I
107TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 3996
To amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to authorize appropria-
tions for water pollution control research, development, and technology
demonstration, and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
MARCH 19, 2002
Mr. BOEHLERT (for himself and Mr. HALL of Texas) introduced the following
bill; which was referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infra-
structure, and in addition to the Committee on Science, for a period to
be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consider-
ation of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee
concerned
A BILL
To amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to au-
thorize appropriations for water pollution control re-
search, development, and technology demonstration, and
for other purposes.
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 ‘‘Water Quality Re-
search, Development, and Technology Demonstration
Act’’.
SEC. 2. AMENDMENT OF FEDERAL WATER POLLUTION CON-
TROL ACT.
Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever in
this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms
of an amendment to, or repeal of, a section or other provi-
sion, the reference shall be considered to be made to a
section or other provision of the Federal Water Pollution
Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.).
SEC. 3. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.
(a) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE FOR RURAL AND SMALL
TREATMENT
WORKS.—Section 
104(b) 
(33 
U.S.C.
1254(b)) is amended—
(1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph
(6);
(2) by striking the period at the end of para-
graph (7) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(8) make grants to nonprofit organizations to
provide technical assistance to rural and small mu-
nicipalities for the purpose of assisting, in consulta-
tion with the State in which the assistance is pro-
vided, such municipalities to plan, develop, and gain
financing for wastewater infrastructure assistance;
‘‘(9) make grants to nonprofit organizations to
provide technical assistance and training to rural
and small publicly owned treatment works and de-
centralized wastewater treatment systems to enable
such treatment works and systems to protect water
quality and achieve and maintain compliance with
the requirements of this Act; and
‘‘(10) make grants to nonprofit organizations to
disseminate information to rural municipalities,
small municipalities, and municipalities that meet
the affordability criteria established under section
603(i)(2) by the State in which the municipality is
located with respect to planning, design, construc-
tion, and operation of publicly owned treatment
works and decentralized wastewater treatment sys-
tems.’’.
(b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Section
104(u) (33 U.S.C. 1254(u)) is amended—
(1) by striking ‘‘and (6)’’ and inserting ‘‘(6)’’;
and
(2) by inserting before the period at the end the
following: ‘‘(7) not to exceed $80,000,000 for fiscal
year 2003, $85,000,000 for fiscal year 2004,
$90,000,000 for fiscal year 2005, $95,000,000 for
fiscal year 2006, and $100,000,000 for fiscal year
2007 for carrying out subsections (b)(3), (b)(8),
(b)(9), and (b)(10), except that not less than 20 per-
cent of the amounts appropriated pursuant to this
paragraph in a fiscal year shall be used for carrying
out subsections (b)(8), (b)(9), and (b)(10)’’.
(c) COMPETITIVE
PROCEDURES
FOR
AWARDING
GRANTS.—Section 104 (33 U.S.C. 1254(b)) is amended
by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(v) COMPETITIVE PROCEDURES
FOR AWARDING
GRANTS.—The Administrator shall establish procedures
that, to the maximum extent practicable, promote com-
petition and openness in the award of grants to nonprofit
private agencies, institutions, and organizations under this
section.’’.
SEC. 4. CAPITALIZATION GRANT AGREEMENT ADDITIONAL
REQUIREMENT.
Section 602(b) (33 U.S.C. 1382(b)) is amended—
(1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph
(9);
(2) by striking the period at the end of para-
graph (10) and inserting a semicolon; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(11) beginning in fiscal year 2004, the State
will include as a condition of providing assistance
under section 603(c)(1) that the recipient of such
assistance study and evaluate the cost and effective-
ness of innovative and alternative processes, mate-
rials, and techniques for carrying out projects and
activities eligible for such assistance under section
603(c), and select, to the extent practicable, projects
and activities that more efficiently use energy and
natural and financial resources or provide greater
environmental benefits.’’.
SEC. 5. ASSISTANCE AND SUBSIDIZATION.
(a) TECHNICAL
AND PLANNING ASSISTANCE
FOR
SMALL SYSTEMS.—Section 603(d) (33 U.S.C. 1383(d)) is
amended—
(1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph
(6);
(2) by striking the period at the end of para-
graph (7) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(8) to provide to treatment works, which serve
a population of 20,000 or fewer, with technical and
planning assistance to improve wastewater treatment
plant management and operations; except that such
amounts shall not exceed 2 percent of grant awards
to such fund under this title.’’.
(b) ADDITIONAL SUBSIDIZATION.—Section 603 (33
U.S.C. 1383) is amended by adding at the end the fol-
lowing:
‘‘(i) ADDITIONAL SUBSIDIZATION.—
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—In any case in which a
State provides assistance under subsection (d), the
State may provide additional subsidization, including
forgiveness of principal and negative interest loans,
for projects and activities eligible for assistance
under section 603(c)(1) to implement innovative and
alternative processes, materials, and techniques (in-
cluding nonstructural protection of surface waters,
new or improved methods of waste treatment, and
pollutant trading) that are of a type recommended
under paragraph (2) and that may result in cost
savings or increased environmental benefit when
compared to standard processes, materials, and tech-
niques.
‘‘(2) SUPPORT FOR INNOVATIVE AND ALTER-
NATIVE
PROCESSES, 
MATERIALS, 
AND
TECH-
NIQUES.—Based on recommendations of the Water
Quality Research Technical Advisory Committee
under section 104(a)(3), the Administrator shall an-
nually prepare a list and description of innovative
and alternative processes, materials, and techniques
that the Administrator recommends for additional
State subsidization under this subsection.’’.
SEC. 6. PROGRAM PLAN.
Section 104 (33 U.S.C. 1254) is amended—
(1) in subsection (a)—
(A) by redesignating paragraphs (1), (2),
(3), (4), (5), and (6) as subparagraphs (A),
(B), (C), (D), (E), and (F), respectively; and
(B) by moving such subparagraphs 2 ems
to the right;
(2) by striking the section heading, the section
designation, and ‘‘(a) The Administrator shall’’ and
inserting the following:
‘‘SEC. 104. RESEARCH, INVESTIGATION, TRAINING, AND IN-
FORMATION.
‘‘(a) NATIONAL PROGRAMS.—
‘‘(1) 
ESTABLISHMENT.—The 
Administrator
shall’’; and
(3) by adding at the end of subsection (a) the
following:
‘‘(2) PROGRAM PLAN.—
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—Not later than 18
months after the date enactment of this sub-
paragraph, the Administrator, in cooperation
with other Federal, State, and local agencies
and nonprofit organizations with expertise in
water pollution control research, development,
and technology demonstration, shall prepare
and transmit to Congress a 5-year program
‘‘(C) ensure, to the maximum extent prac-
ticable, that at least 1 small community having
a population of 10,000 or less receives a grant
each year; and
‘‘(D) ensure that, for each fiscal year, no
municipality receives more than 25 percent of
the total amount of funds made available for
the fiscal year to provide grants under this sec-
tion.
‘‘(4) COST SHARING.—The non-Federal share
of the cost of a project carried out under this section
shall be at least 20 percent.
‘‘(c) REPORTS.—
‘‘(1) REPORTS FROM MUNICIPALITIES.—A mu-
nicipality that is selected for participation in the
demonstration program shall submit to the Adminis-
trator, on the date of completion of a project of the
municipality and on each of the dates that is 1, 2,
and 3 years after that date, a report that describes
the effectiveness of the project.
‘‘(2) REPORTS TO CONGRESS.—Not later than
2 years after the date of enactment of this section,
and every 2 years thereafter, the Administrator shall
compile, and submit to Congress, a report that de-