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Union Calendar No. 179 

113TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2850 

[Report No. 113–252] 

To require certain procedures in the conduct by the Environmental Protection 

Agency of its study of the potential impacts of hydraulic fracturing 

on drinking water resources. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 30, 2013 

Mr. SMITH of Texas (for himself, Mr. STEWART, and Mrs. LUMMIS) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Science, 

Space, and Technology 

OCTOBER 23, 2013 

Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole 

House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed 

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

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A BILL 

To require certain procedures in the conduct by the Environmental Protection Agency of its study of the potential 

impacts of hydraulic fracturing on drinking water resources. 

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1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘EPA Hydraulic Frac5 turing Study Improvement Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. EPA HYDRAULIC FRACTURING RESEARCH. 

7 In conducting its study of the potential impacts of 

8 hydraulic fracturing on drinking water resources, with re9 spect to which a request for information was issued under 

10 Federal Register Vol. 77, No. 218, the Administrator of 

11 the Environmental Protection Agency shall adhere to the 

12 following requirements: 

13 (1) PEER REVIEW AND INFORMATION QUAL14 ITY.—Prior to issuance and dissemination of any 

15 final report or any interim report summarizing the 

16 Environmental Protection Agency’s research on the 

17 relationship between hydraulic fracturing and drink18 ing water, the Administrator shall— 

19 (A) consider such reports to be Highly In20 fluential Scientific Assessments and require 

21 peer review of such reports in accordance with 

22 guidelines governing such assessments, as de23 scribed in— 

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1 (i) the Environmental Protection 

2 Agency’s Peer Review Handbook 3rd Edi3 tion; 

4 (ii) the Environmental Protection 

5 Agency’s Scientific Integrity Policy, as in 

6 effect on the date of enactment of this Act; 

7 and 

8 (iii) the Office of Management and 

9 Budget’s Peer Review Bulletin, as in effect 

10 on the date of enactment of this Act; and 

11 (B) require such reports to meet the stand12 ards and procedures for the dissemination of in13 fluential scientific, financial, or statistical infor14 mation set forth in the Environmental Protec15 tion Agency’s Guidelines for Ensuring and 

16 Maximizing the Quality, Objectivity, Utility, 

17 and Integrity of Information Disseminated by 

18 the Environmental Protection Agency, devel19 oped in response to guidelines issued by the Of20 fice of Management and Budget under section 

21 515(a) of the Treasury and General Govern22 ment Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 2001 

23 (Public Law 106–554). 

24 (2) PROBABILITY, UNCERTAINTY, AND CON25 SEQUENCE.—In order to maximize the quality and 

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1 utility of information developed through the study, 

2 the Administrator shall ensure that identification of 

3 the possible impacts of hydraulic fracturing on 

4 drinking water resources included in such reports be 

5 accompanied by objective estimates of the prob6 ability, uncertainty, and consequence of each identi7 fied impact, taking into account the risk manage8 ment practices of States and industry. Estimates or 

9 descriptions of probability, uncertainty, and con10 sequence shall be as quantitative as possible given 

11 the validity, accuracy, precision, and other quality 

12 attributes of the underlying data and analyses, but 

13 no more quantitative than the data and analyses can 

14 support. 

15 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

16 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘EPA Hydraulic Frac17 turing Study Improvement Act’’. 

18 SEC. 2. EPA HYDRAULIC FRACTURING RESEARCH. 

19 In conducting its study of the potential impacts of hy20 draulic fracturing on drinking water resources, with respect 

21 to which a request for information was issued under Federal 

22 Register Vol. 77, No. 218, the Administrator of the Environ23 mental Protection Agency shall adhere to the following re24 quirements: 

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1 (1) PEER REVIEW AND INFORMATION QUALITY.— 

2 Prior to issuance and dissemination of any final re3 port or any interim report summarizing the Environ4 mental Protection Agency’s research on the relation5 ship between hydraulic fracturing and drinking 

6 water, the Administrator shall— 

7 (A) consider such reports to be Highly In8 fluential Scientific Assessments and require peer 

9 review of such reports in accordance with guide10 lines governing such assessments, as described 

11 in— 

12 (i) the Environmental Protection 

13 Agency’s Peer Review Handbook 3rd Edi14 tion; 

15 (ii) the Environmental Protection 

16 Agency’s Scientific Integrity Policy, as in 

17 effect on the date of enactment of this Act; 

18 and 

19 (iii) the Office of Management and 

20 Budget’s Peer Review Bulletin, as in effect 

21 on the date of enactment of this Act; and 

22 (B) require such reports to meet the stand23 ards and procedures for the dissemination of in24 fluential scientific, financial, or statistical infor25 mation set forth in the Environmental Protecmstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with BILLS

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1 tion Agency’s Guidelines for Ensuring and 

2 Maximizing the Quality, Objectivity, Utility, 

3 and Integrity of Information Disseminated by 

4 the Environmental Protection Agency, developed 

5 in response to guidelines issued by the Office of 

6 Management and Budget under section 515(a) of 

7 the Treasury and General Government Appro8 priations Act for Fiscal Year 2001 (Public Law 

9 106-554). 

10 (2) PROBABILITY, UNCERTAINTY, AND CON11 SEQUENCE.—In order to maximize the quality and 

12 utility of information developed through the study, 

13 the Administrator shall ensure that identification of 

14 the possible impacts of hydraulic fracturing on drink15 ing water resources included in such reports be ac16 companied by objective estimates of the probability, 

17 uncertainty, and consequence of each identified im18 pact, taking into account the risk management prac19 tices of States and industry. Estimates or descriptions 

20 of probability, uncertainty, and consequence shall be 

21 as quantitative as possible given the validity, accu22 racy, precision, and other quality attributes of the 

23 underlying data and analyses, but no more quan24 titative than the data and analyses can support. 

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1 (3) RELEASE OF FINAL REPORT.—The final re2 port shall be publicly released by September 30, 2016. 

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Union Calendar No. 179 

113TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2850 

[Report No. 113–252] 

A BILL 

To require certain procedures in the conduct by the 

drinking water resources. the potential impacts of hydraulic fracturing on Environmental Protection Agency of its study of 

OCTOBER 23, 2013 

Reported with an amendment, committed to the Comand ordered to be printed mittee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, 

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