I 
108TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 3328
To amend the Safe Drinking Water Act to establish a program to provide 
assistance to small communities for use in carrying out projects and 
activities necessary to achieve or maintain compliance with drinking 
water standards. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
OCTOBER 16, 2003
Mrs. WILSON of New Mexico introduced the following bill; which was referred 
to the Committee on Energy and Commerce 
A BILL 
To amend the Safe Drinking Water Act to establish a pro-
gram to provide assistance to small communities for use 
in carrying out projects and activities necessary to 
achieve or maintain compliance with drinking water 
standards.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Community Drinking 
Water Assistance Act’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
The Congress finds that—
communities with respect to public water systems; 
and 
(8) since new, more protective arsenic drinking 
water standards proposed by the Clinton and Bush 
administrations, respectively, are expected to be im-
plemented in 2006, the grant program established 
by the amendment made by this Act should be im-
plemented in a manner that ensures that the imple-
mentation of those new standards is not delayed. 
SEC. 3. ASSISTANCE FOR SMALL PUBLIC WATER SYSTEMS. 
(a) 
DEFINITION
OF
INDIAN
TRIBE.—Section 
1401(14) of the Safe Drinking Water Act (42 U.S.C. 
300f(14)) is amended in the second sentence by striking 
‘‘1452,’’ and inserting ‘‘1452 and part G,’’. 
(b) ESTABLISHMENT
OF
PROGRAM.—The Safe 
Drinking Water Act (42 U.S.C. 300f et seq.) is amended 
by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘PART G—ASSISTANCE FOR SMALL PUBLIC 
WATER SYSTEMS 
‘‘SEC. 1471. DEFINITIONS. 
‘‘In this part: 
‘‘(1) ELIGIBLE ACTIVITY.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘eligible ac-
tivity’ means a project or activity concerning a 
small public water system that is carried out by
an eligible entity to comply with drinking water 
standards. 
‘‘(B) INCLUSIONS.—The term ‘eligible ac-
tivity’ includes—
‘‘(i) obtaining technical assistance; 
and 
‘‘(ii) training and certifying operators 
of small public water systems. 
‘‘(C) EXCLUSION.—The term ‘eligible ac-
tivity’ does not include any project or activity to 
increase the population served by a small public 
water system, except to the extent that the Ad-
ministrator determines such a project or activ-
ity to be necessary to—
‘‘(i) achieve compliance with a na-
tional primary drinking water regulation; 
and 
‘‘(ii) provide a water supply to a pop-
ulation that, as of the date of the enact-
ment of this part, is not served by a safe 
public water system. 
‘‘(2) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘eligible en-
tity’ means a small public water system that—
‘‘(A) is located in a State or an area gov-
erned by an Indian Tribe; and
‘‘(B)(i) if located in a State, serves a com-
munity that, under affordability criteria estab-
lished by the State under section 1452(d)(3), is 
determined by the State to be—
‘‘(I) a disadvantaged community; or 
‘‘(II) a community that may become a 
disadvantaged community as a result of 
carrying out an eligible activity; or 
‘‘(ii) if located in an area governed by an 
Indian Tribe, serves a community that, under 
affordability criteria published by the Adminis-
trator under section 1452(d)(3), is determined 
by the Administrator in consultation with the 
Secretary to be—
‘‘(I) a disadvantaged community; or 
‘‘(II) a community that may become a 
disadvantaged community as a result of 
carrying out an eligible activity. 
‘‘(3) PROGRAM.—The term ‘Program’ means 
the small public water system assistance program es-
tablished under section 1472(a). 
‘‘(4) SECRETARY.—The term ‘Secretary’ means 
the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting 
through the Director of the Indian Health Service.
‘‘(5) SMALL
PUBLIC
WATER
SYSTEM.—The 
term ‘small public water system’ means a public 
water system (whether a community water system or 
a noncommunity water system) that serves—
‘‘(A) a community with a population of not 
more than 200,000 individuals; or 
‘‘(B) a public water system located in—
‘‘(i) Bernalillo or Sandoval County, 
New Mexico; 
‘‘(ii) Scottsdale, Arizona; 
‘‘(iii) Mesquite or Washoe County, 
Nevada; or 
‘‘(iv) El Paso County, Texas. 
‘‘SEC. 1472. SMALL PUBLIC WATER SYSTEM ASSISTANCE 
PROGRAM. 
‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after 
the date of the enactment of this part, the Adminis-
trator shall establish a program to provide grants to 
eligible entities for use in carrying out eligible activi-
ties to comply with drinking water standards. 
