I 

111TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2883 

To amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to provide for security 

at wastewater treatment works, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JUNE 16, 2009 

Ms. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON of Texas (for herself, Mr. OBERSTAR, Mr. 

FILNER, and Mrs. NAPOLITANO) introduced the following bill; which was 

referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 

A BILL 

To amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to provide for security at wastewater treatment works, 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 ‘‘Wastewater Treatment 

5 Works Security Act of 2009’’. 

6 SEC. 2. WASTEWATER TREATMENT WORKS SECURITY. 

7 Title II of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act 

8 (33 U.S.C. 1281 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end 

9 the following: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 222. WASTEWATER TREATMENT WORKS SECURITY. 

2 ‘‘(a) ASSESSMENT OF TREATMENT WORKS VULNER3 ABILITY.— 

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each owner or operator of 

5 a treatment works that stores or uses a substance 

6 of concern in quantities deemed by the Adminis7 trator to pose a security risk shall conduct a vulner8 ability assessment of its treatment works. 

9 ‘‘(2) VULNERABILITY ASSESSMENTS.— 

10 ‘‘(A) DEFINITION.—In this section, the 

11 term ‘vulnerability assessment’ means an as12 sessment of the vulnerability of a treatment 

13 works to intentional actions that may— 

14 ‘‘(i) substantially disrupt the ability of 

15 the treatment works to safely and reliably 

16 operate; or 

17 ‘‘(ii) have a substantial adverse effect 

18 on critical infrastructure, public health or 

19 safety, or the environment. 

20 ‘‘(B) REVIEW.—A vulnerability assessment 

21 shall include an identification of the vulner22 ability of the treatment works’— 

23 ‘‘(i) facilities, systems, and devices 

24 used in the storage, treatment, recycling, 

25 or reclamation of municipal sewage or in26 dustrial wastes; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) intercepting sewers, outfall sew2 ers, sewage collection systems, and other 

3 constructed conveyances under the control 

4 of the owner or operator of the treatment 

5 works; 

6 ‘‘(iii) electronic, computer, and other 

7 automated systems; 

8 ‘‘(iv) pumping, power, and other 

9 equipment; 

10 ‘‘(v) use, storage, and handling of var11 ious chemicals; and 

12 ‘‘(vi) operation and maintenance pro13 cedures. 

14 ‘‘(C) SITE SECURITY PLAN.—A vulner15 ability assessment shall include a site security 

16 plan to identify specific security enhancements, 

17 including procedures, countermeasures, or 

18 equipment that the owner or operator of a 

19 treatment works will implement or utilize to re20 duce the vulnerabilities identified through the 

21 review under subparagraph (B) (including the 

22 identification of the extent to which implemen23 tation or utilization of such security enhance24 ments may impact the operations of the treatVerDate Nov 24 2008 21:28 Jun 17, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2883.IH H2883

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1 ment works in meeting the goals and require2 ments of this Act). 

3 ‘‘(D) GUIDELINES.— 

4 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 

5 December 31, 2009, the Administrator, in 

6 consultation with the Secretary of Home7 land Security, shall develop and publish 

8 guidelines for carrying out a vulnerability 

9 assessment, consistent with this section 

10 and the goals and requirements of this 

11 Act, and shall periodically revise such 

12 guidelines, as appropriate. 

13 ‘‘(ii) IDENTIFICATION AND EVALUA14 TION OF SECURITY ENHANCEMENTS.—In 

15 developing the guidelines described in 

16 clause (i), the Administrator shall— 

17 ‘‘(I) identify an array of potential 

18 security enhancements, including pro19 cedures, countermeasures, or equip20 ment, that the owner or operator of a 

21 treatment works can implement or 

22 utilize to reduce the vulnerability of 

23 the treatment works; and 

24 ‘‘(II) include information on the 

25 potential effectiveness of such security 


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1 enhancements in reducing the vulner2 ability of the treatment works. 

