II 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 3893 

To collect information regarding water access needs across the United States, 

to provide grants for decentralized drinking water systems, and for 

other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 22, 2022 

Mr. WYDEN (for himself, Mr. HEINRICH, and Mr. MERKLEY) introduced the 

following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works 

A BILL 

To collect information regarding water access needs across 

the United States, to provide grants for decentralized 

drinking water systems, 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. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Water, Sanitation, and 

5 Hygiene Sector Development Act of 2022’’ or the ‘‘WASH 

6 Sector Development Act of 2022’’. 

7 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

8 In this Act: 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS
2 

•S 3893 IS

1 (1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis2 trator’’ means the Administrator of the Environ3 mental Protection Agency. 

4 (2) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘‘Indian Tribe’’ 

5 means any Indian or Alaska Native tribe, band, na6 tion, pueblo, village, community, component band, or 

7 component reservation individually identified (includ8 ing parenthetically) in the list published most re9 cently as of the date of enactment of this Act pursu10 ant to section 104 of the Federally Recognized In11 dian Tribe List Act of 1994 (25 U.S.C. 5131). 

12 (3) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means— 

13 (A) each of the 50 States; 

14 (B) the District of Columbia; and 

15 (C) any territory of the United States. 

16 (4) TRIBAL GOVERNMENT.—The term ‘‘Tribal 

17 government’’ means the recognized governing body 

18 of an Indian Tribe. 

19 SEC. 3. WATER AND SANITATION NEEDS WORKING GROUP. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the 

21 date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall es22 tablish a working group, to be known as the ‘‘Water and 

23 Sanitation Needs Working Group’’ (referred to in this sec24 tion as the ‘‘Working Group’’)— 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS
3 

•S 3893 IS

1 (1) to work with a Federal agency or independ2 ently to carry out a survey that will measure, as ac3 curately as possible, the number and approximate 

4 geographic distribution of households in the United 

5 States that do not have access to drinking water in6 frastructure or a means for the safe collection and 

7 disposal of wastewater; and 

8 (2) on the basis of the results of the survey car9 ried out under paragraph (1), to prepare a report 

10 for Congress that estimates the cost of capital im11 provements that would be needed to ensure that all 

12 households in the United States have access to reli13 able drinking water and adequate sanitation, subject 

14 to the conditions that— 

15 (A) to the extent practicable, the cost esti16 mate prepared under this paragraph shall take 

17 into consideration the cost of project proposals 

18 that may be submitted by individuals, the re19 search community, nonprofit organizations with 

20 experience in the water and sanitation sectors, 

21 and Federal, State, local, or Tribal government 

22 agencies consistent with guidance provided by 

23 the Working Group; and 

24 (B) the Working Group will not be re25 quired to collect or report personally identifiable 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS
4 

•S 3893 IS

1 information, but can maintain information with 

2 respect to drinking water and sanitation needs 

3 based on ZIP Code or another appropriate geo4 graphic breakdown. 

5 (b) CHAIRPERSON; MEMBERSHIP.— 

6 (1) CHAIRPERSON.—The Administrator shall 

7 serve as the chairperson of the Working Group. 

8 (2) MEMBERSHIP.—In addition to the Adminis9 trator, the Working Group shall comprise senior rep10 resentatives from such Federal agencies as the Ad11 ministrator determines to be appropriate, includ12 ing— 

13 (A) the Department of the Interior, includ14 ing the Bureau of Indian Affairs; 

15 (B) the Department of Agriculture; 

16 (C) the Census Bureau; 

17 (D) the Department of Health and Human 

18 Services, including the Indian Health Service; 

19 and 

20 (E) the Department of Housing and Urban 

21 Development. 

22 (c) DUTIES.—The Working Group shall— 

23 (1) leverage the expertise of industry, the re24 search community, nongovernmental organizations, 

25 and utilities, including through the incorporation of 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS
5 

•S 3893 IS

1 information that could be collected by utilities, cir2 cuit riders, and technical assistance providers; 

3 (2) consult, on a regular basis, with States, 

4 units of local government, Indian tribes, and rel5 evant Federal agencies not included in the member6 ship of the Working Group; and 

7 (3) in carrying out subsection (a)— 

8 (A) seek to determine whether the decen9 nial census or another existing survey of the 

10 Federal Government presents an efficient op11 portunity for collecting the information de12 scribed in paragraph (1) of that subsection; 

