In the Senate of the United States,

September 21, 2000.

Resolved, That the bill from the House of Representatives (H.R. 999) entitled ‘‘An Act to amend the Federal

Water Pollution Control Act to improve the quality of coastal

recreation waters, and for other purposes.’’, do pass with the

following

AMENDMENT:

Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert:

1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Beaches Environmental

3 Assessment and Coastal Health Act of 2000’’.
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1 SEC. 2. ADOPTION OF COASTAL RECREATION WATER QUAL2 ITY CRITERIA AND STANDARDS BY STATES.

3 Section 303 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act

4 (33 U.S.C. 1313) is amended by adding at the end the fol5 lowing:

6 ‘‘(i) COASTAL RECREATION WATER QUALITY CRI7 TERIA.—

8 ‘‘(1) ADOPTION BY STATES.—

9 ‘‘(A) INITIAL CRITERIA AND STANDARDS.—

10 Not later than 42 months after the date of enact11 ment of this subsection, each State having coast12 al recreation waters shall adopt and submit to

13 the Administrator water quality criteria and

14 standards for the coastal recreation waters of the

15 State for those pathogens and pathogen indica16 tors for which the Administrator has published

17 criteria under section 304(a).

18 ‘‘(B) NEW OR REVISED CRITERIA AND

19 STANDARDS.—Not later than 36 months after the

20 date of publication by the Administrator of new

21 or revised water quality criteria under section

22 304(a)(9), each State having coastal recreation

23 waters shall adopt and submit to the Adminis24 trator new or revised water quality standards for

25 the coastal recreation waters of the State for all

26 pathogens and pathogen indicators to which the
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1 new or revised water quality criteria are appli2 cable.

3 ‘‘(2) FAILURE OF STATES TO ADOPT.—

4 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If a State fails to adopt

5 water quality criteria and standards in accord6 ance with paragraph (1)(A) that are as protec7 tive of human health as the criteria for patho8 gens and pathogen indicators for coastal recre9 ation waters published by the Administrator, the

10 Administrator shall promptly propose regula11 tions for the State setting forth revised or new

12 water quality standards for pathogens and

13 pathogen indicators described in paragraph

14 (1)(A) for coastal recreation waters of the State.

15 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—If the Administrator

16 proposes regulations for a State described in sub17 paragraph (A) under subsection (c)(4)(B), the

18 Administrator shall publish any revised or new

19 standard under this subsection not later than 42

20 months after the date of enactment of this sub21 section.

22 ‘‘(3) APPLICABILITY.—Except as expressly pro23 vided by this subsection, the requirements and proce24 dures of subsection (c) apply to this subsection, in-
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1 cluding the requirement in subsection (c)(2)(A) that

2 the criteria protect public health and welfare.’’.

3 SEC. 3. REVISIONS TO WATER QUALITY CRITERIA.

4 (a) STUDIES CONCERNING PATHOGEN INDICATORS IN

5 COASTAL RECREATION WATERS.—Section 104 of the Fed6 eral Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1254) is

7 amended by adding at the end the following:

8 ‘‘(v) STUDIES CONCERNING PATHOGEN INDICATORS IN

9 COASTAL RECREATION WATERS.—Not later than 18

10 months after the date of enactment of this subsection, after

11 consultation and in cooperation with appropriate Federal,

12 State, tribal, and local officials (including local health offi13 cials), the Administrator shall initiate, and, not later than

14 3 years after the date of enactment of this subsection, shall

15 complete, in cooperation with the heads of other Federal

16 agencies, studies to provide additional information for use

17 in developing—

18 ‘‘(1) an assessment of potential human health

19 risks resulting from exposure to pathogens in coastal

20 recreation waters, including nongastrointestinal ef21 fects;

22 ‘‘(2) appropriate and effective indicators for im23 proving detection in a timely manner in coastal

24 recreation waters of the presence of pathogens that are

25 harmful to human health;
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1 ‘‘(3) appropriate, accurate, expeditious, and cost2 effective methods (including predictive models) for de3 tecting in a timely manner in coastal recreation wa4 ters the presence of pathogens that are harmful to

5 human health; and

6 ‘‘(4) guidance for State application of the cri7 teria for pathogens and pathogen indicators to be

8 published under section 304(a)(9) to account for the

9 diversity of geographic and aquatic conditions.’’.

10 (b) REVISED CRITERIA.—Section 304(a) of the Federal

11 Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1314(a)) is amend12 ed by adding at the end the following:

13 ‘‘(9) REVISED CRITERIA FOR COASTAL RECRE14 ATION WATERS.—

15 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 5 years

16 after the date of enactment of this paragraph,

17 after consultation and in cooperation with ap18 propriate Federal, State, tribal, and local offi19 cials (including local health officials), the Ad20 ministrator shall publish new or revised water

21 quality criteria for pathogens and pathogen in22 dicators (including a revised list of testing meth23 ods, as appropriate), based on the results of the

24 studies conducted under section 104(v), for the
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1 purpose of protecting human health in coastal

2 recreation waters.

