[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 90 (Tuesday, June 24, 1997)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1309]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  AMENDING THE SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. HENRY A. WAXMAN

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 24, 1997

  Mr. WAXMAN. Mr. Speaker, today I am introducing a noncontroversial 
bill which will make it much easier for States to comply with the Safe 
Drinking Water Act.
  Under the Safe Drinking Water Act amendments Congress considered last 
year, States are required to conduct source water assessments. These 
source water assessments delineate and assess sources of drinking water 
within each State. They are an important part of our efforts to protect 
the public's drinking water.
  When Congress passed the Safe Drinking Water Act Amendments of 1996, 
there was the expectation that States could get their drinking water 
State revolving funds [DWSRF] up and running within a year. 
Accordingly, States have had the discretion to use up to 10 percent of 
their Federal capitalization grants for fiscal years 1996 and 1997 to 
conduct source water assessments. However, this short timeframe for 
funding has turned out to be problematic for the States. In fact, some 
States may not even have grant applications submitted during fiscal 
year 1997.
  This bill would amend the Safe Drinking Water Act to fix this problem 
by giving States the discretion to fund source water assessments with 
their capitalization grants for 1 additional year. This bill would not 
make any new authorizations. It would place no new requirements on 
States, nor would it require funds to be spent on source water 
assessments. This bill simply gives States discretion in how they use 
funds they have already been granted.
  When Speaker Gingrich proposed Corrections Day in the last Congress, 
he said that it should be used only for noncontroversial legislation of 
a limited scope. I have actively participated in the corrections 
advisory group for the last 2 years and believe that this proposal is 
the ideal candidate for the Corrections Day calendar.
  I have consulted with the Office of Drinking Water at the 
Environmental Protection Agency who have raised no objections. In fact, 
there is no known opposition to the bill at all. This bill is supported 
by the State drinking water administrators, the water supply industry, 
and the environmental groups.
  The Association of State Drinking Water Administrators, the American 
Water Works Association, the Association of Metropolitan Water 
Agencies, the Association of California Water Agencies, Clean Water 
Action, and the Natural Resources Defense Council all support this 
bill.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge every Member to support this noncontroversial 
bill. Congress should act quickly to send this to the President to 
become law.

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