[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3426 Introduced in House (IH)]

112th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 3426

To amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to require the closure 
of oil storage and processing facilities that have spilled oil multiple 
     times near residential neighborhoods, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           November 15, 2011

   Mr. Connolly of Virginia introduced the following bill; which was 
     referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to require the closure 
of oil storage and processing facilities that have spilled oil multiple 
     times near residential neighborhoods, 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 ``Protecting Neighborhoods from Oil 
Pollution Act of 2011''.

SEC. 2. OIL STORAGE AND PROCESSING FACILITIES.

    Section 311 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 
1321) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(s) Oil Storage and Processing Facilities.--
            ``(1) Closure.--Not later than 6 months after the date of 
        enactment of the Protecting Neighborhoods from Oil Pollution 
        Act of 2011, the Administrator shall issue final regulations 
        requiring an owner or operator of an oil storage or processing 
        facility to permanently close the oil storage or processing 
        facility if one or both of the following conditions apply:
                    ``(A) The oil storage or processing facility is 
                located within 1 mile of 100 or more residential units, 
                and 2 or more covered discharges occur at the oil 
                storage or processing facility within any 10-year 
                period.
                    ``(B) The oil storage or processing facility is the 
                source of groundwater contamination affecting 100 or 
                more residential units.
            ``(2) Regulations.--The Administrator shall include in 
        regulations issued under paragraph (1) the following:
                    ``(A) A definition of the term `permanently close', 
                to include requirements that--
                            ``(i) all liquid and sludge are removed 
                        from each container and connecting line 
                        associated with the oil storage or processing 
                        facility;
                            ``(ii) all connecting lines and piping 
                        associated with the oil storage or processing 
                        facility are disconnected from each such 
                        container and blanked off, all valves (except 
                        for ventilation valves) are closed and locked, 
                        and conspicuous signs are posted on each such 
                        container stating that it is a permanently 
                        closed container and noting the date of 
                        closure; and
                            ``(iii) all other applicable Federal laws 
                        and regulations are followed with respect to 
                        clean up and remediation of any other 
                        contamination at, or originating from, the oil 
                        storage or processing facility.
                    ``(B) Any additional closure and post-closure 
                requirements the Administrator determines appropriate.
                    ``(C) A requirement that closure of an oil storage 
                or processing facility be completed by one of the 
                following deadlines, as applicable:
                            ``(i) Not later than 1 year after the date 
                        of enactment of the Protecting Neighborhoods 
                        from Oil Pollution Act of 2011, in the case of 
                        an oil storage or processing facility at which 
                        2 or more covered discharges have occurred on 
                        or before such date of enactment.
                            ``(ii) Not later than 1 year after the date 
                        on which a second covered discharge occurs at 
                        the oil storage or processing facility within 
                        any 10-year period, in the case of any oil 
                        storage or processing facility not described in 
                        clause (i).
                            ``(iii) Not later than 1 year after the 
                        date on which the Administrator determines that 
                        the oil storage or processing facility is the 
                        source of groundwater contamination affecting 
                        100 or more residential units.
                    ``(D) Any other requirements the Administrator 
                determines appropriate.
            ``(3) Prohibited exemptions.--The Administrator may not 
        include in regulations issued under paragraph (1) exemptions to 
        any of the requirements of this subsection for covered 
        discharges resulting from an act of God, an act of war, or 
        negligence on the part of the United States Government.
            ``(4) Waiver and extension authority.--The Administrator 
        may waive the requirement for closure of an oil storage or 
        processing facility under this subsection, or grant an 
        extension of the deadline for such closure, if the 
        Administrator determines that the owner or operator of the 
        facility has taken or is taking all practicable steps to 
        remediate the condition requiring closure under paragraph (1).
            ``(5) Health and welfare authority.--A condition requiring 
        closure under paragraph (1) shall be considered to be--
                    ``(A) a substantial threat to the public health or 
                welfare of the United States for the purposes of 
                subsections (c) and (e); and
                    ``(B) an imminent and substantial endangerment to 
                the health of persons or to the welfare of persons for 
                the purposes of section 504.
            ``(6) Definitions.--For the purposes of this subsection, 
        the following definitions apply:
                    ``(A) Covered discharge.--The term `covered 
                discharge' means a discharge of oil greater than 40 
                gallons from any source.
                    ``(B) Oil storage or processing facility.--The term 
                `oil storage or processing facility' means any 
                structure, group of structures, equipment, or device, 
                including any associated property, that is used for 
                producing, storing, handling, transferring, processing, 
                or transporting oil.
            ``(7) Rule of construction.--Nothing in this subsection 
        shall be construed to restrict any other Federal or State 
        authority regarding the remediation of, or other response to, a 
        covered discharge.''.
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