In the Senate of the United States,
September 21, 2000.
Resolved, That the bill from the House of Representa-
tives (H.R. 999) entitled ‘‘An Act to amend the Federal
Water Pollution Control Act to improve the quality of coastal
recreation waters, and for other purposes.’’, do pass with the
following
AMENDMENT:
Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert:
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Beaches Environmental
Assessment and Coastal Health Act of 2000’’.
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SEC. 2. ADOPTION OF COASTAL RECREATION WATER QUAL-
ITY CRITERIA AND STANDARDS BY STATES.
Section 303 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act
(33 U.S.C. 1313) is amended by adding at the end the fol-
lowing:
‘‘(i) COASTAL RECREATION WATER QUALITY CRI-
TERIA.—
‘‘(1) ADOPTION BY STATES.—
‘‘(A) INITIAL CRITERIA AND STANDARDS.—
Not later than 42 months after the date of enact-
ment of this subsection, each State having coast-
al recreation waters shall adopt and submit to
the Administrator water quality criteria and
standards for the coastal recreation waters of the
State for those pathogens and pathogen indica-
tors for which the Administrator has published
criteria under section 304(a).
‘‘(B) NEW
OR
REVISED
CRITERIA
AND
STANDARDS.—Not later than 36 months after the
date of publication by the Administrator of new
or revised water quality criteria under section
304(a)(9), each State having coastal recreation
waters shall adopt and submit to the Adminis-
trator new or revised water quality standards for
the coastal recreation waters of the State for all
pathogens and pathogen indicators to which the
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new or revised water quality criteria are appli-
cable.
‘‘(2) FAILURE OF STATES TO ADOPT.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If a State fails to adopt
water quality criteria and standards in accord-
ance with paragraph (1)(A) that are as protec-
tive of human health as the criteria for patho-
gens and pathogen indicators for coastal recre-
ation waters published by the Administrator, the
Administrator shall promptly propose regula-
tions for the State setting forth revised or new
water quality standards for pathogens and
pathogen indicators described in paragraph
(1)(A) for coastal recreation waters of the State.
‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—If the Administrator
proposes regulations for a State described in sub-
paragraph (A) under subsection (c)(4)(B), the
Administrator shall publish any revised or new
standard under this subsection not later than 42
months after the date of enactment of this sub-
section.
‘‘(3) APPLICABILITY.—Except as expressly pro-
vided by this subsection, the requirements and proce-
dures of subsection (c) apply to this subsection, in-
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cluding the requirement in subsection (c)(2)(A) that
the criteria protect public health and welfare.’’.
SEC. 3. REVISIONS TO WATER QUALITY CRITERIA.
(a) STUDIES CONCERNING PATHOGEN INDICATORS IN
COASTAL RECREATION WATERS.—Section 104 of the Fed-
eral Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1254) is
amended by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(v) STUDIES CONCERNING PATHOGEN INDICATORS IN
COASTAL
RECREATION
WATERS.—Not later than 18
months after the date of enactment of this subsection, after
consultation and in cooperation with appropriate Federal,
State, tribal, and local officials (including local health offi-
cials), the Administrator shall initiate, and, not later than
3 years after the date of enactment of this subsection, shall
complete, in cooperation with the heads of other Federal
agencies, studies to provide additional information for use
in developing—
‘‘(1) an assessment of potential human health
risks resulting from exposure to pathogens in coastal
recreation waters, including nongastrointestinal ef-
fects;
‘‘(2) appropriate and effective indicators for im-
proving detection in a timely manner in coastal
recreation waters of the presence of pathogens that are
harmful to human health;
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‘‘(3) appropriate, accurate, expeditious, and cost-
effective methods (including predictive models) for de-
tecting in a timely manner in coastal recreation wa-
ters the presence of pathogens that are harmful to
human health; and
‘‘(4) guidance for State application of the cri-
teria for pathogens and pathogen indicators to be
published under section 304(a)(9) to account for the
diversity of geographic and aquatic conditions.’’.
