zli12321/Bills huggingface dataset:
Ensuring Access to Clean Water Act of 2014 - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to direct the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) or a state exercising primary enforcement responsibility for National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit programs to carry out a state chemical storage facility source water protection program.

Requires such a program to provide for oversight and inspection of each covered chemical storage facility in accordance with minimum requirements, described in this Act, to prevent the release of chemicals into a navigable water that is designated for use as a domestic water source. Defines "covered chemical storage facility" as a facility at which a chemical is stored and from which a release is determined to pose a risk of harm to such source.

Prohibits this Act from precluding or denying the right of any state to adopt or enforce standards for the oversight and inspection of covered chemical storage facilities that are more stringent than this Act's minimum requirements.

Requires the Administrator to report on a survey of states' best practices in oversight and inspection programs and applicable regulations implementing the programs.

Authorizes the issuance of orders by the Administrator to carry out this Act.

Authorizes an owner or operator of a public water system to commence, or to petition the Administrator to commence, a civil action for equitable relief to address possible imminent and substantial endangerment to the health of persons supplied by the water system. Provides a special rule to expedite the Administrator's response to a petition in emergency situations.

Sets forth requirements concerning: (1) liability of a facility owner or operator for costs of response actions, (2) pre-transfer inspections of facilities, and (3) information for operators of domestic water systems on navigable waters regarding emergency response plans and chemical inventories.

Establishes a civil penalty of up to $15,000 for each day in which an owner or operator of a covered facility violates this Act.

Date: 2014-02-10
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection
Community Water Enhancement Act of 2014 - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to require the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), in making grants under the pilot program for alternative water source projects to meet critical water supply needs, to consider the location and benefits of projects in rural communities (including whether the area is served by a public water system with fewer than 3,000 connections or is located in an area with no public water system).

Includes among such projects: (1) the conjunctive management of groundwater supplies by delivery of surface water instead of groundwater, and (2) water treatment or distribution facilities if the project requires such facilities to deliver the alternative water supply. Authorizes funding for the program through FY2018.

Date: 2014-02-27
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection
Replaces the map included in the set of maps entitled "Coastal Barrier Resources System" (referred to in specified provisions of the Coastal Barrier Resources Act and relating to Indian Peninsula Unit FL-92 and Cape San Blas Unit P-30 in Florida) with another map relating to the same unit entitled "John H. Chafee Coastal Barrier Resources System Corrected Indian Peninsula Unit FL-92 and Cape San Blas Unit P-30" of a date to be specified.

Date: 2014-03-12
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Sustainable Water Infrastructure Investment Act of 2014 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to exempt from state volume caps private facility bonds for sewage and water supply facilities.

Date: 2014-03-13
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Taxation
Amends the Reclamation Wastewater and Groundwater Study and Facilities Act to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to participate in the design, planning, and construction of, and land acquisition for, a project to reclaim and reuse wastewater in Sacramento County, California.

Requires the project to consist of three phases, the first of which shall include the planning, design, and construction of water conveyance and related infrastructure to provide recycled water to irrigate approximately 4,500 acres of land in southern Sacramento County.

Date: 2014-03-14
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Water resources development
Forest Legacy Management Flexibility Act - Amends the Cooperative Forestry Assistance Act of 1978 to authorize states to allow certain entities to acquire, hold, and manage conservation easements under the forest legacy program.

Date: 2014-05-01
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Directs the Secretary of the Interior to revise maps of the John H. Chafee Coastal Barrier Resources System to remove from Texas System Unit P-15 the area known as the Preserve at Mustang Island (also known as Tortuga Dunes on Mustang Island) in Nueces County, Texas.

Date: 2014-05-20
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Coastal Communities Ocean Acidification Act of 2014 - Amends the Federal Ocean Acidification Research And Monitoring Act of 2009 to expand the ocean acidification program within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to include an ongoing mechanism that allows affected industry members, coastal stakeholders, non-federal resource managers, and outside scientific experts to provide input on research, data, and monitoring needs that are necessary to support on-the-ground management, decisionmaking, and adaptation related to ocean acidification and its impacts.

