I 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 3701 

To establish water infrastructure grant programs. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JUNE 4, 2021 

Mr. DELGADO (for himself, Mr. CARTWRIGHT, Ms. NORTON, Ms. SEWELL, 

and Mr. COHEN) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and in addition to the 

Committee on Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions 

as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To establish water infrastructure grant programs. 

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 sited as the ‘‘Protecting Infrastruc5 ture and Promoting the Economy Act’’ or the ‘‘PIPE 

6 Act’’. 

7 SEC. 2. WASTEWATER INFRASTRUCTURE DISCRETIONARY 

8 GRANT PROGRAM. 

9 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Subject to the availability of 

10 appropriations, not later than 1 year after the date of enVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:37 Jul 13, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3701.IH H3701

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1 actment of this Act, the Administrator of the Environ2 mental Protection Agency (referred to in this section as 

3 the ‘‘Administrator’’) shall establish a wastewater discre4 tionary grant program (referred to in this section as the 

5 ‘‘program’’) to provide grants, on a competitive basis, to 

6 eligible entities described in subsection (b) for investments 

7 in wastewater infrastructure projects. 

8 (b) ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.—An entity eligible to re9 ceive a grant under the program is— 

10 (1) a Federal, State, interstate, intermunicipal, 

11 or local governmental entity, agency, or instrumen12 tality; 

13 (2) a Tribal government or consortium of Trib14 al governments; 

15 (3) a State infrastructure financing authority; 

16 and 

17 (4) a publicly owned treatment works (as de18 fined in section 212 of the Federal Water Pollution 

19 Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1292)). 

20 (c) ELIGIBLE PROJECTS.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—A project eligible to be car22 ried out with funds under the program includes— 

23 (A) the construction of publicly owned 

24 treatment works; 


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1 (B) the construction, repair, or replace2 ment of decentralized wastewater treatment 

3 systems that treat municipal wastewater or do4 mestic sewage; 

5 (C) measures to manage, reduce, treat, or 

6 recapture stormwater of subsurface drainage 

7 water; 

8 (D) measures to reduce the demand for 

9 publicly owned treatment works capacity 

10 through water conservation, efficiency, reuse, 

11 and green infrastructure; 

12 (E) measures to reduce energy consump13 tion needs for publicly owned treatment works; 

14 (F) measures to improve the resiliency of 

15 publicly owned treatment works to climate 

16 change, extreme weather, sea-level rise, and 

17 other hazards; 

18 (G) measures to reduce the discharge of 

19 perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances 

20 into the environment through publicly owned 

21 treatment works; and 

22 (H) any other wastewater infrastructure 

23 project the administrator determines is appro24 priate. 


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1 (2) OTHER FEDERAL FUNDS.—Notwithstanding 

2 any other provision of law, a project otherwise eligi3 ble under paragraph (1) shall not be ineligible for 

4 funding because the project also received prior as5 sistance— 

6 (A) from a State drinking water treatment 

7 revolving loan fund established under section 

8 1452 of the Safe Drinking Water Act (42 

9 U.S.C. 300j–12); 

10 (B) from a State water pollution control 

11 revolving fund established under title VI of the 

12 Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 

13 1381 et seq.); or 

14 (C) under the Water Infrastructure Fi15 nance and Innovation Act of 2014 (33 U.S.C. 

16 3901 et seq.). 

17 (3) NO INCREASED BONDING AUTHORITY.— 

18 Amounts made available under the program may not 

19 be used as a source of payment of, or security for 

20 (directly or indirectly), in whole or in part, any obli21 gation the interest on which is exempt from the tax 

22 imposed under chapter 1 of the Internal Revenue 

23 Code of 1986. 

24 (d) APPLICATION.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—To be eligible to receive a 

2 grant under the program, an eligible entity shall 

3 submit to the Administrator an application in such 

4 manner and containing such information as the Ad5 ministrator may require. 

6 (2) BUNDLING OF PROJECTS.—An eligible enti7 ty may include more than 1 project in a single appli8 cation. 

9 (3) DEADLINE.—An application shall be sub10 mitted to the Administrator not later than 180 days 

11 after the date on which the notice of funding oppor12 tunity and the selection criteria are issued under 

13 subsection (e)(1)(B). 

