II

105TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION S. 18

To assist the States and local governments in assessing and remediating

brownfield sites and encouraging environmental cleanup programs, and

for other purposes.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

JANUARY 21, 1997

Mr. LAUTENBERG (for himself, Mr. BAUCUS, Mr. REID, Mr. MOYNIHAN, Mr.

GRAHAM, Mrs. BOXER, Mr. WYDEN, Mr. LEVIN, Mr. TORRICELLI, Mr.

BREAUX, and Mr. KENNEDY) introduced the following bill; which was

read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public

Works

A BILL

To assist the States and local governments in assessing and

remediating brownfield sites and encouraging environmental cleanup programs, and for other purposes.

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; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the

5 ‘‘Brownfields and Environmental Cleanup Act of 1997’’.

6 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of

7 this Act is as follows:
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Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.

Sec. 2. Findings and purposes.

TITLE I—BROWNFIELD REMEDIATION AND ENVIRONMENTAL

CLEANUP

Sec. 101. Definitions.

Sec. 102. Inventory and assessment grant program.

Sec. 103. Grants for revolving loan programs.

Sec. 104. Economic redevelopment grants.

Sec. 105. Reports.

Sec. 106. Limitations on use of funds.

Sec. 107. Effect on other laws.

Sec. 108. Regulations.

Sec. 109. Authorizations of appropriations.

TITLE II—PROSPECTIVE PURCHASERS

Sec. 201. Limitations on liability for response costs for prospective purchasers.

TITLE III—INNOCENT LANDOWNERS

Sec. 301. Innocent landowners.

1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

2 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that—

3 (1) past uses of land in the United States for

4 industrial and commercial purposes have created

5 many sites throughout the United States that have

6 environmental contamination;

7 (2) Congress and the governments of States

8 and political subdivisions of States have enacted

9 laws to—

10 (A) prevent environmental contamination;

11 and

12 (B) carry out response actions to correct

13 past instances of environmental contamination;

14 (3) many sites are minimally contaminated, do

15 not pose serious threats to human health or the en-
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1 vironment, and can be satisfactorily remediated ex2 peditiously with little government oversight;

3 (4) promoting the assessment, cleanup, and re4 development of contaminated sites could lead to sig5 nificant environmental and economic benefits, par6 ticularly in any case in which a cleanup can be com7 pleted quickly and during a period of time that

8 meets short-term business needs;

9 (5) the private market demand for sites af10 fected by environmental contamination frequently is

11 reduced, often because of uncertainties regarding li12 ability or potential cleanup costs of innocent land13 owners and prospective purchasers under Federal

14 law;

15 (6) the abandonment or underutilization of

16 brownfield sites impairs the ability of the Federal

17 Government and the governments of States and po18 litical subdivisions of States to provide economic op19 portunities for the people of the United States, par20 ticularly the unemployed and economically disadvan21 taged;

22 (7) the abandonment or underuse of brownfield

23 sites also results in the inefficient use of public fa24 cilities and services, as well as land and other natu-
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1 ral resources, and extends conditions of blight in

2 local communities;

3 (8) cooperation among Federal agencies, de4 partments and agencies of States and political sub5 divisions of States, local community development or6 ganizations, and current owners and prospective

7 purchasers of brownfield sites is required to accom8 plish timely response actions and the redevelopment

9 or reuse of brownfield sites;

10 (9) there is a need to provide financial incen11 tives and assistance to inventory and assess certain

12 brownfield sites and facilitate the cleanup of the

13 sites so that the sites may be redeveloped for bene14 ficial uses; and

15 (10) there is a need for a program to—

16 (A) encourage cleanups of brownfield sites;

17 and

18 (B) facilitate the establishment and en19 hancement of programs by States and local gov20 ernments to foster cleanups of brownfield sites

21 through capitalization of loan programs.

22 (b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are to cre23 ate new business and employment opportunities through

24 the economic redevelopment of brownfield sites that gen25 erally do not pose a serious threat to human health or
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1 the environment and to stimulate the assessment and

2 cleanup of brownfield sites by—

3 (1) encouraging States and local governments

4 to provide for the assessment and cleanup of

5 brownfield sites that may not be remediated under

6 other environmental laws (including regulations) in

7 effect on the date of enactment of this Act;

8 (2) encouraging local governments and private

9 parties, including local community development or10 ganizations, to participate in programs, such as

11 State cleanup programs, that facilitate expedited re12 sponse actions that are consistent with business

13 needs at brownfield sites;

14 (3) directing the Administrator of the Environ15 mental Protection Agency to establish programs that

16 provide financial assistance to—

17 (A) facilitate site assessments of certain

18 brownfield sites;

19 (B) encourage cleanup of appropriate

20 brownfield sites through capitalization of loan

21 programs; and

22 (C) encourage workforce development in

23 areas adversely affected by contaminated prop24 erties; and
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1 (4) reducing transaction costs and paperwork,

2 and preventing needless duplication of effort and

3 delay at all levels of government.

4 TITLE I—BROWNFIELD REMEDI5 ATION AND ENVIRONMENTAL

6 CLEANUP

7 SEC. 101. DEFINITIONS.

8 In this title:

9 (1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis10 trator’’ means the Administrator of the Environ11 mental Protection Agency.