(b) REVISED CRITERIA.—Section 304(a) of the Federal
Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1314(a)) is amend-
ed by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(9) REVISED CRITERIA FOR COASTAL RECRE-
ATION WATERS.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 5 years
after the date of enactment of this paragraph,
after consultation and in cooperation with ap-
propriate Federal, State, tribal, and local offi-
cials (including local health officials), the Ad-
ministrator shall publish new or revised water
quality criteria for pathogens and pathogen in-
dicators (including a revised list of testing meth-
ods, as appropriate), based on the results of the
studies conducted under section 104(v), for the
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purpose of protecting human health in coastal
recreation waters.
‘‘(B) REVIEWS.—Not later than the date
that is 5 years after the date of publication of
water quality criteria under this paragraph, and
at least once every 5 years thereafter, the Admin-
istrator shall review and, as necessary, revise the
water quality criteria.’’.
SEC. 4. COASTAL RECREATION WATER QUALITY MONI-
TORING AND NOTIFICATION.
Title IV of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act
(33 U.S.C. 1341 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end
the following:
‘‘SEC. 406. COASTAL RECREATION WATER QUALITY MONI-
TORING AND NOTIFICATION.
‘‘(a) MONITORING AND NOTIFICATION.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 18 months
after the date of enactment of this section, after con-
sultation and in cooperation with appropriate Fed-
eral, State, tribal, and local officials (including local
health officials), and after providing public notice
and an opportunity for comment, the Administrator
shall publish performance criteria for—
‘‘(A) monitoring and assessment (including
specifying available methods for monitoring) of
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‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—The Administrator
may award a grant to a State or a local govern-
ment to implement a monitoring and notifica-
tion program if—
‘‘(i) the program is consistent with the
performance criteria published by the Ad-
ministrator under subsection (a);
‘‘(ii) the State or local government
prioritizes the use of grant funds for par-
ticular coastal recreation waters based on
the use of the water and the risk to human
health presented by pathogens or pathogen
indicators;
‘‘(iii) the State or local government
makes available to the Administrator the
factors used to prioritize the use of funds
under clause (ii);
‘‘(iv) the State or local government
provides a list of discrete areas of coastal
recreation waters that are subject to the
program for monitoring and notification for
which the grant is provided that specifies
any coastal recreation waters for which fis-
cal constraints will prevent consistency with
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the performance criteria under subsection
(a); and
‘‘(v) the public is provided an oppor-
tunity to review the program through a
process that provides for public notice and
an opportunity for comment.
‘‘(B) GRANTS TO LOCAL GOVERNMENTS.—
The Administrator may make a grant to a local
government under this subsection for implemen-
tation of a monitoring and notification program
only if, after the 1-year period beginning on the
date of publication of performance criteria under
subsection (a)(1), the Administrator determines
that the State is not implementing a program
that meets the requirements of this subsection, re-
gardless of whether the State has received a grant
under this subsection.
‘‘(3) OTHER REQUIREMENTS.—
‘‘(A) REPORT.—A State recipient of a grant
under this subsection shall submit to the Admin-
istrator, in such format and at such intervals as
the Administrator determines to be appropriate,
a report that describes—
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‘‘(i) data collected as part of the pro-
gram for monitoring and notification as de-
scribed in subsection (c); and
‘‘(ii) actions taken to notify the public
when water quality standards are exceeded.
‘‘(B) DELEGATION.—A State recipient of a
grant under this subsection shall identify each
local government to which the State has dele-
gated or intends to delegate responsibility for im-
plementing a monitoring and notification pro-
gram consistent with the performance criteria
published under subsection (a) (including any
coastal recreation waters for which the authority
to implement a monitoring and notification pro-
gram would be subject to the delegation).
‘‘(4) FEDERAL SHARE.—
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—The Administrator,
through grants awarded under this section, may
pay up to 100 percent of the costs of developing
and implementing a program for monitoring
and notification under this subsection.
