[Congressional Bills 103th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3865 Introduced in House (IH)]

103d CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 3865

 To amend the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and 
   Liability Act of 1980 (Superfund) to provide for the clean up of 
   municipal waste landfill Superfund sites, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           February 11, 1994

       Mrs. Johnson of Connecticut (for herself and Mr. Frank of 
   Massachusetts) introduced the following bill; which was referred 
 jointly to the Committees on Energy and Commerce and Public Works and 
                             Transportation

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and 
   Liability Act of 1980 (Superfund) to provide for the clean up of 
   municipal waste landfill Superfund sites, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. STATE PROGRAMS FOR CLEAN UP OF MUNICIPAL WASTE LANDFILL 
              SUPERFUND SITES.

    (a) State Programs.--(1) The Comprehensive Environmental Response, 
Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9601 et seq.) is 
amended by adding at the end of title I the following new section:

``SEC. 127. MUNICIPAL WASTE LANDFILL SITES.

    ``(a) State Programs.--
            ``(1) In general.--Each State may develop and submit to the 
        Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency a State 
        program under which the State will remediate, in accordance 
        with this section, qualified municipal waste landfills.
            ``(2) Submission of program.--The Administrator shall 
        require that State programs under this section be submitted at 
        such time, in such form, and in such manner as the 
        Administrator deems appropriate. Not later than 180 days after 
        receipt of a State program, the Administrator shall approve or 
        disapprove the program. The Administrator shall approve the 
        program if the Administrator determines that the program 
        provides for the remediation of qualified municipal waste 
        landfills in accordance with the provisions of subsection (b). 
        Upon approval of such program, the provisions of this title 
        (other than this section and section 101) shall not apply to 
        any release or threatened release at any qualified municipal 
        waste landfill which is covered by such program. If the program 
        is disapproved, the Administrator shall inform the State of the 
        reasons for the disapproval and permit the State to correct and 
        resubmit the program for approval.
    ``(b) Remediation.--The President shall promulgate, after 
opportunity for notice and comment, regulations governing response 
action under this section. Such regulations shall provide for a 
presumptive remedy based on streamlined site characterization using the 
Environmental Protection Agency's Model Municipal Landfill Remedial 
Investigation and Feasibility Study Guidance and for closure of the 
site consistent with subtitle D of the Solid Waste Disposal Act. Such 
presumptive remedy shall include each of the following:
            ``(1) Waste consolidation where feasible if multiple 
        discrete disposal sites can be more economically contained in 
        one unit.
            ``(2) Final cover, including a barrier layer with a 
        permeability equal to 1 x 10<SUP>-5 cm per second or a flexible 
        membrane liner of at least 30mm thickness, and properly 
        maintained vegetative cover. Upon demonstration, existing caps 
        providing comparable control may be used or upgraded as needed.
            ``(3) Landfill gas control consistent with subtitle D of 
        the Solid Waste Disposal Act and where necessary passive gas 
        controls unless gas volumes and composition require active 
        collection.
            ``(4) Surface water controls.
            ``(5) Control of leachate where feasible and necessary 
        given the landfill's design and as required by its contact with 
        ground water.
            ``(6) Ground water monitoring as required by subtitle D of 
        the Solid Waste Disposal Act.
            ``(7) Where ground water has been impacted by the site, 
        assurance of no migration of contamination beyond the facility 
        boundary or, if appropriate, treatment at point of withdrawal.
            ``(8) Institutional controls to prevent future exposure to 
        waste, including, where appropriate and consistent with local 
        zoning authority, prohibitions on the use of private wells on 
        site or on adjacent properties; creation of buffer zones; use 
        of zoning to prevent future land uses which would disturb the 
        site's final cover. To the maximum extent feasible and as 
        authorized by the local land control authority, beneficial uses 
        consistent with maintenance of proper closure should be 
        employed (e.g., use as parkland, conservation district, active 
        waste management facility, limited access industrial activity, 
        roadway). Residential use is not permitted at sites employing 
        presumptive remedies.
            ``(9) Site security to prevent access inconsistent with 
        closure requirements.
            ``(10) A post-closure care plan that ensures the 
        maintenance and stability of containment and institutional 
