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51 records in US in 2016
United States · United States Congress · 20 December 2016
Nullifies the Stream Protection Rule submitted by the Department of the Interior's Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement. The rule addresses the impacts of surface coal mining operations on surface water, groundwater, and the productivity of mining operation sites.
United States · United States Congress · 8 December 2016
Hudson-Mohawk River Basin Act This bill requires the Department of the Interior to establish a nonregulatory Hudson-Mohawk River Basin Restoration Program, under which it shall: draw on management plans for the Hudson-Mohawk River Basin and work with applicable management entities, including the federal government, state and local governments, and regional and nonprofit organizations, to identify, prioritize, and implement water resources activities within the basin; adopt a basin-wide strategy that coordinates activities being undertaken by the basin states (New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Vermont), advisory committees, local governments, institutions of higher education, and nongovernmental organizations to address environmental, economic, and cultural issues associated with the management and use of water resources in the basin and that supports implementation of science-based restoration and protection activities; and establish the Hudson-Mohawk River Basin grant program to provide competitive matching grants and technical assistance to state and local governments, nonprofit organizations, institutions of higher education, and other eligible entities to carry out specified restoration and protection activities. Program purposes are listed, including: addressing the management, development, conservation, and use of water resources throughout the basin; coordinating restoration and protection activities; carrying out coordinated restoration and protection activities and providing technical assistance throughout the basin states; maintaining an inventory of historic and cultural resources of the basin and identifying projects to provide for cultural enrichment, preservation of cultural resources, public education about local heritage and historical significance of properties, canals, and historic sites within the basin; and providing a mechanism to promote communication, coordination, and collaborative working relationships among entities working in the basin. Interior shall develop criteria to ensure that activities funded through the grant program accomplish identified purposes and advance the implementation of priority actions or needs identified in the basin-wide strategy.
United States · United States Congress · 8 December 2016
Federal Supervisor Training Act of 2016 This bill requires federal agencies to establish supervisor training programs that: (1) require supervisors and management officials to have individual development plans for training on actions, options, and strategies to use for supervisory functions regarding the performance and productivity of agency employees; (2) train supervisors on prohibited personnel practices and employee rights; and (3) provide experienced supervisor mentors to advise new or underperforming supervisors. The bill expands manager training program requirements for employee performance appraisals, mentoring, and management of unacceptable employee performance into mandatory supervisor and manager training programs that also include supervisor training on: fostering equal opportunities and fairness in the workplace; using probationary periods to examine whether employees are performing at an acceptable level to continue their employment; addressing reports of hostile work environment, retaliation, or harassment; meeting supervisor competencies established by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) or the employing agency; and collaborating with human resources to recruit, select, appraise, and reward employees based on organizational goals, budget considerations, and staffing needs. After initial training on each program component, supervisors must complete subsequent training every three years. Agencies must develop a career track for mission critical technical expert employees that affords such employees the opportunity for career advancement without being required to be appointed to a management or supervisory position. The OPM must issue guidance to agencies on competencies supervisors are expected to meet in order to effectively manage the performance of employees. Each agency must assess the performance of supervisors and the overall capacity of its supervisors.
United States · United States Congress · 8 December 2016
Preventing Preventable Earthquakes Act This bill amends the Safe Drinking Water Act by requiring regulations for state underground injection programs to include provisions designed to prevent the occurrence of seismicity induced by underground injection activities. The bill redefines "underground injection" to include the subsurface emplacement of fluids or propping agents pursuant to hydraulic fracturing operations. Hydraulic fracturing (or fracking) is a process to extract underground resources such as oil or gas from a geologic formation by injecting water, a propping agent (e.g., sand), and chemical additives into a well under enough pressure to fracture the geological formation. The Environmental Protection Agency must review approved state underground injection programs at least once every five years.