3 ‘‘(iii) RISK-BASED EVALUATION OF

4 TREATMENT WORKS.— 

5 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—In developing 

6 the guidelines described in clause (i), 

7 the Administrator shall develop stand8 ards for assigning individual treat9 ment works into 4 risk-based classi10 fications. 

11 ‘‘(II) STANDARDS FOR RISK12 BASED CLASSIFICATIONS.—In devel13 oping such standards, the Adminis14 trator shall consider— 

15 ‘‘(aa) the size of the treat16 ment works; 

17 ‘‘(bb) the proximity of the 

18 treatment works to large popu19 lation centers; 

20 ‘‘(cc) the potential adverse 

21 impacts of an intentional act on 

22 the operation of the treatment 

23 works or on critical infrastruc24 ture, public health or safety, or 

25 the environment; and 


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1 ‘‘(dd) any other factor which 

2 the Administrator determines to 

3 be appropriate. 

4 ‘‘(III) CRITERIA FOR AP5 PROVAL.—The Administrator may as6 sign differing criteria for the approval 

7 of a vulnerability assessment under 

8 paragraph (4) based on the risk-based 

9 classification of the treatment works. 

10 ‘‘(iv) SUBSTANCE OF CONCERN.— 

11 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—In developing 

12 the guidelines described in clause (i), 

13 the Administrator, in consultation 

14 with the Secretary of Homeland Secu15 rity, may designate any chemical sub16 stance as a substance of concern. 

17 ‘‘(II) THRESHOLD QUANTITY.— 

18 At the time a substance is designated 

19 pursuant to subclause (I), the Admin20 istrator shall establish by rule a 

21 threshold quantity for the release or 

22 theft of the substance, taking into ac23 count the toxicity, reactivity, volatility, 

24 dispersability, combustibility, and 

25 flammability of the substance and the 


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1 amount of the substance which, as a 

2 result of the release, is known to 

3 cause or may be reasonably antici4 pated to cause death, injury, or a sub5 stantial adverse effect to critical infra6 structure, public health or safety, or 

7 the environment. 

8 ‘‘(III) CONSIDERATION OF EX9 ISTING STANDARDS.—In making a de10 termination under subclause (I), the 

11 Administrator shall take into account 

12 appendix A of part 27 of title 6, Code 

13 of Federal Regulations (or any suc14 cessor regulations). 

15 ‘‘(v) REVIEW AND REVISION OF VUL16 NERABILITY ASSESSMENTS.—In developing 

17 the guidelines described in clause (i), the 

18 Administrator shall include— 

19 ‘‘(I) a process for the revision, if 

20 necessary, and resubmission of vulner21 ability assessments for treatment 

22 works conducted prior to the date of 

23 enactment of this section to determine 

24 whether they meet the requirements 

25 of this section; and 


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1 ‘‘(II) provisions for the periodic 

2 review of vulnerability assessments 

3 and revision of vulnerability assess4 ments based on new information pro5 vided by the Administrator, in con6 sultation with the Secretary of Home7 land Security, to the owner or oper8 ator of the treatment works. 

9 ‘‘(3) CERTIFICATION AND DEADLINES.— 

10 ‘‘(A) CERTIFICATION.—Each owner or op11 erator of a treatment works referred to in para12 graph (1) shall certify to the Administrator that 

13 a vulnerability assessment has been conducted 

14 for the treatment works and shall submit to the 

15 Administrator a written copy of the vulner16 ability assessment. 

17 ‘‘(B) DEADLINES.—Certifications and sub18 missions referred to in subparagraph (A) shall 

19 be made prior to— 

20 ‘‘(i) December 31, 2010, in the case 

21 of a treatment works with a treatment ca22 pacity of 15,000,000 gallons per day or 

23 greater or that is assigned to the highest 

24 risk-based classification under the guide25 lines developed under paragraph (2)(D); 


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1 ‘‘(ii) June 30, 2011, in the case of a 

2 treatment works that is assigned to the 

3 second highest risk-based classification 

4 under the guidelines developed under para5 graph (2)(D); 

6 ‘‘(iii) December 31, 2011, in the case 

7 of a treatment works that is assigned to 

8 the third highest risk-based classification 

9 under the guidelines developed under para10 graph (2)(D); and 

11 ‘‘(iv) June 30, 2012, in the case of a 

12 treatment works that is assigned to the 

13 lowest risk-based classification under 

14 guidelines developed under paragraph 

15 (2)(D). 