14 (e) SELECTION.— 

15 (1) CRITERIA.— 

16 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator 

17 shall establish criteria in accordance with this 

18 subsection to use in selecting projects to receive 

19 a grant under the program. 

20 (B) PUBLICATION.—Not later than 90 

21 days after the date on which funds are made 

22 available to carry out the program for each fis23 cal year, the Administrator shall— 

24 (i) issue a notice of funding oppor25 tunity for the program; and 


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1 (ii) include in the notice the selection 

2 criteria established under subparagraph 

3 (A). 

4 (2) PRIORITY.—In selecting projects to receive 

5 a grant under the program, the Administrator shall 

6 give priority to projects— 

7 (A) for which a Federal grant would assist 

8 in completing an overall financing package for 

9 the project; and 

10 (B) that would help bring publicly owned 

11 treatment works (as defined in section 212 of 

12 the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 

13 U.S.C. 1292)) into compliance with the Federal 

14 Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et 

15 seq.). 

16 (3) GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION.—For each 

17 fiscal year, in providing grants under the program, 

18 the Administrator shall ensure that the funds are 

19 distributed— 

20 (A) on an equitable geographical basis; and 

21 (B) in a manner that balances the needs of 

22 urban, suburban, and rural communities. 

23 (4) DEADLINE.—Not later than 18 months 

24 after the date on which funds are made available to 

25 carry out the program for each fiscal year, the AdVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:37 Jul 13, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3701.IH H3701

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1 ministrator shall select projects to receive grants 

2 under the program. 

3 (f) REQUIREMENTS.— 

4 (1) TOTAL STATE LIMIT.—For each fiscal year, 

5 the total amount provided under the program for 

6 projects in a single State shall not exceed 20 percent 

7 of the total amount made available to carry out the 

8 program. 

9 (2) FEDERAL SHARE.— 

10 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara11 graph (B), the Federal share of the cost of a 

12 project carried out with a grant under the pro13 gram shall not exceed 80 percent. 

14 (B) WAIVER.—The Administrator may 

15 waive the requirement of subparagraph (A). 

16 (g) REGULATIONS.—The Administrator may promul17 gate such regulations as may be necessary to carry out 

18 this section. 

19 (h) LABOR STANDARDS.—Notwithstanding any other 

20 provision of law, the Administrator may not provide a 

21 grant under the program for a project unless the project 

22 meets the requirements described in section 513 of the 

23 Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1372). 

24 (i) REPORTS.—Not later than 2 years after the date 

25 of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall submit 


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1 to Congress and make publicly available a report on the 

2 implementation of the program. 

3 (j) FUNDING.— 

4 (1) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

5 There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

6 this section $1,000,000,000 for each of fiscal years 

7 2022 through 2031. 

8 (2) AVAILABILITY.—Funds made available to 

9 carry out this section shall be available until ex10 pended. 

11 (3) ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS.—Not more than 2 

12 percent of the amount made available for a fiscal 

13 year under paragraph (1) may be used by the Ad14 ministrator for the administrative costs of carrying 

15 out the program. 

16 (k) DAVIS-BACON.— 

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other 

18 provision of law, all laborers and mechanics em19 ployed by contractors or subcontractors on projects 

20 carried out in whole or in part using a grant under 

21 the program shall be paid wages at rates not less 

22 than those prevailing on projects of a similar char23 acter in the locality as determined by the Secretary 

24 of Labor in accordance with subchapter IV of chapVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:37 Jul 13, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3701.IH H3701

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1 ter 31 of title 40, United States Code (commonly 

2 known as the ‘‘Davis-Bacon Act’’). 

3 (2) AUTHORITY.—With respect to the labor 

4 standards specified in paragraph (1), the Secretary 

5 of Labor shall have the authority and functions set 

6 forth in Reorganization Plan Numbered 14 of 1950 

7 (64 Stat. 1267; 5 U.S.C. App.) and section 3145 of 

8 title 40, United States Code. 

