I 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 3479 

To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide a credit for developing and implementing plans to address non-point source pollution affecting nationally significant estuaries. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

SEPTEMBER 10, 2015 

Mr. MACARTHUR (for himself, Mr. LOBIONDO, and Mr. SMITH of New Jersey) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 

on Ways and Means 

A BILL 

To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide 

a credit for developing and implementing plans to address non-point source pollution affecting nationally significant estuaries. 

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 ‘‘Save our Bays Act’’. 

5 SEC. 2. PURPOSE. 

6 The purpose of this Act is to reduce non-point source 

7 pollution of any estuary in the National Estuary Program 

8 by promoting investment in any of the following: 


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1 (1) Restoring and improving soil functionality, 

2 including by increasing water infiltration and water 

3 conservation. 

4 (2) Increasing storm water retention onsite. 

5 (3) Reducing impervious cover via usage of per6 vious materials in patios, walkways, and other sur7 faces. 

8 (4) Establishing a 10 to 25 foot wide buffer of 

9 native plants on private property which abuts any 

10 water body or wetland. 

11 SEC. 3. NON-POINT SOURCE POLLUTION. 

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subpart B of part IV of sub13 chapter A of chapter 1 of the Internal Revenue Code of 

14 1986 is amended by adding at the end the following new 

15 section: 

16 ‘‘SEC. 30E. NON-POINT SOURCE POLLUTION. 

17 ‘‘(a) GENERAL RULE.—There shall be allowed as a 

18 credit against the tax imposed by this chapter an amount 

19 equal to the sum of— 

20 ‘‘(1) the non-point source pollution planning 

21 credit, plus 

22 ‘‘(2) the non-point source pollution plan imple23 mentation credit. 

24 ‘‘(b) NON-POINT SOURCE POLLUTION PLANNING

25 CREDIT.—For purposes of this section, the non-point 


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1 source pollution planning credit is an amount equal to 

2 $500 for developing a plan to address non-point source 

3 pollution carried by surface water runoff from eligible 

4 property that is owned by the taxpayer and certified by 

5 the County Soil Conversation District (in such manner as 

6 the County Soil Conversation District may determine) in 

7 which the real property is located, and 

8 ‘‘(c) NON-POINT SOURCE POLLUTION PLAN IMPLE9 MENTATION CREDIT.—The non-point source pollution 

10 plan implementation credit is an amount equal to the less11 er of— 

12 ‘‘(1) the amount paid or incurred for imple13 menting the plan referred to in subsection (b)(1) to 

14 mitigate non-point source pollution on eligible prop15 erty that is owned by the taxpayer and certified by 

16 the County Soil Conversation District in which the 

17 real property is located, or 

18 ‘‘(2) $2,500. 

19 ‘‘(d) ELIGIBLE PROPERTY.—For purposes of this 

20 section, the term ‘eligible property’ means real property 

21 which is located in the United States within the bound22 aries of an estuary of national significance, as designated 

23 under section 320 of the Federal Water Pollution Control 

24 Act (33 U.S.C. 1330), and from which there is non-point 

25 source pollution. 


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1 ‘‘(e) SPECIAL RULES.—For purposes of this sec2 tion— 

3 ‘‘(1) APPLICATION TO NONCONTIGUOUS PAR4 CELS.—Each parcel of noncontiguous real property 

5 shall be treated as separate. 

6 ‘‘(2) DENIAL OF DOUBLE BENEFIT.— 

7 ‘‘(A) INCOME TAX.—No deduction or cred8 it shall be allowed under any other provision of 

9 this chapter for amounts paid or incurred to de10 velop or implement a non-point source pollution 

11 plan to the extent of amounts allowed as a 

12 credit under this section relating to such plan. 

13 ‘‘(B) OTHER.—The amount of expenses 

14 otherwise taken into account under subsection 

15 (a) with respect to a taxpayer for a taxable year 

16 shall be reduced (before the application of sub17 sections (b), (c), and (d)) by the aggregate 

18 amounts paid received by the taxpayer in any 

19 calendar year in which the taxable year of the 

20 taxpayer ends under title XII of the Food Secu21 rity Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3801 et seq.). 

22 ‘‘(3) ELECTION.—This section shall not apply 

23 to a taxpayer for any taxable year if such taxpayer 

24 elects to have this section not apply for such taxable 

25 year. 


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1 ‘‘(f) APPLICATION WITH OTHER CREDITS.— 

2 ‘‘(1) BUSINESS CREDIT TREATED AS PART OF

3 GENERAL BUSINESS CREDIT.—So much of the credit 

4 which would be allowed under subsection (a) for any 

5 taxable year (determined without regard to this sub6 section) that is attributable to property of a char7 acter subject to an allowance for depreciation shall 

8 be treated as a credit listed in section 38(b) for such 

9 taxable year (and not allowed under subsection (a)). 

10 ‘‘(2) PERSONAL CREDIT.—For purposes of this 

11 title, the credit allowed under subsection (a) for any 

12 taxable year (determined after application of para13 graph (1)) shall be treated as a credit allowable 

14 under subpart A for such taxable year. 

15 ‘‘(g) TERMINATION.—This section shall not apply to 

16 taxable years beginning after December 31, 2020.’’. 

17 (b) ALLOWANCE AS GENERAL BUSINESS CREDIT.— 

18 Section 38(b) of such Code is amended by striking ‘‘plus’’ 

19 at the end of paragraph (35), by striking the period at 

20 the end of paragraph (36) and inserting ‘‘, plus’’, and by 

21 adding at the end the following: 

22 ‘‘(37) the portion of the non-point source pollu23 tion credit to which section 30E(f)(1) applies.’’. 

24 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 

25 for subpart B of part IV of subchapter A of chapter 1 


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1 of such Code is amended by adding at the end the fol2 lowing new item: 

‘‘Sec. 30E. Non-point source pollution.’’. 

3 (d) REPORT.— 

4 (1) EVALUATION.—Not later than 1 year after 

5 the date of the enactment of this Act, and every year 

6 thereafter for as long as section 30E of the Internal 

7 Revenue Code of 1986 (as added by this section) is 

8 in effect, the Administrator of the Environmental 

9 Protection Agency and the Director of the U. S. Ge10 ological Survey, acting through a joint working 

11 group which the Administrator and the Director 

12 shall establish, shall evaluate the effectiveness of the 

13 credit allowed under such section 30E in achieving 

14 the purposes specified in section 2 and submit a re15 port on such study and evaluation, together with 

16 recommendations relating thereto, to the committees 

17 of Congress specified in paragraph (2). 

18 (2) COMMITTEES.—The committees specified in 

19 this paragraph are the Committee on Ways and 

20 Means and the Committee on Natural Resources of 

21 the House of Representatives and the Committee on 

22 Environment and Public Works and the Committee 

23 on Finance of the Senate. 


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1 (e) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

2 this section shall apply to taxable years beginning after 

3 December 31, 2015. 

Æ 


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