3 ‘‘(B) REVIEWS.—Not later than the date

4 that is 5 years after the date of publication of

5 water quality criteria under this paragraph, and

6 at least once every 5 years thereafter, the Admin7 istrator shall review and, as necessary, revise the

8 water quality criteria.’’.

9 SEC. 4. COASTAL RECREATION WATER QUALITY MONI10 TORING AND NOTIFICATION.

11 Title IV of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act

12 (33 U.S.C. 1341 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end

13 the following:

14 ‘‘SEC. 406. COASTAL RECREATION WATER QUALITY MONI15 TORING AND NOTIFICATION.

16 ‘‘(a) MONITORING AND NOTIFICATION.—

17 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 18 months

18 after the date of enactment of this section, after con19 sultation and in cooperation with appropriate Fed20 eral, State, tribal, and local officials (including local

21 health officials), and after providing public notice

22 and an opportunity for comment, the Administrator

23 shall publish performance criteria for—

24 ‘‘(A) monitoring and assessment (including

25 specifying available methods for monitoring) of
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1 coastal recreation waters adjacent to beaches or

2 similar points of access that are used by the pub3 lic for attainment of applicable water quality

4 standards for pathogens and pathogen indica5 tors; and

6 ‘‘(B) the prompt notification of the public,

7 local governments, and the Administrator of any

8 exceeding of or likelihood of exceeding applicable

9 water quality standards for coastal recreation

10 waters described in subparagraph (A).

11 ‘‘(2) LEVEL OF PROTECTION.—The performance

12 criteria referred to in paragraph (1) shall provide

13 that the activities described in subparagraphs (A) and

14 (B) of that paragraph shall be carried out as nec15 essary for the protection of public health and safety.

16 ‘‘(b) PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION

17 GRANTS.—

18 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator may

19 make grants to States and local governments to de20 velop and implement programs for monitoring and

21 notification for coastal recreation waters adjacent to

22 beaches or similar points of access that are used by

23 the public.

24 ‘‘(2) LIMITATIONS.—
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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator

2 may award a grant to a State or a local govern3 ment to implement a monitoring and notifica4 tion program if—

5 ‘‘(i) the program is consistent with the

6 performance criteria published by the Ad7 ministrator under subsection (a);

8 ‘‘(ii) the State or local government

9 prioritizes the use of grant funds for par10 ticular coastal recreation waters based on

11 the use of the water and the risk to human

12 health presented by pathogens or pathogen

13 indicators;

14 ‘‘(iii) the State or local government

15 makes available to the Administrator the

16 factors used to prioritize the use of funds

17 under clause (ii);

18 ‘‘(iv) the State or local government

19 provides a list of discrete areas of coastal

20 recreation waters that are subject to the

21 program for monitoring and notification for

22 which the grant is provided that specifies

23 any coastal recreation waters for which fis24 cal constraints will prevent consistency with
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1 the performance criteria under subsection

2 (a); and

3 ‘‘(v) the public is provided an oppor4 tunity to review the program through a

5 process that provides for public notice and

6 an opportunity for comment.

7 ‘‘(B) GRANTS TO LOCAL GOVERNMENTS.—

8 The Administrator may make a grant to a local

9 government under this subsection for implemen10 tation of a monitoring and notification program

11 only if, after the 1-year period beginning on the

12 date of publication of performance criteria under

13 subsection (a)(1), the Administrator determines

14 that the State is not implementing a program

15 that meets the requirements of this subsection, re16 gardless of whether the State has received a grant

17 under this subsection.

18 ‘‘(3) OTHER REQUIREMENTS.—

19 ‘‘(A) REPORT.—A State recipient of a grant

20 under this subsection shall submit to the Admin21 istrator, in such format and at such intervals as

22 the Administrator determines to be appropriate,

23 a report that describes—
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1 ‘‘(i) data collected as part of the pro2 gram for monitoring and notification as de3 scribed in subsection (c); and

4 ‘‘(ii) actions taken to notify the public

5 when water quality standards are exceeded.

6 ‘‘(B) DELEGATION.—A State recipient of a

7 grant under this subsection shall identify each

8 local government to which the State has dele9 gated or intends to delegate responsibility for im10 plementing a monitoring and notification pro11 gram consistent with the performance criteria

12 published under subsection (a) (including any

13 coastal recreation waters for which the authority

14 to implement a monitoring and notification pro15 gram would be subject to the delegation).