United States · United States Congress · 8 December 2016
Swine Waste Infrastructure and Natural Environment Act or the SWINE Act This bill establishes a program to certify environmentally sustainable swine waste disposal technologies and authorizes related tax credits and grants. The Department of Agriculture (USDA) must certify technologies that: eliminate animal discharge into surface waters and groundwater through direct discharge, seepage, or runoff; substantially eliminate atmospheric emissions of ammonia from swine waste; substantially eliminate the emission of odor from swine waste that is detectable beyond the boundaries of the parcel or tract of land on which the swine farm is located; substantially eliminate the release of disease-transmitting vectors and airborne pathogens from swine waste; substantially eliminate nutrient and heavy metal contamination of soil and groundwater from swine waste; and are cost-effective. States may not issue permits, pursuant to any federal law, to a swine farm that is a concentrated animal feeding operation unless the farm disposes of swine waste using a certified technology. The bill amends several agricultural laws to: require USDA to make competitive grants for activities to identify, evaluate, and demonstrate environmentally superior swine waste management technologies; permit the Pork Promotion Board to use its funding for activities related to the grants; and make the installation and maintenance of a certified technology on a swine farm eligible for the Environmental Quality Incentives Program. The bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to allow tax credits for: (1) the installation of a certified swine waste disposal technology, and (2) the disposal of swine waste using certified technology.
United States · United States Congress · 8 December 2016
Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017 This bill authorizes FY2017 appropriations for the conduct of intelligence and intelligence-related activities of: the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI); the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA); the Department of Defense; the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA); the National Security Agency (NSA); the Departments of the Army, Navy, and Air Force; the U.S. Coast Guard; the Departments of State, the Treasury, Energy, and Justice; the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI); the Drug Enforcement Administration; the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO); the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency; and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The bill authorizes FY2017 appropriations for: (1) the Intelligence Community Management Account, and (2) the Central Intelligence Agency Retirement and Disability Fund. The ODNI must: (1) submit a five-year investment strategy for outreach and recruiting efforts in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) that includes cybersecurity and computer literacy; (2) implement a multisector workforce initiative to enable the intelligence community to build and maintain an appropriate ratio of employees and core contractors; (3) issue guidance regarding the intelligence community's engagements with the entertainment industry; and (4) implement a uniform policy to ensure the independence of inspectors general of the intelligence community, the ODNI, the CIA, the NSA, the DIA, the NGA, and the NRO. For FY2017 and FY2018, personnel of the intelligence community must be managed solely on the basis of: (1) the workload required to carry out intelligence community functions, and (2) the funds made available for each such fiscal year. Management of intelligence personnel during this period shall not be subject to any constraint or limitation in terms of man years, end strength, positions, or maximum number of employees. DHS's national cybersecurity and communications integration center must carry out a program to provide assistance to certain critical infrastructure entities to reduce the risk of regional or national catastrophic harm caused by a cyber attack. The Office of the National Counterintelligence Executive is redesignated as the National Counterintelligence and Security Center with a director to be appointed by the President with the advice and consent of the Senate. The bill revises or sets forth requirements for: the ODNI to participate in fund-raising events for nonprofit organizations that support intelligence community employees and their families, CIA employee death and retirement benefits, publication of the logos of terrorist organizations, space-based environmental monitoring missions and acquisition programs to meet national security requirements for cloud characterization and theater weather imagery, an evaluation of aerial imagery technologies that can be used to share intelligence with other countries as a replacement for the current regime of observation flights, a declassification review of intelligence reports regarding past terrorist activities of detainees transferred or released from Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and a concept for a combined interagency space operations center and an updated strategy for national security satellite systems. The bill establishes an executive branch interagency committee to counter active measures by the Russian Federation to exert covert influence over peoples and governments. The State Department must coordinate with the FBI and the ODNI to establish a mandatory advance notification regime governing all travel by accredited diplomatic and consular personnel of the Russian Federation in the United States.
United States · United States Congress · 7 December 2016
Wildlife Corridors Conservation Act of 2016 This bill establishes a National Wildlife Corridors System for: conserving and restoring habitats that support native fish, wildlife, and plant species that have experienced or may experience habitat loss, degradation, fragmentation, or obstructions of connectivity; providing long-term habitat connectivity for the native species for migration, dispersal, adaptation to environmental change, and genetic exchange; and facilitating coordinated landscape- and seascape-scale connectivity planning and management across departmental jurisdictions. The Departments of Agriculture, Commerce, Defense, the Interior, and Transportation must: (1) each create a process for designating lands and waters under their respective administration and control as national wildlife corridors; and (2) manage corridors in a manner that contributes to the long-term connectivity, persistence, resilience, and adaptability of native species. The bill establishes safety and mitigation requirements for corridors that intersect, adjoin, or cross local, state, or federal roads or highways. The departments may acquire land to establish and enhance corridors and the land may be purchased with amounts from the Land and Water Conservation Fund or the Wildlife Corridors Stewardship and Protection Fund. The U.S. Geological Survey must establish and make available to the public a comprehensive National Native Species Habitats and Corridors Geographic Information System Database. The bill establishes a Wildlife Corridors Stewardship and Protection Fund, which may be used by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation for enhancing the management and the protection of corridors and other lands and waters identified as important to further the purposes of the corridor.
