Membership Terms

• The National Council shall comprise a balanced membership of federal, tribal, interstate, state, local, and municipal governments, watershed groups-and national associations that will include volunteer monitoring groups. The membership will include representatives from organizations that collect, analyze, interpret, disseminate, or use water-quality monitoring information as well as those that develop monitoring technology, guidelines, and/or standards.

• Total membership of the National Council should not exceed 35 member organizations. Each member organization will designate their representative and an alternate to the National Council.

• State membership on the National Council will include one State agency representative from each of the 10 Federal regions. Within each region, the Council Steering Committee will solicit representatives of State water-quality monitoring agencies. This will be done in coordination with State officials interested in membership. State members will serve 4-year terms.

• The Council Co-Chairs will recommend to the Council Steering Committee a minimum of 11 non-government member organizations that have differing viewpoints and water-quality-monitoring and assessment functions. These organizations may represent the following interests: tribal, agriculture, environmental interest groups, industry, local agencies and municipalities, river-basin commissions, and/or associations, universities, and volunteer monitoring groups. These other member organizations will serve 4-year terms and can be redesignated.

• The USGS and the USEPA will serve as Co-Chairs 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 initially 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 the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Additional Federal member organizations up to a total of 10 can participate as mutually agreed by the Steering Committee of the National Council.

• Representatives or their alternates are expected to attend all meetings of the National Council. If a member organization is not represented at three consecutive meetings,then the Steering Committee of the National Council may appoint a new member organization to replace the member that has failed to participate.