I 
118TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1721 
To amend the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act to establish 
a grant program to assist with the purchase, installation, and mainte-
nance of point-of-entry and point-of-use drinking water quality improve-
ment products, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MARCH 22, 2023 
Ms. PINGREE (for herself, Mr. ROUZER, and Mr. GALLAGHER) introduced the 
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture 
A BILL 
To amend the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development 
Act to establish a grant program to assist with the 
purchase, installation, and maintenance of point-of-entry 
and point-of-use drinking water quality improvement 
products, and for other purposes. 
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 ‘‘Healthy Drinking 
Water Affordability Act’’ or the ‘‘Healthy H2O Act’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds that— 
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(1) clean and safe drinking water is necessary 
to ensure public health and a vibrant economy; 
(2) communities that are dependent on private 
groundwater supplies to meet domestic drinking 
water needs, as well as those that continue to experi-
ence drinking water infrastructure challenges from 
public water supplies, including with infrastructure 
into and within households and living facilities, are 
disproportionately impacted by drinking water qual-
ity issues; 
(3) in many instances, those communities and 
their households have been adversely impacted by 
the presence of 1 or more naturally occurring and 
human-caused contaminants found in drinking 
water, such as lead, arsenic, nitrate, nitrite, and 
volatile organic compounds, as well as federally un-
regulated contaminants, including perfluoroalkyl and 
polyfluoroalkyl substances and hexavalent chromium 
(chrome-6), in local groundwater or other drinking 
water supplies; 
(4) public health organizations and institutions, 
such as the Centers for Disease Control and Preven-
tion, 
have 
cited 
giardia, 
enterovirus, 
radon, 
rotovirus, norovirus, shigella, campylobacter, sal-
monella, hepatitis A, cryptosporidium, and E. coli as 
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among the major diseases and contaminants that 
can be present in drinking water sources; 
(5) investments in projects to improve and sup-
port drinking water infrastructure are critically im-
portant to addressing water quality in the United 
States, but because those projects can typically take 
many years to complete, the current, and in some 
cases the ongoing, needs of communities impacted 
with immediate drinking water quality challenges 
cannot be or are not addressed in a timely manner; 
(6) as an interim measure (and in some cases 
in rural areas, for longer term or permanently), 
point-of-entry and point-of-use water quality im-
provement products are viable solutions to address 
drinking water contamination challenges for the peo-
ple of the United States; and 
(7) grants provided under this Act are intended 
to provide financial assistance for eligible grant re-
cipients (as defined in section 306F(a) of the Con-
solidated Farm and Rural Development Act (as 
added by section 3)) that voluntarily seek to improve 
the quality of the drinking water of eligible end 
users (as defined in that section), and not to dem-
onstrate that an eligible end user is in compliance 
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with a Federal, State, or local primary drinking 
water standard or regulation. 
SEC. 3. HEALTHY DRINKING WATER AFFORDABILITY AS-
SISTANCE PROGRAM. 
Subtitle A of the Consolidated Farm and Rural De-
velopment Act is amended by inserting after section 306E 
(7 U.S.C. 1926e) the following: 
‘‘SEC. 306F. HEALTHY DRINKING WATER AFFORDABILITY 
ASSISTANCE PROGRAM. 
‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
‘‘(1) APPROVED INSTALLATION.—The term ‘ap-
proved installation’ means the installation of an eli-
gible drinking water quality improvement product or 
a certified filter component by a qualified third-party 
installer that— 
‘‘(A) complies with all local and State reg-
ulations; and 
‘‘(B) follows the installation instructions of 
the manufacturer. 
‘‘(2) APPROVED MAINTENANCE.—The term ‘ap-
proved maintenance’ means required maintenance— 
‘‘(A) performed on an eligible drinking 
water quality improvement product that in-
cludes maintenance and replacement of the cer-
tified filter component; 
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‘‘(B) performed by a service technician 
who— 
‘‘(i) is— 
‘‘(I) professionally qualified, cer-
tified, or licensed as a water treat-
ment product maintenance profes-
sional, 
including 
a 
professional 
credentialed through a manufacturer 
or third party; 
‘‘(II) operating under the super-
vision of a service technician described 
in subclause (I); 
‘‘(III) a licensed plumber or a 
plumber operating under the super-
vision of a licensed plumbing con-
tractor; or 
‘‘(IV) an individual who holds a 
license or certification related to water 
treatment technologies issued by a 
State or local government; and 
‘‘(ii) regularly completes continuing 
education on water treatment technology 
and other subjects that enhance the serv-
ices provided under this section; 
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‘‘(C) that complies with all local and State 
regulations; and 
‘‘(D) that follows the maintenance instruc-
tions of the manufacturer. 
‘‘(3) CERTIFIED
FILTER
COMPONENT.—The 
term ‘certified filter component’ means a replaceable 
or replacement filter component— 
‘‘(A) for which approved maintenance can 
be performed; and 
‘‘(B) that is certified by a third-party cer-
tifier as compliant with— 
‘‘(i) NSF P231; 
‘‘(ii) NSF/ANSI Standard 42, 44, 53, 
55, 58, or 401; or 
‘‘(iii) another successor or relevant 
consensus-based standard for drinking 
water treatment units or systems that ad-
dresses health contaminant reduction, as 
determined by the Secretary. 