United States · United States Congress · 7 December 2016
Yurok Lands Act This bill gives the Yurok Tribe the option to expand its role in the environmental review process under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) with respect to major federal actions within: (1) the Revised Yurok Reservation, and (2) specified areas within the Klamath and Redwood Creek Watersheds. The Department of the Interior must enter into a cooperative agreement with the tribe for protecting the natural resources of Redwood National Park. The bill confirms the 2006 "Cooperative Agreement between the Department of the Interior and the Yurok Tribe for the Cooperative Management of Tribal and Federal Lands and Resources in the Klamath River Basin of California." Interior may take actions to effectuate the agreement. The Forest Service must transfer approximately 1,229 acres in the Yurok Experimental Forest to Interior. That land must be held in trust for the benefit of the tribe and be managed by the tribe for conservation and research purposes. The trust land may not be: (1) used for gaming activity, and (2) subject to old growth logging. Interior must revise the boundary of the reservation as depicted on the map entitled, "Revised Yurok Reservation Boundary" and dated December 7, 2016. National Forest System land and National Park System land within the revised reservation must be administered by the Forest Service and the National Park Service, respectively. The bill designates the Bald Hills Road, which runs from U.S. Highway 101 to the Klamath River, as the "Yurok Scenic Byway." The bill ratifies and confirms the tribe's governing documents.
United States · United States Congress · 7 December 2016
This bill amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) by allowing a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit program to incorporate a water quality improvement partnership program that encourages investment by publicly owned treatment works and municipal separate storm sewer systems in watershed-based projects for improving water quality. Those partnerships may be used by publicly owned treatment works and municipal separate storm sewer systems to attain and maintain water quality standards.
United States · United States Congress · 7 December 2016
Buy America for Drinking Water Extension Act of 2016 This bill amends the Safe Drinking Water Act by requiring projects funded by the drinking water state revolving fund to only use iron and steel produced in the United States, unless: (1) it would be inconsistent with the public interest, (2) iron and steel products are not produced in the United States in sufficient and reasonably available quantities and of a satisfactory quality, or (3) inclusion of iron and steel products produced in the United States will increase the cost of the overall project by more than 25%. The requirement does not apply with respect to a project if a state approves the plans and specifications for the project prior to October 1, 2018.
United States · United States Congress · 6 December 2016
Transparency and Honesty in Energy Regulations Act of 2016 This bill prohibits the Department of Energy and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from considering the social cost of carbon, methane, nitrous oxide, or greenhouse gas as part of any cost benefit analysis, unless a federal law is enacted authorizing such consideration. The EPA must report on the number of proposed and final rulemakings, guidance documents, and agency actions since January 2009 that use those social costs, including as part of any cost benefit analysis required under Executive Order 12866 or other relevant authority.
United States · United States Congress · 5 December 2016
This bill requires the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to obtain consent from relevant nonfederal agencies and Indian tribes before granting a permit, easement, or other right-of-way for a pipeline transporting oil, natural gas, synthetic liquid or gaseous fuels, or any refined product produced from those materials on land associated with a civil works project of the Corps of Engineers or an associated flowage easement, if the construction or operation of the pipeline has the potential to impair the beneficial uses of the surface water or groundwater used by the nonfederal agency or the Indian tribe.
United States · United States Congress · 1 December 2016
Drinking Water Affordability Act of 2016 This bill amends the Safe Drinking Water Act to revise requirements concerning national primary drinking water regulations, including by: removing a requirement that the Environmental Protection Agency maintain, or provide greater, protection of human health when revising those regulations; extending the repayment schedule for loans from the drinking water state revolving funds (SRF); removing certain SRF matching fund requirement for states; authorizing states to protect public drinking water source areas; and removing federal reporting requirements if state or local requirements are at least equally stringent as federal requirements.
United States · United States Congress · 30 November 2016
Big Oil Bailout Prevention Trust Fund Act of 2016 This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to eliminate: (1) the $1 billion per incident limitation on expenditures from the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund for cleanup of oil spills, (2) the $500 million per incident limitation on expenditures from the trust fund for natural resource damage assessments and claims in connection with oil spills, and (3) the limitation on the borrowing authority of the trust fund. The bill also amends the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 to direct the President to promulgate regulations to allow advance payments from the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund to states and localities to prepare for and mitigate substantial threats from the discharge of oil.