‘‘(2) PRIORITY.—Subject to paragraph (3), the 
Administrator shall award grants under the Pro-
gram to eligible entities based on—
‘‘(A) first, the financial need of the com-
munity for the grant assistance, as determined 
by the Administrator; and 
‘‘(B) second, with respect to the commu-
nity in which the eligible entity is located, the 
per capita cost of complying with drinking 
water standards, as determined by the Adminis-
trator. 
‘‘(3) SMALL COMMUNITIES.—In making grants 
under this section, the Administrator shall ensure 
that not less 20 percent of grant funds provided for 
each fiscal year are used to carry out eligible activi-
ties in communities with a population of less than 
50,000 individuals. 
‘‘(b) APPLICATION PROCESS.—
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—An eligible entity that 
seeks to receive a grant under the Program shall 
submit to the Administrator, on such form as the 
Administrator shall prescribe (not to exceed 3 pages 
in length), an application to receive the grant. 
‘‘(2) COMPONENTS.—The application shall in-
clude—
‘‘(A) a description of the eligible activities 
for which the grant is needed;
‘‘(B) a description of the efforts made by 
the eligible entity, as of the date of submission 
of the application, to comply with drinking 
water standards; and 
‘‘(C) any other information required to be 
included by the Administrator. 
‘‘(3) REVIEW
AND
APPROVAL
OF
APPLICA-
TIONS.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—On receipt of an ap-
plication under paragraph (1), the Adminis-
trator shall forward the application to the 
Council. 
‘‘(B) APPROVAL
OR
DISAPPROVAL.—Not 
later than 90 days after receiving the rec-
ommendations of the Council under subsection 
(e) concerning an application, after taking into 
consideration the recommendations, the Admin-
istrator shall—
‘‘(i) approve the application and 
award a grant to the applicant; or 
‘‘(ii) disapprove the application. 
‘‘(C) RESUBMISSION.—If the Adminis-
trator disapproves an application under sub-
paragraph (B)(ii), the Administrator shall—
‘‘(i) inform the applicant in writing of 
the disapproval (including the reasons for 
the disapproval); and 
‘‘(ii) provide to the applicant a dead-
line by which the applicant may revise and 
resubmit the application. 
‘‘(c) COST SHARING.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para-
graph (2), the Federal share of the cost of carrying 
out an eligible activity using funds from a grant pro-
vided under the Program shall not exceed 90 per-
cent. 
‘‘(2) WAIVER.—The Administrator may waive 
the requirement to pay the non-Federal share of the 
cost of carrying out an eligible activity using funds 
from a grant provided under the Program if the Ad-
ministrator determines that an eligible entity is un-
able to pay, or would experience significant financial 
hardship if required to pay, the non-Federal share. 
‘‘(d) ENFORCEMENT
AND
IMPLEMENTATION
OF 
STANDARDS.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 
the Administrator shall not enforce any standard for 
drinking water under this Act that takes effect after 
the date of the enactment of this part (including any
regulation promulgated under this Act that takes ef-
fect after such date) against an eligible entity during 
the period beginning on the date on which the eligi-
ble entity submits an application for a grant under 
the Program and ending, as applicable, on—
‘‘(A) the deadline specified in subsection 
(b)(3)(C)(ii), if the application is disapproved 
and not resubmitted; or 
‘‘(B) the date that is 3 years after the date 
on which the eligible entity receives a grant 
under this part, if the application is approved. 
‘‘(2) ARSENIC STANDARDS.—No standard for 
arsenic in drinking water promulgated under this 
Act (including a standard in any regulation promul-
gated before the date of enactment of this part) 
shall be implemented or enforced by the Adminis-
trator in any State until the earlier of January 1, 
2006, or such date as the Administrator certifies to 
the Congress that—
‘‘(A) the Program has been implemented 
in the State; and 
‘‘(B) the State has made substantial 
progress, as determined by the Administrator in 
consultation with the Governor of the State, in
complying with drinking water standards under 
this Act. 
‘‘(e) ROLE OF COUNCIL.—The Council shall—
‘‘(1) review applications for grants from eligible 
entities received by the Administrator under sub-
section (b); 
‘‘(2) for each application, recommend to the 
Administrator whether the application should be ap-
proved or disapproved; and 
‘‘(3) take into consideration priority lists devel-
oped by States for the use of drinking water treat-
ment revolving loan funds under section 1452. 
‘‘SEC. 1473. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 
‘‘There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out 
this part $1,900,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2004 
through 2009.’’.
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