terms of Reference

I. Official designation.

The National Water-Quality Monitoring Council (National Council) is the permanent successor to the Intergovernmental Task Force on Monitoring Water Quality (ITFM).

II. Purpose, scope, applicability, and functions.

A. Purpose--The overall purpose of the National Council is to support water-quality-information aspects of natural-resources management and environmental protection. The National Council has a broad mandate that encompasses water-quality monitoring and assessment, which includes considerations of water quality in relation to water quantity. The purpose of the National Council is to coordinate and provide guidance and technical support for the voluntary implementation of the recommendations presented in the Strategy for Improving Water-Quality Monitoring in the United States (the strategy) by government agencies and the private sector. The intent of the strategy, presented in the final report of the ITFM, is to stimulate the monitoring improvements needed to achieve comparable and scientifically defensible information, interpretations, and evaluations of water-quality conditions. The information is required to support decisionmaking at local, State, Tribal, interstate, and national scales.

B. Scope--The scope of the National Council includes reviewing activities for monitoring the quality of fresh surface water, estuary and near-coastal water, ground water, and precipitation at local, regional, and national levels. The National Council will provide guidance for the collection, management, and use of water-quality information. This information is needed to assess status and trends, to identify and prioritize existing and emerging problems, to develop and implement management and regulatory programs and to evaluate compliance with environmental requirements and the effectiveness of programs and projects. Regarding marine environments, the National Council will assist the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the States, and the Tribes in their joint activities to gather water-quality-monitoring information.

The National Council will address and provide guidance for each of the following aspects of water-quality monitoring: institutional coordination and collaboration, identifying the objectives for monitoring, program design, environmental indicators and standard descriptors of aquatic and riparian conditions, reference conditions and sites, station selection, methods and data comparability, quality assurance and control, information management and data sharing, ancillary data needed to interpret basic water-quality data and information, data-interpretation and analysis techniques, reporting findings and information, training, incentives for participating in the strategy, benefits and costs of monitoring, evaluation of monitoring activities, and other issues necessary to the successful implementation of the strategy.

C. Applicability--As resources are available and consistent with applicable legal requirements, organizations that voluntarily choose to participate in implementing the strategy will implement ITFM recommendations and voluntarily use the guidelines and procedures developed by the National Council and accepted by the Advisory Committee on Water Information (ACWI).

D. Functions--The specific functions and tasks of the National Council include the following:

1. Maintain the institutional framework--To implement the strategy, establish and maintain collaborative partnerships that link monitoring organizations at the national, regional, State, Tribal, and watershed levels.
2. Evaluate progress--Evaluate and report the progress in implementing the strategy every 5 years beginning in 2000. The evaluation will include accomplishments, plans, recommendations, and a list of organizations that participate in implementing the strategy. The report will be distributed to Governors, the heads of executive agencies, the President, the Congress, and other interested parties.
3. Data quality and documentation--Develop and foster the implementation of monitoring activities for which the data quality is known and the documentation is adequate to support information sharing.
4. Indicators--Establish and maintain a process to identify and distribute comparable physical, chemical, and biological indicators to measure progress in meeting water-quality goals at the national and large regional levels. As part of the process to support comparable and policy-relevant indicators, produce guidance for implementing national indicators. Coordinate planning for implementing comparable indicators. (The plans will include agency-specific actions, data-quality guidelines, and schedules for reporting data intended for use in national assessment activities.) Encourage similar collaboration to achieve comparable and relevant indicators at the State and the watershed levels.
5. Information management and sharing--Provide easy access to and support of the sharing of information holdings by creating links among information systems that will constitute a nationwide distributed water-information network. The system links and the information-sharing networks will include Federal, State, Tribal, local, and private organizations among the primary and the secondary users of water-quality information.
6. Data elements, codes, and reference tables--Adopt and maintain an agreed-upon data-element glossary to provide common terminology and definitions for documenting water-quality data; that is, metadata. Continue to update and refine the data-elements glossary to meet additional requirements. Coordinate support for interagency efforts to maintain, update, and distribute common taxonomic and other codes and reference tables for use in automated data systems containing water-quality information. In particular, support the Interagency Taxonomy Information System.
7. Methods and data comparability--Provide technical guidance and coordinate other support necessary to achieve comparable measurements that have known quality. To carry out these functions, the permanent Methods and Data Comparability Board (MDCB) will be established. The MDCB will include a balanced membership of organizations that represent Federal, State, Tribal, interstate, and local government agencies and the private sector.
8. National assessment--Foster collaboration among organizations that participate in national, multistate, or State assessments of water-quality conditions and trends. Develop and distribute guidelines and procedures to improve the interpretation and integration of the physical, chemical, and biological/ecological data needed to describe water-quality conditions and trends and to understand the factors that cause water-quality conditions to change.
9. Reporting and public education--Foster a better understanding of water-quality conditions, trends, and issues among decisionmakers and the general public by developing and implementing common or linked information-presentation and reporting methods, which would include suggested presentation formats.
10. Information dissemination--Establish a mechanism that uses modern information technology to make the activities, conventions, protocols, and guidelines that are part of the strategy widely accessible. The mechanism should be maintained over time as required to meet users needs and to document the evolving infrastructure that supports the strategy.
11. Training--Identify training requirements and recommend training activities to make the most effective use of monitoring resources and to facilitate data quality, comparability, and sharing.
12. International activities--Through existing mechanisms, foster communication, collaboration, and consensus to improve the availability and utility of water-quality information internationally. The National Council will learn from experts in other countries and evaluate technology and information for its applicability in the United States. Also, the National Council will share technology and information developed in the United States with other countries; in particular, the National Council will collaborate with appropriate entities under the North American Free Trade Agreement.