United States · United States Congress · 30 November 2016
Big Oil Bailout Prevention Unlimited Liability Act of 2016 This bill amends the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 to revise requirements governing the liability of parties that are responsible for oil discharges from offshore facilities into navigable waters or adjoining shorelines. Currently, responsible parties are liable for the total of all removal costs plus $75 million. The bill: (1) removes the cap of $75 million on liability, and (2) makes the responsible parties liable for all covered damages. Covered damages includes damages for: (1) loss of natural resources, property, revenue, or profits; or (2) costs of providing increased public services during or after removal activities, such as fire protection.
United States · United States Congress · 30 November 2016
Clean Water Protection Act This bill amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to define "fill material" to mean any pollutant that replaces portions of waters of the United States with dry land or that changes the bottom elevation of a water body for any purpose and to exclude from its meaning pollutants discharged into the water primarily to dispose of waste (e.g., mining waste). Thus, permits issued under the Clean Water Act that allow for the discharge of fill material into navigable waters and wetlands may not include those waste pollutants.
United States · United States Congress · 30 November 2016
Recognizes the Weatherization Assistance Program for 40 years of reducing the energy burden on low-income families, positively impacting the environment, and supporting jobs and new technology. Encourages the Weatherization Assistance Program to continue performing essential weatherization services going forward. Applauds the dedicated professionals at the federal, state, and local levels who run the daily operations of the Weatherization Assistance Program.
United States · United States Congress · 22 November 2016
Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017 This bill authorizes FY2017 appropriations for the conduct of intelligence and intelligence-related activities of: the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI); the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA); the Department of Defense; the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA); the National Security Agency (NSA); the Departments of the Army, Navy, and Air Force; the U.S. Coast Guard; the Departments of State, the Treasury, Energy, and Justice; the Federal Bureau of Investigation; the Drug Enforcement Administration; the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO); the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA); and the Department of Homeland Security. The bill also authorizes FY2017 appropriations for: (1) the Intelligence Community Management Account, (2) the Central Intelligence Agency Retirement and Disability Fund, and (3) the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board. The ODNI must submit a five-year investment strategy for outreach and recruiting efforts in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) that includes cybersecurity and computer literacy. Higher minimum pay rates may be established for positions that require STEM expertise. The bill establishes an executive branch interagency committee to counter active measures by the Russian Federation to exert covert influence over peoples and governments. It places travel restrictions on personnel and consulars of the Russian Federation in the United States. The ODNI must implement a uniform policy to ensure the independence of inspectors general of the intelligence community, the ODNI, the CIA, the NSA, the DIA, the NGA, and the NRO. Inspectors general must report directly to Congress when an employee's urgent concern involving classified information or false statements appears credible. The Office of the National Counterintelligence Executive is redesignated as the National Counterintelligence and Security Center, with a director to be appointed by the President with the advice and consent of the Senate. The bill also revises or sets forth requirements for: the ODNI to participate in fundraising events for nonprofit organizations that support intelligence community employees and their families; CIA employee death and retirement benefits; publication of the logos of terrorist organizations; space-based environmental monitoring missions and acquisition programs to meet national security requirements for cloud characterization and theater weather imagery; an evaluation of aerial imagery technologies that can be used to share intelligence with other countries as a replacement for the current regime of observation flights; a declassification review of intelligence reports regarding past terrorist activities of detainees transferred from Guantanamo Bay, Cuba; and a concept for a combined interagency space operations center and an updated strategy for national security satellite systems.
United States · United States Congress · 17 November 2016
TPS Reform Act of 2016 This bill amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to revise the criteria for designation of a foreign state as eligible to have its citizens be given temporary protected status (TPS) in the United States. Such revisions include the following: (1) such a foreign state shall be designated by an Act of Congress rather than by the Department of Justice; (2) such Act must find that an environmental disaster in such a foreign state is immediately life-threatening; (3) such Act may provide for early termination of a foreign state's designation; (4) such Act shall include an estimate of the number of a foreign state's nationals who are TPS eligible, their U.S. immigration status, and a time period for the effectiveness of the designation of not more than 18 months; and (5) an alien lacking lawful immigration status shall be ineligible for TPS.
