[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 18 (Monday, February 1, 2016)]
[Senate]
[Page S431]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

  SA 3162. Mr. UDALL (for himself, Mr. Portman, Mrs. Boxer, Mr. 
Alexander, Mr. Wyden, and Mr. Brown) submitted an amendment intended to 
be proposed to amendment SA 2953 proposed by Ms. Murkowski to the bill 
S. 2012, to provide for the modernization of the energy policy of the 
United States, and for other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the 
table; as follows:

       At the appropriate place, insert the following:

     SEC. ____. WATERSENSE.

       (a) In General.--Part B of title III of the Energy Policy 
     and Conservation Act is amended by adding after section 324A 
     (42 U.S.C. 6294a) the following:

     ``SEC. 324B. WATERSENSE.

       ``(a) Establishment of WaterSense Program.--
       ``(1) In general.--There is established within the 
     Environmental Protection Agency a voluntary WaterSense 
     program to identify and promote water-efficient products, 
     buildings, landscapes, facilities, processes, and services 
     that, through voluntary labeling of, or other forms of 
     communications regarding, products, buildings, landscapes, 
     facilities, processes, and services while meeting strict 
     performance criteria, sensibly--
       ``(A) reduce water use;
       ``(B) reduce the strain on public and community water 
     systems and wastewater and stormwater infrastructure;
       ``(C) conserve energy used to pump, heat, transport, and 
     treat water; and
       ``(D) preserve water resources for future generations.
       ``(2) Inclusions.--The Administrator of the Environmental 
     Protection Agency (referred to in this section as the 
     `Administrator') shall, consistent with this section, 
     identify water-efficient products, buildings, landscapes, 
     facilities, processes, and services, including categories 
     such as--
       ``(A) irrigation technologies and services;
       ``(B) point-of-use water treatment devices;
       ``(C) plumbing products;
       ``(D) reuse and recycling technologies;
       ``(E) landscaping and gardening products, including 
     moisture control or water enhancing technologies;
       ``(F) xeriscaping and other landscape conversions that 
     reduce water use;
       ``(G) whole house humidifiers; and
       ``(H) water-efficient buildings or facilities.
       ``(b) Duties.--The Administrator, coordinating as 
     appropriate with the Secretary, shall--
       ``(1) establish--
       ``(A) a WaterSense label to be used for items meeting the 
     certification criteria established in accordance with this 
     section; and
       ``(B) the procedure, including the methods and means, and 
     criteria by which an item may be certified to display the 
     WaterSense label;
       ``(2) enhance public awareness regarding the WaterSense 
     label through outreach, education, and other means;
       ``(3) preserve the integrity of the WaterSense label by--
       ``(A) establishing and maintaining feasible performance 
     criteria so that products, buildings, landscapes, facilities, 
     processes, and services labeled with the WaterSense label 
     perform as well or better than less water-efficient 
     counterparts;
       ``(B) overseeing WaterSense certifications made by third 
     parties;
       ``(C) as determined appropriate by the Administrator, using 
     testing protocols, from the appropriate, applicable, and 
     relevant consensus standards, for the purpose of determining 
     standards compliance; and
       ``(D) auditing the use of the WaterSense label in the 
     marketplace and preventing cases of misuse; and
       ``(4) not more often than 6 years after adoption or major 
     revision of any WaterSense specification, review and, if 
     appropriate, revise the specification to achieve additional 
     water savings;
       ``(5) in revising a WaterSense specification--
       ``(A) provide reasonable notice to interested parties and 
     the public of any changes, including effective dates, and an 
     explanation of the changes;
       ``(B) solicit comments from interested parties and the 
     public prior to any changes;
       ``(C) as appropriate, respond to comments submitted by 
     interested parties and the public; and
       ``(D) provide an appropriate transition time prior to the 
     applicable effective date of any changes, taking into account 
     the timing necessary for the manufacture, marketing, 
     training, and distribution of the specific water-efficient 
     product, building, landscape, process, or service category 
     being addressed; and
       ``(6) not later than December 31, 2018, consider for review 
     and revision any WaterSense specification adopted before 
     January 1, 2012.
       ``(c) Transparency.--The Administrator shall, to the 
     maximum extent practicable and not less than annually, 
     regularly estimate and make available to the public the 
     production and relative market shares and savings of water, 
     energy, and capital costs of water, wastewater, and 
     stormwater attributable to the use of WaterSense-labeled 
     products, buildings, landscapes, facilities, processes, and 
     services.
       ``(d) Distinction of Authorities.--In setting or 
     maintaining specifications for Energy Star pursuant to 
     section 324A, and WaterSense under this section, the 
     Secretary and Administrator shall coordinate to prevent 
     duplicative or conflicting requirements among the respective 
     programs.''.
       (b) Conforming Amendment.--The table of contents for the 
     Energy Policy and Conservation Act (42 U.S.C. prec. 6201) is 
     amended by inserting after the item relating to section 324A 
     the following:

``Sec. 324B. WaterSense.''.
                                 ______