IB 
Union Calendar No. 116 
111TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 2093 
[Report No. 111–214] 
To amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act relating to beach 
monitoring, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
APRIL 23, 2009 
Mr. PALLONE (for himself, Mr. ACKERMAN, Mr. ADLER of New Jersey, Mr. 
BERMAN, Mr. BILBRAY, Mr. BISHOP of New York, Ms. BORDALLO, Mrs. 
CAPPS, Mrs. CHRISTENSEN, Mr. HALL of New York, Ms. HARMAN, Mr. 
ISRAEL, Mr. KING of New York, Mr. KIRK, Mr. KLEIN of Florida, Mrs. 
LOWEY, Mrs. MALONEY, Mr. MCINTYRE, Mr. GEORGE MILLER of Cali-
fornia, Mr. ROTHMAN of New Jersey, Mr. SERRANO, Mr. SESTAK, Mr. 
WAXMAN, and Mr. WEINER) introduced the following bill; which was re-
ferred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 
JULY 20, 2009 
Additional sponsors: Mr. MILLER of North Carolina, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mrs. 
DAHLKEMPER, and Mr. FARR 
JULY 20, 2009 
Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole 
House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed 
[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 
[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on April 23, 2009] 
A BILL 
To amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act relating 
to beach monitoring, and for other purposes. 
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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 ‘‘Clean Coastal Environ-
ment and Public Health Act of 2009’’. 
SEC. 2. WATER POLLUTION SOURCE IDENTIFICATION. 
(a) MONITORING PROTOCOLS.—Section 406(a)(1)(A) 
of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 
1346(a)(1)(A)) is amended by striking ‘‘methods for moni-
toring’’ and inserting ‘‘protocols for monitoring that are 
most likely to detect pathogenic contamination’’. 
(b) SOURCE TRACKING.—Section 406(b) of such Act 
(33 U.S.C. 1346(b)) is amended— 
(1) by redesignating paragraphs (3) and (4) as 
paragraphs (4) and (5), respectively; and 
(2) by inserting after paragraph (2) the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(3) SOURCE
IDENTIFICATION
PROGRAMS.—In 
carrying out a monitoring and notification program, 
a State or local government may develop and imple-
ment a coastal recreation waters pollution source 
identification and tracking program for coastal recre-
ation waters adjacent to beaches or similar points of 
access that are used by the public and are not meeting 
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applicable water quality standards for pathogens and 
pathogen indicators.’’. 
(c) AUTHORIZATION
OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Section 
406(i) of such Act (33 U.S.C. 1346(i)) is amended by strik-
ing ‘‘$30,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2001 through 
2005’’ and inserting ‘‘$40,000,000 for each of fiscal years 
2010 through 2014’’. 
SEC. 3. FUNDING FOR BEACHES ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESS-
MENT AND COASTAL HEALTH ACT. 
Section 8 of the Beaches Environmental Assessment 
and Coastal Health Act of 2000 (114 Stat. 877) is amended 
by striking ‘‘2005’’ and inserting ‘‘2014’’. 
SEC. 4. STATE REPORTS. 
Section 406(b)(4)(A)(ii) of the Federal Water Pollu-
tion Control Act (as redesignated by section 2(b)(1) of this 
Act) is amended by striking ‘‘public’’ and inserting ‘‘public 
and all environmental agencies of the State with authority 
to prevent or treat sources of pathogenic contamination in 
coastal recreation waters’’. 
SEC. 5. USE OF RAPID TESTING METHODS. 
(a) CONTENTS OF STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT 
PROGRAMS.—Section 406(c)(4)(A) of the Federal Water 
Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1346(c)(4)(A)) is amended 
by striking ‘‘methods’’ and inserting ‘‘methods, including 
a rapid testing method after the last day of the one-year 
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period following the date of validation of that rapid testing 
method by the Administrator,’’. 
(b) REVISED CRITERIA.—Section 304(a)(9)(A) of such 
Act (33 U.S.C. 1314(a)(9)(A)) is amended by striking 
‘‘methods, as appropriate’’ and inserting ‘‘methods, includ-
ing rapid testing methods’’. 
(c) VALIDATION AND USE OF RAPID TESTING METH-
ODS.— 
(1) VALIDATION OF RAPID TESTING METHODS.— 
Not later than October 15, 2012, the Administrator of 
the Environmental Protection Agency (in this Act re-
ferred to as the ‘‘Administrator’’) shall complete an 
evaluation and validation of a rapid testing method 
for the water quality criteria and standards for 
pathogens and pathogen indicators described in sec-
tion 304(a)(9)(A) of the Federal Water Pollution Con-
trol Act (33 U.S.C. 1314(a)(9)(A)). 