United States · United States Congress · 16 November 2016
This bill amends the Safe Drinking Water Act to require the Environmental Protection Agency to establish a grant program to help schools and day cares in replacing service lines and solder that are not lead free. The program may fund activities for identifying the location and condition of the service lines and solder.
United States · United States Congress · 14 November 2016
National Opportunity for Lead Exposure Accountability and Deterrence Act of 2016 This bill amends the Safe Drinking Water Act by requiring the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to revise the national primary drinking water regulations for lead and copper. The rule must direct: public water systems to meet certain reporting requirements; the EPA to develop a sampling protocol and develop instructions for compliance with the protocol; the EPA, or the state exercising primary enforcement responsibility, to require on-site investigations for determining the source of lead when the concentration of lead or copper contamination exceeds specified levels; public water systems to meet certain notification and reporting requirements when lead or copper concentration levels are exceeded; the systems to develop and make publicly accessible an inventory of the material composition of the service lines at residential and nonresidential facilities; the systems to collect and make publicly accessible information about the ownership of those service lines; and the systems to replace an entire lead service line (instead of partially replacing them) when they are replaced. The EPA must also revise the rule to lower the allowable level of lead that may be contained in drinking water.
United States · United States Congress · 29 September 2016
Designates the week of September 17 through September 24, 2016, as National Estuaries Week.
United States · United States Congress · 29 September 2016
Recognizes the Weatherization Assistance Program for 40 years of reducing the energy burden on low-income families, positively impacting the environment, and supporting jobs and new technology. Encourages the Weatherization Assistance Program to continue performing essential weatherization services in the future. Applauds the dedicated professionals at the federal, state, and local levels who run the daily operations of the Weatherization Assistance Program.
United States · United States Congress · 29 September 2016
Designates the week beginning on the first Friday after Thanksgiving in 2016 as National Electronic Payments Week. Recognizes the significant contributions and great importance of electronic payments and the advantages they provide to consumers, merchants, small businesses, and the economy as a whole. Appreciates the significant role electronic payments play in the global marketplace and acknowledges their growth domestically and abroad. Expresses a desire to foster an environment that encourages continued innovation and enhanced security in electronic payments.
United States · United States Congress · 29 September 2016
Recognizes the role of Latinos in protecting and preserving U.S. land, water, and wildlife. Supports the engagement of Latinos in environmental protection and conservation efforts.
United States · United States Congress · 29 September 2016
Supports the designation of a National Animal Rescue Day to create awareness for animal rescue programs throughout the year.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
Truth in Regulations Act of 2016 This bill requires each executive agency to: (1) have written procedures for the approval of significant guidance documents by each appropriate senior agency official; and (2) maintain on its website a list of, links to, and a means for the public to comment on and request issuance, modification, or rescission of, such documents. "Significant guidance document" means a guidance document disseminated to regulated entities or the general public that may reasonably be anticipated to: lead to an annual effect on the economy of $100 million or more or adversely affect in a material way the economy, productivity, competition, jobs, the environment, public health or safety, or state, local, or tribal governments or communities; create a serious inconsistency or otherwise interfere with an agency action; materially alter the budgetary impact of entitlements, grants, user fees, or loan programs or the rights and obligations of recipients; or raise novel legal or policy issues arising out of legal mandates, the President's priorities, or the principles set forth in Executive Order 12866 (relating to regulatory planning and review). The bill requires agencies to publish drafts of economically significant guidance documents for public comment. The bill allows an exception to rulemaking notice and publication requirements when an agency determines that an imminent threat to public health or safety or a similar exigent circumstance exists. When such exception is applied, the agency, within 18 months after the rule takes effect, shall: (1) provide for a period in which interested persons may submit written data, views, or arguments; and (2) consider such submissions and, if appropriate, repeal or amend the rule. If a committee reports a joint resolution of disapproval for a rule, the committee may also submit recommendations on withholding agency funds to the Committee on Appropriations of that chamber. The Administrative Conference of the United States shall study and report on the permitting process under environmental laws and on categories of federal rulemaking that would be more appropriately addressed by state action. An agency shall report any determination pertaining to a permit that the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs determines would cost more than $25 million to the Administrative Conference.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