Directs the Secretary of Commerce, acting through NOAA, to conduct and update at least once every five years an ocean acidification coastal community vulnerability assessment with a corresponding public report. Requires such assessment to identify: (1) U.S. coastal communities, including island communities, low-population rural communities, and subsistence communities, that are most dependent on coastal and ocean resources that may be impacted by ocean acidification; (2) the nature of those communities' social and economic vulnerabilities; (3) impacts from changes in ocean and coastal marine resources that are not managed by the federal government; and (4) key knowledge gaps where research could be devoted to better understand the possible ocean acidification impacts, risks, threats, and possible adaptation strategies for such vulnerable communities.

Requires the strategic plan for federal research and monitoring on ocean acidification developed by the Joint Subcommittee on Ocean Science and Technology of the National Science and Technology Council to make recommendations for research that should be conducted, including in the social sciences and economics, to address the key knowledge gaps identified in the community vulnerability assessment report.

Date: 2014-05-20
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Ocean Acidification Innovation Act of 2014 - Amends the Federal Ocean Acidification Research and Monitoring Act of 2009 to authorize any federal agency with a representative serving on the Interagency Working Group on Ocean Acidification, either individually or in cooperation with other agencies, to carry out a program to award prizes competitively under the Stevenson-Wydler Technology Innovation Act of 1980 for the purpose of stimulating innovation to advance the nation's ability to understand, research, or monitor ocean acidification or its impacts or to develop management or adaptation options for responding to ocean acidification.

Grants priority to establishing programs that address communities, environments, or industries that are in distress due to the impacts of ocean acidification.

Date: 2014-05-22
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Science, technology, communications
Impaired Waters Improvement Act - Authorizes the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to make grants to reduce the discharges of nitrogen, phosphorus, or sediment (pollutants) in an area that is subject to a total maximum daily load (TMDL) for those pollutants under the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act). Makes eligible for grants the owners and operators of: (1) publicly owned treatment works or storm water management practices serving areas subject to the TMDLs, or (2) privately owned farms implementing methods to reduce discharges of those pollutants in those areas.

Directs the Administrator to increase by 5% the civil penalty for violations of the Clean Water Act. Establishes the Impaired Waters Improvement Fund for making expenditures to carry out the grant program. Transfers for each of FY2015-FY2019 the amount attributable to the penalty increase or $100 million, whichever is less, to the Fund.

Date: 2014-05-22
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection
(This measure has not been amended since it was introduced. The summary of that version is repeated here.)

Regulatory Certainty Act of 2014 - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to limit the period during which the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) may prohibit the specification, or restrict the use, of an area as a disposal site for discharges of dredged or fill materials into waters of the United States to the period that:

 begins on the date that the Army Corps of Engineers provides notice to the EPA that the Corps has completed all procedures for processing an application for a permit for dredged or fill material and is ready to determine whether the permit should be issued; and ends on the date that the Corps issues the permit. Requires the Corps to ensure that the period consists of at least 30 consecutive days.

Authorizes the Corps to issue a permit for dredged or fill material only after the Corps provides notice to the EPA.

Date: 2014-06-12
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection
Microbead-Free Waters Act of 2014 - Amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to prohibit, beginning January 1, 2018, the distribution of a cosmetic that contains synthetic plastic microbeads.

Date: 2014-06-18
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Health
Advancing Conservation and Education Act of 2014 - Allows Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Washington, or Wyoming (western states) to relinquish state land grant parcels wholly or primarily within federal conservation areas and to select, in exchange, unappropriated public land within the state. Defines "federal conservation areas" as lands within the outer boundaries of units of the National Park, National Wilderness Preservation, National Wildlife Refuge, or National Landscape Conservation Systems and certain designated lands within the National Forest System.

Directs the Secretary of the Interior to create a process for the relinquishment of such parcels.

Allows a western state to select, and the Secretary to convey, lands that are mineral in character.

Requires the overall value of the state land grant parcels and the unappropriated public land to be conveyed to be equal.

Sets forth requirements regarding records of hazardous materials on land conveyed, water rights, and grazing permits.