13 (B) seek to coordinate Federal programs 

14 and policies to support the collection and use of 

15 the information described in that subsection; 

16 (C) develop a methodology for creating the 

17 cost estimate required under paragraph (2) of 

18 that subsection; and 

19 (D) oversee the collection of— 

20 (i) the information described in para21 graph (1) of that subsection; and 

22 (ii) the information necessary to cre23 ate the cost estimate required under para24 graph (2) of that subsection. 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS
6 

•S 3893 IS

1 (d) REPORT ON WATER AND SANITATION NEEDS.— 

2 Not less frequently than once every 2 years, the Adminis3 trator shall submit to Congress a report that describes the 

4 activities and findings of the Working Group, including— 

5 (1) an explanation of the methodology used by 

6 the Working Group to determine drinking water and 

7 sanitation needs; 

8 (2) an estimate of the amount of funds nec9 essary to provide all households with access to reli10 able drinking water and adequate sanitation; and 

11 (3) a breakdown by State and, if possible, con12 gressional district of— 

13 (A) drinking water and sanitation needs; 

14 and 

15 (B) the amount of funding required to ad16 dress those needs. 

17 (e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

18 are authorized to be appropriated to the Administrator 

19 and other necessary Federal agencies to collect the infor20 mation and prepare the reports required under this sec21 tion— 

22 (1) for each of fiscal years 2023 through 2027, 

23 $10,000,000; and 

24 (2) for fiscal year 2028 and each fiscal year 

25 thereafter, such sums as may be necessary. 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS
7 

•S 3893 IS

1 SEC. 4. GRANTS FOR CONSTRUCTION AND REFURBISH2 MENT OF INDIVIDUAL HOUSEHOLD OR COM3 MUNITY DECENTRALIZED DRINKING WATER 

4 SYSTEMS FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH LOW OR 

5 MODERATE INCOME. 

6 Part E of the Safe Drinking Water Act (42 U.S.C. 

7 300j et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the fol8 lowing: 

9 ‘‘SEC. 1459H. GRANTS FOR CONSTRUCTION AND REFUR10 BISHMENT OF INDIVIDUAL HOUSEHOLD OR 

11 COMMUNITY DECENTRALIZED DRINKING 

12 WATER SYSTEMS FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH 

13 LOW OR MODERATE INCOME. 

14 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

15 ‘‘(1) ELIGIBLE INDIVIDUAL.—The term ‘eligible 

16 individual’ means a member of a low-income or mod17 erate-income household, the members of which have 

18 a combined income (for the most recent 12-month 

19 period for which information is available) equal to 

20 not more than 80 percent of the median nonmetro21 politan household income for the State, Indian land, 

22 or territory in which the household is located, ac23 cording to the most recent information collected by 

24 the Census Bureau. 

25 ‘‘(2) INDIAN LAND.—The term ‘Indian land’ in26 cludes— 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS
8 

•S 3893 IS

1 ‘‘(A) Indian country (as defined in section 

2 1151 of title 18, United States Code); 

3 ‘‘(B) any land in Alaska owned, pursuant 

4 to the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 

5 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.), by an Indian tribe that is 

6 a Native village (as defined in section 3 of that 

7 Act (43 U.S.C. 1602)) or by a Village Corpora8 tion (as defined in section 3 of that Act (43 

9 U.S.C. 1602)) that is associated with an Indian 

10 tribe; 

11 ‘‘(C) any land on which the seat of a Trib12 al government (as defined in section 2 of the 

13 WASH Sector Development Act of 2022) is lo14 cated; and 

15 ‘‘(D) any land that is part of a Tribal des16 ignated statistical area associated with an In17 dian tribe, or an Alaska Native village statis18 tical area associated with an Indian tribe, as 

19 defined by the Census Bureau for the purposes 

20 of the most recent decennial census. 

