A bill granting the consent of Congress to the New Hampshire-Vermont Interstate Sewage Waste Disposal Facilities Compact.
PL 94-403 (H.R.9153), enacted 09/09/1976

PUBLIC LAW 94^03—SEPT. 9, 1976 
90 STAT. 1221 
Public Law 94-403 
94th Congress 
An Act 
Granting the consent of Congress to the New Hampshire-Vermont Interstate 
Sewage Waste Disposal Facilities Compact. 
Be it enacted l)y the Senate and House of Rejrresentatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assemhled, That the consent of 
Congress is hereby given to the New Hampshire-Vermont Interstate 
Sewage Waste Disposal Facilities Compact which has been entered 
into in accordance with the provisions of section 103(b) of the Fed-
eral Water Pollution Control Act. The compact reads as follows: 
"NEW HAMPSHIRE-VERMONT INTERSTATE SEWAGE 
AND WASTE DISPOSAL FACILITIES COMPACT 
"ARTICLE I 
a 
GENERAL PROVISIONS 
"A. STATEMENT OF POLICY.—It is recognized that in certain cases 
municipalities in New Hampshire and Vermont may, in order to avoid 
duplication of cost and effort, and in order to take advantage of 
economies of scale, find it necessary or advisable to enter into agree-
ments whereby joint sewage and waste disposal facilities are erected 
and maintained. The states of New Hampshire and Vermont recognize 
the value of and need for such agreements, and adopt this compact 
in order to authorize their establishment. 
"B. REQUIREMENT OF CONGRESSIONAL APPROVAL.—This compact 
shall not become effective until approved by the United States 
Congress. 
"C. DEFINITIONS.— 
"1. 'Sewage and waste disposal facilities' shall mean publicly-
owned sewers, interceptor sewers, sewerage facilities, sewage treat-
ment facilities and ancillary facilities whether qualifying for grants 
in aid under title II of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, as 
amended, or not. 
"2. 'Municipalities' shall mean cities, towns, village districts or other 
incorporated units of local government possessing authority to con-
struct, maintain and operate sewage and waste disposal facilities and 
to raise revenue therefor by bonding and taxation, which may legally 
impose and collect user charges and impose and enforce pretreatment 
conditions upon users of sewage and waste disposal facilities. 
"3. 'Water pollution agency' shall mean the agencies within New 
Hampshire and Vermont possessing regulating authority over the 
construction, maintenance and operation of sewage and waste disposal 
facilities and the administration of grants in aid from their respective 
state and under the Federal Water Pollution Act, as amended, for the 
construction of such facilities. 
"4. 'Governing body' shall mean the legislative body of the munic-
ipality, including, in the case of a town, the town meeting, and, in the 
case of a city, the city counsel, or the board of mayor and aldermen 
or any similar body in any community not inconsistent with the intent 
of this definition. 
Sept. 9, 1976 
[H.R. 9153] 
New Hampshire-
Vermont Sewage 
and Waste 
Disposal 
Facihties 
Compact. 
Congressional 
consent. 
33 u s e 1253. 
33 u s e 1281. 
33 u s e 1251 
note. 
90 STAT. 1222 
PUBLIC LAW 94-403—SEPT. 9, 1976 
"ARTICLE II 
"PROCEDURES AND CONDITIONS GOVERNING INTERGOVERNMENTAL 
AGREEMENTS 
"A. COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS AUTHORIZED.—Any two or 
more 
; . 
municipalities, one or more located in New Hampshire and one or 
more located in Vermont, may enter into cooperative agreements for 
the construction, maintenance and operation of a single sewage and 
waste disposal facility serving all of the municipalities who are parties 
.•: 
thereto. 
"B. APPROVAL OF AGREEMENTS.—Any agreement entered into under 
this compact shall, prior to becoming effective, be approved by the 
water pollution agency of each state, and shall be in a form established 
jointly by said agencies of both states. 
"C. METHOD or ADOPTING AGREEMENT.—Agreements hereunder shall 
be adopted by the governing body of each municipality in accordance 
with existing statutory procedures for the adoption of intergovern-
mental agreements between municipalities within each state. 
"D. REVIEW AND APPROVAL OF PLANS.—The water pollution agency 
of the state in which any part of a sewage and waste disposal facility 
which is proposed under an agreement pursuant to this compact is 
proposed to be or is located is hereby authorized and required, to the 
extent such authority exists under its state law, to review and approve 
or disapprove all reports, designs, plans and other engineering docu-
ment required to apply for federal grants in aid or grants in aid from 
said agency's state, and to supervise and regulate the planning, design, 
construction, maintenance and operation of said part of the facility. 
"E. FEDERAL GRANTS AND FINANCING.— 
Application. 
" 1 , Application for federal grants in aid for the planning, design 
and construction of sewage and waste disposal facilities other than 
sewers shall be made jointly by the agreeing municipalities, with the 
amount of the grant attributable to each state's allotment to be based 
upon the relative total capacity reserves allocated to the municipalities 
in the respective states determined jointly by the respective state water 
pollution agencies. Each municipality shall be responsible for applying 
for federal grants for sewers to be located within the municipal 
boundaries. 
"2. Municipalities are hereby authorized to raise and appropriate 
revenue for the purpose of contributing pro rata to the planning, 
design and construction cost of sewage and waste disposal facilities 
constructed and operated as joint facilities pursuant to this compact. 
"F. CONTENTS OF AGREEMENTS.—Agreements entered into pursuant 
to this compact shall contain the following: 
" 1 . A uniform system of charges for industrial users of the joint 
sewage and waste disposal facilities. 
"2. A uniform set of pretreatment standards for industrial users of 
the joint sewage and waste disposal facilities. 
"3. A provision for the pro rata sharing of operating and mainte-
nance costs based upon the ratio of actual flows to the plant as meas-
ured by devices installed to guage such flows with reasonable accuracy. 
"4. A provision establishing a procedure for the arbitration and 
resolution of disputes. 
"5. A provision establishing a procedure for the carriage of liability 
insurance, if such insurance is necessary under the laws of either state. 
"6. A provision establishing a procedure for the modification of 
the agreement. 
PUBLIC LAW 94-403—SEPT. 9, 1976 
90 STAT. 1223 
"7. A provision establishing a procedure for the adoption of regula-
tions for the use, operation and maintenance of the joint facilities. 
"8. A provision setting forth the means by which the municipality 
that does not own the joint sewage and waste disposal facility will pay 
the other municipality its share of the maintenance and operating costs 
of said facility. 
"G. Nothing in this compact shall be construed to authorize the 
establishment of interstate districts, authorities, or any other new 
governmental or quasi-governmental entity. 
"ARTICLE 
III 
"EFFECTIVE DATE 
"This compact shall become effective when a bill of the general 
assembly of each of the states of New Hampshire and Vermont which 
incorporates the compact becomes a law in each such state and when 
it is approved by the United States Congress.". 
SEC. 2. The right to alter, amend, or repeal this Act is hereby 
expressly reserved. 
Approved September 9, 1976. 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: 
HOUSE REPORT No. 94-1117 (Comm. on the Judiciary). 
SENATE REPORT No. 94-1165 (Comm. on the Judiciary). 
CONGRESSIONAL RECORD, Vol 122 (1976): 
May 17, considered and passed House. 
Aug. 26, considered and passed Senate.