zli12321/Bills huggingface dataset:
Chesapeake Bay Program Reauthorization and Improvement Act - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act or CWA) to establish: (1) financial reporting requirements for restoration activities in the Chesapeake Bay watershed; and (2) the Independent Evaluation and Technical Advisory Committee to review and report on restoration activities in the Bay ecosystem and to provide recommendations to the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Secretary of the Department of Agriculture (USDA) on such activities. Authorizes appropriations for FY2010-FY2015. Authorizes a total maximum daily load (TMDL) for nitrogen, phosphorus, or sediment for the Bay and its tributaries to include load expressions for wasteload allocations or load allocations using time frames other than daily for sectors where non-daily allocations are most appropriate to implement applicable water quality standards. Sets forth provisions governing issuing National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permits for discharges that include waste load allocations that are consistent with TMDL plans. Authorizes individuals or entities undertaking land development activities to be permitted to meet requirements for managing stormwater by on-site infiltration by paying to offset them through the establishment of equivalent stormwater management practices off-site within the Bay ecosystem. Establishes an independent Chesapeake Bay Nutrient and Sediment Trading Commission in the Office of the Chesapeake Bay Program to: (1) administer the nitrogen and phosphorus trading program for Delaware, Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to ensure that credits are generated to attract market participants and facilitate trading mechanisms among and within such jurisdictions to meet water quality goals; (2) operate a registry for interstate water quality trading; and (3) develop a system to allow for trading to occur between point source and non-point source dischargers in Bay states. Terminates the Commission on September 30, 2015. Amends the Food Security Act of 1985 to require the Secretary to: (1) establish standards for risk assessment, conservation planning, verification, water quality, and auditing practices that states can incorporate into their Chesapeake Bay management plan under the CWA; (2) provide conservation technical assistance to educate agricultural and private forest landowners in the Bay regarding water quality requirements; (3) publish a list of eligible agricultural and forestry activities that result in environmental service benefits; and (4) establish a pilot program for the Bay watershed for the facilitation of creating environmental service markets.

Date: 2010-06-10
Topic: Environment (Drinking Water)
Subject: Environmental protection
Water Assistance from International Vessels for Emergency Response Act or WAIVER Act - Waives requirements for coastwise endorsements to a certificate of documentation in order to engage in coastwise trade for foreign vessels engaged in containment, remediation, or associated activities in connection with the mobile offshore drilling unit Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

Date: 2010-06-23
Topic: Environment (Drinking Water)
Subject: Transportation and public works
Oil Spill Tax Relief Act of 2010 - Treats as a qualified disaster for income tax purposes the explosion on and sinking of the mobile offshore drilling unit Deepwater Horizon and the discharge of oil in the Gulf of Mexico caused by such explosion and sinking. Excludes from gross income, for income tax purposes, compensation paid by BP, PLC to the victims of such disaster.

Date: 2010-06-24
Topic: Environment (Drinking Water)
Subject: Taxation
Better Oil Spill Response Plan Act of 2010 - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to require the President, every five years, to publish and provide to each Area Committee an estimate of the worst case discharges that are possible in each area described in an Area Contingency Plan based on the oil and gas exploration, development, and production activities that are planned or being conducted at various locations and depths in each area. Requires the President to revise the National Contingency Plan and the regulations concerning the National Response System to take into account: (1) the adequacy of the Plan to respond to the volume, source, and duration of the discharge caused by the explosion involving the mobile offshore drilling unit Deepwater Horizon; (2) any findings and options related to the Plan made by the National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling; and (3) the estimate of the worst case discharges. Requires the President to revise the Plan whenever the estimate of the worst case discharges materially changes. Requires Area Contingency Plans to be adequate to mitigate or remove (currently, to remove) a worst case discharge. Sets forth provisions concerning revision and presidential review of: (1) Area Contingency Plans; and (2) tank vessel, nontank vessel, and facility response plans to discharges of oil or hazardous substances. Repeals provisions authorizing the President to permit a vessel or facility to operate without an approved response plan if the owner or operator certifies the availability of private personnel and equipment to respond to a worst case discharge or substantial threat of such a discharge. Directs the President to require owners or operators of vessels or facilities that are required to submit response plans to demonstrate annually their capacity to implement such plans. Requires a dispersant schedule prepared under the National Contingency Plan to include specified information regarding the safety and efficacy of the dispersants, other chemicals, and other spill mitigating devices and substances. Prohibits the President from placing such a substance on such schedule unless the President receives satisfactory assurances that the manufacturer will publicly disclose the ingredients of any such substance that will be used to carry out a National Contingency Plan, Area Contingency Plan, or vessel or facility response plan in response to a discharge declared to be a spill of national significance. Amends the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to require compliance with the Clean Water Act's response plan requirements.