‘‘(B) NON-FEDERAL SHARE.—The non-Fed-
eral share of the costs of developing and imple-
menting a monitoring and notification program
may be—
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‘‘(i) in an amount not to exceed 50
percent, as determined by the Administrator
in consultation with State, tribal, and local
government representatives; and
‘‘(ii) provided in cash or in kind.
‘‘(c) CONTENT OF STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT
PROGRAMS.—As a condition of receipt of a grant under
subsection (b), a State or local government program for
monitoring and notification under this section shall
identify—
‘‘(1) lists of coastal recreation waters in the
State, including coastal recreation waters adjacent to
beaches or similar points of access that are used by
the public;
‘‘(2) in the case of a State program for moni-
toring and notification, the process by which the
State may delegate to local governments responsibility
for implementing the monitoring and notification
program;
‘‘(3) the frequency and location of monitoring
and assessment of coastal recreation waters based
on—
‘‘(A) the periods of recreational use of the
waters;
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‘‘(B) the nature and extent of use during
certain periods;
‘‘(C) the proximity of the waters to known
point sources and nonpoint sources of pollution;
and
‘‘(D) any effect of storm events on the wa-
ters;
‘‘(4)(A) the methods to be used for detecting levels
of pathogens and pathogen indicators that are harm-
ful to human health; and
‘‘(B) the assessment procedures for identifying
short-term increases in pathogens and pathogen indi-
cators that are harmful to human health in coastal
recreation waters (including increases in relation to
storm events);
‘‘(5) measures for prompt communication of the
occurrence, nature, location, pollutants involved, and
extent of any exceeding of, or likelihood of exceeding,
applicable water quality standards for pathogens and
pathogen indicators to—
‘‘(A) the Administrator, in such form as the
Administrator determines to be appropriate; and
‘‘(B) a designated official of a local govern-
ment having jurisdiction over land adjoining the
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coastal recreation waters for which the failure to
meet applicable standards is identified;
‘‘(6) measures for the posting of signs at beaches
or similar points of access, or functionally equivalent
communication measures that are sufficient to give
notice to the public that the coastal recreation waters
are not meeting or are not expected to meet applicable
water quality standards for pathogens and pathogen
indicators; and
‘‘(7) measures that inform the public of the po-
tential risks associated with water contact activities
in the coastal recreation waters that do not meet ap-
plicable water quality standards.
‘‘(d) FEDERAL AGENCY PROGRAMS.—Not later than 3
years after the date of enactment of this section, each Fed-
eral agency that has jurisdiction over coastal recreation wa-
ters adjacent to beaches or similar points of access that are
used by the public shall develop and implement, through
a process that provides for public notice and an opportunity
for comment, a monitoring and notification program for
the coastal recreation waters that—
‘‘(1) protects the public health and safety;
‘‘(2) is consistent with the performance criteria
published under subsection (a);
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‘‘(3) includes a completed report on the informa-
tion specified in subsection (b)(3)(A), to be submitted
to the Administrator; and
‘‘(4) addresses the matters specified in subsection
(c) .
‘‘(e) DATABASE.—The Administrator shall establish,
maintain, and make available to the public by electronic
and other means a national coastal recreation water pollu-
tion occurrence database that provides—
‘‘(1) the data reported to the Administrator
under subsections (b)(3)(A)(i) and (d)(3); and
‘‘(2) other information concerning pathogens and
pathogen indicators in coastal recreation waters
that—
‘‘(A) is made available to the Administrator
by a State or local government, from a coastal
water quality monitoring program of the State
or local government; and
‘‘(B) the Administrator determines should
be included.
‘‘(f) 
TECHNICAL
ASSISTANCE
FOR
MONITORING
FLOATABLE MATERIAL.—The Administrator shall provide
technical assistance to States and local governments for the
development of assessment and monitoring procedures for
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floatable material to protect public health and safety in
coastal recreation waters.