Date: 2014-06-19
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Agricultural Conservation Flexibility Act of 2014 - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to require the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to withdraw the interpretive rule issued on March 25, 2014, entitled, "U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Department of the Army Interpretive Rule Regarding the Applicability of the Clean Water Act Section 404(f)(1)(A)."

Prohibits the Corps and the EPA from using the interpretive rule, or any substantially similar rule or guidance, as the basis for any rulemaking, decision, or action regarding the scope or enforcement of the Clean Water Act. Provides that the use of rule or a substantially similar rule or guidance as the basis for any rule, decision, or action is grounds for vacating the rule, decision, or action.

Requires soil and water conservation practices to be treated as normal farming, silviculture, and ranching activities under permits for non-prohibited discharges of dredged or fill material. Prohibits such practices from being treated as a new use of an area of navigable waters, an impairment of the flow or circulation of navigable waters, or a reduction in the reach of such waters under those permits.

Applies this Act to activities occurring on or after March 25, 2014.

Date: 2014-07-10
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection
(This measure has not been amended since it was introduced. The expanded summary of the House reported version is repeated here.)



Waters of the United States Regulatory Overreach Protection Act of 2014 - Prohibits the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from:

 developing, finalizing, adopting, implementing, applying, administering, or enforcing the proposed rule entitled, "Definition of 'Waters of the United States' Under the Clean Water Act," issued on April 21, 2014, or the proposed guidance entitled, "Guidance on Identifying Waters Protected By the Clean Water Act," dated February 17, 2012; or using the proposed rule or proposed guidance, any successor document, or any substantially similar proposed rule or guidance as the basis for any rulemaking or decision regarding the scope or enforcement of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act). Requires the Army Corps and the EPA to withdraw the interpretive rule entitled, "Notice of Availability Regarding the Exemption from Permitting Under Section 404(f)(1)(A) of the Clean Water Act to Certain Agricultural Conservation Practices," issued on April 21, 2014.

Requires the Army Corps and the EPA to: (1) consult with relevant state and local officials to develop recommendations for a regulatory proposal that would identify the scope of waters covered under the Clean Water Act and the scope of waters not covered; (2) provide for the public review and comment of a draft report that includes a recommendation only if consensus has been reached with regard to the recommendation among the Army Corps, the EPA, and state and local officials; (3) publish a final report; and (4) report to Congress on the recommendations.

Date: 2014-07-11
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection
Estuary Urgent Needs Priority Program Act - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to revise the National Estuary Program by requiring the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to make competitive awards to address urgent and challenging issues that threaten the economic and ecological well-being of coastal areas, including extensive seagrass habitat losses, recurring harmful algae blooms, unusual marine mammal mortalities, invasive exotic species, and jellyfish proliferation limiting community access to water during peak tourism seasons.

Requires the EPA to give priority to national estuary programs that are not part of the Geographic Programs as described in the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2014.

Date: 2014-07-15
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection
Smart Water Management Conservation and Efficiency Act of 2014 - Directs the Secretary of Energy (DOE) to establish and carry out a smart water management pilot program to award grants to three to five eligible entities (authorities that provide drinking water, wastewater treatment, or water reuse services) to demonstrate and deploy novel and innovative technology-based solutions that will: (1) increase the energy and water efficiency of drinking water, wastewater treatment, and water reuse systems; (2) improve such systems to help communities make significant progress in conserving water, saving energy, and reducing costs; and (3) support the implementation of innovative processes and the installation of advanced automated systems that provide real-time data on energy and water.

Directs the Secretary, in selecting grant recipient, to consider:

 energy and cost savings; the novelty of the technology to be used; the degree to which the project integrates next-generation sensors, software, analytics, and management tools; the anticipated cost-effectiveness of the pilot project in terms of energy efficiency savings, water savings or reuse, and infrastructure costs averted; whether the technology can be deployed in a variety of geographic regions and the degree to which the technology can be implemented on a smaller or larger scale; and whether the project will be completed in five years or less. Requires the Secretary to evaluate, annually, each project for which a grant is provided and make best practices identified available to the public.