Date: 2010-06-25
Topic: Environment (Drinking Water)
Subject: Environmental protection
Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund Improvement Act of 2010 - Amends the Water Resources Development Act of 1986 to authorize to be appropriated out of the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund such sums as may be necessary to pay up to 100% of the eligible costs of preparing a federal environmental impact statement for a navigation project for a harbor or an inland harbor or any separable element thereof.

Date: 2010-06-28
Topic: Environment (Drinking Water)
Subject: Transportation and public works
Gulf Coast Conservation Corps Act of 2010 - Establishes the Gulf Coast Conservation Corps. Requires the President, through the Corps, to hire individuals who meet certain requirements (unemployed, U.S. citizens or legal permanent residents, physically capable of performing work, and not enrolled as a full-time student) to carry out rehabilitation and enhancement projects involving the construction, maintenance, cleaning, and restoration in any area of the Gulf of Mexico affected by the oil discharged as a result of the Deepwater Horizon incident. Prohibits Corps participants whose positions are funded under this Act from displacing other employees whose positions are not funded under this Act. Allows Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund amounts to be used for the costs of carrying out this Act.

Date: 2010-06-29
Topic: Environment (Drinking Water)
Subject: Labor and employment
Directs the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to: (1) conduct an evaluation of each storm water retention basin located in the watershed of an estuary for which a comprehensive conservation and management plan is in effect under the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to identify basins whose pollution control capabilities are in need of improvement; and (2) make grants on a competitive basis to eligible entities (a state or political subdivision that has jurisdiction over a basin identified) for the improvement of pollution control capabilities of such basins. Directs the Administrator to give priority to grant proposals by eligible entities: (1) whose pollution control capabilities are the most deficient and the improvement of which will result in the greatest increase in water quality in the estuary involved; and (2) for basins for which an evaluation of pollution control capabilities has been conducted prior to the date of this Act's enactment as part of the implementation of a comprehensive conservation and management plan. Requires an eligible entity receiving a grant to use grant funds to carry out storm water retention basin improvements and monitoring and reporting requirements. Prohibits the Administrator from making a grant to an eligible entity unless it agrees to make available non-federal contributions equal to not less than 20% of the federal funds provided under the grant.

Date: 2010-07-01
Topic: Environment (Drinking Water)
Subject: Environmental protection
Stand by your Oil Pollution Act or the STOP Act - Amends the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 to: (1) extend liability to any corporation, partnership, or other person (other than an individual) having an ownership interest exceeding 25% in any responsible party; and (2) limit such an entity's liability with respect to an incident (any occurrence or series of occurrences having the same origin, involving vessels and facilities, resulting in the discharge or substantial threat of discharge of oil) to no more than the percentage of the entity's aggregate ownership interests in all other responsible parties with respect to such incident.

Date: 2010-07-01
Topic: Environment (Drinking Water)
Subject: Environmental protection
Amends the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 and the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to prohibit any person or employer from discharging any employee or discriminating against any employee with respect to compensation, terms, conditions, or other employment privileges because the employee (or any person acting for the employee): (1) notified the appropriate federal official, a federal or state law enforcement or regulatory agency, or the employee's employer of an alleged violation of such Acts; (2) refused to participate in any conduct that the employee reasonably believed to be in noncompliance with requirements of such Acts if the employee identified the alleged noncompliance to the employer; (3) testified before or otherwise provided information relevant for Congress or for any federal or state proceeding regarding any provision of such Acts; (4) commenced or testified in a proceeding under such Acts; or (5) assisted or participated in any manner in such a proceeding or or in any other action to carry out such Acts. Authorizes an employee who alleges discrimination by an employer in violation of this Act to seek relief by filing a complaint with the Secretary of Labor.