12 (2) BROWNFIELD SITE.—The term ‘‘brownfield

13 site’’ means a facility that has or is suspected of

14 having environmental contamination that—

15 (A) could prevent the timely use, develop16 ment, reuse, or redevelopment of the facility;

17 and

18 (B) is relatively limited in scope or severity

19 and can be comprehensively assessed and read20 ily analyzed.

21 (3) CONTAMINANT.—The term ‘‘contaminant’’

22 includes any hazardous substance (as defined in sec23 tion 101 of the Comprehensive Environmental Re24 sponse, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (42

25 U.S.C. 9601)).
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1 (4) DISPOSAL.—The term ‘‘disposal’’ has the

2 meaning given the term in section 1004 of the Solid

3 Waste Disposal Act (42 U.S.C. 6903).

4 (5) ENVIRONMENT.—The term ‘‘environment’’

5 has the meaning given the term in section 101 of the

6 Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensa7 tion, and Liability Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9601).

8 (6) ENVIRONMENTAL CONTAMINATION.—The

9 term ‘‘environmental contamination’’ means the ex10 istence at a facility of 1 or more contaminants that

11 may pose a threat to human health or the environ12 ment.

13 (7) FACILITY.—The term ‘‘facility’’ has the

14 meaning given the term in section 101 of the Com15 prehensive Environmental Response, Compensation,

16 and Liability Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9601).

17 (8) GRANT.—The term ‘‘grant’’ includes a co18 operative agreement.

19 (9) GROUND WATER.—The term ‘‘ground

20 water’’ has the meaning given the term in section

21 101 of the Comprehensive Environmental Response,

22 Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C.

23 9601).

24 (10) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘‘Indian tribe’’

25 has the meaning given the term in section 101 of the
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1 Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensa2 tion, and Liability Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9601).

3 (11) LOCAL GOVERNMENT.—The term ‘‘local

4 government’’ has the meaning given the term ‘‘unit

5 of general local government’’ in the first sentence of

6 section 102(a)(1) of the Housing and Community

7 Development Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5302(a)(1)),

8 except that the term includes an Indian tribe.

9 (12) NATURAL RESOURCES.—The term ‘‘natu10 ral resources’’ has the meaning given the term in

11 section 101 of the Comprehensive Environmental

12 Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980

13 (42 U.S.C. 9601).

14 (13) OWNER.—The term ‘‘owner’’ has the

15 meaning given the term in section 101 of the Com16 prehensive Environmental Response, Compensation,

17 and Liability Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9601).

18 (14) PERSON.—The term ‘‘person’’ has the

19 meaning given the term in section 101 of the Com20 prehensive Environmental Response, Compensation,

21 and Liability Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9601).

22 (15) PROSPECTIVE PURCHASER.—The term

23 ‘‘prospective purchaser’’ means a prospective pur24 chaser of a brownfield site.
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1 (16) RELEASE.—The term ‘‘release’’ has the

2 meaning given the term in section 101 of the Com3 prehensive Environmental Response, Compensation,

4 and Liability Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9601).

5 (17) RESPONSE ACTION.—The term ‘‘response

6 action’’ has the meaning given the term ‘‘response’’

7 in section 101 of the Comprehensive Environmental

8 Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980

9 (42 U.S.C. 9601).

10 (18) SITE ASSESSMENT.—

11 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘site assess12 ment’’ means an investigation that determines

13 the nature and extent of a release or potential

14 release of a hazardous substance at a

15 brownfield site and meets the requirements of

16 subparagraph (B).

17 (B) INVESTIGATION.—For the purposes of

18 this paragraph, an investigation that meets the

19 requirements of this subparagraph—

20 (i) shall include—

21 (I) an onsite evaluation; and

22 (II) sufficient testing, sampling,

23 and other field-data-gathering activi24 ties to accurately determine whether

25 the brownfield site is contaminated
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1 and the threats to human health and

2 the environment posed by the release

3 of contaminants at the brownfield

4 site; and

5 (ii) may include—

6 (I) review of such information re7 garding the brownfield site and pre8 vious uses as is available at the time

9 of the review; and

10 (II) an offsite evaluation, if ap11 propriate.

12 (19) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ has the mean13 ing given the term in section 101 of the Comprehen14 sive Environmental Response, Compensation, and

15 Liability Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9601).

16 SEC. 102. INVENTORY AND ASSESSMENT GRANT PROGRAM.

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall establish

18 a program to award grants to States or local governments

19 to inventory brownfield sites and to conduct site assess20 ments of brownfield sites.

21 (b) SCOPE OF PROGRAM.—

22 (1) GRANT AWARDS.—To carry out subsection

23 (a), the Administrator may, on approval of an appli24 cation, provide financial assistance to a State or

25 local government.
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1 (2) GRANT APPLICATION.—An application for a

2 grant under this section shall include, to the extent

3 practicable, each of the following:

4 (A) An identification of the brownfield

5 sites for which assistance is sought and a de6 scription of the effect of the brownfield sites on

7 the community, including a description of the

8 nature and extent of any known or suspected

9 environmental contamination within the areas.

10 (B) A description of the need of the appli11 cant for financial assistance to inventory

12 brownfield sites and conduct site assessments.