Date: 2014-07-17
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Water resources development
WaterSense Efficiency, Conservation, and Adaptation Act of 2014 - Establishes within the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) a WaterSense program to identify and promote water efficient products, buildings, landscapes, facilities, processes, and services so as to:

 reduce water use; reduce the strain on water, wastewater, and stormwater infrastructure; conserve energy used to pump, heat, transport, and treat water; and preserve water resources through the voluntary labeling of, or other forms of communications about, products, buildings, landscapes, facilities, processes, and services that meet the highest water efficiency and performance criteria. Requires the Administrator of EPA to identify other voluntary approaches to encourage recycling and reuse technologies to improve water efficiency or lower water use and to implement those approaches, if appropriate.

Establishes a State Residential Water Efficiency and Conservation Incentives Program to provide financial incentives for consumers to purchase and install products, buildings, landscapes, facilities, processes, and services labeled under the WaterSense program.

Requires the Administrator to make grants to owners or operators of water systems to address, mitigate, and adapt to address any ongoing or forecasted impact of climate change on the water quality or quantity of a U.S. region.

Date: 2014-07-17
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection
Columbia River Basin Restoration Act of 2014 - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to require the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to establish a Columbia River Basin Restoration Program to reduce toxic contamination and clean up contaminated sites. Requires the program to be collaborative and stakeholder-based.

Requires the EPA to: (1) assess trends in water quality and toxic contamination or toxics reduction; (2) collect, characterize and assess data on toxics and water quality to identify possible causes of environmental problems; (3) update the Columbia River Basin Toxics Reduction Plan (Action Plan) and the Estuary Partnership Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan (Estuary Plan) and ensure that the plans form a coherent toxic contamination reduction strategy; and (4) provide technical assistance in implementing and updating the Action Plan.

Directs the EPA to establish a Columbia River Basin Toxics Reduction Working Group to: (1) participate in developing updates to the Action Plan, (2) recommend and prioritize projects and actions for the Action Plan, and (3) review progress made.

Requires the Lower Columbia River Estuary Partnership to perform those duties and fulfill those responsibilities of the Working Group relating to the Lower Columbia River Estuary.

Requires the EPA to establish a Columbia River Basin toxics grant program to provide funding to develop or implement projects to implement the Action Plan and the Estuary Plan.

Date: 2014-07-28
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection
No More Land Act - Amends the Land and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965 to prohibit the Land and Water Conservation Fund from being used for acquisition.

Directs the heads of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), the Fish and Wildlife Service, the Forest Service, and the National Park Service to reduce the value of backlogged maintenance that exists on lands under the administrative jurisdiction of that agency by at least 20% in five years, with additional decreases in the backlog for subsequent years.

Instructs each agency to publish reports to Congress that document the progress made by reducing the backlogs.

Requires each agency to submit to Congress a report that prioritizes lands owned by the federal government and under the administrative jurisdiction of that agency by order of importance to the success of agency programs.

Date: 2014-07-28
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to reauthorize and revise the National Estuary Program for FY2014-FY2018.

Requires the Environmental Protection Agency to make competitive awards to address urgent and challenging issues that threaten the economic and ecological well-being of coastal areas, including:

 extensive seagrass habitat losses, recurring harmful algae blooms, unusual marine mammal mortalities, invasive exotic species, jellyfish proliferation limiting community access to water during peak tourism seasons, flooding which may be related to sea level rise or wetland degradation or loss, or low dissolved oxygen conditions in estuarine waters.

Date: 2014-07-30
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection
Indian River Lagoon Nutrient Removal Assistance Act of 2014 - Requires the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to establish an Indian River Lagoon Nutrient Removal Assistance Grant Program to assist projects related to the protection and restoration of the Indian River Lagoon in Florida.

Directs the EPA to issue regulations regarding grant selection criteria that prioritize projects that: (1) produce the greatest nutrient load reductions, (2) result in the greatest environmental benefits to the Lagoon, and (3) advance the goals and objectives of the comprehensive and management plan for the Indian River Lagoon approved under the National Estuary program of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act).

Requires the EPA to issue regulations to increase by 5% each civil penalty amount established for a violation of the Clean Water Act.

Amends the Internal Revenue Code to establish an Indian River Lagoon Nutrient Removal Assistance Trust Fund for the Program. Requires an amount equal to the increase in civil penalties to be transferred to the Fund.