Date: 2010-07-01
Topic: Environment (Drinking Water)
Subject: Energy
Gulf Oil Spill Recovery Act of 2010 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to provide tax benefits in the Gulf Oil Spill Recovery Zone. Defines such Recovery Zone to include certain parishes in Louisiana and certain counties in Alabama, Florida, and Mississippi affected by the discharge of oil resulting from the explosion on, and sinking of, the mobile offshore drilling unit Deepwater Horizon (the Gulf Oil Spill). Provides for: (1) the issuance of tax-exempt Gulf Oil Spill Recovery Zone Bonds through 2015 to finance certain projects in the Recovery Zone; (2) additional low-income housing tax credit amounts in the Recovery Zone; (3) increased depreciation and expensing allowances for investment property placed in service in the Recovery Zone; (4) expensing of costs for the removal of debris from the Recovery Zone, the demolition of structures located in the Recovery Zone, and environmental remediation of contaminated sites in the Recovery Zone; (5) an extended five-year carryover period for net operating losses incurred in the Recovery Zone; (6) a tax credit to holders of Gulf Oil Spill Recovery Tax Credit Bonds; (7) a new markets tax credit for investment in community development entities in the Recovery Zone; and (8) the deductibility of casualty losses incurred by public utilities in the Recovery Zone. Excludes the value of employer-provided housing from the gross income of employees affected by the Gulf Oil Spill. Allows tax-free withdrawals up to $100,000 from retirement plans by individuals residing in the Recovery Zone and who sustained an economic loss by reason of the Gulf Oil Spill. Allows a business-related tax credit for wages paid to employees working in the Recovery Zone. Suspends through 2012 limitations on the tax deduction for charitable contributions to organizations involved in relief efforts related to the Gulf Oil Spill. Expands the availability of mortgage revenue bond financing for owner-occupied residences in the Recovery Zone. Authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to extend the placed-in-service date for bonus depreciation of property located in the Recovery Zone.

Date: 2010-07-01
Topic: Environment (Drinking Water)
Subject: Taxation
Oil Spill Preparation and Protection Act - Amends the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to direct the Secretary of the Interior to require, as a condition and term of any exploration plan or any development and production plan, that the applicant submit and implement an oil spill containment and cleanup plan (to be approved by the Secretary and the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency [EPA]) capable of handling a worst-case scenario oil spill. Describes required plan contents. Allows approval by the Administrator only if the applicant has demonstrated adequate technology, organization, resources, and capacity both to contain and to prevent shoreline contamination by a significant proportion of a worst-case spill, and to provide for long-term cleanup and remediation of the marine and coastal environments. Authorizes cancellation of a lease (without compensation) upon failure of the lease holder to submit an exploration plan or development and production plan in accordance with this Act or to implement an approved oil spill containment and cleanup plan.

Date: 2010-07-01
Topic: Environment (Drinking Water)
Subject: Energy
Arctic Marine Shipping Assessment Implementation Act of 2010 - Encourages the Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is operating to enter into negotiations through the International Maritime Organization to execute agreements to promote coordinated action among the United States, Russia, Canada, Iceland, Norway, Denmark, and other seafaring and Arctic nations to ensure in the Arctic: (1) placement and maintenance of aids to navigation; (2) appropriate marine safety, tug, and salvage capabilities; (3) oil spill prevention and response capability; (4) maritime domain awareness, including long-range vessel tracking; and (5) search and rescue. Directs the Committee on the Maritime Transportation System to coordinate the establishment of domestic transportation policies in the Arctic necessary to carry out this Act. Authorizes the Secretary to enter into cooperative agreements, contracts, or other agreements with, or make grants to, individuals and governments to carry out this Act or any agreements. Directs the Secretary to promote safe commercial maritime navigation by means of icebreaking where needed. Authorizes the Secretary of Transportation to enter into agreements or contracts with or make grants to: (1) individuals to conduct demonstration projects to reduce emissions or discharges from vessels operating in the Arctic; as well as (2) maritime training institutions to train mariners for ice navigation and Artic operations, including the prevention of discharges. Directs the Commandant of the Coast Guard to analyze: (1) the costs and benefits of extending the service life of the existing fleet of icebreakers or of constructing new icebreakers for the Coast Guard; and (2) the impact on the U.S. ice-breaking mission and ability to maintain a presence in the Artic regions through 2020 if recapitalization of the icebreaker fleet is not fully funded. Directs the Secretary to: (1) report to specified congressional committees on the results of the ongoing High Latitude Study to assess Arctic ice-breaking mission requirements; and (2) assess, and report to Congress on, the need for additional Coast Guard prevention and response capability in the high latitude regions.