16 ‘‘(4) REVIEW OF VULNERABILITY ASSESS17 MENTS.— 

18 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 

19 days after the date on which the Administrator 

20 receives a vulnerability assessment under this 

21 section, the Administrator shall review and ap22 prove or disapprove such assessment. 

23 ‘‘(B) DISAPPROVAL.— 

24 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator 

25 shall disapprove a vulnerability assessment 


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1 if the Administrator determines that the 

2 vulnerability assessment does not comply 

3 with this section (including guidelines de4 veloped under paragraph (2)(D)) or imple5 mentation of any security enhancement 

6 identified under paragraph (2)(C) is not 

7 consistent with the goals and requirements 

8 of this Act. 

9 ‘‘(ii) LIMITATION ON DISAPPROVAL.— 

10 The Administrator may not disapprove a 

11 vulnerability assessment submitted under 

12 this section based on the implementation of 

13 a particular security enhancement. 

14 ‘‘(iii) PROVISIONS OF NOTIFICATION

15 OF DISAPPROVAL.—If the Administrator 

16 disapproves the vulnerability assessment 

17 under this section, the Administrator shall 

18 provide the owner or operator of a treat19 ment works a written notification of the 

20 disapproval that— 

21 ‘‘(I) includes a clear explanation 

22 of deficiencies in the vulnerability as23 sessment; 


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1 ‘‘(II) provides guidance to assist 

2 the owner or operator in addressing 

3 deficiencies; and 

4 ‘‘(III) requires the owner or oper5 ator to revise the vulnerability assess6 ment to address any deficiencies and, 

7 by such date as the Administrator de8 termines is appropriate, to submit to 

9 the Administrator a revised vulner10 ability assessment. 

11 ‘‘(5) PROHIBITION OF PUBLIC DISCLOSURE.— 

12 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator 

13 shall ensure that vulnerability assessments (in14 cluding site security plans) and other security15 related information, records, and documents are 

16 not disclosed except as provided in this section. 

17 ‘‘(B) SPECIFIC PROHIBITIONS.—In car18 rying out paragraph (1), the Administrator 

19 shall ensure that any information contained in 

20 the vulnerability assessment is not disclosed— 

21 ‘‘(i) by any Federal agency under sec22 tion 552 of title 5, United States Code; or 

23 ‘‘(ii) under any State or local law. 

24 ‘‘(C) LIMITATION.—Nothing in this para25 graph shall prohibit the sharing of information, 


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1 as the Administrator, in consultation with the 

2 Secretary of Homeland Security, determines to 

3 be appropriate, with State and local government 

4 officials possessing the necessary security clear5 ances, including law enforcement officials and 

6 first responders, for the purpose of carrying out 

7 this section. 

8 ‘‘(b) GRANTS FOR VULNERABILITY ASSESSMENTS, 

9 SECURITY ENHANCEMENTS, AND WORKER TRAINING

10 PROGRAMS.— 

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

12 make grants to a State, municipality, or intermunic13 ipal or interstate agency— 

14 ‘‘(A) to conduct a vulnerability assessment 

15 of a publicly owned treatment works; 

16 ‘‘(B) to implement security enhancements 

17 listed in paragraph (2) to reduce vulnerabilities 

18 identified in an approved vulnerability assess19 ment; 

20 ‘‘(C) to implement additional security en21 hancements to reduce vulnerabilities identified 

22 in an approved vulnerability assessment; and 

23 ‘‘(D) to provide for security-related train24 ing of employees of the treatment works and 


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1 training for first responders and emergency re2 sponse providers. 