Date: 2014-07-30
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection
Water in the 21st Century Act or W21 - Establishes within the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) a WaterSense program to identify and promote water efficient products, buildings, landscapes, facilities, processes, and services.

 Requires the EPA to identify other voluntary approaches to encourage recycling and reuse technologies to improve water efficiency or lower water use and to implement those approaches, if appropriate.

Establishes a State Residential Water Efficiency and Conservation Incentives Program to provide financial incentives for consumers to purchase and install products, buildings, landscapes, facilities, processes, and services labeled under the WaterSense program.

Requires the EPA to make grants to owners or operators of water systems to address, mitigate, and adapt to any ongoing or forecasted impact of climate change on a region's water quality or quantity.

 Authorizes the Department of the Interior to provide financial assistance for water recycling, water infrastructure, enhanced energy efficiency in water systems, desalination projects, permanent water storage, and integrated water management in specified states.

Authorizes the transfer of title to nonfederal entities of reclamation projects in need of rehabilitation that are authorized before enactment of this Act under certain conditions. Requires the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) to establish an open water data system.

Reauthorizes the Water Resources Research Act of 1984 and the Water Desalination Act of 1996 through FY2020.

Requires the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, after receiving a request from a nonfederal sponsor, to review the operation of a reservoir and update the water control manual to incorporate improved weather and runoff forecasting methods, if appropriate.

Directs the EPA to develop voluntary national drought resilience guidelines relating to preparedness planning and investments for water users and providers.

Requires the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to prepare a salmon drought plan for California.

Date: 2014-07-31
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection
Prohibits the use of federal funds made available for FY2015 for the Bay Delta Conservation Plan.

Date: 2014-09-09
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Water resources development
Great Lakes and Fresh Water Algal Bloom Information Act - Requires the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to create an online database of research and information on the causes and corrective actions being taken with regard to algal blooms in the Great Lakes, their tributaries, and other surface fresh waters. Requires NOAA to include relevant chemical, physical, and biological data that have been collected by an accredited university, association or organization, research group, federal agency, state, or local government in the United States or Canada.

Declares that this Act does not grant NOAA any new authority, including the authority to require submission of data.

Date: 2014-09-11
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection
Protecting Our Great Lakes Act of 2014 - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to prohibit any discharge of dredged material into waters within Lake Erie, Lake Huron, Lake St. Clair, Lake Michigan, Lake Ontario, and Lake Superior lakeward from a line drawn across the mouth of tributaries to the Lakes. Includes within the area protected from discharges all waters enclosed by constructed breakwaters (barriers built in a body of water to break the force of waves and protect surrounding land). Excludes connecting channels from the protected area.

Requires any dredged material resulting from activity in the Great Lakes System to be reused in beneficial ways on land or disposed of in a confined land- or water-based disposal area determined to be economically and environmentally viable by the Army Corps of Engineers in consultation with concerned states.

Treats violators of the prohibition as having violated a condition or limitation set forth in a permit to discharge dredged or fill material into waters of the United States.

Date: 2014-09-17
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection
Directs the Secretary of the Army, acting through the Chief of Engineers, to revise the management plan for the conservation pool in Lake Texoma (Oklahoma and Texas) to ensure that: (1) the water surface elevation is maintained between 619 and 614 mean sea level; (2) if the water surface elevation is at or below 614 mean sea level, hydroelectric power generation is only conducted upon a determination by the Secretary, in consultation with the Lake Texoma Advisory Committee, that there are emergency power needs, including needs resulting from a natural disaster; and (3) additional water capacity resulting from the revised mean surface elevation may be made available for allocation and, if allocated, district water suppliers will be prioritized.

Date: 2014-09-18
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Water resources development
Great Lakes Maritime Heritage Assessment Act of 2014 - Requires the Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere to assess and report on the cultural and historic resources in the waters of the Great Lakes. Directs the Under Secretary to make recommendations in the report on whether: (1) underwater geographic areas in the Great Lakes should be designated as national marine sanctuaries to protect resources of historical and archeological significance; and (2) the designation of a network of underwater Great Lakes areas that protect those resources could bring significant educational opportunities, economic development, jobs, and tourism to the Great Lakes region.