Date: 2010-07-19
Topic: Environment (Drinking Water)
Subject: Transportation and public works
Long Island Sound Improvement Act Amendments of 2010 - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to create additional duties for the Long Island Sound Office of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), including studying the impacts of climate change on the Sound watershed. Requires a municipality that owns or operates a municipal separate storm sewer system to obtain, without regard to the size of the population served by the system, a permit for discharges composed entirely of stormwater for any portion of the municipality that is located within both the Long Island Sound watershed and an urbanized area. Authorizes such permits to be issued on a regional basis. Requires the EPA Administrator to ensure that: (1) permits held by industrial stormwater dischargers and permits held by construction activity dischargers conform to regional permits' conditions; and (2) monitoring requirements are included in a regional permit. Authorizes the Administrator to provide technical assistance to municipalities with respect to establishing regional permits. Establishes: (1) reporting requirements for the Office; and (2) requirements directing agencies to ensure that their property, actions, and activities within the watershed are consistent with the Long Island Sound Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan (Plan) and to develop plans to maximize forest cover and riparian habitat and minimize stormwater discharge on agency property. Requires the Administrator to establish a voluntary interstate nitrogen trading program with respect to the Sound that includes the generation, trading, and use of nitrogen credits to facilitate the attainment and maintenance of the Sound Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL). Authorizes: (1) grants for a prioritized list of projects and studies that will assist in meeting the Plan's goals and objectives; and (2) the Administrator to make grants for the construction of a publicly owned treatment work within Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island, and Vermont solely to a municipal or state agency if the state has established allocations for discharges within the state in a Long Island Sound TMDL. Requires the Administrator to: (1) consider the use of innovative stormwater management practices and approaches in meeting the requirements of the Act; and (2) implement a pilot project to demonstrate the efficacy of nutrient bioextraction for the removal of nitrogen and phosphorous from the waters of the Sound watershed.

Date: 2010-07-27
Topic: Environment (Drinking Water)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Amends the Internal Revenue Code to deny a tax deduction for the removal costs and damages assessed for a discharge of oil under the Oil Pollution Act of 1990.

Date: 2010-07-28
Topic: Environment (Drinking Water)
Subject: Taxation
Amends the Water Resources Development Act of 1986 to authorize enforcement through a civil suit of the prohibition against the diversion or export of Great Lakes water by a state, federal agency, or private entity for use outside the Great Lakes basin unless such diversion or export is approved by the governor of each of the Great Lakes states. Allows such a civil suit to be filed by the federal government, a state or local government, or by any person or organization whose property or other legally recognized interest will be adversely affected. Makes the proper venue for such a civil suit the federal judicial district with jurisdiction over any portion of the Great Lakes Basin and from which the diversion or export of water will occur or has occurred.

Date: 2010-07-30
Topic: Environment (Drinking Water)
Subject: Water resources development
Deauthorizes a portion of the project for navigation, Chicago Harbor, Illinois, authorized by the Acts of March 3, 1899, and March 2, 1919.

Date: 2010-07-30
Topic: Environment (Drinking Water)
Subject: Transportation and public works
Amends the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 to require regulations governing the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund to ensure that a state or political subdivision receives payment for eligible removal costs not later than 30 days after submitting a claim for such costs.

Date: 2010-07-30
Topic: Environment (Drinking Water)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Establishes in the Legislative branch the National Commission on Outer Continental Shelf Oil Spill Prevention to examine and report to Congress and the President on the facts and causes relating to the Deepwater Horizon explosion and oil spill of 2010.

Date: 2010-08-10
Topic: Environment (Drinking Water)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Gulf Coast Restoration Act - Establishes the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Task Force, which shall: (1) consult with, and provide recommendations to, the Chair of the Task Force regarding approval of State Coastal Ecosystem Restoration Plans submitted by the governors of Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, and Mississippi providing for restoration activities the Gulf Coast ecosystem adversely impacted by the blowout and explosion of the mobile offshore drilling unit Deepwater Horizon on April 20, 2010; (2) coordinate scientific and other research associated with restoration of such ecosystem; and (3) submit an annual report to Congress that summarizes the Plans approved by the Chair. Establishes in the Treasury the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Fund. Directs the Secretary of the Treasury to deposit into the Fund sums equal to not less than 80% of any amounts collected by the United States as penalties, settlements, or fines under the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) in relation to the Deepwater Horizon explosion and resulting hydrocarbon releases into the environment. Makes the Fund available for the conservation, protection, and restoration of the Gulf Coast ecosystem in accordance with approved Plans. Requires the governors of such states to: (1) submit a Plan to the Chair by July 1, 2011; and (2) solicit local input and provide for public participation in the development of the Plan. Requires the Chair to disburse amounts from such Fund to such a state for which the Chair has approved a Plan only for: (1) projects and activities for the conservation, protection, or restoration of coastal areas, including wetlands; (2) mitigation of damage to fish, wildlife, or natural resources; (3) planning assistance and the administrative costs of complying with this Act; and/or (4) implementation of a federally approved marine, coastal, or comprehensive conservation management plan.