13 (C) A demonstration of the potential of the

14 grant assistance to stimulate economic develop15 ment, including the extent to which the assist16 ance will stimulate the availability of other

17 funds for site assessment, site identification, or

18 environmental remediation and subsequent re19 development of the areas in which eligible

20 brownfield sites are situated.

21 (D) A description of the local commitment

22 as of the date of the application, which shall in23 clude a community involvement plan that dem24 onstrates meaningful community involvement.
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1 (E) A plan that shows how the site assess2 ment, site identification, or environmental re3 mediation and subsequent development will be

4 implemented, including—

5 (i) an environmental plan that ensures

6 the use of sound environmental procedures;

7 (ii) an explanation of the appropriate

8 government authority and support for the

9 project as in existence on the date of the

10 application;

11 (iii) proposed funding mechanisms for

12 any additional work; and

13 (iv) a proposed land ownership plan.

14 (F) A statement on the long-term benefits

15 and the sustainability of the proposed project

16 that includes—

17 (i) the ability of the project to be rep18 licated nationally and measures of success

19 of the project; and

20 (ii) to the extent known, the potential

21 of the plan for each area in which an eligi22 ble brownfield site is situated to stimulate

23 economic development of the area on com24 pletion of the environmental remediation.
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1 (G) Such other factors as the Adminis2 trator considers relevant to carry out this title.

3 (3) APPROVAL OF APPLICATION.—

4 (A) IN GENERAL.—In making a decision

5 whether to approve an application under para6 graph (1), the Administrator shall—

7 (i) consider the need of the State or

8 local government for financial assistance to

9 carry out this section;

10 (ii) consider the ability of the appli11 cant to carry out an inventory and site as12 sessment under this section;

13 (iii) ensure a fair distribution of grant

14 funds between urban and nonurban areas;

15 and

16 (iv) consider such other factors as the

17 Administrator considers relevant to carry

18 out this section.

19 (B) GRANT CONDITIONS.—As a condition

20 of awarding a grant under this section, the Ad21 ministrator may, on the basis of the criteria

22 considered under subparagraph (A), attach

23 such conditions to the grant as the Adminis24 trator determines appropriate.
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1 (4) GRANT AMOUNT.—The amount of a grant

2 awarded to any State or local government under

3 subsection (a) for inventory and site assessment of

4 1 or more brownfield sites shall not exceed

5 $200,000.

6 (5) TERMINATION OF GRANTS.—If the Admin7 istrator determines that a State or local government

8 that receives a grant under this subsection is in vio9 lation of a condition of a grant referred to in para10 graph (3)(B), the Administrator may terminate the

11 grant made to the State or local government and re12 quire full or partial repayment of the grant.

13 SEC. 103. GRANTS FOR REVOLVING LOAN PROGRAMS.

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—

15 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Administrator shall

16 establish a program to award grants to be used by

17 State or local governments to capitalize revolving

18 loan funds for the cleanup of brownfield sites.

19 (2) LOANS.—The loans may be provided by the

20 State or local government to finance cleanups of

21 brownfield sites by the State or local government, or

22 by an owner or a prospective purchaser of a

23 brownfield site (including a local government) at

24 which a cleanup is being conducted or is proposed to

25 be conducted.
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1 (b) SCOPE OF PROGRAM.—

2 (1) IN GENERAL.—

3 (A) GRANTS.—In carrying out subsection

4 (a), the Administrator may award a grant to a

5 State or local government that submits an ap6 plication to the Administrator that is approved

7 by the Administrator.

8 (B) USE OF GRANT.—The grant shall be

9 used by the State or local government to cap10 italize a revolving loan fund to be used for

11 cleanup of 1 or more brownfield sites.

12 (C) GRANT APPLICATION.—An application

13 for a grant under this section shall be in such

14 form as the Administrator determines appro15 priate. At a minimum, the application shall in16 clude the following:

17 (i) Evidence that the grant applicant

18 has the financial controls and resources to

19 administer a revolving loan fund in accord20 ance with this title.

21 (ii) Provisions that—

22 (I) ensure that the grant appli23 cant has the ability to monitor the use

24 of funds provided to loan recipients

25 under this title;
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1 (II) ensure that any cleanup con2 ducted by the applicant is protective

3 of human health and the environment;

4 and

5 (III) ensure that any cleanup

6 funded under this Act will comply

7 with all applicable Federal and State

8 laws that apply to the cleanup.

9 (iii) Identification of the criteria to be

10 used by the State or local government in

11 providing for loans under the program.

12 The criteria shall include the financial

13 standing of the applicants for the loans,

14 the use to which the loans will be put, the

15 provisions to be used to ensure repayment

16 of the loan funds, and the following:

17 (I) A complete description of the

18 financial standing of the applicant

19 that includes a description of the as20 sets, cash flow, and liabilities of the

21 applicant.

22 (II) A written statement that at23 tests that the cleanup of the site

24 would not occur without access to the

25 revolving loan fund.
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1 (III) The proposed method, and

2 anticipated period of time required, to

3 clean up the environmental contami4 nation at the brownfield site.

5 (IV) An estimate of the proposed

6 total cost of the cleanup to be con7 ducted at the brownfield site.