III. Membership.

A. The National Council shall comprise a balanced membership of Federal, interstate, State, Tribal, local, and municipal government agencies and the private sector, which will include volunteer monitoring groups. The membership will include organizations that collect, analyze, interpret, disseminate, or use water-quality monitoring information, as well as those that develop monitoring technology, guidelines, and (or) standards.

B. State membership on the National Council will include one State agency representative from each of the 10 Federal regions. To allow full State participation over time, membership will rotate among the States in one-half of the regions every 2 years. To initiate the rotation on the National Council, States in Regions I, III, V, VII, and IX will rotate at the end of the first 2 years. States in Regions II, IV, VI, VIII, and X will rotate at the end of the first 4 years. Within each region, representatives of State water-quality-monitoring agencies will elect their representative to the National Council. State representatives will serve 4-year terms once the rotation noted above is established.

C. The Director of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the Assistant Administrator for Water of the USEPA will designate an additional 11 member organizations that have differing viewpoints and water-quality-monitoring and assessment functions. Other organizations that participate on the National Council will represent the following interests: Native Americans, agriculture, environmental interest groups, industry, local agencies and municipalities, river-basin commissions, and (or) in associations, universities, and volunteer monitoring groups. Nominations for this category of membership will be by members of the ACWI and other interested organizations. These other member organizations will serve 4-year terms and can be redesignated.

D. Each member organization will designate their representative and an alternate to the National Council.

E. The USGS and the USEPA will serve as cochairs of the National Council. The USGS will provide the Executive Secretariat for the National Council. Including the USGS and USEPA, Federal membership on the National Council will not exceed 10 representatives and will include the following organizations: the U.S. Department of Commerce/NOAA, the Tennessee Valley Authority, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the U.S. Department of Energy, the USEPA/Offices of Water, the U.S. Department of the Interior/USGS, and either the National Biological Service or the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Additional Federal member organizations up to a total of 10 can participate as mutually agreed by the cochairs of the National Council. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) will be invited to participate as a nonvoting member.

F. To ensure appropriate balance and expertise on the National Council, the cochairs may jointly designate additional member organizations not to exceed a total membership of 35.

G. Representatives or alternates are expected to attend all meetings of the National Council. If a member organization is not represented at three consecutive meetings, then the cochairs of the National Council may appoint a new member organization to replace the member that has failed to participate. The cochairs will consult with the member organization before removing it from the National Council.