‘‘(4) ELIGIBLE DRINKING WATER QUALITY IM-
PROVEMENT PRODUCT.—The term ‘eligible drinking 
water quality improvement product’ means a point- 
of-use or point-of-entry system— 
‘‘(A) incorporating a certified filter compo-
nent; and 
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‘‘(B) that is certified by a third-party cer-
tifier to meet standards described in paragraph 
(3)(B)— 
‘‘(i) for material safety and perform-
ance; and 
‘‘(ii) to improve drinking water qual-
ity. 
‘‘(5) ELIGIBLE END USER.—The term ‘eligible 
end user’ means a person or entity located in a rural 
area (as defined in section 343(a)(13)(B)) that is— 
‘‘(A)(i) a homeowner; 
‘‘(ii) an individual lessee or renter of a 
home, apartment, or other dwelling; 
‘‘(iii) a property owner of a multi-unit resi-
dential building with 25 or fewer owned, leased, 
or rented dwelling units; 
‘‘(iv) a licensed child-care facility; or 
‘‘(v) an owned, leased, or rented facility; 
and 
‘‘(B) supported by a finding of need 
through— 
‘‘(i) a qualified water quality test 
demonstrating the presence of 1 or more 
health contaminants; or 
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‘‘(ii) other documentation determined 
to be satisfactory by the Secretary dem-
onstrating the presence of 1 or more 
health contaminants. 
‘‘(6) ELIGIBLE GRANT RECIPIENT.—The term 
‘eligible grant recipient’ means— 
‘‘(A) an eligible end user; and 
‘‘(B) a nonprofit organization that uses a 
grant provided under this section for the pur-
poses described in subsection (c)(2). 
‘‘(7) 
HEALTH
CONTAMINANT.—The 
term 
‘health contaminant’ means— 
‘‘(A) a health contaminant found in drink-
ing water, including lead, arsenic, nitrate, ni-
trite, perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl sub-
stances, hexavalent chromium (chrome-6), and 
volatile organic compounds; and 
‘‘(B) any other contaminant— 
‘‘(i) that can be reduced by an eligible 
drinking water quality improvement prod-
uct or a certified filter component in ac-
cordance with the standards described in 
paragraph (3)(B); and 
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‘‘(ii)(I) with respect to which the Ad-
ministrator of the Environmental Protec-
tion Agency has established— 
‘‘(aa) a primary drinking water 
regulation (as defined in section 1401 
of the Safe Drinking Water Act (42 
U.S.C. 300f); 
‘‘(bb) a maximum contaminant 
level goal established in accordance 
with section 1412(b) of that Act (42 
U.S.C. 300g–1(b)); or 
‘‘(cc) a health advisory issued 
pursuant to section 1412(b)(1)(F) of 
that 
Act 
(42 
U.S.C. 
300g– 
1(b)(1)(F)); or 
‘‘(II) that is regulated by a State 
agency. 
‘‘(8) IMPROVE
DRINKING
WATER
QUALITY.— 
The term ‘improve drinking water quality’ means to 
improve the quality of the water supplied between its 
source and human consumption by reducing or re-
moving 1 or more health contaminants. 
‘‘(9) QUALIFIED
THIRD-PARTY
INSTALLER.— 
The term ‘qualified third-party installer’ means a 
person who— 
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‘‘(A) is— 
‘‘(i) a professionally qualified, cer-
tified, or licensed water treatment product 
installation professional, including such a 
professional credentialed through a manu-
facturer or third party; 
‘‘(ii) a licensed plumber or individual 
who holds a license or certification related 
to water treatment technologies issued by a 
State or local government; or 
‘‘(iii) a company or plumbing con-
tractor employing individuals described in 
clause (i) or (ii); and 
‘‘(B) regularly completes, or requires appli-
cable employees to complete, continuing edu-
cation on water treatment technology and other 
subjects that enhance the services provided 
under this section. 
‘‘(10) QUALIFIED WATER QUALITY TEST.—The 
term ‘qualified water quality test’ means a baseline 
analysis of the bacterial and chemical characteristics 
of concern from a drinking water sample collected at 
the point of consumption and tested by a laboratory 
certified to conduct water quality testing— 
‘‘(A) that is provided to— 
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‘‘(i) the Secretary; and 
‘‘(ii) as applicable— 
‘‘(I) a person seeking a grant 
under this section; 
‘‘(II) an eligible end user receiv-
ing a grant under this section; or 
‘‘(III) an eligible grant recipient 
receiving a grant under this section 
and any eligible end users served by 
the eligible grant recipient; and 
‘‘(B) that includes information that pro-
vides— 
‘‘(i) guidance on test interpretation, 
including whether the bacteria or chemical 
characteristic of concern meets or exceeds 
a prescribed health-based contaminant 
level; and 
‘‘(ii) sources and citations that eligible 
grant recipients, independent third-party 
organizations and institutions, and govern-
ment agencies may review and consult— 
‘‘(I) to determine available eligi-
ble drinking water quality improve-
ment products for addressing detected 
contaminants; and 
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‘‘(II) to evaluate efficacy across 
eligible drinking water quality im-
provement products. 