16 ‘‘(4) FEDERAL SHARE.—

17 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator,

18 through grants awarded under this section, may

19 pay up to 100 percent of the costs of developing

20 and implementing a program for monitoring

21 and notification under this subsection.

22 ‘‘(B) NON-FEDERAL SHARE.—The non-Fed23 eral share of the costs of developing and imple24 menting a monitoring and notification program

25 may be—
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1 ‘‘(i) in an amount not to exceed 50

2 percent, as determined by the Administrator

3 in consultation with State, tribal, and local

4 government representatives; and

5 ‘‘(ii) provided in cash or in kind.

6 ‘‘(c) CONTENT OF STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

7 PROGRAMS.—As a condition of receipt of a grant under

8 subsection (b), a State or local government program for

9 monitoring and notification under this section shall

10 identify—

11 ‘‘(1) lists of coastal recreation waters in the

12 State, including coastal recreation waters adjacent to

13 beaches or similar points of access that are used by

14 the public;

15 ‘‘(2) in the case of a State program for moni16 toring and notification, the process by which the

17 State may delegate to local governments responsibility

18 for implementing the monitoring and notification

19 program;

20 ‘‘(3) the frequency and location of monitoring

21 and assessment of coastal recreation waters based

22 on—

23 ‘‘(A) the periods of recreational use of the

24 waters;
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1 ‘‘(B) the nature and extent of use during

2 certain periods;

3 ‘‘(C) the proximity of the waters to known

4 point sources and nonpoint sources of pollution;

5 and

6 ‘‘(D) any effect of storm events on the wa7 ters;

8 ‘‘(4)(A) the methods to be used for detecting levels

9 of pathogens and pathogen indicators that are harm10 ful to human health; and

11 ‘‘(B) the assessment procedures for identifying

12 short-term increases in pathogens and pathogen indi13 cators that are harmful to human health in coastal

14 recreation waters (including increases in relation to

15 storm events);

16 ‘‘(5) measures for prompt communication of the

17 occurrence, nature, location, pollutants involved, and

18 extent of any exceeding of, or likelihood of exceeding,

19 applicable water quality standards for pathogens and

20 pathogen indicators to—

21 ‘‘(A) the Administrator, in such form as the

22 Administrator determines to be appropriate; and

23 ‘‘(B) a designated official of a local govern24 ment having jurisdiction over land adjoining the
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1 coastal recreation waters for which the failure to

2 meet applicable standards is identified;

3 ‘‘(6) measures for the posting of signs at beaches

4 or similar points of access, or functionally equivalent

5 communication measures that are sufficient to give

6 notice to the public that the coastal recreation waters

7 are not meeting or are not expected to meet applicable

8 water quality standards for pathogens and pathogen

9 indicators; and

10 ‘‘(7) measures that inform the public of the po11 tential risks associated with water contact activities

12 in the coastal recreation waters that do not meet ap13 plicable water quality standards.

14 ‘‘(d) FEDERAL AGENCY PROGRAMS.—Not later than 3

15 years after the date of enactment of this section, each Fed16 eral agency that has jurisdiction over coastal recreation wa17 ters adjacent to beaches or similar points of access that are

18 used by the public shall develop and implement, through

19 a process that provides for public notice and an opportunity

20 for comment, a monitoring and notification program for

21 the coastal recreation waters that—

22 ‘‘(1) protects the public health and safety;

23 ‘‘(2) is consistent with the performance criteria

24 published under subsection (a);
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1 ‘‘(3) includes a completed report on the informa2 tion specified in subsection (b)(3)(A), to be submitted

3 to the Administrator; and

4 ‘‘(4) addresses the matters specified in subsection

5 (c) .

6 ‘‘(e) DATABASE.—The Administrator shall establish,

7 maintain, and make available to the public by electronic

8 and other means a national coastal recreation water pollu9 tion occurrence database that provides—

10 ‘‘(1) the data reported to the Administrator

11 under subsections (b)(3)(A)(i) and (d)(3); and

12 ‘‘(2) other information concerning pathogens and

13 pathogen indicators in coastal recreation waters

14 that—

15 ‘‘(A) is made available to the Administrator

16 by a State or local government, from a coastal

17 water quality monitoring program of the State

18 or local government; and

19 ‘‘(B) the Administrator determines should

20 be included.

21 ‘‘(f) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE FOR MONITORING

22 FLOATABLE MATERIAL.—The Administrator shall provide

23 technical assistance to States and local governments for the

24 development of assessment and monitoring procedures for
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1 floatable material to protect public health and safety in

2 coastal recreation waters.