IV. Meetings and procedures.

A. The National Council will meet a minimum of three times a year and at other times as designated by the cochairs. The cochairs will jointly determine the dates, times, and locations of the meetings in consultation with the members.

B. Representatives to the National Council will receive no pay, allowances, or benefits by reason of their service on the National Council. However, while away from their homes or regular places of business and in the performance of services for the National Council, non-Federal representatives to the National Council will be allowed travel expenses if needed. Travel expenses will include per diem in lieu of subsistence, in the same manner as persons employed intermittently in Government service are allowed such expenses under Section 5703 of Title 5 of the United States Code.

C. The presence of two-thirds of the representatives or designated alternates of the member organizations will constitute the quorum necessary to conduct business. The National Council will conduct business in an open fashion by attempting to discuss fully and resolve all issues through consensus and by recognizing the legitimate interests and diverse views of the National Council members. If complete agreement cannot be attained, then the following procedures will apply:

1. A consensus will exist unless one or more representatives request a vote.
2. If a vote is requested, then Robert's Rules of Order will apply, and the cochairs will poll the National Council. An affirmative vote of two-thirds of the members present will constitute approval. Each member organization may cast one vote.
3. Actions that constitute final reports or recommendations intended for nationwide implementation as part of the strategy will be signed by the cochairs. Representatives may prepare minority reports and provide them to the executive secretary within 1 week of a decision. Minority reports will be included in the final majority reports.
4. Agreements by the National Council may be reached in formal session or in writing on an individual basis after every delegate is advised in advance by the cochairs.

D. As resources are available and consistent with applicable legal requirements, organizations that chose to participate in the strategy will implement ITFM recommendations and will use the guidelines developed by the MDCB (or other subordinate groups) and approved by the National Council.

E. Before adopting guidelines or recommendations for voluntary implementation nationwide as part of the strategy, the National Council will announce proposed actions and products in the Federal Register for the purpose of obtaining public review and comments.

F. Summaries with action items of National Council meetings will be prepared by the executive secretary and distributed to all members and to the chair of the ACWI. In addition, meeting summaries and other documents will be available for public access and review.

G. Transcripts of each National Council meeting, recommendations adopted, and copies of all studies and reports received, issued, or approved in conjunction with the activities of the National Council will be available for public inspection on the Internet and for review and copying at the following location:

Office of Water Data Coordination
417 National Center
U.S. Geological Survey
12201 Sunrise Valley Drive
Reston, Virginia 22092

V. Period of time necessary for the activities of the National Council --The total period of time necessary for the National Council to carry out its activities is estimated to be for as long as the Federal Government has responsibilities and interests related to monitoring water quality.

VI. Official to whom the National Council reports--The National Council reports to the chair of the ACWI.

VII. Support services--Support services and executive secretariat for the activities of the National Council will be provided by the USGS. In addition, the USEPA and other organizations will provide services and other support to the National Council as mutually agreed.

VIII. Duties of the National Council--The duties of the National Council are to provide information and develop advice as set forth in Section II.

IX. Termination date--The National Council will operate for as long as the strategy is implemented. The chair of the ACWI has the authority to terminate the National Council in consultation with the member organizations of the ACWI and the National Council.

X. Subordinate groups--For assistance in conducting its business, the National Council may establish subordinate groups. Such groups will gather information, conduct research, analyze relevant issues and facts, and draft proposed position papers and (or) recommendations for deliberation by the National Council. These groups, which will be established by the cochairs, will have the balanced perspectives and knowledge necessary to perform their assigned functions. Representatives that serve on subordinate groups may include organizations or experts that are not members of the National Council or the ACWI, but that provide the knowledgeable and interested individuals needed to carry out the assigned tasks. The "Terms of Reference" for permanent groups, such as the MDCB, will be reviewed and approved by the National Council and forwarded to the ACWI for concurrence. These groups will report directly to the National Council or, in some cases, through another subordinate group.

XI. Authority--The National Council is part of the Water Information Coordination Program mandated by OMB Memorandum No. 92-01, dated December 10, 1991. The National Council reports to the ACWI that operates under the Federal Advisory Committee Act.

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