[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 468 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

112th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 468

    To amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to clarify the 
authority of the Administrator to disapprove specifications of disposal 
 sites for the discharge of, dredged or fill material, and to clarify 
  the procedure under which a higher review of specifications may be 
                               requested.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 3, 2011

 Mr. McConnell (for himself, Mr. Paul, and Mr. Inhofe) 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 clarify the 
authority of the Administrator to disapprove specifications of disposal 
 sites for the discharge of, dredged or fill material, and to clarify 
  the procedure under which a higher review of specifications may be 
                               requested.

    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 ``Mining Jobs Protection Act''.

SEC. 2. PERMITS FOR DREDGED OR FILL MATERIAL.

    Section 404 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 
1344) is amended by striking subsection (c) and inserting the 
following:
    ``(c) Authority of Administrator To Disapprove Specifications.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Administrator, in accordance with 
        this subsection, may prohibit the specification of any defined 
        area as a disposal site, and may deny or restrict the use of 
        any defined area for specification as a disposal site, in any 
        case in which the Administrator determines, after notice and 
        opportunity for public hearings and consultation with the 
        Secretary, that the discharge of those materials into the area 
        will have an unacceptable adverse effect on--
                    ``(A) municipal water supplies;
                    ``(B) shellfish beds and fishery areas (including 
                spawning and breeding areas);
                    ``(C) wildlife; or
                    ``(D) recreational areas.
            ``(2) Deadline for action.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The Administrator shall--
                            ``(i) not later than 30 days after the date 
                        on which the Administrator receives from the 
                        Secretary for review a specification proposed 
                        to be issued under subsection (a), provide 
                        notice to the Secretary of, and publish in the 
                        Federal Register, a description of any 
                        potential concerns of the Administrator with 
                        respect to the specification, including a list 
                        of measures required to fully address those 
                        concerns; and
                            ``(ii) if the Administrator intends to 
                        disapprove a specification, not later than 60 
                        days after the date on which the Administrator 
                        receives a proposed specification under 
                        subsection (a) from the Secretary, provide to 
                        the Secretary and the applicant, and publish in 
                        the Federal Register, a statement of 
                        disapproval of the specification pursuant to 
                        this subsection, including the reasons for the 
                        disapproval.
                    ``(B) Failure to act.--If the Administrator fails 
                to take any action or meet any deadline described in 
                subparagraph (A) with respect to a proposed 
                specification, the Administrator shall have no further 
                authority under this subsection to disapprove or 
                prohibit issuance of the specification.
            ``(3) No retroactive disapproval.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The authority of the 
                Administrator to disapprove or prohibit issuance of a 
                specification under this subsection--
                            ``(i) terminates as of the date that is 60 
                        days after the date on which the Administrator 
                        receives the proposed specification from the 
                        Secretary for review; and
                            ``(ii) shall not be used with respect to 
                        any specification after issuance of the 
                        specification by the Secretary under subsection 
                        (a).
                    ``(B) Specifications disapproved before date of 
                enactment.--In any case in which, before the date of 
                enactment of this subparagraph, the Administrator 
                disapproved a specification under this subsection (as 
                in effect on the day before the date of enactment of 
                the Mining Jobs Protection Act) after the specification 
                was issued by the Secretary pursuant to subsection 
                (a)--
                            ``(i) the Secretary may--
                                    ``(I) reevaluate and reissue the 
                                specification after making appropriate 
                                modifications; or
                                    ``(II) elect not to reissue the 
                                specification; and
                            ``(ii) the Administrator shall have no 
                        further authority to disapprove the modified 
                        specification or any reissuance of the 
                        specification.
                    ``(C) Finality.--An election by the Secretary under 
                subparagraph (B)(i) shall constitute final agency 
                action.
            ``(4) Applicability.--Except as provided in paragraph (3), 
        this subsection applies to each specification proposed to be 
        issued under subsection (a) that is pending as of, or requested 
        or filed on or after, the date of enactment of the Mining Jobs 
        Protection Act''.

SEC. 3. REVIEW OF PERMITS.

    Section 404(q) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 
U.S.C. 1344(q)) is amended--
            (1) in the first sentence, by striking ``(q) Not later 
        than'' and inserting the following:
    ``(q) Agreements; Higher Review of Permits.--
            ``(1) Agreements.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Not later than'';
            (2) in the second sentence, by striking ``Such agreements'' 
        and inserting the following:
                    ``(B) Deadline.--Agreements described in 
                subparagraph (A)''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(2) Higher review of permits.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Subject to subparagraph (C), 
                before the Administrator or the head of another Federal 
                agency requests that a permit proposed to be issued 
                under this section receive a higher level of review by 
                the Secretary, the Administrator or other head shall--
                            ``(i) consult with the head of the State 
                        agency having jurisdiction over aquatic 
                        resources in each State in which activities 
                        under the requested permit would be carried 
                        out; and
                            ``(ii) obtain official consent from the 
                        State agency (or, in the case of multiple 
                        States in which activities under the requested 
                        permit would be carried out, from each State 
                        agency) to designate areas covered or affected 
                        by the proposed permit as aquatic resources of 
                        national importance.
                    ``(B) Failure to obtain consent.--If the 
                Administrator or the head of another Federal agency 
                does not obtain State consent described in subparagraph 
                (A) with respect to a permit proposed to be issued 
                under this section, the Administrator or Federal agency 
                may not proceed in seeking higher review of the permit.
                    ``(C) Limitation on elevations.--The Administrator 
                or the head of another Federal agency may request that 
                a permit proposed to be issued under this section 
                receive a higher level of review by the Secretary not 
                more than once per permit.
                    ``(D) Effective date.--This paragraph applies to 
                permits for which applications are submitted under this 
                section on or after January 1, 2010.''.
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