WASH Sector Development Act of 2022
Bill: S.3893 | Sponsor: Sen. Wyden, Ron (D-OR)
Policy area: Environmental Protection

Summary:
Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene Sector Development Act of 2022 or the WASH Sector Development Act of 2022
This bill directs the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to establish the Water and Sanitation Needs Working Group to measure and report on the number and approximate geographic distribution of households that do not have access to drinking water infrastructure or a means for the safe collection and disposal of wastewater. The EPA must also establish a program under which it awards grants to nonprofit organizations for assisting such households.

To collect information regarding water access needs across the United 
States, to provide grants for decentralized drinking water systems, and 
                          for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene 
Sector Development Act of 2022'' or the ``WASH Sector Development Act 
of 2022''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Administrator.--The term ``Administrator'' means the 
        Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency.
            (2) Indian tribe.--The term ``Indian Tribe'' means any 
        Indian or Alaska Native tribe, band, nation, pueblo, village, 
        community, component band, or component reservation 
        individually identified (including parenthetically) in the list 
        published most recently as of the date of enactment of this Act 
        pursuant to section 104 of the Federally Recognized Indian 
        Tribe List Act of 1994 (25 U.S.C. 5131).
            (3) State.--The term ``State'' means--
                    (A) each of the 50 States;
                    (B) the District of Columbia; and
                    (C) any territory of the United States.
            (4) Tribal government.--The term ``Tribal government'' 
        means the recognized governing body of an Indian Tribe.

SEC. 3. WATER AND SANITATION NEEDS WORKING GROUP.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall establish a working 
group, to be known as the ``Water and Sanitation Needs Working Group'' 
(referred to in this section as the ``Working Group'')--
            (1) to work with a Federal agency or independently to carry 
        out a survey that will measure, as accurately as possible, the 
        number and approximate geographic distribution of households in 
        the United States that do not have access to drinking water 
        infrastructure or a means for the safe collection and disposal 
        of wastewater; and
            (2) on the basis of the results of the survey carried out 
        under paragraph (1), to prepare a report for Congress that 
        estimates the cost of capital improvements that would be needed 
        to ensure that all households in the United States have access 
        to reliable drinking water and adequate sanitation, subject to 
        the conditions that--
                    (A) to the extent practicable, the cost estimate 
                prepared under this paragraph shall take into 
                consideration the cost of project proposals that may be 
                submitted by individuals, the research community, 
                nonprofit organizations with experience in the water 
                and sanitation sectors, and Federal, State, local, or 
                Tribal government agencies consistent with guidance 
                provided by the Working Group; and
                    (B) the Working Group will not be required to 
                collect or report personally identifiable information, 
                but can maintain information with respect to drinking 
                water and sanitation needs based on ZIP Code or another 
                appropriate geographic breakdown.
    (b) Chairperson; Membership.--
            (1) Chairperson.--The Administrator shall serve as the 
        chairperson of the Working Group.
            (2) Membership.--In addition to the Administrator, the 
        Working Group shall comprise senior representatives from such 
        Federal agencies as the Administrator determines to be 
        appropriate, including--
                    (A) the Department of the Interior, including the 
                Bureau of Indian Affairs;
                    (B) the Department of Agriculture;
                    (C) the Census Bureau;
                    (D) the Department of Health and Human Services, 
                including the Indian Health Service; and
                    (E) the Department of Housing and Urban 
                Development.
    (c) Duties.--The Working Group shall--
            (1) leverage the expertise of industry, the research 
        community, nongovernmental organizations, and utilities, 
        including through the incorporation of information that could 
        be collected by utilities, circuit riders, and technical 
        assistance providers;
            (2) consult, on a regular basis, with States, units of 
        local government, Indian tribes, and relevant Federal agencies 
        not included in the membership of the Working Group; and
            (3) in carrying out subsection (a)--
                    (A) seek to determine whether the decennial census 
                or another existing survey of the Federal Government 
                presents an efficient opportunity for collecting the 
                information described in paragraph (1) of that 
                subsection;
                    (B) seek to coordinate Federal programs and 
                policies to support the collection and use of the 
                information described in that subsection;
                    (C) develop a methodology for creating the cost 
                estimate required under paragraph (2) of that 
                subsection; and
                    (D) oversee the collection of--
                            (i) the information described in paragraph 
                        (1) of that subsection; and
                            (ii) the information necessary to create 
                        the cost estimate required under paragraph (2) 
                        of that subsection.
    (d) Report on Water and Sanitation Needs.--Not less frequently than 
once every 2 years, the Administrator shall submit to Congress a report 
that describes the activities and findings of the Working Group, 
including--
            (1) an explanation of the methodology used by the Working 
        Group to determine drinking water and sanitation needs;
            (2) an estimate of the amount of funds necessary to provide 
        all households with access to reliable drinking water and 
        adequate sanitation; and
            (3) a breakdown by State and, if possible, congressional 
        district of--
                    (A) drinking water and sanitation needs; and
                    (B) the amount of funding required to address those 
                needs.
    (e) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated to the Administrator and other necessary Federal agencies 
to collect the information and prepare the reports required under this 
section--
            (1) for each of fiscal years 2023 through 2027, 
        $10,000,000; and
            (2) for fiscal year 2028 and each fiscal year thereafter, 
        such sums as may be necessary.