Climate Solutions Commission Act of 2016 This bill establishes a bipartisan National Climate Solutions Commission that must: undertake a comprehensive review of economically viable actions or policies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the United States; make recommendations for reducing greenhouse gas emissions to the President, Congress, and the states; and use as its goals for emissions reductions those estimated rates of reduction that reflect the latest scientific findings of what is needed to avoid serious human health and environmental consequences of a changing climate. In order to be eligible for membership on the Commission, an individual must be a representative from: (1) nongovernmental organizations with expertise in the economy, energy, climate, or public health; or (2) industry organizations from relevant sectors. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) must conduct a study of programs, financial tools, and institutions that are focused on: (1) reducing the level of greenhouse gas emissions; or (2) encouraging the research, development, prototyping, and deployment of energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies. The GAO must then report on: (1) the study results; and (2) an assessment of those financial tools, policies, and institutions that are most successful at reducing greenhouse gas emissions while protecting economic growth and employment.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
CO2 Regulatory Certainty Act This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to revise requirements for the secure geological storage of carbon dioxide for the purpose of the tax credit for carbon dioxide sequestration. The bill establishes a December 31, 2016, deadline and requirements for regulations that the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is required, under current law, to establish for determining adequate security measures for the geological storage of the carbon dioxide such that carbon dioxide does not escape into the atmosphere. The IRS regulations must consider the carbon dioxide to be disposed of in secure geological storage if it is stored in compliance with specified rules promulgated by the Environmental Protection Agency under the Clean Air Act and the Safe Drinking Water Act for the geologic sequestration of carbon dioxide, the injection of carbon dioxide, and the criteria and standards for underground injection control programs that are applicable to Class II Wells.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
Ban Poisonous Additives Act of 2016 This bill bans food containers composed, in whole or in part, of bisphenol A (BPA). The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) may grant waivers to a facility for a particular product if the facility: (1) demonstrates that it is not technologically feasible to replace BPA in the container or to use a BPA-free container, and (2) submits to the FDA a plan and time line for removing BPA from the container. Products granted a waiver must include a warning on the label. The FDA must promote and facilitate the use of BPA replacements. BPA may not be replaced with substances that: (1) are known or likely human carcinogens; (2) have been found by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to be persistent, bioaccumulative, and toxic; (3) cause reproductive or developmental toxicity; or (4) are endocrine disrupting chemicals. The FDA must review substances that may be found in food, including food additives and food contact substances, and take remedial action if it does not determine that there is a reasonable certainty that no harm will result from aggregate exposure, taking into consideration potential adverse effects from low-dose exposure and the effects on vulnerable populations and populations with high exposure. This bill amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to require the manufacturer or supplier of a food contact substance to notify the FDA of the identity and intended use of the substance prior to its introduction into interstate commerce and that: (1) no adverse health effects result from low-dose exposures to the substance, and (2) the substance has not been shown to cause reproductive or developmental toxicity in humans or animals.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
Clean Water Healthy Communities Act This bill amends the Safe Drinking Water Act by directing the Environmental Protection Agency to require monitoring of unregulated contaminants in drinking water supplied by public water systems, regardless of the number of people served by the system.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
Ongoing Recovery and Conservation Awareness Act of 2016 This bill directs the U.S. Postal Service to issue and sell a Puget Sound Restoration Semipostal Stamp. Proceeds from the sale of the stamp must be transferred to the Environmental Protections Agency for operations supported by the Puget Sound Action Agenda. The stamp must be made available to the public for five years.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
Investing in Testing Act of 2016 This bill requires the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to study the health implications of contamination of drinking water by per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs). (PFASs can accumulate in the body and are commonly found at low levels in food, water, and the environment.)
