I 
107TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 2869 
To provide certain relief for small businesses from liability under the Com-
prehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act 
of 1980, and to amend such Act to promote the cleanup and reuse 
of brownfields, to provide financial assistance for brownfields revitaliza-
tion, to enhance State response programs, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
SEPTEMBER 10, 2001 
Mr. GILLMOR (for himself, Mr. PALLONE, Mr. TAUZIN, Mr. DINGELL, Mr. 
SHIMKUS, Mr. TOWNS, Mr. BOEHLERT, and Mr. GREEN of Texas) intro-
duced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy 
and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on Transportation and 
Infrastructure, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speak-
er, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the ju-
risdiction of the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To provide certain relief for small businesses from liability 
under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Com-
pensation, and Liability Act of 1980, and to amend 
such Act to promote the cleanup and reuse of 
brownfields, 
to 
provide 
financial 
assistance 
for 
brownfields revitalization, to enhance State response pro-
grams, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
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SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Small Business Liabil-
ity Relief and Brownfields Revitalization Act’’. 
TITLE I—SMALL BUSINESS 
LIABILITY PROTECTION 
SEC. 101. SHORT TITLE. 
This title may be cited as the ‘‘Small Business Liabil-
ity Protection Act’’. 
SEC. 102. SMALL BUSINESS LIABILITY RELIEF. 
(a) EXEMPTIONS.—Section 107 of the Comprehen-
sive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liabil-
ity Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9607) is amended by adding 
at the end the following new subsections: 
‘‘(o) DE MICROMIS EXEMPTION.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para-
graph (2), a person shall not be liable, with respect 
to response costs at a facility on the National Prior-
ities List, under this Act if liability is based solely 
on paragraph (3) or (4) of subsection (a), and the 
person, except as provided in paragraph (4) of this 
subsection, can demonstrate that— 
‘‘(A) the total amount of the material con-
taining hazardous substances that the person 
arranged for disposal or treatment of, arranged 
with a transporter for transport for disposal or 
treatment of, or accepted for transport for dis-
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posal or treatment, at the facility was less than 
110 gallons of liquid materials or less than 200 
pounds of solid materials (or such greater or 
lesser amounts as the Administrator may deter-
mine by regulation); and 
‘‘(B) all or part of the disposal, treatment, 
or transport concerned occurred before April 1, 
2001. 
‘‘(2) EXCEPTIONS.—Paragraph (1) shall not 
apply in a case in which— 
‘‘(A) the President determines that— 
‘‘(i) the materials containing haz-
ardous substances referred to in paragraph 
(1) have contributed significantly or could 
contribute significantly, either individually 
or in the aggregate, to the cost of the re-
sponse action or natural resource restora-
tion with respect to the facility; or 
‘‘(ii) the person has failed to comply 
with an information request or administra-
tive subpoena issued by the President 
under this Act or has impeded or is imped-
ing, through action or inaction, the per-
formance of a response action or natural 
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resource restoration with respect to the fa-
cility; or 
‘‘(B) a person has been convicted of a 
criminal violation for the conduct to which the 
exemption would apply, and that conviction has 
not been vitiated on appeal or otherwise. 
‘‘(3) NO JUDICIAL REVIEW.—A determination 
by the President under paragraph (2)(A) shall not 
be subject to judicial review. 
‘‘(4) NONGOVERNMENTAL
THIRD-PARTY
CON-
TRIBUTION ACTIONS.—In the case of a contribution 
action, with respect to response costs at a facility on 
the National Priorities List, brought by a party, 
other than a Federal, State, or local government, 
under this Act, the burden of proof shall be on the 
party bringing the action to demonstrate that the 
conditions described in paragraph (1)(A) and (B) of 
this subsection are not met. 
‘‘(p) MUNICIPAL SOLID WASTE EXEMPTION.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para-
graph (2) of this subsection, a person shall not be 
liable, with respect to response costs at a facility on 
the National Priorities List, under paragraph (3) of 
subsection (a) for municipal solid waste disposed of 
at a facility if the person, except as provided in 
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paragraph (5) of this subsection, can demonstrate 
that the person is— 
‘‘(A) an owner, operator, or lessee of resi-
dential property from which all of the person’s 
municipal solid waste was generated with re-
spect to the facility; 
‘‘(B) a business entity (including a parent, 
subsidiary, or affiliate of the entity) that, dur-
ing its 3 taxable years preceding the date of 
transmittal of written notification from the 
President of its potential liability under this 
section, employed on average not more than 
100 full-time individuals, or the equivalent 
thereof, and that is a small business concern 
(within the meaning of the Small Business Act 
(15 U.S.C. 631 et seq.)) from which was gen-
erated all of the municipal solid waste attrib-
utable to the entity with respect to the facility; 
or 
‘‘(C) an organization described in section 
501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 
and exempt from tax under section 501(a) of 
such Code that, during its taxable year pre-
ceding the date of transmittal of written notifi-
cation from the President of its potential liabil-
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ity under this section, employed not more than 
100 paid individuals at the location from which 
was generated all of the municipal solid waste 
attributable to the organization with respect to 
the facility. 
For purposes of this subsection, the term ‘affiliate’ 
has the meaning of that term provided in the defini-
tion of ‘small business concern’ in regulations pro-
mulgated by the Small Business Administration in 
accordance with the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 
631 et seq.). 
‘‘(2) EXCEPTION.—Paragraph (1) shall not 
apply in a case in which the President determines 
that— 
‘‘(A) the municipal solid waste referred to 
in paragraph (1) has contributed significantly 
or could contribute significantly, either individ-
ually or in the aggregate, to the cost of the re-
sponse action or natural resource restoration 
with respect to the facility; 
‘‘(B) the person has failed to comply with 
an information request or administrative sub-
poena issued by the President under this Act; 
or 
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