[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5310 Introduced in House (IH)]







106th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 5310

   To authorize appropriations to promote innovation and technology 
transfer in wastewater discharge reduction and water conservation, and 
                          for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 26, 2000

 Ms. Woolsey introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
             Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To authorize appropriations to promote innovation and technology 
transfer in wastewater discharge reduction and water conservation, 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 ``Industrial Conservation and 
Efficiency Water Act''.

SEC. 2. WASTEWATER DISCHARGE REDUCTION AND WATER CONSERVATION PROGRAM.

    Not later than January 1, 2001, the Administrator of the 
Environmental Protection Agency shall establish a program to provide 
assistance to municipal entities, including publicly owned treatment 
works, and non governmental organizations and associations, including 
watershed groups sponsored by governmental entities, whose mission 
relates to water conservation and efficiency. The assistance may only 
be used to support non-Federal voluntary programs that seek to promote 
new technologies and processes to reduce the use of water and the 
discharge of wastewater from commercial and industrial entities.

SEC. 3. ASSISTANCE.

    Assistance provided under this Act shall include--
            (1) technical and planning assistance, which shall include, 
        but not be limited to, studies, wastewater audits, modeling, 
        data collection, surveys, preconstruction, engineering, and 
        design assistance;
            (2) financial assistance (including the provision of direct 
        grants to municipal entities, loan guarantees, and the 
        establishment of locally based revolving loan programs through 
        commercial lending institutions), which will reduce the cost of 
        improvements (including the cost of capital improvements) that 
        will lead to reductions in wastewater discharges and water 
        usage by commercial and industrial entities; and
            (3) non-Federal program development, which shall include 
        funding for a period of up to 2 years for personnel to assist 
        in the development and implementation of a program that meets 
        the goals of this Act.

SEC. 4. SELECTION CRITERIA.

    (a) In General.--The Administrator of the Environmental Protection 
Agency shall select proposals to be funded under this Act on the basis 
of one or more of the following:
            (1) Reductions in the discharge of wastewater from 
        commercial and industrial entities.
            (2) Cost-effectiveness.
            (3) Energy efficiency.
            (4) Other environmental and economic benefits, including 
        brownfields cleanup and redevelopment, job retention, and 
        economic revitalization.
            (5) Reductions in the demand for water.
            (6) Technical feasibility and ability to replicate at other 
        locations.
            (7) Technology transfer plan for distributing the results 
        of the proposal to be funded.
            (8) Relationship to other efforts to reduce water 
        pollution.
    (b) Geographic Diversity.--In selecting proposals to be funded 
under this Act, the Administrator shall make every effort to ensure 
geographic diversity in those proposals funded.

SEC. 5. ELIGIBILITY OF CERTAIN TREATMENT WORKS.

    A treatment works shall be treated as a publicly owned treatment 
works for purposes of this Act if the treatment works, without regard 
to ownership, would be considered a publicly owned treatment works 
under the Federal Water Pollution Control Act and is principally 
treating municipal wastewater or domestic sewage.

SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There are authorized to be appropriated to the Administrator of the 
Environmental Protection Agency for carrying out this Act $25,000,000 
for each of the fiscal years 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, and 2005. Such 
funds shall remain available until expended.
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