Date: 2010-09-14
Topic: Environment (Drinking Water)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Digital Coast Act of 2010 - Defines "digital coast" as a constituent-driven platform provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to integrate geospatial data and address coastal and emergency management issues. Authorizes the Secretary of Commerce, acting through the Director of Coastal Services Center of the NOAA, to establish coastal service centers to address the needs of local, state, and regional entities involved with coastal and ocean decisionmaking. Declares that such centers shall: (1) link people, information, and technology to support the environmental, social, and economic well-being of the coast; (2) collaborate with branches of NOAA and other federal and nongovernmental entities to bring data, information, services, and tools to coastal and ocean decisionmakers; and (3) address region-specific needs at local, state, and regional levels. Authorizes the Secretary to enter financial agreements to carry out this Act. Requires such projects to collect and integrate coastal data with specified data sources, surveys, and mappings. Requires the Secretary to coordinate activities with NOAA, state and local governments, the private sector, and federal efforts.

Date: 2010-09-23
Topic: Environment (Drinking Water)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Small Community Options for Regulatory Equity Act of 2010 - Amends the Safe Drinking Water Act to require states exercising primary enforcement responsibility for public water systems to exempt any nonprofit or municipal small public water system (serving 10,000 or fewer persons) that so requests in accordance with this Act from the requirements of any national primary drinking water regulation for naturally occurring contaminants, including arsenic, radon, radium, uranium, any microbial pathogen (including Cryptosporidium and Giardia lamblia), and any contaminant that is a disinfection byproduct (including bromate, chlorite, haloacetic acids, and total trihalomethanes). Requires exemption requests to include a finding that the system's compliance with applicable national primary drinking water regulations is not economically feasible. Precludes judicial or administrative review of such findings.

Date: 2010-09-29
Topic: Environment (Drinking Water)
Subject: Water resources development
Coastal and Estuarine Land Protection Act - Directs the Secretary of Commerce to establish a Coastal and Estuarine Land Protection Program to protect the environmental integrity of undeveloped coastal and estuarine areas. Requires the program to be administered by the National Ocean Service of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) through the Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management. Authorizes the Secretary to make Program grants to coastal states with approved coastal zone management plans or National Estuarine Research Reserve units for the purpose of acquiring property that will further the goals of an approved Coastal Zone Management Plan or Program, a National Estuarine Research Reserve management plan, or a regional or state watershed protection plan. Prohibits any more than 75% of the funding for any project funded with a grant made under the program from being derived from federal sources. Reserves 15% of program funds for acquisitions benefitting the National Estuarine Research Reserve. Specifies that when property is acquired under this program, the grant recipient shall provide assurances that: (1) title will be held by the recipient or another public agency designated by the recipient in perpetuity; (2) property will be managed consistent with the purpose of the Program; and (3) funds will be returned to the Secretary for redistribution if the property is sold, exchanged, or divested.

Date: 2009-01-08
Topic: Environment (Drinking Water)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Northwest Straits Marine Conservation Initiative Reauthorization Act of 2009 - Amends the Northwest Straits Marine Conservation Initiative Act to define "Northwest Straits" as the marine waters of the Strait of Juan de Fuca and of Puget Sound from the Canadian border to the south end of Snohomish County, Washington. Sets forth the membership of the Northwest Straits Advisory Commission. Directs the Secretary of Commerce, acting through the Under Secretary for Oceans and Atmosphere, to appoint an employee of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to serve as a liaison between the Commission and the Department of Commerce and to attend the Commission's meetings and events as a nonvoting participant. States the goal of the Commission as the protection and restoration of the marine waters, habitats, and species of the Northwest Straits region in Washington to achieve ecosystem health and sustainable resource use. Enumerates the duties of the Commission and establish benchmarks for its work. Requires the Commission to submit annual reports to Congress and the Under Secretary on its activities and its progress in achieving specified benchmarks. Authorizes the Manager of the Shorelands and Environmental Assistance Program of Washington's Department of Ecology, upon the recommendation of the Commission and the Director of the Padilla Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve, to appoint and terminate a Director of the Commission. Requires the Director to be confirmed by the Commission. Provides for the establishment of marine resources committees in specified counties of Washington. Authorizes the Director of the Commission and the Director of the Padilla Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve to establish the Northwest Straits Marine Conservation Foundation as a nonprofit foundation to support the Commission and the marine resources committees established by this Act. Authorizes appropriations.

Date: 2009-03-23
Topic: Environment (Drinking Water)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to require the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to prohibit the sale in the United States of residential dishwashing detergent that contains phosphorus in any form in excess of 0.5% (by weight expressed as elemental phosphorus) beginning July 1, 2010. Requires the Administrator to: (1) review the available scientific information pertaining to nutrient excesses in the Great Lakes; and (2) recommend to Congress actions to be taken by EPA to address such nutrient excesses.