8 (V) An analysis that dem9 onstrates the potential of the

10 brownfield site for stimulating eco11 nomic development on completion of

12 the cleanup of the brownfield site.

13 (2) GRANT APPROVAL.—In determining wheth14 er to award a grant under this section, the Adminis15 trator shall consider—

16 (A) the need of the State or local govern17 ment for financial assistance to clean up

18 brownfield sites that are the subject of the ap19 plication, taking into consideration the financial

20 resources available to the State or local govern21 ment;

22 (B) the ability of the State or local govern23 ment to ensure that the applicants repay the

24 loans in a timely manner;
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1 (C) the extent to which the cleanup of the

2 brownfield site or sites would reduce health and

3 environmental risks caused by the release of

4 contaminants at, or from, the brownfield site or

5 sites;

6 (D) the demonstrable potential of the

7 brownfield site or sites for stimulating economic

8 development on completion of the cleanup;

9 (E) the demonstrated ability of the State

10 or local government to administer such a loan

11 program;

12 (F) the demonstrated experience of the

13 State or local government regarding brownfield

14 sites and the reuse of contaminated land, in15 cluding whether the government has received

16 any grant under the Comprehensive Environ17 mental Response, Compensation, and Liability

18 Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9601 et seq.) to assess

19 brownfield sites, except that applicants who

20 have not previously received such a grant may

21 be considered for awards under this section;

22 (G) the efficiency of having the loan ad23 ministered by the level of government rep24 resented by the applicant entity;
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1 (H) the experience of administering any

2 loan programs by the entity, including the loan

3 repayment rates;

4 (I) the demonstrations made regarding the

5 ability of the State or local government to en6 sure a fair distribution of grant funds among

7 brownfield sites within the jurisdiction of the

8 State or local government; and

9 (J) such other factors as the Administrator

10 considers relevant to carry out this section.

11 (3) GRANT AMOUNT.—The amount of a grant

12 made to a State or local applicant under this section

13 shall not exceed $500,000.

14 (4) REVOLVING LOAN FUND APPROVAL.—Each

15 application for a grant to capitalize a revolving loan

16 fund under this section shall, as a condition of ap17 proval by the Administrator, include a written state18 ment by the State or local government that—

19 (A) cleanups to be funded under the loan

20 program of the State or local government shall

21 be conducted under the auspices of, and in com22 pliance with, the State voluntary cleanup pro23 gram or State Superfund program or Federal

24 authority;
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1 (B) the cleanup or proposed voluntary

2 cleanup is cost-effective; and

3 (C) the estimated total cost of the cleanup

4 is reasonable.

5 (c) GRANT AGREEMENTS.—Each grant under this

6 section for a revolving loan fund shall be made pursuant

7 to a grant agreement. At a minimum, the grant agreement

8 shall include provisions that ensure the following:

9 (1) COMPLIANCE WITH LAW.—The grant recipi10 ent will include in all loan agreements a requirement

11 that the loan recipient shall comply with all applica12 ble Federal and State laws applicable to the cleanup

13 and shall ensure that the cleanup is protective of

14 human health and the environment.

15 (2) REPAYMENT.—The State or local govern16 ment will require repayment of the loan consistent

17 with this title.

18 (3) USE OF FUNDS.—The State or local govern19 ment will use the funds solely for purposes of estab20 lishing and capitalizing a loan program in accord21 ance with this title and of cleaning up the environ22 mental contamination at the brownfield site or sites.

23 (4) REPAYMENT OF FUNDS.—The State or local

24 government will require in each loan agreement, and

25 take necessary steps to ensure, that the loan recipi-
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1 ent will use the loan funds solely for the purposes

2 stated in paragraph (3), and will require the return

3 of any excess funds immediately on a determination

4 by the appropriate State or local official that the

5 cleanup has been completed.

6 (5) NONTRANSFERABILITY.—The funds will not

7 be transferable, unless the Administrator agrees to

8 the transfer in writing.

9 (6) LIENS.—

10 (A) DEFINITIONS.—In this paragraph, the

11 terms ‘‘security interest’’ and ‘‘purchaser’’ have

12 the meanings given the terms in section

13 6323(h) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.

14 (B) LIENS.—A lien in favor of the grant

15 recipient shall arise on the contaminated prop16 erty subject to a loan under this section.

17 (C) COVERAGE.—The lien shall cover all

18 real property included in the legal description of

19 the property at the time the loan agreement

20 provided for in this section is signed, and all

21 rights to the property, and shall continue until

22 the terms and conditions of the loan agreement

23 have been fully satisfied.

24 (D) TIMING.—The lien shall—
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1 (i) arise at the time a security interest

2 is appropriately recorded in the real prop3 erty records of the appropriate office of the

4 State, county, or other governmental sub5 division, as designated by State law, in

6 which the real property subject to the lien

7 is located; and

8 (ii) be subject to the rights of any

9 purchaser, holder of a security interest, or

10 judgment lien creditor whose interest is or

11 has been perfected under applicable State

12 law before the notice has been filed in the

13 appropriate office of the State, county, or

14 other governmental subdivision, as des15 ignated by State law, in which the real

16 property subject to the lien is located.

17 (7) OTHER CONDITIONS.—The State or local

18 government will comply with such other terms and

19 conditions as the Administrator determines are nec20 essary to protect the financial interests of the Unit21 ed States and to protect human health and the envi22 ronment.