(2) GUIDANCE
FOR
USE
OF
RAPID
TESTING 
METHODS.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 
after completion of the validation under para-
graph (1), and after providing notice and an op-
portunity for public comment, the Administrator 
shall publish guidance for the use at coastal 
recreation waters adjacent to beaches or similar 
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points of access that are used by the public of the 
rapid testing method that will enhance the pro-
tection of public health and safety through rapid 
public notification of any exceeding of applicable 
water quality standards for pathogens and 
pathogen indicators. 
(B) PRIORITIZATION.—In developing such 
guidance, the Administrator shall require the use 
of the rapid testing method at those beaches or 
similar points of access that are the most used 
by the public. 
(d) DEFINITION.—Section 502 of such Act (33 U.S.C. 
1362) is amended by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(26) RAPID
TESTING
METHOD.—The term 
‘rapid testing method’ means a method of testing the 
water quality of coastal recreation waters for which 
results are available as soon as practicable and not 
more than 6 hours after the commencement of the 
rapid testing method in the laboratory.’’. 
(e) REVISIONS TO RAPID TESTING METHODS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Upon completion of the vali-
dation required under subsection (c)(1), and every 5 
years thereafter, the Administrator shall identify and 
review potential rapid testing methods for existing 
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water quality criteria for pathogens and pathogen in-
dicators for coastal recreation waters. 
(2) REVISIONS TO RAPID TESTING METHODS.—If 
a rapid testing method identified under paragraph 
(1) will make results available in less time and im-
prove the accuracy and reproducibility of results 
when compared to the existing rapid testing method, 
the Administrator shall complete an evaluation and 
validation of the rapid testing method as expedi-
tiously as practicable. 
(3) REPORTING REQUIREMENT.—Upon comple-
tion of the review required under paragraph (1), the 
Administrator shall publish in the Federal Register 
the results of the review, including information on 
any potential rapid testing method proposed for eval-
uation and validation under paragraph (2). 
(4) DECLARATION OF GOALS FOR RAPID TESTING 
METHODS.—It is a national goal that by 2017, a 
rapid testing method for testing water quality of 
coastal recreation waters be developed that can 
produce accurate and reproducible results in not more 
than 2 hours after commencement of the rapid testing 
method. 
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SEC. 6. NOTIFICATION OF FEDERAL, STATE, AND LOCAL 
AGENCIES. 
Section 406(c) of the Federal Water Pollution Control 
Act (33 U.S.C. 1346(c)) is amended— 
(1) in paragraph (5) by striking ‘‘prompt com-
munication’’ and inserting ‘‘communication, within 
24 hours of the receipt of the results of a water qual-
ity sample,’’; 
(2) in subparagraph (A) of paragraph (5)— 
(A) by inserting ‘‘(i) in the case of any 
State in which the Administrator is admin-
istering the program under section 402,’’ before 
‘‘the Administrator’’ the first place it appears; 
and 
(B) by inserting at the end the following: 
‘‘(ii) in the case of any State other than a 
State to which clause (i) applies, all agencies of 
the State government with authority to require 
the prevention or treatment of the sources of 
coastal recreation water pollution; and’’; 
(3) by redesignating paragraphs (6) and (7) as 
paragraphs (7) and (8), respectively; and 
(4) by inserting after paragraph (5) the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(6) measures for an annual report to the Ad-
ministrator, in such form as the Administrator deter-
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mines appropriate, on the occurrence, nature, loca-
tion, pollutants involved, and extent of any exceeding 
of applicable water quality standards for pathogens 
and pathogen indicators;’’. 
SEC. 7. CONTENT OF STATE AND LOCAL PROGRAMS. 
Section 406(c) of the Federal Water Pollution Control 
Act (33 U.S.C. 1346(c)) is amended— 
(1) in paragraph (7) (as redesignated by section 
6(3) of this Act)— 
(A) by striking ‘‘the posting’’ and inserting 
‘‘the immediate posting’’; and 
(B) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end; 
(2) by striking the period at the end of para-
graph (8) (as redesignated by section 6(3) of this Act) 
and inserting a semicolon; and 
(3) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(9) the availability of a geographic information 
system database that such State or local government 
program shall use to inform the public about coastal 
recreation waters and that— 
‘‘(A) is publicly accessible and searchable on 
the Internet; 
‘‘(B) is organized by beach or similar point 
of access; 
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