9 (l) BUY AMERICA.—Notwithstanding any other provi10 sion of law, the Administrator may not provide a grant 

11 under the program for a project unless the project meets 

12 the requirements described in section 1452(a)(4) of the 

13 Safe Drinking Water Act (42 U.S.C. 300j–12(a)(4)). 

14 SEC. 3. DRINKING WATER INFRASTRUCTURE DISCRE15 TIONARY GRANT PROGRAM. 

16 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 1 year after 

17 the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator of 

18 the Environmental Protection Agency (referred to in this 

19 section as the ‘‘Administrator’’) shall establish a drinking 

20 water discretionary grant program (referred to in this sec21 tion as the ‘‘program’’) to provide grants, on a competitive 

22 basis, to eligible entities described in subsection (b) for 

23 investments in drinking water infrastructure projects. 

24 (b) ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.—An entity eligible to re25 ceive a grant under the program is— 


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1 (1) a State, interstate, intermunicipal, or local 

2 governmental entity, agency, or instrumentality; 

3 (2) a Tribal government or consortium of Trib4 al governments; 

5 (3) a State infrastructure financing authority; 

6 and 

7 (4) a community water system or nonprofit 

8 noncommunity water system (as those terms are de9 fined in section 1401 of the Safe Drinking Water 

10 Act (42 U.S.C. 300f)). 

11 (c) ELIGIBLE PROJECTS.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—A project eligible to be car13 ried out with funds under the program includes— 

14 (A) planning, design, siting, 

15 preconstruction and construction activities re16 lated to replacing or rehabilitating aging treat17 ment, storage, or distribution facilities of public 

18 water systems; 

19 (B) for public water systems for which one 

20 or more sources of drinking water is contami21 nated with perfluoroalkyl or polyfluoroalkyl sub22 stances that meet or exceed federal or state 

23 drinking water health advisory levels or stand24 ards— 


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1 (i) treatment measures to reduce the 

2 detectible levels of perfluoroalkyl or 

3 polyfluoroalkyl substances; and 

4 (ii) measures to connect the public 

5 water system to a new drinking water 

6 source; 

7 (C) connecting households using well water 

8 to a public water system; 

9 (D) replacing lead pipes or service lines; 

10 (E) measures that would bring public 

11 water systems into compliance with the Safe 

12 Drinking Water Act (42 U.S.C. 300f et seq.); 

13 and 

14 (F) any other drinking water infrastruc15 ture project that the Administrator determines 

16 to appropriate. 

17 (2) OTHER FEDERAL FUNDS.—Notwithstanding 

18 any other provision of law, a project otherwise eligi19 ble under paragraph (1) shall not be ineligible for 

20 funding because the project also received prior as21 sistance— 

22 (A) from a State drinking water treatment 

23 revolving loan fund established under section 

24 1452 of the Safe Drinking Water Act (42 

25 U.S.C. 300j–12); 


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1 (B) from a State water pollution control 

2 revolving fund established under title VI of the 

3 Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 

4 1381 et seq.); or 

5 (C) under the Water Infrastructure Fi6 nance and Innovation Act of 2014 (33 U.S.C. 

7 3901 et seq.). 

8 (3) NO INCREASED BONDING AUTHORITY.— 

9 Amounts made available under the program may not 

10 be used as a source of payment of, or security for 

11 (directly or indirectly), in whole or in part, any obli12 gation the interest on which is exempt from the tax 

13 imposed under chapter 1 of the Internal Revenue 

14 Code of 1986. 

15 (d) APPLICATION.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—To be eligible to receive a 

17 grant under the program, an eligible entity shall 

18 submit to the Administrator an application in such 

19 manner and containing such information as the Ad20 ministrator may require. 

21 (2) BUNDLING OF PROJECTS.—An eligible enti22 ty may include more than 1 project in a single appli23 cation. 

24 (3) DEADLINE.—An application shall be sub25 mitted to the Administrator not later than 180 days 


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1 after the date on which the notice of funding oppor2 tunity and the selection criteria are issued under 

3 subsection (e)(1)(B). 

4 (e) SELECTION.— 

5 (1) CRITERIA.— 

6 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator 

7 shall establish criteria in accordance with this 

8 subsection to use in selecting projects to receive 

9 a grant under the program. 