SEC. 4. GRANTS FOR CONSTRUCTION AND REFURBISHMENT OF INDIVIDUAL 
              HOUSEHOLD OR COMMUNITY DECENTRALIZED DRINKING WATER 
              SYSTEMS FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH LOW OR MODERATE INCOME.

    Part E of the Safe Drinking Water Act (42 U.S.C. 300j et seq.) is 
amended by adding at the end the following:

``SEC. 1459H. GRANTS FOR CONSTRUCTION AND REFURBISHMENT OF INDIVIDUAL 
              HOUSEHOLD OR COMMUNITY DECENTRALIZED DRINKING WATER 
              SYSTEMS FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH LOW OR MODERATE INCOME.

    ``(a) Definitions.--In this section:
            ``(1) Eligible individual.--The term `eligible individual' 
        means a member of a low-income or moderate-income household, 
        the members of which have a combined income (for the most 
        recent 12-month period for which information is available) 
        equal to not more than 80 percent of the median nonmetropolitan 
        household income for the State, Indian land, or territory in 
        which the household is located, according to the most recent 
        information collected by the Census Bureau.
            ``(2) Indian land.--The term `Indian land' includes--
                    ``(A) Indian country (as defined in section 1151 of 
                title 18, United States Code);
                    ``(B) any land in Alaska owned, pursuant to the 
                Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1601 et 
                seq.), by an Indian tribe that is a Native village (as 
                defined in section 3 of that Act (43 U.S.C. 1602)) or 
                by a Village Corporation (as defined in section 3 of 
                that Act (43 U.S.C. 1602)) that is associated with an 
                Indian tribe;
                    ``(C) any land on which the seat of a Tribal 
                government (as defined in section 2 of the WASH Sector 
                Development Act of 2022) is located; and
                    ``(D) any land that is part of a Tribal designated 
                statistical area associated with an Indian tribe, or an 
                Alaska Native village statistical area associated with 
                an Indian tribe, as defined by the Census Bureau for 
                the purposes of the most recent decennial census.
    ``(b) Grant Program.--
            ``(1) In general.--Subject to the availability of 
        appropriations, the Administrator shall establish a program 
        under which the Administrator shall provide grants to private 
        nonprofit organizations for the purpose of improving general 
        welfare by providing assistance to eligible individuals--
                    ``(A) for the construction, repair, or replacement 
                of an individual household decentralized drinking water 
                system;
                    ``(B) for the installation of a larger 
                decentralized drinking water system that is designed to 
                provide treatment or drinking water for 2 or more 
                households in which eligible individuals reside, if--
                            ``(i) site conditions at the households are 
                        unsuitable for the installation of an 
                        individually owned decentralized drinking water 
                        system;
                            ``(ii) multiple examples of unsuitable site 
                        conditions exist in close geographic proximity 
                        to each other; and
                            ``(iii) a larger decentralized drinking 
                        water system could be cost-effectively 
                        installed; or
                    ``(C) for the creation and support of an on-site 
                maintenance entity or user association with the ability 
                to collect fees to provide for the ongoing operation, 
                maintenance, and replacement of an installed 
                decentralized drinking water system.
            ``(2) Application.--To be eligible to receive a grant under 
        this subsection, a private nonprofit organization shall submit 
        to the Administrator an application at such time, in such 