Date: 2009-03-24
Topic: Environment (Drinking Water)
Subject: Environmental protection
Oil Pollution Prevention and Response Act of 2009 - Requires the Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is operating to: (1) report to specified congressional committees on the status of all Coast Guard rulemakings under the Oil Pollution Act of 1990, under provisions of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act concerning oil and hazardous substances liability, and for automatic identification systems on vessels and inspection requirements for towing vessels; and (2) issue a final rule in each pending rulemaking under such Acts. Establishes requirements for the promulgation of safety standards for towing vessels. Requires a variety of measures to reduce the risk of oil spills, including Coast Guard inspections, regulations regarding the transfer of oil to or from a tank vessel, identification of the types of human errors that cause oil spills and near-miss oil spill incidents and actions designed to reduce human error risks, routing or other navigational measures, and an oil spill prevention and education program for small vessels. Authorizes state enforcement of any marine resource law enforced by the Secretary and allows state inspection of vessels. Requires the Secretary of State to negotiate with Canada on issues concerning tugboat escorts for specified tank ships. Allows owners and operators of tank and non-tank vessels to form nonprofit cooperatives to comply with National Response System provisions. Requires completion of the electronic navigation chart suite for all U.S. coastal waters. Requires a rapid response system to collect and predict in situ information about oil spill behavior. Allows Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund amounts to be used for response and damage assessment capabilities of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Prohibits using Fund amounts for claims under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act. Requires owners of certain tank vessels to maintain evidence of financial responsibility. Makes owners of oil (in addition to vessel owners) transported in single hull tank vessels with a poor safety or operational record liable for removal costs and damages. Establishes the Federal Oil Spill Research Committee. Establishes grant programs: (1) for new technologies to prevent, detect, or mitigate oil discharges and to protect the environment; and (2) to develop cost-effective technologies for detecting discharges of oil from vessels and to improve detection and recovery of submerged and sinking oils. Requires the Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere, in conjunction with the Commandant of the Coast Guard, to contract with the National Research Council an analysis of oil spill risks and response capabilities in the Arctic and other icy conditions.

Date: 2009-03-24
Topic: Environment (Drinking Water)
Subject: Environmental protection
Appalachia Restoration Act - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to define "fill material" to mean pollutants that: (1) replace a portion of the water of the United States with dry land; or (2) modify the bottom elevation of a body of water for any purpose. Excludes from such definition: (1) the disposal of excess spoil material resulting from coal surface mining and reclamation activities in waters of the United States; or (2) trash or garbage.

Date: 2009-03-25
Topic: Environment (Drinking Water)
Subject: Environmental protection
Georges Bank Preservation Act - Prohibits the issuance of any lease or other authorization by the federal government for exploration, development, or production of oil or natural gas in: (1) any marine national monument or national marine sanctuary; or (2) the fishing grounds known as Georges Bank in the waters of the United States.

Date: 2009-04-22
Topic: Environment (Drinking Water)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
National Oceans Protection Act of 2009 - Declares that the purpose of this Act is to secure the full range of benefits of healthy ocean and Great Lakes ecosystems. Establishes a national ocean, coastal, and Great Lakes policy and related principles. Requires each federal agency, as possible and in accordance with other laws, to interpret and administer policies, regulations, and laws in accordance with such policy. Ernest "Fritz" Hollings National Ocean Policy and Leadership Act - Formally establishes the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) as a civilian agency and transfers to NOAA's administrator any NOAA-related authority previously vested in the Secretary of Commerce. Establishes: (1) a National Ocean Advisor and a Council on Ocean Stewardship in the Executive Office of the President; and (2) a Presidential Panel of Advisers on Oceans and Climate. Designates nine ocean regions to promote coordinated regional efforts to implement the national ocean policy. Requires the NOAA Administrator to establish or designate a Regional Ocean Partnership for each region and requires each Partnership to prepare a Regional Ocean Strategic Plan. Establishes: (1) the Committee on Ocean Science, Education, and Operations; (2) a marine biodiversity research program; (3) a network of regional Ocean Ecosystem Resource Information Systems; (4) a national interagency ocean and coastal public education program; (5) the National Ocean Science and Technology Scholarship Program; (6) the NOAA Office of Education; and (7) an educational partnership with minority-serving institutions. Requires a national mass media campaign to increase public awareness of oceans.Establishes the Ocean and Great Lakes Conservation Trust Fund.Requires payments to coastal states for Regional Ocean Strategic Plan activities. Authoirzes the United States Postal Service (USPS) to consider printing a special postage stamp to enable the public to help protect, maintain, and restore marine ecosystems.

