IIB 
118TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 7023 
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 
MARCH 22, 2024 
Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and 
Public Works 
AN ACT 
To amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to pro-
vide regulatory and judicial certainty for regulated enti-
ties and communities, increase transparency, and pro-
mote water quality, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
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SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Creating Confidence 
in Clean Water Permitting Act’’. 
SEC. 2. WATER QUALITY CRITERIA DEVELOPMENT AND 
TRANSPARENCY. 
(a) 
INFORMATION
AND
GUIDELINES.—Section 
304(a) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 
U.S.C. 1314(a)) is amended by adding at the end the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(10) 
ADMINISTRATIVE
PROCEDURE.—After 
the date of enactment of this paragraph, the Admin-
istrator shall issue any new or revised water quality 
criteria under paragraph (1) or (9) by rule.’’. 
(b) ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURE
AND JUDICIAL 
REVIEW.—Section 509(b)(1) of the Federal Water Pollu-
tion Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1369(b)(1)) is amended— 
(1) by striking ‘‘section 402, and’’ and inserting 
‘‘section 402,’’; and 
(2) by inserting ‘‘and (H) in issuing any cri-
teria 
for 
water 
quality 
pursuant 
to 
section 
304(a)(10),’’ after ‘‘strategy under section 304(l),’’. 
SEC. 3. FEDERAL GENERAL PERMITS. 
Section 402(a) of the Federal Water Pollution Con-
trol Act (33 U.S.C. 1342(a)) is amended by adding at the 
end the following: 
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‘‘(ii) apply such terms, conditions, and require-
ments to any discharge that would have been cov-
ered by the expired general permit (in accordance 
with any relevant requirements for such coverage) if 
the discharge had occurred before such expiration.’’. 
SEC. 4. NATIONAL POLLUTANT DISCHARGE ELIMINATION 
SYSTEM (NPDES) TERMS. 
Section 402(b)(1)(B) of the Federal Water Pollution 
Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1342(b)(1)(B)) is amended to read 
as follows: 
‘‘(B) are for fixed terms— 
‘‘(i) not exceeding 10 years, for a permit 
issued to a State or municipality; and 
‘‘(ii) not exceeding 5 years, for a permit 
issued to any person not described in clause (i); 
and’’. 
SEC. 5. CONFIDENCE IN CLEAN WATER PERMITS. 
(a) COMPLIANCE WITH PERMITS.—Section 402(k) of 
the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 
1342(k)) is amended— 
(1) by striking ‘‘(k) Compliance with’’ and in-
serting the following: 
‘‘(k) COMPLIANCE WITH PERMITS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 
compliance with’’; and 
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(2) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(2) SCOPE.—For purposes of paragraph (1), 
compliance with the conditions of a permit issued 
under this section shall be considered compliance 
with respect to a discharge of— 
‘‘(A) any pollutant for which an effluent 
limitation is included in the permit; and 
‘‘(B) any pollutant for which an effluent 
limitation is not included in the permit that 
is— 
‘‘(i) specifically identified as controlled 
or monitored through indicator parameters 
in the permit, the fact sheet for the per-
mit, or the administrative record relating 
to the permit; 
‘‘(ii) specifically identified during the 
permit application process as present in 
discharges to which the permit will apply; 
or 
‘‘(iii) whether or not specifically iden-
tified in the permit or during the permit 
application process— 
‘‘(I) 
present 
in 
any 
waste 
streams or processes of the point 
source to which the permit applies, 
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which waste streams or processes are 
specifically identified during the per-
mit application process; or 
‘‘(II) otherwise within the scope 
of any operations of the point source 
to which the permit applies, which 
scope of operations is specifically iden-
tified during the permit application 
process.’’. 
(b) TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS.—Section 402(l)(3) of 
the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 
1342(l)(3)) is amended— 
(1) in subparagraph (B)— 
(A) by striking ‘‘section 402’’ and insert-
ing ‘‘this section’’; and 
(B) by striking ‘‘federal’’ and inserting 
‘‘Federal’’; and 
(2) in subparagraph (C)— 
(A) by striking ‘‘Section’’ and inserting 
‘‘section’’; 
(B) by striking ‘‘402(p)(6)’’ and inserting 
‘‘subsection (p)(6)’’; 
(C) by striking ‘‘402(l)(3)(A),’’ and insert-
ing ‘‘subparagraph (A),’’; and 
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(D) by striking ‘‘402(l)(3)(A).’’ and insert-
ing ‘‘such subparagraph.’’. 
(c) EXPRESSION OF WATER QUALITY-BASED EFFLU-
ENT LIMITATIONS.—Section 402 of the Federal Water 
Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1342) is amended by 
adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(t) EXPRESSION OF WATER QUALITY-BASED EF-
FLUENT LIMITATIONS.—If the Administrator (or a State, 
in the case of a permit program approved by the Adminis-
trator) determines that a water quality-based limitation 
on a discharge of a pollutant is necessary to include in 
a permit under this section in addition to any appropriate 
technology-based effluent limitations included in such per-
mit, the Administrator (or the State) may include such 
water quality-based limitation in such permit only in the 
form of an effluent limitation that specifies— 
‘‘(1) the pollutant to which it applies; and 
‘‘(2) the numerical limit on the discharge of 
such pollutant, or the precise waterbody conditions 
to be attained with respect to such pollutant, re-
quired to comply with the permit.’’. 
SEC. 6. REDUCING PERMITTING UNCERTAINTY. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 404(c) of the Federal 
Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1344(c)) is 
amended— 
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(1) by striking ‘‘(c) The Administrator’’ and in-
serting the following: 
‘‘(c) SPECIFICATION OR USE OF DEFINED AREA.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator’’; 
(2) in paragraph (1), as so designated, by in-
serting ‘‘during the period described in paragraph 
(2) and’’ before ‘‘after notice and opportunity for 
public hearings’’; and 
(3) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(2) PERIOD
OF
PROHIBITION.—The period 
during which the Administrator may prohibit the 
specification (including the withdrawal of specifica-
tion) of any defined area as a disposal site, or deny 
or restrict the use of any defined area for specifica-
tion (including the withdrawal of specification) as a 
disposal site, under paragraph (1) shall— 
‘‘(A) begin on the date on which an appli-
cant submits all the information required to 
complete an application for a permit under this 
section; and 
‘‘(B) end on the date on which the Sec-
retary issues the permit.’’. 
(b) APPLICABILITY.—The amendments made by sub-
section (a) shall apply to a permit application submitted 
under section 404 of the Federal Water Pollution Control 
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Act (33 U.S.C. 1344) after the date of enactment of this 
Act. 
SEC. 7. NATIONWIDE PERMITTING IMPROVEMENT. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 404(e) of the Federal 
Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1344) is amend-
ed— 
(1) by striking ‘‘(e)(1) In carrying’’ and insert-
ing the following: 
‘‘(e) GENERAL PERMITS ON STATE, REGIONAL, OR 
NATIONWIDE BASIS.— 
‘‘(1) PERMITS AUTHORIZED.—In carrying’’; 
(2) in paragraph (2)— 
(A) by striking ‘‘(2) No general’’ and in-
serting the following: 
‘‘(2) TERM.—No general’’; and 
(B) by striking ‘‘five years’’ and inserting 
‘‘ten years’’; and 
(3) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(3) CONSIDERATIONS.—In determining the en-
vironmental effects of an activity under paragraph 
(1) or (2), the Secretary shall consider only the ef-
fects of any discharge of dredged or fill material re-
sulting from such activity. 
‘‘(4) NATIONWIDE PERMITS FOR LINEAR INFRA-
STRUCTURE PROJECTS.— 
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