I 
108TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1027
To amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act relating to marine 
sanitation devices. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 27, 2003
Mr. SAXTON introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 
A BILL 
To amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act relating 
to marine sanitation devices.
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 ‘‘Recreational Waters 
Protection Act’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES. 
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 
(1) Performance standards for marine sanita-
tion devices were first authorized by the Federal
Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et 
seq.). 
(2) Marine sanitation device performance stand-
ards have not been updated since regulations were 
first implemented pursuant to that Act. 
(3) Advances in marine sanitation device tech-
nology have now made it practical for wastes to be 
treated on board a vessel to the extent that pollut-
ants can be reduced significantly below the current 
marine sanitation device standards. 
(4) Setting new marine sanitation device per-
formance standards will recognize existing techno-
logical advances and spur further innovation to a 
level of on-board waste treatment far superior to 
that envisioned by the original marine sanitation de-
vice standards of the Federal Water Pollution Con-
trol Act. 
(b) PURPOSE.—The purposes of this Act are—
(1) to promote the use of the best available 
technology in Type I marine sanitation devices; 
(2) to establish a new minimum standard for a 
Type IA marine sanitation device so that such 
standard meets the best available technology; and 
(3) to ensure that recreational boats have more 
than 1 option for legally handling their sewage in
coastal and tidal waters and that all inland waters 
as well as no-discharge zones already established by 
the States and approved by the Environmental Pro-
tection Agency are exempt from section 312(f) of the 
Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 
1322(f)). 
SEC. 3. REVISED STANDARD FOR MARINE SANITATION DE-
VICES. 
Not more than 180 days after the date of enactment 
of this Act, the Administrator of the Environmental Pro-
tection Agency shall publish a revised standard for new 
Type I marine sanitation devices (in this section referred 
to as ‘‘Type IA marine sanitation devices’’). The effluent 
from a Type IA marine sanitation device shall contain not 
more than 10 fecal coliform per 100 milliliters or its equiv-
alent and achieve a 35 percent reduction in biological oxy-
gen demand. 
SEC. 4. STATE PROHIBITION. 
Section 312(f) of the Federal Water Pollution Con-
trol Act (33 U.S.C. 1322(f)) is amended—
(1) in paragraph (3)—
(A) by inserting ‘‘(A)’’ before ‘‘After’’; and 
(B) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(B) A prohibition under subparagraph (A) shall not 
apply to a vessel that operates in the coastal tidal waters
of the United States and operates a Type IA marine sani-
tation device that meets the standards for marine sanita-
tion devices revised pursuant to section 3 of the Rec-
reational Waters Protection Act.’’; and 
(2) by adding at the end of paragraph (4)(A) 
the following: ‘‘A prohibition under this paragraph 
shall not apply to a vessel that operates in the coast-
al tidal waters of the United States and operates a 
Type IA marine sanitation device that meets the 
standards for marine sanitation devices revised pur-
suant to section 3 of the Recreational Waters Pro-
tection Act.’’. 
SEC. 5. LIMITATION ON STATUTORY CONSTRUCTION. 
Nothing in this Act (including any amendment made 
by this Act) shall be construed as affecting any prohibition 
of the discharge of sewage from vessels under section 
312(f)(4)(B) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act 
(33 U.S.C. 1322(f)(4)(B)).
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