Date: 2009-04-22
Topic: Environment (Drinking Water)
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Contaminated Sediment Remediation Reauthorization Act - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to authorize appropriations through FY2014 for: (1) the remediation of sediment contamination in Great Lakes areas of concern; (2) the public information program that provides information relating to the remediation of contaminated sediment to the public in U.S. areas of concern; and (3) research on the development and use of innovative approaches, technologies, and techniques for the remediation of sediment contamination in U.S. areas of concern.

Date: 2009-04-30
Topic: Environment (Drinking Water)
Subject: Environmental protection
Amends the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 to provide that double hulled tankers over 5,000 gross tons transporting oil in bulk in Prince William Sound, Alaska, shall be escorted by at least two towing vessels or other appropriate vessels (currently, only single hulled tankers receive such escorts).

Date: 2009-05-14
Topic: Environment (Drinking Water)
Subject: Transportation and public works
Fracturing Responsibility and Awareness of Chemicals (FRAC) Act - Amends the Safe Drinking Water Act to: (1) repeal the exemption from restrictions on underground injection of fluids near drinking water sources granted to hydraulic fracturing operations under such Act; and (2) require oil and gas companies to disclose the chemicals used in hydraulic fracturing operations.

Date: 2009-06-09
Topic: Environment (Drinking Water)
Subject: Environmental protection
Gulf of Mexico Restoration and Protection Act - Amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to reestablish the Program Office of the Gulf of Mexico Program as an office of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), to be headed by a Director. Requires the Office to: (1) coordinate the actions of EPA and of other federal agencies and state and local authorities in developing strategies to improve the water quality and living resources in the Gulf of Mexico ecosystem and obtain the support of appropriate officials; (2) assist in developing specific action plans to carry out the Program; (3) coordinate and implement priority state- and community-led restoration plans and projects and facilitate activities that support the Program through the provision of grants authorized by this Act; (4) implement outreach programs to foster stewardship of the Gulf's resources; (5) develop and make available information about the environmental quality and living resources of the Gulf ecosystem; (6) serve as the liaison with the Mexican members of the Gulf of Mexico States Accord and Mexican counterparts of the EPA; and (7) focus on activities that will result in measurable improvements to water quality and living resources of the Gulf of Mexico ecosystem. Authorizes the EPA Administrator, acting through such Office, to enter into interagency agreements to carry out this Act. Authorizes the Administrator to provide grants for use in: (1) monitoring the water quality and living resources of the Gulf ecosystem; (2) researching the effects of environmental changes on such water quality and resources; (3) developing cooperative strategies that address the water quality and needs of Gulf resources; (4) developing locally-based protection and restoration programs or projects within a watershed that complement those strategies; and (5) eliminating or reducing nonpoint sources that discharge pollutants that contaminate the Gulf ecosystem. Limits the federal share of the cost of any project carried out using a grant to 75% of the project's total costs. Limits administrative costs in the form of salaries, overhead, or indirect costs for services provided and charged against programs carried out using fund made available through a grant to 15% of the grant amount. Requires the Director to report to the Administrator and the public on projects funded by such grants. Requires the Administrator to: (1) complete an assessment of the Program and submit to Congress a comprehensive report on the Program's performance no later than April 30, 2011, and every five years thereafter; and (2) include a funding line item request for the Program Office as a separate budget line item in the annual submission to Congress of EPA's budget. Authorizes appropriations for FY2010-FY2014.

Date: 2009-06-19
Topic: Environment (Drinking Water)
Subject: Environmental protection
Providing the Utmost safety Measures to the Permanent Protection System in New Orleans, Louisiana or the PUMPPS NOLA Act of 2009 - Modifies the project for permanent pumps and canal modifications at Lake Pontchartrain, Louisiana, to direct the Secretary of the Army, acting through the Chief of Engineers, to: (1) construct a pump station and optimized diversion from Hoey's Basin to the Mississippi River to help reduce storm water flow into the 17th Street canal; (2) construct an optimized diversion through the Florida Avenue canal for discharging water into the Inner Harbor Navigation Canal; (3) construct new, permanent pump stations near the lakefront on the 17th Street, Orleans Avenue, and London Avenue canals to provide for future flow capacity; (4) deepen, widen within each existing right-of-way, and line the bottom and side slopes of the 17th Street, Orleans Avenue, and London Avenue canals to allow for a gravity flow of storm water to the pump stations at the lakefront; (5) modify or replace bridges close or adjacent to the 17th Street, Orleans Avenue, and London Avenue canals; (6) remove existing levees and floodwalls that line each side of such canals down to ground grade, if the Secretary determines it to be appropriate; (7) decommission or bypass the interior pump stations of the Sewerage and Water Board of New Orleans that are located at each such canal to maintain the water surface differential across the existing pumping stations until all systems and features are in place to allow for a fully functional system at a lowered canal water surface elevation; and (8) decommission and remove the interim control structures that are located at each such canal. Conditions initiation of such project on the state of Louisiana agreeing to: (1) pay all costs arising from the operation, maintenance, repair, replacement, and rehabilitation of each completed project component; and (2) hold the U.S. harmless from any claim or damage that may arise from carrying out the project, except with regard to the federal government's negligence.