10 (B) PUBLICATION.—Not later than 90 

11 days after the date on which funds are made 

12 available to carry out the program for each fis13 cal year, the Administrator shall— 

14 (i) issue a notice of funding oppor15 tunity for the program; and 

16 (ii) include in the notice the selection 

17 criteria established under subparagraph 

18 (A). 

19 (2) PRIORITY.—In selecting projects to receive 

20 a grant under the program, the Administrator shall 

21 give priority to projects— 

22 (A) for which a Federal grant would assist 

23 in completing an overall financing package for 

24 the project; and 


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1 (B) that would help bring public water sys2 tems (as defined in section 1401 of the Safe 

3 Drinking Water Act (42 U.S.C. 300f)) into 

4 compliance with the Safe Drinking Water Act 

5 (42 U.S.C. 300f et seq.). 

6 (3) GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION.—For each 

7 fiscal year, in providing grants under the program, 

8 the Administrator shall ensure that the funds are 

9 distributed— 

10 (A) on an equitable geographical basis; and 

11 (B) in a manner that balances the needs of 

12 urban, suburban, and rural communities. 

13 (4) DEADLINE.—Not later than 18 months 

14 after the date on which funds are made available to 

15 carry out the program for each fiscal year, the Ad16 ministrator shall select projects to receive grants 

17 under the program. 

18 (f) REQUIREMENTS.— 

19 (1) TOTAL STATE LIMIT.—For each fiscal year, 

20 the total amount provided under the program for 

21 projects in a single State shall not exceed 20 percent 

22 of the total amount made available to carry out the 

23 program. 

24 (2) NON-FEDERAL SHARE.— 


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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—The non-Federal share 

2 of the cost of a project carried out with a grant 

3 under the program shall be not less than 20 

4 percent. 

5 (B) OTHER FEDERAL SOURCES.—An eligi6 ble entity receiving a grant under the program 

7 may use funds provided from other Federal 

8 sources to meet the non-Federal share require9 ment under subparagraph (A). 

10 (g) REGULATIONS.—The Administrator may promul11 gate such regulations as may be necessary to carry out 

12 this section. 

13 (h) LABOR STANDARDS.—Notwithstanding any other 

14 provision of law, the Administrator may not provide a 

15 grant under the program for a project unless the project 

16 meets the requirements described in section 1450(e) of the 

17 Safe Drinking Water Act (42 U.S.C. 300j–9(e)). 

18 (i) REPORTS.—Not later than 2 years after the date 

19 of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall submit 

20 to Congress and make publicly available a report on the 

21 implementation of the program. 

22 (j) FUNDING.— 

23 (1) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

24 There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out 


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1 this section $1,000,000,000 for each of fiscal years 

2 2022 through 2031. 

3 (2) AVAILABILITY.—Funds made available to 

4 carry out this section shall be available until ex5 pended. 

6 (3) ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS.—Not more than 2 

7 percent of the amount made available for a fiscal 

8 year under paragraph (1) may be used by the Ad9 ministrator for the administrative costs of carrying 

10 out the program. 

11 (k) DAVIS-BACON.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other 

13 provision of law, all laborers and mechanics em14 ployed by contractors or subcontractors on projects 

15 carried out in whole or in part using a grant under 

16 the program shall be paid wages at rates not less 

17 than those prevailing on projects of a similar char18 acter in the locality as determined by the Secretary 

19 of Labor in accordance with subchapter IV of chap20 ter 31 of title 40, United States Code (commonly 

21 known as the ‘‘Davis-Bacon Act’’). 

22 (2) AUTHORITY.—With respect to the labor 

23 standards specified in paragraph (1), the Secretary 

24 of Labor shall have the authority and functions set 

25 forth in Reorganization Plan Numbered 14 of 1950 


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1 (64 Stat. 1267; 5 U.S.C. App.) and section 3145 of 

2 title 40, United States Code. 

3 (l) BUY AMERICA.—Notwithstanding any other provi4 sion of law, the Administrator may not provide a grant 

5 under the program for a project unless the project meets 

6 the requirements described in section 1452(a)(4) of the 

7 Safe Drinking Water Act (42 U.S.C. 300j–12(a)(4)). 

Æ 


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