Legislation approved by the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee last month to strengthen oversight of chemical storage facilities that pose contamination risks to drinking water supplies has somewhat stalled in recent weeks, as lawmakers appear undecided about the next steps for the proposal.
Sponsored by Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), S. 1961, the “Chemical Safety and Drinking Water Protection Act,” would direct states to establish new oversight and inspection programs for chemical storage facilities that could threaten drinking water systems, and require these facilities to meet minimum leak detection, spill control, and employee training standards. The version of the bill approved by the EPW panel in April includes several AMWA-backed changes, such as streamlining procedures for how chemical inventory information would be made available to nearby water systems, and clarifying that water utilities would be under no requirement to use newly-granted authority to commence a SDWA civil action against an upstream chemical facility which it believes could pose a threat to water supplies.
Although EPW unanimously voted to advance the legislation, S. 1961 has yet to be formally reported to the Senate floor. According to reports from Capitol Hill, some EPW Republicans still hold remaining concerns about the bill, and at this point the bill is not thought to have enough support to reach the 60-vote threshold that would be necessary to break a possible filibuster on the Senate floor.
Members of the Senate are continuing to hold discussions on the bill, and AMWA is also advocating for additional improvements. These include more clearly defining chemical storage facilities subject to the new state regulations (so as not to inadvertently capture drinking water treatment plants whose chemical inventories pose no surface water contamination risks), and explicitly allowing local water systems to recover costs associated with spill response activities from the owners and operators of responsible chemical plants.
Meanwhile, in the House of Representatives Rep. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) has introduced a similar bill as the “Ensuring Access to Clean Water Act” (H.R. 4024). Capito’s bill resembles Sen. Manchin’s in many respects, though it would establish the new chemical facility oversight program through the Clean Water Act, rather than the Safe Drinking Water Act. AMWA has shared recommendations for the bill with House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee staff, who have indicated the panel may eventually consider the measure even though no markup is scheduled at this time.