‘‘(g) LIST OF WATERS.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Beginning not later than 18
months after the date of publication of performance
criteria under subsection (a), based on information
made available to the Administrator, the Adminis-
trator shall identify, and maintain a list of, discrete
coastal recreation waters adjacent to beaches or simi-
lar points of access that are used by the public that—
‘‘(A) specifies any waters described in this
paragraph that are subject to a monitoring and
notification program consistent with the per-
formance criteria established under subsection
(a); and
‘‘(B) specifies any waters described in this
paragraph for which there is no monitoring and
notification program (including waters for which
fiscal constraints will prevent the State or the
Administrator from performing monitoring and
notification consistent with the performance cri-
teria established under subsection (a)).
‘‘(2) AVAILABILITY.—The Administrator shall
make the list described in paragraph (1) available to
the public through—
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‘‘(A) publication in the Federal Register;
and
‘‘(B) electronic media.
‘‘(3) UPDATES.—The Administrator shall update
the list described in paragraph (1) periodically as
new information becomes available.
‘‘(h) EPA IMPLEMENTATION.—In the case of a State
that has no program for monitoring and notification that
is consistent with the performance criteria published under
subsection (a) after the last day of the 3-year period begin-
ning on the date on which the Administrator lists waters
in the State under subsection (g)(1)(B), the Administrator
shall conduct a monitoring and notification program for
the listed waters based on a priority ranking established
by the Administrator using funds appropriated for grants
under subsection (i)—
‘‘(1) to conduct monitoring and notification; and
‘‘(2) for related salaries, expenses, and travel.
‘‘(i) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is
authorized to be appropriated for making grants under sub-
section (b), including implementation of monitoring and
notification programs by the Administrator under sub-
section (h), $30,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2001
through 2005.’’.
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SEC. 5. DEFINITIONS.
Section 502 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act
(33 U.S.C. 1362) is amended by adding at the end the fol-
lowing:
‘‘(21) COASTAL RECREATION WATERS.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘coastal recre-
ation waters’ means—
‘‘(i) the Great Lakes; and
‘‘(ii) marine coastal waters (including
coastal estuaries) that are designated under
section 303(c) by a State for use for swim-
ming, bathing, surfing, or similar water
contact activities.
‘‘(B) 
EXCLUSIONS.—The 
term 
‘coastal
recreation waters’ does not include—
‘‘(i) inland waters; or
‘‘(ii) waters upstream of the mouth of
a river or stream having an unimpaired
natural connection with the open sea.
‘‘(22) FLOATABLE MATERIAL.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘floatable ma-
terial’ means any foreign matter that may float
or remain suspended in the water column.
‘‘(B) INCLUSIONS.—The term ‘floatable ma-
terial’ includes—
‘‘(i) plastic;
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‘‘(ii) aluminum cans;
‘‘(iii) wood products;
‘‘(iv) bottles; and
‘‘(v) paper products.
‘‘(23) PATHOGEN INDICATOR.—The term ‘patho-
gen indicator’ means a substance that indicates the
potential for human infectious disease.’’.
SEC. 6. INDIAN TRIBES.
Section 518(e) of the Federal Water Pollution Control
Act (33 U.S.C. 1377(e)) is amended by striking ‘‘and 404’’
and inserting ‘‘404, and 406’’.
SEC. 7. REPORT.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 4 years after the
date of enactment of this Act, and every 4 years thereafter,
the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency
shall submit to Congress a report that includes—
(1) recommendations concerning the need for ad-
ditional water quality criteria for pathogens and
pathogen indicators and other actions that should be
taken to improve the quality of coastal recreation wa-
ters;
(2) an evaluation of Federal, State, and local ef-
forts to implement this Act, including the amend-
ments made by this Act; and
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(3) recommendations on improvements to meth-
odologies and techniques for monitoring of coastal
recreation waters.
(b) COORDINATION.—The Administrator of the Envi-
ronmental Protection Agency may coordinate the report
under this section with other reporting requirements under
the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1251
et seq.).
SEC. 8. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out
the provisions of this Act, including the amendments made
by this Act, for which amounts are not otherwise specifi-
cally authorized to be appropriated, such sums as are nec-
essary for each of fiscal years 2001 through 2005.
Attest:
Secretary.
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