TITLE IV—RESPONSE TO URBAN
ENVIRONMENTAL CHALLENGES
Subtitle A—Environmental
Cleanup
SEC. 401. EXEMPTION FROM LIABILITY FOR LOCAL GOV-
ERNMENTS THAT ARE OWNERS OR OPERA-
TORS OF FACILITIES IN DISTRESSED URBAN
AREAS.
Section 101 of the Comprehensive Environmental Re-
sponse, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (42
U.S.C. 9601) is amended—
(1) in paragraph (20), by adding at the end the
following:
‘‘(E) EXCLUSION OF DISTRESSED URBAN
AREAS.—The term ‘owner or operator’ does not
include a unit of local government for a dis-
tressed urban area that—
‘‘(i) purchased real property, in the
distressed urban area, on or in which a fa-
cility is located;
‘‘(ii) purchased the property to fur-
ther the redevelopment of the property for
industrial activities;
‘‘(iii) did not conduct or permit the
generation, transportation, storage, treat-
ment, or disposal of any hazardous sub-
stance at the facility; and
‘‘(iv) did not contribute to the release
or threat of release of a hazardous sub-
stance at the facility through any action or
omission.’’; and
(2) by adding at the end the following new
paragraphs:
‘‘(39) DISTRESSED
URBAN
AREA.—The term
‘distressed urban area’ has the meaning given the
term in section 104(d) of the New Urban Agenda
Act of 1995.
‘‘(40) INDUSTRIAL ACTIVITY.—The term ‘indus-
trial activity’ means commercial, manufacturing, or
any other activity carried out to further the develop-
ment, manufacturing, or distribution of goods and
services, including administration, research and de-
velopment, warehousing, shipping, transport, re-
manufacturing, and repair and maintenance of com-
mercial machinery and equipment.’’.
SEC. 402. STANDARDS FOR REMEDIATION IN DISTRESSED
URBAN AREAS.
Section 121 of the Comprehensive Environmental Re-
sponse, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (42
U.S.C. 9621) is amended by adding at the end the follow-
ing:
‘‘(g) FACILITIES IN DISTRESSED URBAN AREAS.—
‘‘(1) IDENTIFICATION.—The President shall
identify the facilities on the National Priorities List
that are located in distressed urban areas.
‘‘(2) STUDY AND REPORT.—The President shall
conduct, directly or by grant or contract, a study of
appropriate response actions for facilities located in
distressed urban areas. In conducting the study, the
President shall examine the appropriate degree of
cleanup of hazardous substances, pollutants, and
contaminants released into the environment at such
a facility, and the appropriate considerations for the
selection of a response action at such a facility.
‘‘(3) STANDARDS.—Notwithstanding any other
provision of this Act, the President shall by regula-
tion establish standards for the degree of cleanup
described in paragraph (2), and the considerations
described in paragraph (2), for such a facility. In es-
tablishing the standards, the President shall take
into consideration the results of the study described
in paragraph (2).’’.
Subtitle B—Environmental-
Economic Recovery
SEC. 411. FINDINGS.
Congress finds that—
(1) plants such as the SEMASS plant in Roch-
ester, Massachusetts, and the Wheelabrator plant in
Baltimore, Maryland, provide an effective and effi-
cient means of disposing of solid waste and obtain-
ing inexpensive electrical power and steam; and
(2) the availability of such plants in a commu-
nity will attract energy intensive industry to the
community, increasing the tax base and strengthen-
ing the economy of the community.
SEC. 412. DEFINITIONS.
As used in this subtitle:
(1) DISTRESSED URBAN AREA.—The term ‘‘dis-
tressed urban area’’ has the meaning given the term
in section 104(d).
(2) ENERGY INTENSIVE INDUSTRY.—The term
‘‘energy intensive industry’’ means an industry that
consumes more than 25,000 BTUs per dollar of
value added, as determined by the Secretary.
(3) FULLY
OPERATIONAL.—The term ‘‘fully
operational’’ means at least 90 percent operational,
determined by averaging the percentage of solid
waste intake capacity achieved and the percentage
of electric output capacity achieved.
(4) MARKET RATE.—The term ‘‘market rate’’
means the applicable rate for retail bulk power sales
made by the electric utility within the service terri-
tory concerned.
(5) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means
the Secretary of Energy.
(6) SOLID WASTE.—The term ‘‘solid waste’’ has
the meaning given the term in section 1004(27) of
the Solid Waste Disposal Act (42 U.S.C. 6903(27)).
SEC. 413. LOAN AUTHORITY.
(a) LOANS.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall make
not more than 3 loans to units of local government
for distressed urban areas for the establishment of
facilities described in section 414.
(2) PRIORITY.—In making one of the loans, the
Secretary shall give priority to a unit of local gov-
ernment that demonstrates that the unit of local
government will establish the facility through a con-
tract or agreement with an organization that has
demonstrated an ability to oversee and manage the
creation of a comprehensive, national, strategic, en-
ergy intensive, environmental industry initiative.