        control measures for so long as each measure is necessary to 
        assure the integrity of the remedy.
If the President has reason to believe, based on site-specific risk 
factors such as records of disposal of significant quantities of 
hazardous waste, that the presumptive remedy will not protect human 
health and the environment, he may require additional protections, 
including but not limited to, removal of drums or other discrete, 
accessible areas of high concentration waste where practicable.
    ``(c) Remediation Costs.--
            ``(1) Reimbursement from superfund.--The President shall 
        reimburse each State with an approved municipal waste landfill 
        remediation program for all costs incurred by the State for the 
        remediation, in accordance with subsection (b), of hazardous 
        substances, pollutants and contaminants at facilities listed on 
        the National Priorities List which are qualified municipal 
        waste landfills located in that State. The President shall use 
        funds in the Hazardous Substance Superfund, up to an amount not 
        exceeding $5,000,000,000, for purposes of providing such 
        reimbursement. Reimbursement shall be provided for costs 
        incurred with respect to facilities which have a higher ranking 
        on the Hazard Ranking System before reimbursement is provided 
        for costs incurred for facilities having a lower ranking on 
        such system. No reimbursement shall be provided under this 
        section for any transaction costs or other related costs.
            ``(2) Effective date.--Reimbursement under paragraph (1) 
        shall be provided for any remediation costs incurred after the 
        date of approval of a State program under this section if the 
        remediation is in accordance with such program.
            ``(3) Transition provisions.--(A) If remediation commenced 
        before approval of a program under this section and was not 
        completed before January 1, 1994, the President shall reimburse 
        each person who incurred costs for such remediation for such 
        costs if the President determines that the remediation is 
        consistent with, or provides at least equivalent protection for 
        public health and the environment as, the remediation specified 
        in subsection (b).
            ``(B) The Administrator may not reimburse any State or 
        other person for costs incurred for remediation which was 
        completed before January 1, 1994.
    ``(d) Liability Exemption.--
            ``(1) In general.--If a State has an approved remediation 
        program which covers qualified municipal waste landfills, no 
        person who is otherwise liable under this Act or under any 
        other Federal law with respect to any release or threatened 
        release of a hazardous substance or pollutant or contaminant 
        from any qualified such landfill shall be subject to liability 
        to any other person under this Act or any such other law for 
        injuries, costs, damages, expenses, or other liability 
        (including claims for indemnification or contribution and 
        claims by third parties for death, personal injury, illness or 
        loss of or damage to property or economic loss) that results 
        from such release or threatened release.
            ``(2) Exceptions.--(A) The exemption under this subsection 
        shall not apply in the case of any landfill at which the 
        remediation was completed before January 1, 1994.
            ``(B) The exemption under this subsection shall not apply 
        to any person who violated any Federal, State, or local law 
        relating to the generation, transporation, or disposal of any 
        solid waste which is present at the facility concerned. Any 
        such person shall be liable, in the same manner as provided in 
        section 107, to the State for any costs incurred by the State 
        pursuant to the State program under this section; and such 
        person shall be liable to the Administrator in the same manner 
        for any such costs for which the Administrator has reimbursed 
        the State under this section.
    ``(e) Definition of Municipal Waste Landfills.--For purposes of 
this section, the term `qualified municipal waste landfill' means a 
landfill listed on the National Priorities List as of the date of 
enactment of this section which is designated by the Administrator as--
            ``(1) a site owned by a municipality or county, or
            ``(2) a privately-owned site which has a record of 
        receiving municipal waste.
    The Administrator shall publish a list of such sites within 30 days 
after the enactment of this section.''.
    (2) The table of contents for title I of such Act is amended by 
adding at the end the following new item:

``Sec. 127. Municipal waste landfills.''.
    (b) Uses of Superfund.--Section 111(a) of the Comprehensive 
Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (42 
U.S.C. 9611(a)) is amended by inserting after paragraph (6) the 
following new paragraph:
            ``(7) Reimbursement of costs for remediation of municipal 
        waste landfills.--Payment of not to exceed $5,000,000,000 for 
        the costs of remediation of municipal waste landfills in 
        accordance with section 127.''.

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