        manner, and containing such information as the Administrator 
        determines to be appropriate.
            ``(3) Priority.--In awarding grants under this subsection, 
        the Administrator shall give priority to applicants that--
                    ``(A) have demonstrated expertise in working with 
                local communities to implement infrastructure projects, 
                such as experience promoting the safe and effective use 
                of household decentralized drinking water systems;
                    ``(B) propose to serve individuals or communities 
                lacking--
                            ``(i) a safe drinking water system; and
                            ``(ii) a feasible connection to a reliable 
                        public water system; and
                    ``(C) demonstrate that the decentralized drinking 
                water infrastructure to be constructed, repaired, or 
                replaced using amounts from a grant under this 
                subsection will be operated, maintained, and replaced 
                by the individuals or communities that will use the 
                infrastructure, which may be demonstrated through--
                            ``(i) a study demonstrating the ability of 
                        the individual or community to pay for that 
                        operation, maintenance, and replacement; or
                            ``(ii) the creation of an on-site 
                        maintenance entity or user association with the 
                        ability to collect fees to provide for ongoing 
                        operation, maintenance, and replacement.
            ``(4) Administrative expenses.--A private nonprofit 
        organization may use amounts provided under this subsection to 
        pay the administrative expenses associated with the provision 
        of the services described in paragraph (1), as the 
        Administrator determines to be appropriate.
    ``(c) Grants.--
            ``(1) In general.--Subject to paragraph (2), a private 
        nonprofit organization shall use a grant provided under 
        subsection (b) for the services described in paragraph (1) of 
        that subsection.
            ``(2) Application.--To be eligible to receive the services 
        described in subsection (b)(1), an eligible individual shall 
        submit to the private nonprofit organization serving the area 
        in which the individual or community household decentralized 
        drinking water system of the eligible individuals is, or is 
        proposed to be, located an application at such time, in such 
        manner, and containing such information as the private 
        nonprofit organization determines to be appropriate.
            ``(3) Priority.--In awarding grants under this subsection, 
        a private nonprofit organization shall give priority to any 
        eligible individual who does not have--
                    ``(A) access to a drinking water system; and
                    ``(B) a feasible connection to a reliable public 
                water system.
    ``(d) Report.--Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment 
of this section, the Administrator shall submit to the Committee on 
Environment and Public Works of the Senate and the Committee on Energy 
and Commerce of the House of Representatives a report describing the 
recipients of grants under the program under this section and the 
results of the program under this section.
    ``(e) Authorization of Appropriations.--
            ``(1) In general.--There is authorized to be appropriated 
        to the Administrator to carry out this section $50,000,000 for 
        each of fiscal years 2023 through 2027.
            ``(2) Limitation on use of funds.--Of the amounts made 
        available for grants under paragraph (1), not more than 2 
        percent may be used to pay the administrative costs of the 
        Administrator.
            ``(3) Indian land.--Of the amounts made available under 
        paragraph (1), the Administrator shall use not less than 5 
        percent to make grants to private nonprofit organizations that 
        serve eligible individuals that reside on Indian land.''.
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