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
Recognizes the role of Latinos in protecting and preserving U.S. land, water, and wildlife. Supports the engagement of Latinos in environmental protection and conservation efforts.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code to revise requirements for the secure geological storage of carbon dioxide for the purpose of the tax credit for carbon dioxide sequestration. The bill establishes a December 31, 2016, deadline and requirements for regulations that the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is required, under current law, to establish for determining adequate security measures for the geological storage of the carbon dioxide such that carbon dioxide does not escape into the atmosphere. The IRS regulations must consider the carbon dioxide to be disposed of in secure geological storage if it is stored in compliance with specified rules promulgated by the Environmental Protection Agency under the Clean Air Act and the Safe Drinking Water Act for the geologic sequestration of carbon dioxide, the injection of carbon dioxide, and the criteria and standards for underground injection control programs that are applicable to Class II Wells.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
Alan Reinstein Ban Asbestos Now Act of 2016 This bill amends the Toxic Substances Control Act by requiring the Environmental Protection Agency to: (1) identify and assess the importation, sale, and uses of, and exposures to, asbestos; and (2) impose requirements that permanently eliminate the possibility of human or environmental exposure to asbestos. The bill allows the President to exempt any use of asbestos from the requirements if: (1) the use is necessary to protect national security interests, (2) no reasonable alternative to the asbestos use exists for the intended purpose, and (3) the use of asbestos will not result in an unreasonable risk to health or the environment.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
Urban Agriculture Act of 2016 This bill amends several agricultural laws to establish an Office of Urban Agriculture within the Department of Agriculture (USDA) and make urban agricultural activities eligible to receive funding from various USDA programs. The Office of Urban Agriculture must: manage programs, coordinate agencies, and advise USDA on urban agriculture and urban food systems; continue a community garden program; and establish a rooftop agriculture and outdoor vertical production program. The bill includes urban agricultural activities in several existing and new grant, loan, risk management, and research programs. It also authorizes and provides funding for several of the programs. USDA must conduct various studies and collect specified data related to urban agriculture. USDA must also establish a voluntary farmer-to-farmer assistance and mentorship program. USDA must take several actions related to soil assessment and remediation, including: establishing a coordinated soil testing protocol, coordinating and conducting research to inform the protocol and soil remediation practices with respect to soil contaminated with high levels of heavy metals or other contaminants, and establishing a national soil testing and remediation program to provide related technical and financial assistance to agricultural producers. The bill establishes pilot programs for USDA to: (1) increase municipal compost and food waste reduction activities; and (2) make grants for projects that strengthen marketplace links between healthy food consumption, good environmental practices, and direct public health outcomes.
United States · United States Congress · 28 September 2016
Ban Poisonous Additives Act of 2016 This bill bans food containers composed, in whole or in part, of bisphenol A (BPA). The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) may grant waivers to a facility for a particular product if the facility: (1) demonstrates that it is not technologically feasible to replace BPA in the container or to use a BPA-free container, and (2) submits to the FDA a plan and time line for removing BPA from the container. Products granted a waiver must include a warning on the label. The FDA must promote and facilitate the use of BPA replacements. BPA may not be replaced with substances that: (1) are known or likely human carcinogens; (2) have been found by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to be persistent, bioaccumulative, and toxic; (3) cause reproductive or developmental toxicity; or (4) are endocrine disrupting chemicals. The FDA must review substances that may be found in food, including food additives and food contact substances, and take remedial action if it does not determine that there is a reasonable certainty that no harm will result from aggregate exposure, taking into consideration potential adverse effects from low-dose exposure and the effects on vulnerable populations and populations with high exposure. This bill amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to require the manufacturer or supplier of a food contact substance to notify the FDA of the identity and intended use of the substance prior to its introduction into interstate commerce and that: (1) no adverse health effects result from low-dose exposures to the substance, and (2) the substance has not been shown to cause reproductive or developmental toxicity in humans or animals.
United States · United States Congress · 27 September 2016
Accountability in Rulemaking Act This bill requires each federal agency to submit to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA), by December 31, March 31, June 30, and September 30 of each year, a unified regulatory agenda listing each regulation under development or review by such agency. The agenda shall include a brief summary of, and the legal authority for, such regulation and a statement of whether the OIRA has declared the regulation to be a significant regulatory action. A "significant regulatory action" is defined as any regulatory action that is likely to result in a regulation that may: have an annual effect on the economy of $167 million or more; adversely affect in a material way the economy, a sector of the economy, productivity, competition, jobs, the environment, public health or safety, or state, local, or tribal governments or communities; create a serious inconsistency or otherwise interfere with an action of another agency; materially alter the budgetary impact of entitlements, grants, user fees, or loan programs or the rights and obligations of recipients; or raise novel legal or policy issues arising out of legal mandates. The OIRA shall: (1) make each such agenda available on a public website, and (2) review each significant regulatory action listed within 90 days of its submission to ensure such action is consistent with applicable law. The bill sets forth limitations on third-party communication during the review process. The OIRA shall: (1) document any change made by it to a significant regulatory action during the review process and make such change available on a public website; and (2) for each such action the OIRA returns to an agency for further consideration, it shall provide a written explanation of why further consideration is necessary.