Date: 2009-07-20
Topic: Environment (Drinking Water)
Subject: Water resources development
Arctic Marine Shipping Assessment Implementation Act of 2009 - Directs the Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is operating to work through the International Maritime Organization to establish agreements to promote coordinated action among the United States, Russia, Canada, and other seafaring and Arctic nations to ensure in the Arctic: (1) placement and maintenance of aids to navigation; (2) appropriate icebreaking escort, tug, and salvage capabilities; (3) oil spill prevention and response capability; (4) maritime domain awareness, including long-range vessel tracking; and (5) search and rescue. Directs the Committee on the Maritime Transportation System to coordinate the establishment of domestic transportation policies in the Arctic necessary to carry out this Act. Authorizes the Secretary, subject to the availability of appropriations, to enter into cooperative agreements, contracts, or other agreements with, or make grants to, individuals and governments to carry out this Act or any agreements. Directs the Secretary to promote safe commercial maritime navigation by means of icebreaking when necessary. Authorizes the Secretary to enter into such agreements or contracts with, or make such grants to, individuals to conduct demonstration projects to reduce emissions or discharges from vessels operating in the Arctic.

Date: 2009-07-24
Topic: Environment (Drinking Water)
Subject: Transportation and public works
Arctic Marine Shipping Assessment Implementation Act of 2009 - Expresses the sense of Congress that the Secretary of State should work to establish agreements to promote coordinated action among the United States, Russia, Canada, Iceland, Norway, and Denmark and other seafaring and Arctic nations with respect to navigation, monitoring of conditions, and marine pollution in waters of the Arctic. Requires the Commandant of the Coast Guard to: (1) submit the High Latitude Polar Ice-Breaking Mission Analysis Report to Congress, along with any recommendations related to it; (2) contract with an independent entity to analyze future mission requirements of the Coast Guard in the Arctic and Antarctic; and (3) prepare vessel traffic risk assessments for the Bering Strait, Alaska, and for the Arctic Ocean waters adjacent to Alaska's North Slope. Directs the Commandant to consult with the Secretary of the Army to determine the viability of making the harbor at St. George Island, Alaska, a fully functional harbor of refuge throughout the year to enhance safety of life at sea and protection from oil pollution in the Central Bering Sea. Directs the Secretary of the Army to complete the harbor at St. George Island, including such improvements and any engineering design needed for safe navigation. Requires a study on the feasibility and potential of establishing a deep water sea port in the Arctic to protect and advance U.S. strategic interests within the Arctic region. Requires the Director of the National Science Foundation to transfer all amounts provided pursuant to any Act for procurement of polar icebreaking services to the United States Coast Guard Appropriation Accounts, to remain available until expended for operating expenses, renovation, and improvement. Authorizes appropriations to: (1) the Department of Homeland Security for icebreaking operations, Arctic seasonal operations, vessel traffic risk assessments, and construction of bases in Barrow, Nome, and Saint Paul Island, Alaska; and (2) the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) for hydrographic data acquisition and services and coastal change analysis in the Arctic.

Date: 2009-08-03
Topic: Environment (Drinking Water)
Subject: Transportation and public works
Wetlands Conservation Investment Act of 2009 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to treat gain or loss from the sale or exchange of a mitigation bank credit by the sponsor of the mitigation bank (i.e., the wetland, stream, or other aquatic resource area that has been restored, established, enhanced, or preserved for the purpose of providing compensation for unavoidable impacts to aquatic resources) who earned such credit as the sale or exchange of a capital asset held for more than one year (thus allowing preferential tax treatment of such gain or loss). Exempts from tax withholding requirements any gain from sales of mitigation bank credits.

Date: 2009-12-11
Topic: Environment (Drinking Water)
Subject: Taxation