Date: 2014-11-14
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
(This measure has not been amended since it was introduced. The summary has been expanded because action occurred on the measure.)

Great Lakes Restoration Initiative Act of 2014 - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to authorize the Environmental Protection Agency's Great Lakes Restoration Initiative for FY2015-FY2019.

Requires that the Initiative carry out programs and projects for Great Lakes protection and restoration. Directs the Initiative to prioritize programs and projects, including:

 the remediation of toxic substances and areas of concern; the prevention and control of invasive species and their impacts; the protection and restoration of near-shore health and the prevention and mitigation of nonpoint source pollution (water pollution that comes from many diffuse sources, such as pollution on the ground picked up by rain or snow); habitat and wildlife protection and restoration; and accountability, monitoring, evaluation, communication, and partnership activities. Prohibits funding made available to implement the Initiative from being used for any water infrastructure activity (other than a green infrastructure project that improves habitat and other ecosystem functions in the Great Lakes) for which funding is made available under the clean water or drinking water state revolving fund program.

Requires federal agencies to maintain the base level of funding for their Great Lakes activities without regard to funding under the Initiative and identify new activities to support the environmental goals of the Initiative.

Date: 2014-11-20
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection
Water Quality Investment Act of 2014 - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to reauthorize the sewer overflow control grants program through FY2019.

Requires a project that receives a grant to be carried out under the same requirements as a project that receives assistance from a state water pollution control revolving fund, unless the state determines the requirements are inconsistent with treating sewer overflow.

Date: 2014-12-10
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection
Revises the boundaries of the John H. Chafee Coastal Barrier Resources System Unit P16 in Florida.

Date: 7/17/2014
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
California Coastal National Monument Expansion Act of 2013 - Expands the boundary of the California Coastal National Monument, established by Presidential Proclamation 7264, to include the Point Arena-Stornetta public lands in Mendocino County, California.

Requires management of such lands: (1) in accordance with such Proclamation, and (2) as part of the Monument.

Instructs the Secretary of the Interior to finalize an amendment to the Monument's management plan for the long-term protection and management of the lands added to the Monument under this Act.

Requires management of the Monument as part of the National Landscape Conservation System.

Date: 2013-01-22
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Secure Water Facilities Act - Secure Drinking Water Facilities Act - Amends the Safe Drinking Water Act to revise and expand requirements for assessment by covered water systems of their vulnerability to a range of intentional acts. Defines a "covered water system" as a public water system that serves a population of more than 3,300 individuals or that presents a security risk that requires regulation.

Requires the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to promulgate regulations to establish: (1) increasingly stringent, risk-based performance standards for the security of such systems; (2) requirements and deadlines for systems to conduct and update assessments, develop and revise security plans and emergency response plans, and provide training to system and contractor employees; and (3) four risk-based tiers for the categorization of systems. Requires the Administrator to assign each system to such tiers.

Authorizes the Administrator to designate any chemical substance as a substance of concern and establish the threshold quantity for the release or theft of each such substance. Requires the Administrator to: (1) provide baseline information to systems regarding the types of intentional acts that constitute probable threats, (2) direct systems that possess substances of concern in excess of the release threshold quantity to include in their site security plans assessments of methods to reduce the consequences of chemical releases from intentional acts, (3) determine whether to require systems to implement such methods, (4) develop non-binding guidance to assist systems in assessing and implementing methods to reduce consequences of a chemical release by reducing or eliminating reliance on the use of threshold quantities of such substances, and (5) prohibit the unauthorized disclosure of protected information.

Authorizes the Administrator to provide grants to assist states and systems in complying with this Act and to provide for security-related training of system employees and training for emergency response providers. Authorizes appropriations for FY2013-FY2017.

Secure Wastewater Treatment Facilities Act - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to establish the same requirements and set forth analogous provisions with respect to covered treatment works. Defines a "covered treatment works" as a treatment works that has a treatment capacity of no less than 2.5 million gallons per day or that presents a security risk that requires regulation.