23 (d) AUDITS.—

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Inspector General of

25 the Environmental Protection Agency shall audit a
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1 portion of the grants awarded under this section to

2 ensure that all funds are used for the purposes set

3 forth in this section.

4 (2) FUTURE GRANTS.—The result of the audit

5 shall be taken into account in awarding any future

6 grants to the State or local government.

7 SEC. 104. ECONOMIC REDEVELOPMENT GRANTS.

8 (a) EXPENDITURES FROM THE SUPERFUND.—

9 Amounts in the Hazardous Substance Superfund estab10 lished by section 9507 of the Internal Revenue Code of

11 1986 shall be made available consistent with, and for the

12 purposes of carrying out, the grant programs established

13 under sections 102 and 103.

14 (b) AUTHORITY TO AWARD GRANTS.—There is au15 thorized to be appropriated from the Hazardous Sub16 stance Superfund for grants to State and local govern17 ments under sections 102 and 103, $25,000,000 for each

18 of fiscal years 1998 through 2002.

19 SEC. 105. REPORTS.

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the

21 date of enactment of this Act, and not later than January

22 31 of each of the 3 calendar years thereafter, the Adminis23 trator shall prepare and submit a report describing the

24 results of each program established under this title to—
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1 (1) the Committee on Environment and Public

2 Works of the Senate; and

3 (2) the Committee on Commerce of the House

4 of Representatives.

5 (b) CONTENTS OF REPORT.—Each report shall, with

6 respect to each of the programs established under this

7 title, include a description of—

8 (1) the number of applications received by the

9 Administrator during the preceding calendar year;

10 (2) the number of applications approved by the

11 Administrator during the preceding calendar year;

12 and

13 (3) the allocation of assistance under sections

14 102 and 103 among the States and local govern15 ments.

16 SEC. 106. LIMITATIONS ON USE OF FUNDS.

17 (a) EXCLUDED FACILITIES.—A grant for site inven18 tory and assessment under section 102 or to capitalize a

19 revolving loan fund under section 103 may not be used

20 for any activity involving—

21 (1) a facility that is the subject of a planned or

22 an ongoing response action under the Comprehensive

23 Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liabil24 ity Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9601 et seq.), except for

25 a facility for which a preliminary assessment, site in-
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1 vestigation, or removal action has been completed

2 and with respect to which the Administrator has de3 cided not to take further response action, including

4 cost recovery action;

5 (2) a facility included, or proposed for inclu6 sion, on the National Priorities List maintained by

7 the Administrator under the Comprehensive Envi8 ronmental Response, Compensation, and Liability

9 Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9601 et seq.);

10 (3) a facility with respect to which a record of

11 decision, other than a no-action record of decision,

12 has been issued by the President under section 104

13 of the Comprehensive Environmental Response,

14 Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C.

15 9604) with respect to the facility;

16 (4) a facility that is subject to corrective action

17 under section 3004(u), 3008(h) of the Solid Waste

18 Disposal Act (42 U.S.C. 6924(u) or 6928(h)) to

19 which a corrective action permit or order has been

20 issued or modified to require the implementation of

21 corrective measures;

22 (5) any land disposal unit with respect to which

23 a closure notification under subtitle C of the Solid

24 Waste Disposal Act (42 U.S.C. 6921 et seq.) has
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1 been submitted and closure requirements have been

2 specified in a closure plan or permit;

3 (6) a facility at which there has been a release

4 of a polychlorinated biphenyl and that is subject to

5 the Toxic Substances Control Act (15 U.S.C. 2601

6 et seq.);

7 (7) a facility with respect to which an adminis8 trative order on consent or a judicial consent decree

9 requiring cleanup has been entered into by the

10 President and is in effect under—

11 (A) the Comprehensive Environmental Re12 sponse, Compensation, and Liability Act of

13 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9601 et seq.);

14 (B) the Solid Waste Disposal Act (42

15 U.S.C. 6901 et seq.);

16 (C) the Federal Water Pollution Control

17 Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.);

18 (D) the Toxic Substances Control Act (15

19 U.S.C. 2601 et seq.); or

20 (E) the Safe Drinking Water Act (42

21 U.S.C. 300f et seq.);

22 (8) a facility at which assistance for response

23 activities may be obtained under subtitle I of the

24 Solid Waste Disposal Act (42 U.S.C. 6991 et seq.)

25 from the Leaking Underground Storage Tank Trust
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1 Fund established by section 9508 of the Internal

2 Revenue Code of 1986; and

3 (9) a facility owned or operated by a depart4 ment, agency, or instrumentality of the United

5 States, except for land held in trust by the United

6 States for an Indian tribe.

7 (b) FINES AND COST-SHARING.—A grant made

8 under this title may not be used to pay any fine or penalty

9 owed to a State or the Federal Government, or to meet

10 any Federal cost-sharing requirement.

11 (c) OTHER LIMITATIONS.—

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—Funds made available to a

13 State or local government under the grant programs

14 established under sections 102 and 103 shall be used

15 only to inventory and assess brownfield sites as au16 thorized by this title and for capitalizing a revolving

17 loan fund as authorized by this title, respectively.