United States · United States Congress · 27 September 2016
This bill requires the Department of the Air Force, in collaboration with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), to report on perfluorooctanoic acid and perfluorooctane sulfonates contamination at Stewart Air National Guard Base, Newburgh, Plattsburgh, Hoosick Falls, and Petersburgh, New York, and any other appropriate sites. The report shall include: an accelerated time line and status on the inspection and cleanup at Stewart Air National Guard Base, Newburgh, Plattsburgh, Hoosick Falls, and Petersburgh; an update on Air Force efforts to notify everyone potentially impacted by the contamination; an assessment of the Air Force's role, if any, in the new contaminations; a summary of Air Force support for the EPA regarding the latest contaminations; and a proposal requiring financial compensation for cleanup, water accessibility interim programs, and water source filtration initiatives in the event the Air Force is responsible for the contamination.
United States · United States Congress · 27 September 2016
Water Quality Improvement Act of 2016 This bill amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) by requiring the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to establish an integrated planning and permitting process for municipal wastewater and stormwater management that: enables municipalities to identify the most cost-effective and protective approaches to comply with the Act's requirements; helps them prioritize their investments in addressing the requirements; and is comprehensive and flexible. The EPA must provide technical assistance to the municipalities or states for developing an integrated plan upon request. The EPA must: (1) update its financial capability assessment guidance entitled, "Combined Sewer Overflows--Guidance for Financial Capability Assessment and Schedule Development," and dated February 1997; and (2) ensure that the guidance may be used for assessing the financial capability of municipalities to implement effluent limitations and other pollution control measures. During the next 5 years, the EPA must work with at least 15 municipalities to develop and implement integrated plans and permits to meet the requirements of the national pollutant discharge elimination system.
United States · United States Congress · 26 September 2016
Ending Legacy Lawsuit Abuse Act This bill amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to allow a defendant to remove from a state court to the U.S. district court a civil action involving a claim of environmental contamination that impacts or threatens to impact waters of the United States subject to the jurisdiction of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
United States · United States Congress · 26 September 2016
This bill amends the Safe Drinking Water Act to authorize states and the Environmental Protection Agency to require public water systems that have repeatedly failed to comply with drinking water standards to assess options for consolidation. Public water systems are eligible for financial assistance to assist with undertaking consolidation activities. Additionally, the bill provides liability protection for compliant public water systems that consolidate with non-compliant systems.
United States · United States Congress · 22 September 2016
Reducing Lead in Drinking Water Act This bill amends the Safe Drinking Water Act to direct the Environmental Protection Agency to establish a grant program to remove lead service lines from public water systems. Grant recipients may use grant funds to assist low-income homeowners with replacing privately owned lead service lines.
United States · United States Congress · 22 September 2016
This bill amends the Safe Drinking Water Act by requiring the Environmental Protection Agency to publish a maximum contaminant level goal and promulgate a national primary drinking water regulation for microcystin toxin, which is a toxin produced by a blue-green algae called cyanobacteria.
United States · United States Congress · 22 September 2016
This bill amends the Safe Drinking Water Act by requiring the Environmental Protection Agency to publish revised guidance for school officials about reducing exposure to lead from drinking water in schools, including testing protocols for schools to detect lead contamination in school drinking water and its sources.
United States · United States Congress · 22 September 2016
This bill amends the Safe Drinking Water Act by requiring the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to publish a maximum contaminant level goal and promulgate a national primary drinking water regulation for perchlorate, which is a naturally occurring and manufactured chemical. According to the EPA, perchlorate can disrupt the normal function of the thyroid gland.
United States · United States Congress · 22 September 2016
Water, Cosmetics, and Unwanted Pharmaceuticals Study Act This bill requires the Environmental Protection Agency to carry out a study on the presence of pharmaceuticals and personal care products in sources of drinking water, which must identify: pharmaceuticals and personal care products that have been detected in the sources; the levels at which the pharmaceuticals and products have been detected; the origins of pharmaceuticals and products found in drinking water; the effects of the pharmaceuticals and products on humans, the environment, and the safety of drinking water; and methods to control, limit, treat, or prevent them.
United States · United States Congress · 22 September 2016
This bill amends the Safe Drinking Water Act by requiring the Environmental Protection Agency to revise regulations about consumer confidence reports in order to increase their effectiveness and understandability. Currently, each community water system must mail their customers an annual consumer confidence report that provides information about local drinking water quality.
United States · United States Congress · 22 September 2016
This bill amends the Safe Drinking Water Act by requiring the Environmental Protection Agency to publish a maximum contaminant level goal and promulgate a national primary drinking water regulation for perfluorinated compounds (PFCs) within two years. (PFCs are manufactured compounds that are used in an array of consumer products and that accumulate in human blood.)