[Congressional Bills 104th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1950 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







104th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 1950

To amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to improve the quality 
         of coastal recreation waters, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 12, 1996

Mr. Lautenberg introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
       referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to improve the quality 
         of coastal recreation waters, 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. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Beaches Environmental Assessment, 
Closure, and Health Act of 1996''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds that--
            (1) the Nation's beaches are a valuable public resource 
        used for recreation by millions of people annually;
            (2) the beaches of coastal States are hosts to many out-of-
        State and international visitors;
            (3) tourism in the coastal zone generates billions of 
        dollars annually;
            (4) increased population has contributed to the decline in 
        the environmental quality of coastal waters;
            (5) pollution in coastal waters is not restricted by State 
        and other political boundaries;
            (6) each coastal State has its own method of testing the 
        quality of its coastal recreation waters, providing varying 
        degrees of protection to the public; and
            (7) the adoption of standards by coastal States for 
        monitoring the quality of coastal recreation waters, and the 
        posting of signs at beaches notifying the public during periods 
        when the standards are exceeded, would enhance public health 
        and safety.
    (b) Purpose.--The purpose of this Act is to require uniform 
procedures for beach testing and monitoring to protect public safety 
and improve the environmental quality of coastal recreation waters.

SEC. 3. WATER QUALITY CRITERIA AND STANDARDS.

    (a) Issuance of Criteria.--Section 304(a) of the Federal Water 
Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1314(a)) is amended by adding at the 
end the following:
            ``(9) Coastal recreation waters.--(A) The Administrator, 
        after consultation with appropriate Federal and State agencies 
        and other interested persons, shall issue within 18 months 
        after the effective date of this paragraph (and review and 
        revise from time to time thereafter, but in no event less than 
        once every 5 years) water quality criteria for pathogens in 
        coastal recreation waters. Such criteria shall--
                            ``(i) be based on the best available 
                        scientific information;
                            ``(ii) be sufficient to protect public 
                        health and safety in case of any reasonably 
                        anticipated exposure to pollutants as a result 
                        of swimming, bathing, or other body contact 
                        activities; and
                            ``(iii) include specific numeric criteria 
                        calculated to reflect public health risks from 
                        short-term increases in pathogens in coastal 
                        recreation waters resulting from rainfall, 
                        malfunctions of wastewater treatment works, and 
                        other causes.
                    ``(B) For purposes of this paragraph, the term 
                `coastal recreation waters' means Great Lakes and 
                marine coastal waters commonly used by the public for 
                swimming, bathing, or other similar primary contact 
                purposes.''.
    (b) Standards.--
            (1) Adoption by states.--A State shall adopt water quality 
        standards for coastal recreation waters which, at a minimum, 
        are consistent with the criteria published by the Administrator 
        under section 304(a)(9) of the Federal Water Pollution Control 
        Act (33 U.S.C. 1314(a)(9)), as amended by this Act, not later 
        than 3 years following the date of such publication. Such water 
        quality standards shall be developed in accordance with the 
        requirements of section 303(c) of the Federal Water Pollution 
        Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1313(c)). A State shall incorporate such 
        standards into all appropriate programs into which such State 
        would incorporate other water quality standards adopted under 
        section 303(c) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 
        U.S.C. 1313(c)).
            (2) Failure of states to adopt.--If a State has not 
        complied with paragraph (1) by the last day of the 3-year 
        period beginning on the date of publication of criteria under 
        section 304(a)(9) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act 
        (33 U.S.C. 1314(a)(9)), as amended by this Act, the water 
        quality criteria issued by the Administrator under such section 
        shall become applicable as the water quality standards for 
        coastal recreational waters for the State. The State shall use 
        the standards issued by the Administrator in implementing all 
        programs for which water quality standards for coastal 
        recreation waters are used.

SEC. 4. COASTAL BEACH WATER QUALITY MONITORING.

    Title IV of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 
1341-1345) is amended by adding at the end thereof the following new 
section:

``SEC. 406. COASTAL BEACH WATER QUALITY MONITORING.

