[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1462 Introduced in House (IH)]







105th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1462

 To authorize the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency 
  to establish a pilot project providing loans to States to establish 
revolving loan funds for the environmental cleanup of brownfield sites 
    in distressed areas that have the potential to attract private 
                investment and create local employment.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 24, 1997

Mr. Visclosky introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                         Committee on Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To authorize the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency 
  to establish a pilot project providing loans to States to establish 
revolving loan funds for the environmental cleanup of brownfield sites 
    in distressed areas that have the potential to attract private 
                investment and create local employment.

    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 ``Brownfield Cleanup and Redevelopment 
Revolving Loan Fund Pilot Project Act of 1997''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

    (a) Findings.--The Congress finds:
            (1) Nationwide, older abandoned or under-used commercial 
        and industrial sites known as brownfields are often overlooked 
        for redevelopment because of real or perceived contamination 
        from past commercial or industrial activities.
            (2) Reuse of these sites often requires site assessment and 
        cleanup, adding costs and uncertainties to the redevelopment 
        process, and prompting many developers to pursue cheaper, less 
        complicated development options on undeveloped sites.
            (3) Brownfields are at a competitive disadvantage relative 
        to greenfield sites, as capital for their cleanup and 
        redevelopment may not be available. Often located in distressed 
        areas, brownfields, owned by public, private, or nonprofit 
        entities, are frequently unable to secure financing for site 
        remediation.
            (4) States have created remedial action programs to allow a 
        person to respond voluntarily to a release or suspected release 
        of hazardous substances at low and medium priority facilities. 
        Such programs have flourished due to the States' ability to 
        streamline duplicative State and Federal regulatory 
        requirements and affect a timely, cost-effective, and 
        environmentally protective cleanup of sites.
            (5) Because of their experience in administering targeted 
        loan assistance programs, States are in a good position to use 
        Federal funds to capitalize revolving loan funds to support 
        local cleanup and redevelopment projects.
    (b) Purpose.--The purpose of this Act is to establish a pilot 
project to revitalize distressed communities by providing loans for 
cleanup of eligible brownfield facilities and properties that are 
remediated through State voluntary cleanup programs and that have the 
potential to attract private investment, foster clean manufacturing, 
and create jobs for local residents.

SEC. 3. PILOT PROJECT PROVIDING REVOLVING LOAN FUND FOR CLEANUPS UNDER 
              STATE VOLUNTARY CLEANUP PROGRAMS.

    (a) Establishment of Loan Program.--The Administrator of the 
Environmental Protection Agency (hereinafter in this Act referred to as 
the ``Administrator'') shall establish a pilot project to provide a 
capitalization loan to one or more States that submit applications to 
the Administrator to establish or expand a State revolving loan fund 
for purposes of providing loans for voluntary environmental cleanups of 
eligible facilities.
    (b) Application for Loan.--An application for a capitalization loan 
under this section shall be in such form as the Administrator considers 
appropriate. At a minimum, the application shall include each of the 
following:
            (1) Evidence that the State is carrying out a voluntary 
        cleanup program for eligible facilities. The Administrator 
        shall ensure that the State voluntary program provides, at a 
        minimum, adequate opportunities for meaningful public 
        participation, sufficient technical assistance, and adequate 
        oversight and enforcement authority to ensure that cleanups 
        protect human health and the environment, adequate resources 
        are available to carry out cleanup, and certification from the 
        State to the owner or prospective purchaser that the cleanup is 
        complete.
            (2) Evidence that the State will provide a matching share 
        of at least 20 percent of the costs of such cleanup from either 
        new or existing sources of State funding.
            (3) A description of the State's proposed revolving loan 
        program and of the State's capability to manage the program. 
        States may use interest income or loan repayments (in an amount 
        equal to not more than 10 percent of their revolving loan 
fund amount) for program administrative purposes. At a minimum, the 
State's revolving loan program shall--
                    (A) provide loans to both public and private 
                parties conducting voluntary cleanups under the State's 
                voluntary cleanup program who are unable to secure 
loans from private lending institutions or other means of financing;
                    (B) require that borrowers demonstrate credit 
                worthiness and the ability to carry out the cleanup; 
                and
                    (C) give priority to loans for the purpose of 
                cleaning up--
                            (i) facilities that are planned to be 
                        reused for industrial purposes that employ 
                        environmentally sound practices; and
                            (ii) facilities that will generate jobs for 
                        contractors whose principal place of business 
                        is the political subdivision in which the 
                        facility is located or for laborers who reside 
                        in such political subdivisions.
            (4) A statement that the State will begin repayment of the 
        loan within 5 years after receipt of the loan, and evidence of 
        the State's ability to repay the loan.
            (5) A statement that a loan from the revolving loan fund 
        will not be used to pay for any of the following:
                    (A) New construction at previously undeveloped 
                sites.
                    (B) Environmental fines or penalties.
                    (C) Speculative assessments or speculative 
                rehabilitation at facilities with little or no 
                potential for economic development.
            (6) Such other elements as the Administrator considers 
        appropriate.
    (c) Amount of Loan.--The Administrator shall determine the 
distribution of funds among the eligible States. The amount of a 
capitalization loan made by the Administrator under this Act to a State 
may not exceed 15 percent of the amount available each year to all the 
eligible States.
    (d) Authorization.--There are authorized to be appropriated to the 
Administrator for purposes of making capitalization loans to States 
under the pilot project established by this section the sum of 
$5,000,000 for fiscal year 1998 and $7,500,000 for each of the fiscal 
years 1999 and 2000.

SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.

    For purposes of this Act, the term ``eligible facility'' means a 
facility or property that is a low- or medium-priority environmental 
hazard for the State, but whose environmental contamination is thought 
to be preventing the timely use, redevelopment, or reuse of the 
facility or property, and is thought to be limited in scope and readily 
assessable, except that such term shall not include any of the 
following:
            (1) A facility for which an abatement action has been taken 
        or is scheduled to be taken under section 106 of the 
        Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and 
        Liability Act of 1980 or for which an action has been taken or 
        is scheduled to be taken under section 7003 of the Solid Waste 
        Disposal Act.
            (2) A facility that is the subject of a Federal response 
        action under section 104 of the Comprehensive Environmental 
        Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 
        9601 et seq.).
            (3) A facility included on the National Priorities List or 
        proposed for inclusion and for which documentation for listing 
        has been prepared by the State or the Administrator.
            (4) A facility required to have a permit under section 3005 
        of the Solid Waste Disposal Act that does not have a permit 
        under that section and does not qualify for authorization to 
        operate in interim status under subsection (e) of that section.
            (5) A land disposal unit with respect to which a closure 
        requirement under subtitle C of the Solid Waste Disposal Act 
        (42 U.S.C. 6921 et seq.) is submitted and closure requirements 
        are specified in a closure plan or permit.
            (6) A facility that is the subject of a corrective action 
        under section 3004(u) or 3008(h) of the Solid Waste Disposal 
        Act (42 U.S.C. 5924(u) or 6928(h)) that has been evaluated as 
        high priority under the Environmental Protection Agency's 
        National Corrective Action Priority System as set forth in 
        regulations under subtitle C of the Solid Waste Disposal Act.
            (7) A facility at which assistance for response activities 
        may be obtained pursuant to subtitle I of the Solid Waste 
        Disposal Act (42 U.S.C. 6991 et seq.) from the Leaking 
        Underground Storage Tank Trust Fund established under section 
        9508 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.
            (8) A facility owned or operated by a department, agency, 
        or instrumentality of the United States.
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