Date: 2013-01-23
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection
Land and Water Conservation Authorization and Funding Act of 2013 - Amends the Land and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965 to make permanent the authorization for the Land and Water Conservation Fund.

Makes monies covered into the Fund available for expenditure to carry out the purposes of the Act without further appropriation.

Requires not less than 1.5% of the annual authorized funding amount to be made available for projects that secure recreational public access to existing federal public land for hunting, fishing, and other recreational purposes.

Date: 2013-02-14
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Sewage Overflow Community Right-to-Know Act - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to require owners or operators of publicly owned treatment works to: (1) institute monitoring systems to provide timely alerts of sewer overflows, (2) notify the public not later than 24 hours after receiving knowledge of such overflows in areas where human health is potentially affected, (3) notify public health authorities and other affected entities immediately of an overflow that may imminently and substantially endanger human health, (4) report each overflow on discharge monitoring reports to the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) or the state, and (5) annually report to the Administrator or the state on the total number of overflows in a calendar year.

Makes specified exceptions to notification and reporting requirements for backups into single-family residences and for overflows that occur in the course of treatment works maintenance, respectively.

Requires annual summary reports by states to the Administrator.

Requires the Administrator to promulgate regulations, including to establish overflow assessment guidance and develop communications measures to provide notification under this Act.

Makes the monitoring systems eligible for state water pollution control revolving fund assistance.

Date: 2013-02-27
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection
Rural Heritage Conservation Extension Act of 2013 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to: (1) make permanent the tax deduction for charitable contributions by individuals and corporations of real property interests for conservation purposes; and (2) prohibit any such deduction for contributions of an easement for use on, or intended use on, a golf course.

Date: 2013-03-12
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Taxation
Replaces the map included in the set of maps entitled "Coastal Barrier Resources System" (referred to in specified provisions of the Coastal Barrier Resources Act and relating to Unit L06 in the state of North Carolina) with another map relating to the same unit entitled "John H. Chafee Coastal Barrier Resources System Corrected Unit L06."

Date: 2013-03-12
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Oil Spill Tax Fairness Act - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to deny a tax deduction for business-related expenses paid or incurred by a responsible party relating to an incident resulting in the discharge of oil into the navigable waters, other than an incident caused by an act of God or an act of war.

Date: 2013-03-18
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Taxation
National Endowment for the Oceans Act - Authorizes the Secretary of Commerce and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation to establish the National Endowment for the Oceans as a permanent endowment fund to support programs and activities to restore, protect, maintain, or understand living marine resources and their habitats and ocean, coastal, and Great Lakes resources, including baseline scientific research, ocean observing, and other programs in coordination with federal and state agencies.

Requires the contribution of non-federal matching funds for certain projects.

Specifies that programs funded in Great Lakes states shall also seek to attain the goals embodied in the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative Plan, the Great Lakes Regional Collaboration Strategy, the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement, or other collaborative planning efforts of the Great Lakes Region. Prohibits the funding of litigation.

Directs the Foundation, according to a specified allocation formula, to award a minimum percentage of funds as grants to coastal states while awarding a lesser percentage of funds to entities including states, Indian tribes, regional bodies, associations, non-governmental organizations, and academic institutions.

Sets forth a process for the Foundation, with approval of the Secretary, to establish application guidelines, eligibility criteria, and grant approval procedures.

Requires coastal states, as a condition to grant eligibility, to submit a five-year plan (updated at least every five years to continue receiving a grant) to the Secretary for approval after the Secretary has provided an opportunity for public comment. Directs the Foundation to establish an advisory panel to review and make recommendations with respect to the grant applications of other entities.

Date: 2013-03-21
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Silviculture Regulatory Consistency Act - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to prohibit the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from requiring, or from promulgating regulations that direct a state to require, a permit under the national pollutant discharge elimination system for a discharge of stormwater runoff resulting from the conduct of the following silvicultural activities: nursery operations, site preparation, reforestation, thinning, prescribed burning, pest and fire control, harvesting operations, surface drainage, and road use, construction, and maintenance.

 Specifies that nothing in this Act exempts a silvicultural activity resulting in the discharge of dredged of fill material from permit requirements for discharges into navigable waters.

