I 
111TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 3206 
To amend the Safe Drinking Water Act to require a national primary drinking 
water regulation for perchlorate. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JULY 14, 2009 
Ms. SPEIER (for herself, Ms. BALDWIN, Mr. BUTTERFIELD, Mr. BERMAN, Mr. 
SHERMAN, Mr. SCHIFF, Mr. INSLEE, Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of Cali-
fornia, Mr. PALLONE, Mr. NADLER of New York, Mr. HONDA, Mr. 
HASTINGS of Florida, Ms. ESHOO, Mr. WEINER, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, Mr. 
GEORGE MILLER of California, Mr. MCNERNEY, Mrs. MALONEY, Mr. 
HINCHEY, Mr. BLUMENAUER, Mr. MCDERMOTT, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Ms. 
DEGETTE, Ms. LEE of California, Mr. GRIJALVA, Ms. MATSUI, and Mr. 
MILLER of North Carolina) introduced the following bill; which was re-
ferred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce 
A BILL 
To amend the Safe Drinking Water Act to require a national 
primary drinking water regulation for perchlorate. 
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 ‘‘Safe Drinking Water 
for Healthy Communities Act of 2009’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
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(1) Perchlorate is a chemical used as the pri-
mary ingredient in solid propellant for rockets, mis-
siles, and fireworks. 
(2) Large-scale production of perchlorate-con-
taining chemicals in the United States began in the 
mid-1940s and large volumes have been disposed of 
in various States since the 1950s. 
(3) Perchlorate is an oxidizing anion that origi-
nates as a contaminant in ground and surface wa-
ters and is highly soluble and exceedingly mobile in 
aqueous systems, persisting for many decades under 
typical ground and surface water conditions. 
(4) The most prevalent sources of perchlorate 
contamination in environmental media can be traced 
to the manufacture and improper disposal of wastes 
from blasting agents and military munitions and to 
a lesser extent fireworks. 
(5) Ninety percent of perchlorate in the United 
States is produced for use by the Department of De-
fense and the National Aeronautics and Space Ad-
ministration. 
(6) According to the Government Accountability 
Office, in May 2005, perchlorate contamination has 
been detected in water and soil at almost 400 sites 
in the United States. The Government Account-
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ability Office concluded that because there is no 
standardized approach for reporting perchlorate data 
nationwide, a greater number of sites may exist. 
(7) According to the Government Accountability 
Office, in May 2005, limited Environmental Protec-
tion Agency data show that perchlorate has been 
found in 35 States and the District of Columbia and 
is known to have contaminated 153 public water sys-
tems in 26 States. The Government Accountability 
Office reported that concentrations of perchlorate in 
drinking water ranged from 4 parts per billion to 
more than 420 parts per billion. 
(8) Environmental Protection Agency data like-
ly underestimates the total drinking water exposure, 
as illustrated by the findings of the California De-
partment of Health Services that perchlorate has 
contaminated approximately 276 drinking water 
sources and 77 drinking water systems in the State 
of California. 
(9) Food and Drug Administration scientists 
and other scientific researchers have detected per-
chlorate in the United States food supply, including 
but not limited to lettuce, milk, cucumbers, toma-
toes, carrots, cantaloupe, wheat, and spinach, and in 
human breast milk. 
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(10) The Centers for Disease Control and Pre-
vention has concluded that perchlorate exposure ap-
pears to be widespread in the United States popu-
lations. 
(11) The National Academy of Sciences re-
leased a report on January 10, 2005, which rec-
ommended a perchlorate reference dose of 0.0007 
milligrams per kilogram per day. 
(12) In March 2006, the Children’s Health Pro-
tection Advisory Committee advised the Environ-
mental Protection Agency that the Agency’s prelimi-
nary remediation goal (PRG) for perchlorate is not 
protective of children’s health, as it can result in a 
nursing infant exposure that is 5 to 10 times higher 
than the recommended dose (Rfd) of 24.5 parts per 
billion. 
(13) Perchlorate inhibits the uptake of iodine 
by the thyroid gland (which is necessary to produce 
important hormones which help regulate normal 
human health and development), presenting a risk to 
human health in vulnerable populations, including 
pregnant women and children. 
(14) In October 2006, the Centers for Disease 
Control and Prevention found significant changes in 
the level of thyroid hormones in humans exposed to 
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perchlorate. For women with low iodine levels, per-
chlorate exposure was associated with changes in the 
production levels of hormones by the thyroid. About 
36 percent of women in the United States have 
lower iodine levels. 
(15) Given the seriousness of the potential ad-
verse effects associated with perchlorate and the fact 
that children were at risk, combined with the ab-
sence of a Federal drinking water standard (MCL) 
for perchlorate, California proposed a drinking water 
standard of 6 parts per billion, and Massachusetts 
promulgated a drinking water standard of 2 parts 
per billion. 
(16) Other States, including Nevada, Texas, 
New York, and Maryland, have issued some form of 
drinking water guidance for perchlorate, including a 
drinking water action level, health-based guidance, 
and a health based advisory level at ranges from 1 
part per billion to 18 parts per billion. 
(17) Perchlorate has been detected in the soil, 
surface waters, and groundwater at 55 Department 
of Defense facilities across the country, with off-site 
migration occurring at some facilities. 
(18) As of 2003, the Department of Defense 
policy on perchlorate requires sampling only where a 
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perchlorate release due to Department activities is 
suspected and a complete human exposure pathway 
is likely to exist. 
(19) According to the Environmental Protection 
Agency, the Department of Defense is deferring all 
remedial action relating to perchlorate contamina-
tion at or from its facilities until a Federal per-
chlorate drinking water standard is adopted. 
(20) There are as many as 22 contaminants 
without Federal drinking water standards for which 
the Environmental Protection Agency has set site 
specific cleanup levels for the remediation of ground-
water, making the lack of response actions for per-
chlorate contamination at Department of Defense 
Superfund facilities a unique situation. 
(21) The Environmental Protection Agency has 
failed to take enforcement action against the De-
partment of Defense to cause the Department to 
mitigate or remediate the perchlorate contamination 
emanating from its Aberdeen Proving Ground facil-
ity that has adversely impacted the drinking water 
supply for the City of Aberdeen, Maryland. 
(22) Since 2002, the Department of Defense 
actively sought to exempt the Department from 
State and Federal public health and environmental 
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