18 (2) RESPONSIBILITY FOR CLEANUP ACTION.—

19 Funds made available under this title may not be

20 used to relieve a local government or State of the

21 commitment or responsibilities of the local govern22 ment or State under State law to assist or carry out

23 cleanup actions at brownfield sites.
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1 SEC. 107. EFFECT ON OTHER LAWS.

2 Nothing in this title affects the liability or response

3 authorities for environmental contamination under any

4 other law (including any regulation), including—

5 (1) the Comprehensive Environmental Re6 sponse, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (42

7 U.S.C. 9601 et seq.);

8 (2) the Solid Waste Disposal Act (42 U.S.C.

9 6901 et seq.);

10 (3) the Federal Water Pollution Control Act

11 (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.);

12 (4) the Toxic Substances Control Act (15

13 U.S.C. 2601 et seq.); and

14 (5) the Safe Drinking Water Act (42 U.S.C.

15 300f et seq.).

16 SEC. 108. REGULATIONS.

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator may issue

18 such regulations as are necessary to carry out this title.

19 (b) PROCEDURES AND STANDARDS.—The regulations

20 shall include such procedures and standards as the Admin21 istrator considers necessary, including procedures and

22 standards for evaluating an application for a grant or loan

23 submitted under this title.
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1 SEC. 109. AUTHORIZATIONS OF APPROPRIATIONS.

2 (a) SITE ASSESSMENT PROGRAM.—There is author3 ized to be appropriated to carry out section 102

4 $10,000,000 for each of fiscal years 1998 through 2002.

5 (b) ECONOMIC REDEVELOPMENT ASSISTANCE PRO6 GRAM.—There is authorized to be appropriated to carry

7 out section 103 $15,000,000 for each of fiscal years 1998

8 through 2002.

9 (c) AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS.—The amounts appro10 priated under this section shall remain available until ex11 pended.

12 TITLE II—PROSPECTIVE

13 PURCHASERS

14 SEC. 201. LIMITATIONS ON LIABILITY FOR RESPONSE

15 COSTS FOR PROSPECTIVE PURCHASERS.

16 (a) LIMITATIONS ON LIABILITY.—Section 107 of the

17 Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation,

18 and Liability Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9607) is amended

19 by adding at the end the following:

20 ‘‘(n) LIMITATIONS ON LIABILITY FOR PROSPECTIVE

21 PURCHASERS.—Notwithstanding paragraphs (1) through

22 (4) of subsection (a), to the extent the liability of a person,

23 with respect to a release or the threat of a release from

24 a facility, is based solely on subsection (a)(1), the person

25 shall not be liable under this Act if the person—
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1 ‘‘(1) is a bona fide prospective purchaser of the

2 facility; and

3 ‘‘(2) does not impede the performance of any

4 response action or natural resource restoration at a

5 facility.’’.

6 (b) PROSPECTIVE PURCHASER AND WINDFALL

7 LIEN.—Section 107 of the Comprehensive Environmental

8 Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (as

9 amended by subsection (a)) is amended by inserting after

10 subsection (n) the following:

11 ‘‘(o) PROSPECTIVE PURCHASER AND WINDFALL

12 LIEN.—

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In any case in which there

14 are unrecovered response costs at a facility for which

15 an owner of the facility is not liable by reason of

16 subsection (n), and the conditions described in para17 graph (3) are met, the United States shall have a

18 lien on the facility, or may obtain, from the appro19 priate responsible party or parties, a lien on other

20 property or other assurances of payment satisfactory

21 to the Administrator, for the unrecovered costs.

22 ‘‘(2) AMOUNT; DURATION.—The lien—

23 ‘‘(A) shall be for an amount not to exceed

24 the increase in fair market value of the prop25 erty attributable to the response action at the
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1 time of a subsequent sale or other disposition

2 of the property;

3 ‘‘(B) shall arise at the time costs are first

4 incurred by the United States with respect to a

5 response action at the facility;

6 ‘‘(C) shall be subject to the requirements

7 for notice and validity specified in subsection

8 (l)(3); and

9 ‘‘(D) shall continue until the earlier of sat10 isfaction of the lien or recovery of all response

11 costs incurred at the facility.

12 ‘‘(3) CONDITIONS.—The conditions referred to

13 in paragraph (1) are the following:

14 ‘‘(A) RESPONSE ACTION.—A response ac15 tion for which there are unrecovered costs is

16 carried out at the facility.

17 ‘‘(B) FAIR MARKET VALUE.—The response

18 action increases the fair market value of the fa19 cility above the fair market value of the facility

20 that existed on the date that is 180 days before

21 the response action was commenced.’’.

22 (c) DEFINITION OF BONA FIDE PROSPECTIVE PUR23 CHASER.—Section 101 of the Comprehensive Environ24 mental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of
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1 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9601) is amended by adding at the end

2 the following:

3 ‘‘(39) BONA FIDE PROSPECTIVE PURCHASER.—

4 The term ‘bona fide prospective purchaser’ means a

5 person who acquires ownership of a facility after the

6 date of enactment of the Brownfields and Environ7 mental Cleanup Act of 1997, or a tenant of such a

8 person, who can establish each of the following by a

9 preponderance of the evidence:

10 ‘‘(A) DISPOSAL PRIOR TO ACQUISITION.—

11 All active disposal of hazardous substances at

12 the facility occurred before the person acquired

13 the facility.