Date: 2013-05-16
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection
Artificial Reef Promotion Act of 2013 - Amends the National Fishing Enhancement Act of 1984 to require the Secretary of the Army, in issuing a permit for artificial reefs, to ensure that a state assuming liability for future damages has established an artificial reef maintenance fund.

Requires the Director of the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement and the Director of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management to promulgate regulations that expedite the review of a final application submitted to dispose of or remove an offshore oil and gas platform in the Gulf of Mexico for use as an artificial reef by requiring that a decision be made within 150 days after the submission of such application. Requires the Commanding General of the Corps of Engineers to promulgate regulations that expedite the review of a final application by the Secretary by requiring a decision to be given within 120 days after the submission of such application.

Directs the Commanding General to designate no fewer than 20 artificial reef planning areas. Specifies location and depth requirements for such artificial reefs, including the number of areas that should be located outside the seaward boundary of each of the Gulf states. Revises siting compliance requirements imposed upon permittees.

Prohibits regulations from requiring an artificial reef planning area to be filled to capacity with offshore oil and gas platforms in the Gulf of Mexico before another artificial reef planning area is established. Requires the Regional Supervisor to give preference to a final application submitted to dispose of or remove a platform for use as an artificial reef.

Date: 2013-05-23
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Amends the Highlands Conservation Act to extend, through FY2024, funding for: (1) land conservation partnership projects in the highlands regions of Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania; and (2) Forest Service and Department of Agriculture (USDA) programs to assist such states, units of local government, and private forest and farm landowners in the conservation of land and natural resources in that region.

Date: 2013-06-11
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Authorizes the Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to provide funds to any state, local, or tribal government impacted by the events, including marine debris impacts, resulting from the March 2011 earthquake and subsequent tsunami in the Tohoku region of Japan to assist with the costs of any activity carried out to address the effects of such event.

Permits the Administrator to provide such funds using any funds provided by the government of Japan for such purposes.

Date: 2013-06-13
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Clean Cruise Ship Act of 2013 - Declares the purpose of this Act to be the establishment of national standards and prohibitions for discharges from cruise vessels. Defines "cruise vessel" as a passenger vessel that is authorized to carry at least 250 passengers and has onboard sleeping facilities for each passenger. Excludes vessels owned or operated by federal, state, or local governments.

Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to prohibit cruise vessels departing from, or calling on, a U.S. port from discharging effluents, including sewage or sewage sludge, incinerator ash, hazardous waste, graywater, or bilge water, into navigable waters. Allows an exception for discharges made solely to secure the safety of a cruise vessel or to save a human life at sea.

Requires the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to: (1) promulgate effluent limits for sewage, graywater, and bilge water discharges from cruise vessels; (2) establish dates for compliance with such limits; (3) require sampling, monitoring, and reporting to ensure compliance with such limits and other applicable requirements; and (4) establish an inspection program to ensure the compliance of cruise vessels with the requirements of this Act.

Requires the Commandant of the Coast Guard, in consultation with the Administrator, to establish and carry out a program for hiring and placing trained, independent, observers on cruise vessels to monitor and inspect vessel operations, equipment, and discharges.

Establishes in the Treasury the Cruise Vessel Pollution Control Fund. Requires the Commandant and the Administrator to collect fees from cruise vessels and deposit such fees in the Fund for use in carrying out this Act.

Date: 2013-07-24
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection
Water and Agriculture Tax Reform Act of 2013 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to permit tax-exempt mutual ditch or irrigation companies to earn income from dispositions of certain real property and stock interests without affecting their tax-exempt status. Requires that such income be used to pay the costs of operations, maintenance, and capital improvements of such a company.

Date: 2013-08-01
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Taxation
Commonsense Permitting for Job Creation Act of 2013 - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to prevent guidelines applicable to permits for the discharge of dredged or fill material into the navigable waters at disposal sites from prohibiting specification of a site due to the lack of a final site plan resulting from the lack of an identified end user or industry or industrial classification when determining whether there is a practicable alternative to a proposed discharge that would result in less adverse impact on the aquatic ecosystem.

Date: 2013-08-01
Topic: Environment (Conservation)
Subject: Environmental protection