‘‘(11) THIRD-PARTY
CERTIFIER.—The term 
‘third-party certifier’ means an independent certifi-
cation body accredited to ISO Standard 17065, 
‘Conformity assessment — Requirements for bodies 
certifying products, processes and services’, by an 
entity domiciled in the United States that is a signa-
tory to the International Accreditation Forum Multi-
lateral Recognition Arrangement, such as the Water 
Quality Association, NSF International, the Inter-
national Association of Plumbing and Mechanical 
Officials, and the International Code Council Eval-
uation Service. 
‘‘(b) ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM.—Not later than 
120 days after the date of enactment of this section, the 
Secretary shall promulgate regulations to establish, and 
shall carry out, a clean drinking water program, to be 
known as the ‘Healthy Drinking Water Affordability As-
sistance Program’ or the ‘Healthy H2O Program’, to pro-
vide grants to eligible grant recipients to improve drinking 
water quality of eligible end users. 
‘‘(c) ELIGIBLE USES OF GRANTS.— 
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who is a member of a household the members of 
which have a combined income, or an eligible end 
user with business income, for the most recent 12- 
month period for which the information is available, 
that is more than 150 percent of the median non-
metropolitan household income for the State or terri-
tory in which the eligible end user resides, according 
to the most recent decennial census of the United 
States. 
‘‘(e) GRANT ADMINISTRATOR.—The Secretary shall 
appoint an officer or employee of the Department of Agri-
culture to administer and manage grants provided under 
this section. 
‘‘(f) GRANT
ALLOCATION.—In providing grants 
under this section to eligible grant recipients, the Sec-
retary shall allocate funds and make grants available in 
a manner that— 
‘‘(1) responds to a range of water quality chal-
lenges; 
‘‘(2) prioritizes funding to eligible end-users the 
sources of drinking water of which are private wells; 
‘‘(3) improves local and regional capacity to re-
spond to contamination; and 
‘‘(4) ensures reasonable access to funds for— 
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‘‘(A) eligible end users seeking a grant 
under this section; and 
‘‘(B) nonprofit organizations seeking a 
grant under this section. 
‘‘(g) REPORTS.—Not later than 1 year after the date 
of enactment of this section, and not less frequently than 
annually thereafter, the Secretary shall submit to Con-
gress, and make publicly available, a report— 
‘‘(1) identifying ongoing barriers to universal 
safe drinking water prior to and after filtration or 
other treatment; 
‘‘(2) analyzing conditions impacting eligible 
grant recipients, including— 
‘‘(A) sources of contamination or degrada-
tion of water resources, especially groundwater 
resources or upstream resources that recharge 
stores of drinking water; 
‘‘(B) trends in bioaccumulation and at-
tenuation of contaminants and nutrients; and 
‘‘(C) impacts of infrastructure materials, 
crop and land management practices, waste 
management, and other factors that impact 
drinking water quantity and quality; 
‘‘(3) providing a comprehensive analysis of— 
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‘‘(A) technologies available to and pur-
chased by eligible grant recipients; and 
‘‘(B) the emerging safe drinking water 
needs of rural and other homeowners, renters, 
residential multi-unit property owners, licensed 
child-care facilities, and other groups, as deter-
mined by the Secretary; 
‘‘(4) that includes information describing— 
‘‘(A) the types of treatment systems and 
filter components used under the program es-
tablished under this section; 
‘‘(B) the number of qualified water quality 
tests conducted under the program established 
under this section; 
‘‘(C) emerging and changing trends relat-
ing to steps taken to ensure safe drinking water 
in communities and households; and 
‘‘(D) trends relating to the availability and 
use of eligible drinking water quality improve-
ment products, including— 
‘‘(i) affordability at purchase and 
through the lifecycle of the products; 
‘‘(ii) consistency of operation as in-
tended by the manufacturer and installer, 
including effectiveness across systems and 
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technologies at achieving stated health pro-
tections; and 
‘‘(iii) lifecycle product performance, 
energy use, and environmental impact; 
‘‘(5) providing recommendations regarding the 
best methods to increase access to— 
‘‘(A) grants under this section; and 
‘‘(B) the products and services described in 
subsection (c); 
‘‘(6) that incorporates input from relevant— 
‘‘(A) nongovernmental organizations; and 
‘‘(B) certification institutions that oversee 
the criteria for products and training of instal-
lation and maintenance professionals; and 
‘‘(7) the purposes of which are— 
‘‘(A) to improve data on health contami-
nants in drinking water; 
‘‘(B) to provide educational resources on 
water testing and water quality improvement 
products and services to eligible grant recipients 
with drinking water contamination issues; 
‘‘(C) to collect information that improves 
understanding of water testing and water qual-
ity improvement products and services, includ-
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ing their associated health and economic bene-
fits; and 
‘‘(D) to increase public awareness of water 
quality issues and treatment options. 
‘‘(h) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 
is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary to carry 
out this section $10,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2024 
through 2028.’’. 
Æ 
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