14 ‘‘(B) INQUIRY.—

15 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The person made

16 all appropriate inquiry into the previous

17 ownership and uses of the facility in ac18 cordance with generally accepted good

19 commercial and customary standards and

20 practices.

21 ‘‘(ii) STANDARDS.—The standards

22 and practices issued by the Administrator

23 under paragraph (35)(B)(ii) shall satisfy

24 the requirements of this subparagraph.
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1 ‘‘(iii) RESIDENTIAL PROPERTY.—In

2 the case of property in residential or other

3 similar use at the time of purchase by a

4 nongovernmental or noncommercial entity,

5 a site inspection and title search that re6 veal no basis for further investigation shall

7 satisfy the requirements of this subpara8 graph.

9 ‘‘(C) NOTICES.—The person provided all

10 legally required notices with respect to the dis11 covery or release of any hazardous substances

12 at the facility.

13 ‘‘(D) CARE.—The person exercised appro14 priate care with respect to hazardous sub15 stances found at the facility by taking reason16 able steps to—

17 ‘‘(i) stop ongoing releases;

18 ‘‘(ii) prevent threatened future re19 leases of hazardous substances; and

20 ‘‘(iii) prevent or limit human or natu21 ral resource exposure to hazardous sub22 stances previously released into the envi23 ronment.

24 ‘‘(E) COOPERATION, ASSISTANCE, AND AC25 CESS.—The person provides full cooperation,
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1 assistance, and facility access to such persons

2 as are authorized to conduct response actions at

3 the facility, including the cooperation and ac4 cess necessary for the installation, integrity, op5 eration, and maintenance of any complete or

6 partial response action at the facility.

7 ‘‘(F) RELATIONSHIP.—The person is not

8 liable, or is not affiliated with any other person

9 that is potentially liable, for response costs at

10 the facility, through any direct or indirect fa11 milial relationship, or any contractual, cor12 porate, or financial relationship other than that

13 created by the instruments by which title to the

14 facility is conveyed or financed.’’.

15 TITLE III—INNOCENT

16 LANDOWNERS

17 SEC. 301. INNOCENT LANDOWNERS.

18 (a) KNOWLEDGE OF INQUIRY REQUIREMENT.—Sec19 tion 101(35) of the Comprehensive Environmental Re20 sponse, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (42

21 U.S.C. 9601(35)) is amended by striking subparagraph

22 (B) and inserting the following:

23 ‘‘(B) KNOWLEDGE OF INQUIRY REQUIRE24 MENT.—
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1 ‘‘(i) DEFINITION OF CONTAMINA2 TION.—In this subparagraph, the term

3 ‘contamination’ means an existing release,

4 a past release, or the threat of a release of

5 a hazardous substance.

6 ‘‘(ii) REQUIREMENT.—

7 ‘‘(I) INQUIRY.—To establish that

8 the defendant had no reason to know

9 (under subparagraph (A)(i)), the de10 fendant must have made, at the time

11 of the acquisition, all appropriate in12 quiry (as well as comply with clause

13 (vii)) into the previous ownership and

14 uses of the facility, consistent with

15 good commercial or customary prac16 tice in an effort to minimize liability.

17 ‘‘(II) CONSIDERATIONS.—For the

18 purpose of subclause (I) and until the

19 President issues or designates stand20 ards as provided in clause (iv), the

21 court shall take into account—

22 ‘‘(aa) any specialized knowl23 edge or experience on the part of

24 the defendant;
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1 ‘‘(bb) the relationship of the

2 purchase price to the value of the

3 property if uncontaminated;

4 ‘‘(cc) commonly known or

5 reasonably ascertainable informa6 tion about the property;

7 ‘‘(dd) the obviousness of the

8 presence or likely presence of

9 contamination at the property;

10 and

11 ‘‘(ee) the ability to detect

12 the contamination by appropriate

13 investigation.

14 ‘‘(iii) CONDUCT OF ENVIRONMENTAL

15 ASSESSMENT.—A person who has acquired

16 real property shall be considered to have

17 made all appropriate inquiry within the

18 meaning of clause (ii)(I) if—

19 ‘‘(I) the person establishes that,

20 within 180 days prior to the date of

21 acquisition, an environmental site as22 sessment of the real property was con23 ducted that meets the requirements of

24 clause (iv); and
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1 ‘‘(II) the person complies with

2 clause (vii).

3 ‘‘(iv) ENVIRONMENTAL SITE ASSESS4 MENT.—

5 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—An environ6 mental site assessment meets the re7 quirements of this clause if the assess8 ment is conducted in accordance with

9 the standards set forth in the Amer10 ican Society for Testing and Materials

11 (ASTM) Standard E1527–94, titled

12 ‘Standard Practice for Environmental

13 Site Assessments: Phase I Environ14 mental Site Assessment Process’ or

15 with any alternative standards issued

16 by regulation by the President or is17 sued or developed by other entities

18 and designated by regulation by the

19 President.

20 ‘‘(II) STUDY OF PRACTICES.—

21 Before issuing or designating alter22 native standards under subclause (I),

23 the President shall conduct a study of

24 commercial and industrial practices

25 concerning environmental site assess-
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1 ments in the transfer of real property

2 in the United States.

3 ‘‘(v) CONSIDERATIONS IN ISSUING

4 STANDARDS.—In issuing or designating

5 any standards under clause (iv), the Presi6 dent shall consider requirements governing

7 each of the following:

8 ‘‘(I) Conduct of an inquiry by an

9 environmental professional.

10 ‘‘(II) Interviews of each owner,

11 operator, and occupant of the prop12 erty to determine information regard13 ing the potential for contamination.

14 ‘‘(III) Review of historical

15 sources as necessary to determine

16 each previous use and occupancy of

17 the property since the property was

18 first developed. In this subclause, the

19 term ‘historical sources’ means any of

20 the following, if reasonably ascertain21 able: each recorded chain of title doc22 ument regarding the real property, in23 cluding each deed, easement, lease, re24 striction, and covenant, any aerial

25 photograph, fire insurance map, prop-
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1 erty tax file, United States Geological

2 Survey 7.5 minutes topographic map,

3 local street directory, building depart4 ment record, and zoning/land use

5 record, and any other source that

6 identifies a past use or occupancy of

7 the property.

8 ‘‘(IV) Determination of the exist9 ence of any recorded environmental

10 cleanup lien against the real property

11 that has arisen under any Federal,

12 State, or local law.

13 ‘‘(V) Review of reasonably ascer14 tainable Federal, State, and local gov15 ernment records of any facility that is

16 likely to cause or contribute to con17 tamination at the real property, in18 cluding, as appropriate—

19 ‘‘(aa) any investigation re20 port for the facility;

21 ‘‘(bb) any record of activities

22 likely to cause or contribute to

23 contamination at the real prop24 erty, including any landfill or

25 other disposal location record,
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1 underground storage tank record,

2 hazardous waste handler and

3 generator record, and spill re4 porting record; and

5 ‘‘(cc) any other reasonably

6 ascertainable Federal, State, and

7 local government environmental

8 record that could reflect an inci9 dent or activity that is likely to

10 cause or contribute to contamina11 tion at the real property.

12 ‘‘(VI) A visual site inspection of

13 the real property and each facility and

14 improvement on the real property and

15 a visual site inspection of each imme16 diately adjacent property, including an

17 investigation of any hazardous sub18 stance use, storage, treatment, or dis19 posal practice on the property.

20 ‘‘(VII) Any specialized knowledge

21 or experience on the part of the per22 son that acquired the property.

23 ‘‘(VIII) The relationship of the

24 purchase price to the value of the

25 property if uncontaminated.
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1 ‘‘(IX) Commonly known or rea2 sonably ascertainable information

3 about the property.

4 ‘‘(X) The obviousness of the

5 presence or likely presence of contami6 nation at the property, and the ability

7 to detect the contamination by appro8 priate investigation.

9 ‘‘(vi) REASONABLY ASCERTAIN10 ABLE.—A record shall be considered to be

11 reasonably ascertainable for purposes of

12 clause (v) if a copy or reasonable facsimile

13 of the record is publicly available by re14 quest (within reasonable time and cost con15 straints) and the record is practicably

16 reviewable.

17 ‘‘(vii) APPROPRIATE INQUIRY.—A per18 son shall not be treated as having made all

19 appropriate inquiry under clause (ii)(I) un20 less—

21 ‘‘(I) the person has maintained a

22 compilation of the information re23 viewed and gathered in the course of

24 any environmental site assessment;
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1 ‘‘(II) the person exercised appro2 priate care with respect to hazardous

3 substances found at the facility by

4 taking reasonable steps to—

5 ‘‘(aa) stop ongoing releases

6 of hazardous substances;

7 ‘‘(bb) prevent threatened fu8 ture releases of hazardous sub9 stances; and

10 ‘‘(cc) prevent or limit human

11 or natural resource exposure to

12 hazardous substances previously

13 released into the environment;

14 and

15 ‘‘(III) the person provides full co16 operation, assistance, and facility ac17 cess to such persons as are authorized

18 to conduct response actions at the fa19 cility, including the cooperation and

20 access necessary for the installation,

21 integrity, operation, and maintenance

22 of any complete or partial response

23 action at the facility.

24 ‘‘(viii) SITE INSPECTION AND TITLE

25 SEARCH.—In the case of property for resi-
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1 dential use or other similar use purchased

2 by a nongovernmental or noncommercial

3 entity, a site inspection and title search

4 that reveal no basis for further investiga5 tion shall satisfy the requirements of

6 clause (ii).’’.

7 (b) REGULATORY AUTHORITY.—

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator of the

9 Environmental Protection Agency may—

10 (A) issue such regulations as the Adminis11 trator considers necessary to carry out the

12 amendment made by this section; and

13 (B) delegate and assign any duties or pow14 ers imposed on or assigned to the Adminis15 trator by the amendment made by this section,

16 including the authority to issue regulations.

17 (2) AUTHORITY TO CLARIFY AND IMPLE18 MENT.—The authority under paragraph (1) includes

19 authority to clarify or interpret all terms, including

20 the terms used in this section, and to implement any

21 provision of the amendment made by this section.

Æ