3 ‘‘(g) LIST OF WATERS.—

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Beginning not later than 18

5 months after the date of publication of performance

6 criteria under subsection (a), based on information

7 made available to the Administrator, the Adminis8 trator shall identify, and maintain a list of, discrete

9 coastal recreation waters adjacent to beaches or simi10 lar points of access that are used by the public that—

11 ‘‘(A) specifies any waters described in this

12 paragraph that are subject to a monitoring and

13 notification program consistent with the per14 formance criteria established under subsection

15 (a); and

16 ‘‘(B) specifies any waters described in this

17 paragraph for which there is no monitoring and

18 notification program (including waters for which

19 fiscal constraints will prevent the State or the

20 Administrator from performing monitoring and

21 notification consistent with the performance cri22 teria established under subsection (a)).

23 ‘‘(2) AVAILABILITY.—The Administrator shall

24 make the list described in paragraph (1) available to

25 the public through—
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1 ‘‘(A) publication in the Federal Register;

2 and

3 ‘‘(B) electronic media.

4 ‘‘(3) UPDATES.—The Administrator shall update

5 the list described in paragraph (1) periodically as

6 new information becomes available.

7 ‘‘(h) EPA IMPLEMENTATION.—In the case of a State

8 that has no program for monitoring and notification that

9 is consistent with the performance criteria published under

10 subsection (a) after the last day of the 3-year period begin11 ning on the date on which the Administrator lists waters

12 in the State under subsection (g)(1)(B), the Administrator

13 shall conduct a monitoring and notification program for

14 the listed waters based on a priority ranking established

15 by the Administrator using funds appropriated for grants

16 under subsection (i)—

17 ‘‘(1) to conduct monitoring and notification; and

18 ‘‘(2) for related salaries, expenses, and travel.

19 ‘‘(i) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is

20 authorized to be appropriated for making grants under sub21 section (b), including implementation of monitoring and

22 notification programs by the Administrator under sub23 section (h), $30,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2001

24 through 2005.’’.
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1 SEC. 5. DEFINITIONS.

2 Section 502 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act

3 (33 U.S.C. 1362) is amended by adding at the end the fol4 lowing:

5 ‘‘(21) COASTAL RECREATION WATERS.—

6 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘coastal recre7 ation waters’ means—

8 ‘‘(i) the Great Lakes; and

9 ‘‘(ii) marine coastal waters (including

10 coastal estuaries) that are designated under

11 section 303(c) by a State for use for swim12 ming, bathing, surfing, or similar water

13 contact activities.

14 ‘‘(B) EXCLUSIONS.—The term ‘coastal

15 recreation waters’ does not include—

16 ‘‘(i) inland waters; or

17 ‘‘(ii) waters upstream of the mouth of

18 a river or stream having an unimpaired

19 natural connection with the open sea.

20 ‘‘(22) FLOATABLE MATERIAL.—

21 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘floatable ma22 terial’ means any foreign matter that may float

23 or remain suspended in the water column.

24 ‘‘(B) INCLUSIONS.—The term ‘floatable ma25 terial’ includes—

26 ‘‘(i) plastic;
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1 ‘‘(ii) aluminum cans;

2 ‘‘(iii) wood products;

3 ‘‘(iv) bottles; and

4 ‘‘(v) paper products.

5 ‘‘(23) PATHOGEN INDICATOR.—The term ‘patho6 gen indicator’ means a substance that indicates the

7 potential for human infectious disease.’’.

8 SEC. 6. INDIAN TRIBES.

9 Section 518(e) of the Federal Water Pollution Control

10 Act (33 U.S.C. 1377(e)) is amended by striking ‘‘and 404’’

11 and inserting ‘‘404, and 406’’.

12 SEC. 7. REPORT.

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 4 years after the

14 date of enactment of this Act, and every 4 years thereafter,

15 the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency

16 shall submit to Congress a report that includes—

17 (1) recommendations concerning the need for ad18 ditional water quality criteria for pathogens and

19 pathogen indicators and other actions that should be

20 taken to improve the quality of coastal recreation wa21 ters;

22 (2) an evaluation of Federal, State, and local ef23 forts to implement this Act, including the amend24 ments made by this Act; and
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1 (3) recommendations on improvements to meth2 odologies and techniques for monitoring of coastal

3 recreation waters.

4 (b) COORDINATION.—The Administrator of the Envi5 ronmental Protection Agency may coordinate the report

6 under this section with other reporting requirements under

7 the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1251

8 et seq.).

9 SEC. 8. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

10 There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out

11 the provisions of this Act, including the amendments made

12 by this Act, for which amounts are not otherwise specifi13 cally authorized to be appropriated, such sums as are nec14 essary for each of fiscal years 2001 through 2005.

Attest:

Secretary.

106TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 999

AMENDMENT
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