    ``(a) Monitoring.--Not later than 9 months after the date on which 
the Administrator publishes revised water quality criteria for coastal 
recreation waters under section 304(a)(9), the Administrator shall 
publish regulations specifying methods to be used by States to monitor 
coastal recreation waters, during periods of use by the public, for 
compliance with applicable water quality standards for those waters and 
protection of the public safety. Monitoring requirements established 
pursuant to this subsection shall, at a minimum--
            ``(1) specify the frequency of monitoring based on the 
        periods of recreational use of such waters;
            ``(2) specify the frequency of monitoring based on the 
        extent and degree of use during such periods;
            ``(3) specify the frequency of monitoring based on the 
        proximity of coastal recreation waters to pollution sources;
            ``(4) specify methods for detecting levels of pathogens and 
        for identifying short-term increases in pathogens in coastal 
        recreation waters; and
            ``(5) specify the conditions and procedures under which 
        discrete areas of coastal recreation waters may be exempted by 
        the Administrator from the monitoring requirements of this 
        subsection, if the Administrator determines that an exemption 
        will not impair--
                    ``(A) compliance with the applicable water quality 
                standards for those waters; and
                    ``(B) protection of the public safety.
    ``(b) Notification Requirements.--Regulations published pursuant to 
subsection (a) shall require States to notify local governments and the 
public of violations of applicable water quality standards for State 
coastal recreation waters. Notification pursuant to this subsection 
shall include, at a minimum--
            ``(1) prompt communication of the occurrence, nature, and 
        extent of such a violation, to a designated official of a local 
        government having jurisdiction over land adjoining the coastal 
        recreation waters for which a violation is identified; and
            ``(2) posting of signs, for the period during which the 
        violation continues, sufficient to give notice to the public of 
        a violation of an applicable water quality standard for such 
        waters and the potential risks associated with body contact 
        recreation in such waters.
    ``(c) Floatable Materials Monitoring Procedures.--The Administrator 
shall--
            ``(1) issue guidance on uniform assessment and monitoring 
        procedures for floatable materials in coastal recreation 
        waters; and
            ``(2) specify the conditions under which the presence of 
        floatable material shall constitute a threat to public health 
        and safety.
    ``(d) Delegation of Responsibility.--A State may delegate 
responsibility for monitoring and posting of coastal recreation waters 
pursuant to this section to local government authorities.
    ``(e) Review and Revision of Regulations.--The Administrator shall 
review and revise regulations published pursuant to this section 
periodically, but in no event less than once every 5 years.
    ``(f) Definitions.--For the purposes of this section, the following 
definitions apply:
            ``(1) Coastal recreation waters.--The term `coastal 
        recreation waters' means Great Lakes and marine coastal waters 
        commonly used by the public for swimming, bathing, or other 
        similar body contact purposes.
            ``(2) Floatable materials.--The term `floatable materials' 
        means any matter that may float or remain suspended in the 
        water column and includes plastic, aluminum cans, wood, 
        bottles, and paper products.''.

SEC. 5. STUDIES TO IDENTIFY INDICATORS OF HUMAN-SPECIFIC PATHOGENS IN 
              COASTAL RECREATION WATERS.

    (a) Studies.--The Administrator, in cooperation with the Under 
Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere, shall conduct studies 
to provide additional information to the current base of knowledge for 
use for developing better indicators for directly detecting in coastal 
recreation waters the presence of bacteria and viruses which are 
harmful to human health.
    (b) Report.--Not later than 4 years after the date of the enactment 
of this Act, and periodically thereafter, the Administrator shall 
submit to the Congress a report describing the findings of the studies 
under this section, including--
            (1) recommendations concerning the need for additional 
        numerical limits or conditions and other actions needed to 
        improve the quality of coastal recreation waters;
            (2) a description of the amounts and types of floatable 
        materials in coastal waters and on coastal beaches and of 
        recent trends in the amounts and types of such floatable 
        materials; and
            (3) an evaluation of State efforts to implement this Act, 
        including the amendments made by this Act.

SEC. 6. GRANTS TO STATES.

    (a) Grants.--The Administrator may make grants to States for use in 
fulfilling requirements established pursuant to section 3 and 4.
    (b) Cost Sharing.--The total amount of grants to a State under this 
section for a fiscal year shall not exceed 50 percent of the cost to 
the State of implementing requirements established pursuant to section 
3 and 4.

SEC. 7. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act, the following definitions apply:
            (1) Administrator.--The term ``Administrator'' means the 
        Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency.
            (2) Coastal recreation waters.--The term ``coastal 
        recreation waters'' means Great Lakes and marine coastal waters 
        commonly used by the public for swimming, bathing, or other 
        similar body contact purposes.
            (3) Floatable materials.--The term ``floatable materials'' 
        means any matter that may float or remain suspended in the 
        water column and includes plastic, aluminum cans, wood, 
        bottles, and paper products.

SEC. 8. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There is authorized to be appropriated to the Administrator--
            (1) for use in making grants to States under section 6 not 
        more than $4,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 1997 and 
        1998; and
            (2) for carrying out the other provisions of this Act not 
        more than $1,500,000 for each of the fiscal years 1997 and 
        1998.
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