3 ‘‘(2) GRANTS FOR SECURITY ENHANCE4 MENTS.— 

5 ‘‘(A) PREAPPROVED SECURITY ENHANCE6 MENTS.—The Administrator may make a grant 

7 to an applicant under paragraph (1)(B) to im8 plement a security enhancement of a treatment 

9 works (identified in an approved vulnerability 

10 assessment) for 1 or more of the following: 

11 ‘‘(i) Purchase and installation of 

12 equipment for access control, intrusion 

13 prevention and delay, and detection of in14 truders and hazardous or dangerous sub15 stances, including— 

16 ‘‘(I) barriers, fencing, and gates; 

17 ‘‘(II) security lighting and cam18 eras; 

19 ‘‘(III) metal grates, wire mesh, 

20 and outfall entry barriers; 

21 ‘‘(IV) securing of manhole covers 

22 and fill and vent pipes; 

23 ‘‘(V) installation and re-keying of 

24 doors and locks; and 


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1 ‘‘(VI) smoke, chemical, and ex2 plosive mixture detection systems. 

3 ‘‘(ii) Security improvements to elec4 tronic, computer, or other automated sys5 tems and remote security systems, includ6 ing controlling access to such systems, in7 trusion detection and prevention, and sys8 tem backup. 

9 ‘‘(iii) Participation in training pro10 grams and the purchase of training manu11 als and guidance materials relating to se12 curity. 

13 ‘‘(iv) Security screening of employees 

14 or contractor support services. 

15 ‘‘(B) ADDITIONAL SECURITY ENHANCE16 MENTS.— 

17 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator 

18 may make grants under paragraph (1)(C) 

19 to an applicant for additional security en20 hancements not listed in subparagraph (A) 

21 that are identified in an approved vulner22 ability assessment. 

23 ‘‘(ii) ELIGIBILITY.—To be eligible for 

24 a grant under this subparagraph, an appli25 cant must have an approved vulnerability 


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1 assessment and shall submit an application 

2 to the Administrator containing such infor3 mation as the Administrator may request. 

4 ‘‘(C) LIMITATION ON USE OF FUNDS.— 

5 Grants under this paragraph may not be used 

6 for personnel costs or operation or maintenance 

7 of facilities, equipment, or systems. 

8 ‘‘(D) FEDERAL SHARE.—The Federal 

9 share of the cost of activities funded by a grant 

10 under paragraph (1) may not exceed 75 per11 cent. 

12 ‘‘(c) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE FOR SMALL PUBLICLY

13 OWNED TREATMENT WORKS.— 

14 ‘‘(1) SECURITY ASSESSMENT AND PLANNING

15 ASSISTANCE.—The Administrator, in coordination 

16 with the States, may provide technical guidance and 

17 assistance to small publicly owned treatment works 

18 on conducting a vulnerability assessment and imple19 mentation of security enhancements to reduce 

20 vulnerabilities identified in an approved vulnerability 

21 assessment. Such assistance may include technical 

22 assistance programs, training, and preliminary engi23 neering evaluations. 

24 ‘‘(2) PARTICIPATION BY NONPROFIT ORGANIZA25 TIONS.—The Administrator may make grants to 


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1 nonprofit organizations to assist in accomplishing 

2 the purposes of this subsection. 

3 ‘‘(3) SMALL PUBLICLY OWNED TREATMENT

4 WORKS DEFINED.—In this subsection, the term 

5 ‘small publicly owned treatment works’ means a 

6 publicly owned treatment works that services a pop7 ulation of fewer than 10,000 persons. 

8 ‘‘(d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

9 is authorized to be appropriated annually to the Adminis10 trator for fiscal years 2010 through 2014— 

11 ‘‘(1) $200,000,000 for making grants under 

12 subsection (b); and 

13 ‘‘(2) $15,000,000 for providing technical assist14 ance under subsection (c). 

15 Such sums shall remain available until expended.’’. 

Æ 


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