21 ‘‘(b) GRANT PROGRAM.— 

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to the availability 

23 of appropriations, the Administrator shall establish a 

24 program under which the Administrator shall pro25 vide grants to private nonprofit organizations for the 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS
9 

•S 3893 IS

1 purpose of improving general welfare by providing 

2 assistance to eligible individuals— 

3 ‘‘(A) for the construction, repair, or re4 placement of an individual household decentral5 ized drinking water system; 

6 ‘‘(B) for the installation of a larger decen7 tralized drinking water system that is designed 

8 to provide treatment or drinking water for 2 or 

9 more households in which eligible individuals re10 side, if— 

11 ‘‘(i) site conditions at the households 

12 are unsuitable for the installation of an in13 dividually owned decentralized drinking 

14 water system; 

15 ‘‘(ii) multiple examples of unsuitable 

16 site conditions exist in close geographic 

17 proximity to each other; and 

18 ‘‘(iii) a larger decentralized drinking 

19 water system could be cost-effectively in20 stalled; or 

21 ‘‘(C) for the creation and support of an on22 site maintenance entity or user association with 

23 the ability to collect fees to provide for the on24 going operation, maintenance, and replacement 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS
10 

•S 3893 IS

1 of an installed decentralized drinking water sys2 tem. 

3 ‘‘(2) APPLICATION.—To be eligible to receive a 

4 grant under this subsection, a private nonprofit or5 ganization shall submit to the Administrator an ap6 plication at such time, in such manner, and con7 taining such information as the Administrator deter8 mines to be appropriate. 

9 ‘‘(3) PRIORITY.—In awarding grants under this 

10 subsection, the Administrator shall give priority to 

11 applicants that— 

12 ‘‘(A) have demonstrated expertise in work13 ing with local communities to implement infra14 structure projects, such as experience pro15 moting the safe and effective use of household 

16 decentralized drinking water systems; 

17 ‘‘(B) propose to serve individuals or com18 munities lacking— 

19 ‘‘(i) a safe drinking water system; and 

20 ‘‘(ii) a feasible connection to a reliable 

21 public water system; and 

22 ‘‘(C) demonstrate that the decentralized 

23 drinking water infrastructure to be constructed, 

24 repaired, or replaced using amounts from a 

25 grant under this subsection will be operated, 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS
11 

•S 3893 IS

1 maintained, and replaced by the individuals or 

2 communities that will use the infrastructure, 

3 which may be demonstrated through— 

4 ‘‘(i) a study demonstrating the ability 

5 of the individual or community to pay for 

6 that operation, maintenance, and replace7 ment; or 

8 ‘‘(ii) the creation of an on-site mainte9 nance entity or user association with the 

10 ability to collect fees to provide for ongoing 

11 operation, maintenance, and replacement. 

12 ‘‘(4) ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.—A private 

13 nonprofit organization may use amounts provided 

14 under this subsection to pay the administrative ex15 penses associated with the provision of the services 

16 described in paragraph (1), as the Administrator de17 termines to be appropriate. 

18 ‘‘(c) GRANTS.— 

19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), a 

20 private nonprofit organization shall use a grant pro21 vided under subsection (b) for the services described 

22 in paragraph (1) of that subsection. 

23 ‘‘(2) APPLICATION.—To be eligible to receive 

24 the services described in subsection (b)(1), an eligi25 ble individual shall submit to the private nonprofit 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS
12 

•S 3893 IS

1 organization serving the area in which the individual 

2 or community household decentralized drinking 

3 water system of the eligible individuals is, or is pro4 posed to be, located an application at such time, in 

5 such manner, and containing such information as 

6 the private nonprofit organization determines to be 

7 appropriate. 

8 ‘‘(3) PRIORITY.—In awarding grants under this 

9 subsection, a private nonprofit organization shall 

10 give priority to any eligible individual who does not 

11 have— 

12 ‘‘(A) access to a drinking water system; 

13 and 

14 ‘‘(B) a feasible connection to a reliable 

15 public water system. 

16 ‘‘(d) REPORT.—Not later than 2 years after the date 

17 of enactment of this section, the Administrator shall sub18 mit to the Committee on Environment and Public Works 

19 of the Senate and the Committee on Energy and Com20 merce of the House of Representatives a report describing 

21 the recipients of grants under the program under this sec22 tion and the results of the program under this section. 

23 ‘‘(e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

24 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be 

25 appropriated to the Administrator to carry out this 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS
13 

•S 3893 IS

1 section $50,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2023 

2 through 2027. 

3 ‘‘(2) LIMITATION ON USE OF FUNDS.—Of the 

4 amounts made available for grants under paragraph 

5 (1), not more than 2 percent may be used to pay the 

6 administrative costs of the Administrator. 

7 ‘‘(3) INDIAN LAND.—Of the amounts made 

8 available under paragraph (1), the Administrator 

9 shall use not less than 5 percent to make grants to 

10 private nonprofit organizations that serve eligible in11 dividuals that reside on Indian land.’’. 

Æ 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS