Order Code RL33800
Water Quality Issues in the 110th Congress:
Oversight and Implementation
January 16, 2007
Claudia Copeland
Specialist in Resources and Environmental Policy
Resources, Science, and Industry Division

Water Quality Issues in the 110th Congress:
Oversight and Implementation
Summary
Although much progress has been made in achieving the ambitious goals that
Congress established 30-plus years ago in the Clean Water Act (CWA) to restore and
maintain the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the nation’s waters, long-
standing problems persist, and new problems have emerged. The types of water
quality problems are diverse, ranging from pollution runoff from farms and ranches,
city streets, and other diffuse or “nonpoint” sources, to metals, as well as organic and
inorganic toxic substances discharged from factories and sewage treatment plants.
There is little agreement among stakeholders about what solutions are needed
and whether new legislation is required to address the nation’s remaining water
pollution problems. Several key water quality issues exist: evaluating actions to
implement existing provisions of the law, assessing whether additional steps are
necessary to achieve overall goals of the act that have not yet been attained, ensuring
that progress made to date is not lost through diminished attention to water quality
needs, and defining the appropriate federal role in guiding and paying for clean water
infrastructure and other activities. For some time, efforts to comprehensively amend
the CWA have stalled as interests have debated whether and exactly how to change
the law. Congress has instead focused legislative attention on enacting narrow bills
to extend or modify selected CWA programs, but not any comprehensive proposals.
For several years, the most prominent legislative water quality issue has
concerned financial assistance for municipal wastewater treatment projects, and this
is likely to be a focus again in the 110th Congress. At issue is how the federal
government will assist states and cities in meeting needs to rebuild, repair, and
upgrade wastewater treatment plants, especially in light of capital costs that are
projected to be as much as $390 billion. House and Senate committees approved
water infrastructure bills in the 107th, 108th, and 109th Congresses, but no legislation
was enacted, because of several controversies discussed in this report.
Also likely to be of interest are programs that regulate activities in wetlands,
especially CWA Section 404, which has been criticized by landowners for intruding
on private land-use decisions and imposing excessive economic burdens.
Environmentalists view these programs as essential for maintaining the health of
wetland ecosystems, and they are concerned about court rulings that narrowed
regulatory protection of wetlands and about related administrative actions. Many
stakeholders desire clarification of the act’s regulatory jurisdiction, but they differ on
what solutions are appropriate.
Other issues discussed in this report that also could receive congressional
attention, possibly through oversight or legislation, include implementation of current
programs to manage stormwater discharges and nonpoint sources of pollution, as
these are major contributors to water quality impairments across the country;
implementation of rules governing discharges of wastes from large animal feeding
operations; and implications of a number of court rulings concerning the scope of the
act’s discharge permit requirements.

Contents
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Congressional Activity after P.L. 100-4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Legislative Issues in the 110th Congress . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Authorization of Water Infrastructure Funding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Legislative Responses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Wastewater Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Regulatory Protection of Wetlands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Other Clean Water Act Issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Stormwater Discharges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Combined and Separate Sewer Overflows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Nonpoint Pollution Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Strategy Concerning Animal Feeding Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Other Implementation Issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Continuing Issue: Appropriations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
FY2007 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
List of Tables
Table 1. Wastewater Treatment Funding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Water Quality Issues in the 110th Congress:
Oversight and Implementation
Introduction
Although much progress has been made in achieving the ambitious goals that
Congress established 30-plus years ago to restore and maintain the chemical,
physical, and biological integrity of the nation’s waters, long-standing problems
persist, and new problems have emerged. Water quality problems are diverse,
ranging from pollution runoff from farms and ranches, city streets, and other diffuse
or “nonpoint” sources, to “point” source discharges of metals and organic and
inorganic toxic substances from factories and sewage treatment plants.
The principal law that deals with polluting activity in the nation’s streams, lakes,
estuaries, and coastal waters is the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (P.L. 92-500,
enacted in 1972), commonly known as the Clean Water Act, or CWA. It consists of
two major parts: regulatory provisions that impose progressively more stringent
requirements on industries and cities to abate pollution and meet the statutory goal
of zero discharge of pollutants; and provisions that authorize federal financial
assistance for municipal wastewater treatment plant construction. Both parts are
supported by research activities, plus permit and enforcement provisions. Programs
at the federal level are administered by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA);
state and local governments have major responsibilities to implement CWA
programs through standard-setting, permitting, and enforcement.1
The water quality restoration objective declared in the 1972 act was
accompanied by statutory goals to eliminate the discharge of pollutants into
navigable waters by 1985 and to attain, wherever possible, waters deemed “fishable
and swimmable” by 1983. While those goals have not been fully achieved,
considerable progress has been made, especially in controlling conventional
pollutants (suspended solids, bacteria, and oxygen-consuming materials) discharged
by industries and sewage treatment plants.
Progress has been mixed in controlling discharges of toxic pollutants (heavy
metals, inorganic and organic chemicals), which are more numerous and can harm
human health and the environment even when present in very small amounts — at
the parts-per-billion level. Moreover, efforts to control pollution from diffuse
sources, termed nonpoint source pollution (rainfall runoff from urban, suburban, and
agricultural areas, for example), are more recent, given the earlier emphasis on “point
source” pollution (discharges from industrial and municipal wastewater treatment
1 For further information, see CRS Report RL30030, Clean Water Act: A Summary of the
Law
, by Claudia Copeland.

CRS-2
plants). Overall, data reported by EPA and states indicate that 39% of river and
stream miles assessed by states and 45% of assessed lake acres do not meet
applicable water quality standards and are impaired for one or more desired uses.
Approximately 95,000 lakes and 544,000 river miles in the United States are under
fish-consumption advisories (including 100% of the Great Lakes and their connecting
waters), due to chemical contaminants in lakes, rivers, and coastal waters, and one-
third of shellfishing beds are closed or restricted, due to toxic pollutant
contamination. Mercury is a contaminant of growing concern — as of 2003, 45
states had issued partial or statewide fish or shellfish consumption advisories.
The last major amendments to the law were the Water Quality Act of 1987 (P.L.
100-4). These amendments culminated six years of congressional efforts to extend
and revise the act and were the most comprehensive amendments since 1972.
Authorizations of appropriations for some programs provided in P.L. 100-4, such as
general grant assistance to states, research, and general EPA support authorized in
that law, expired in FY1990 and FY1991. Authorizations for wastewater treatment
funding expired in FY1994. None of these programs has lapsed, however, as
Congress has continued to appropriate funds to implement them. EPA, states,
industry, and other citizens continue to implement the 1987 legislation, including
meeting the numerous requirements and deadlines in it.
The Clean Water Act has been viewed as one of the most successful
environmental laws in terms of achieving its statutory goals, which have been widely
supported by the public, but lately some have questioned whether additional actions
to achieve further benefits are worth the costs. Criticism has come from industry,
which has been the long-standing focus of the act’s regulatory programs and often
opposes imposition of new stringent and costly requirements. Criticism also has
come from developers and property rights groups who contend that federal
regulations (particularly the act’s wetlands permit program) are a costly intrusion on
private land-use decisions. States and cities have traditionally supported water
quality programs and federal funding to assist them in carrying out the law, but many
have opposed CWA measures that they fear might impose new unfunded mandates.
Many environmental groups believe that further fine-tuning is needed to maintain
progress achieved to date and to address remaining water quality problems.
Congressional Activity after P.L. 100-4
Following enactment of amendments in 1987, no major CWA legislative
activity occurred until the 104th Congress (1995). The House approved a
comprehensive reauthorization bill, H.R. 961, that was opposed by environmentalists
and the Clinton Administration. H.R. 961 would have amended many of the
regulatory and standards provisions of the law, required EPA to use extensive new
risk assessment and cost-benefit procedures, and increased flexibility with regulatory
relief from current clean water programs. Critics said that the bill would undermine
the existing framework for protecting U.S. waters. The Senate did not take up H.R.
961 or other CWA legislation; thus, no legislation was enacted.
In the 105th and 106th Congresses, no comprehensive reauthorization legislation
was introduced, but beginning in the 106th Congress, a number of bills dealing with
specific water quality issues and programs in the law were enacted. Congress passed

CRS-3
a bill to strengthen protection of coastal recreation waters through upgraded water
quality standards and coastal waters monitoring programs (P.L. 106-284). Congress
also passed a bill (P.L. 106-457) that reauthorized several existing CWA programs
(i.e., Chesapeake Bay cleanup, clean lakes, and the National Estuary Program), and
a bill to authorize CWA grant funding for wet weather sewerage projects (included
as a provision of the FY2001 Consolidated Appropriations bill, P.L. 106-554).
The 107th Congress enacted the Great Lakes Legacy Act (P.L. 107-303). It
amended existing Great Lakes provisions (CWA Section 118) to authorize $50
million annually for FY2004-FY2008 for EPA to carry out projects to remediate
sediment contamination in the Great Lakes. The bill also reauthorized CWA
provisions concerning the Lake Champlain Basin program (Section 120).
The 108th Congress enacted legislation amending the act to extend the National
Estuary Program (NEP, CWA Section 320) through FY2010 (P.L. 108-399). The
NEP, authorized by the 1987 CWA amendments, is directed at improving the quality
of estuaries of national importance.
The 109th Congress enacted two CWA measures. In December 2005, Congress
passed H.R. 3963 (H.Rept. 109-293), authorizing $40 million per year to extend the
Long Island Sound program in Section 119 of the act for six years (through FY2010).
President Bush signed it on December 22, 2005 (P.L. 109-137). In November 2006,
Congress passed H.R. 6121, a bill to reauthorize the Lake Pontchartrain Basin
program in Section 121 of the act through FY2011. President Bush signed it on
December 12 (P.L. 109-392).
Since the 107th Congress, the dominant CWA issue of interest has been water
infrastructure financing — i.e., extension and modification of provisions of the act
authorizing financial assistance for municipal wastewater treatment projects. House
and Senate committees have approved bills, but none has been enacted, because of
varied controversies (see “Authorization of Wastewater Infrastructure Funding,”
below). In addition to the enacted legislation described here, throughout this period
since the 1987 amendments, a number of bills dealing with other specific CWA
programs have been reported by House and Senate committees; some of these were
passed by one house of the Congress, but were not enacted. (For additional
information, see CRS Report RL33465, Clean Water Act: A Review of Issues in the
109th Congress
, by Claudia Copeland.)
Legislative Issues in the 110th Congress
The year 2007 marks the 35th anniversary of passage of the Clean Water Act and
20 years since the last major amendments to the law. While, as noted, there has been
measurable clean water progress as a result of the act, observers and analysts agree
that significant water pollution problems remain. However, there is less agreement
about what solutions are needed and whether new legislation is required. Several key
water quality issues exist: evaluating actions to implement existing provisions of the
law, assessing whether additional steps are necessary to achieve overall goals of the
act that have not yet been attained, ensuring that progress made to date is not lost

CRS-4
through diminished attention to water quality needs, and defining the appropriate
federal role in guiding and paying for clean water infrastructure and other activities.
For some time, efforts to comprehensively amend the act have stalled as interests
have debated whether and exactly how to change the law. Many issues that might be
addressed involve making difficult tradeoffs between impacts on different sectors of
the economy, taking action when there is technical or scientific uncertainty, and
allocating governmental responsibilities for implementing the law.
These factors partly explain why Congress has recently favored focusing
legislative attention on narrow bills to extend or modify selected CWA programs,
rather than taking up comprehensive proposals. Other factors also are at work.
These include a general reluctance by most Members of Congress to address
controversial environmental issues in view of the slim majorities held by political
parties in the House and the Senate; lack of presidential initiatives on clean water
issues (neither the Clinton nor the Bush Administration proposed CWA legislation);
and, since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, more prominent congressional
focus on security, terrorism, and Iraq war issues than on many other topics, including
environmental protection.
As a result of the 2006 mid-term elections and changed congressional
leadership, many observers anticipate that the 110th Congress will pursue oversight
of clean water and other environmental programs. A likely legislative focus is water
infrastructure financing legislation, specifically reauthorization of the act’s financial
aid program. Also likely is consideration of the geographic reach of the Clean Water
Act over the nation’s waters and wetlands, in light of court rulings — including two
Supreme Court decisions — that have narrowed the law’s regulatory jurisdiction, but
in ways that are somewhat unclear. A number of other issues also could receive
congressional attention, possibly through oversight or legislation. These include
implementation of current programs to manage stormwater discharges and nonpoint
sources of pollution, as these are major contributors to water quality impairments
across the country; implementation of rules governing discharges of wastes from
large animal feeding operations; and implications of a number of court rulings
concerning the scope of the act’s discharge permit requirements.
Authorization of Water Infrastructure Funding
Meeting the nation’s needs to build, upgrade, rebuild, and repair wastewater
infrastructure is a significant element in achieving the Clean Water Act’s water
quality objectives. The act’s program of financial aid for municipal wastewater
treatment plant construction is a key contributor to that effort. Since 1972 Congress
has provided more than $76 billion to assist cities in constructing projects to achieve
the act’s requirements for secondary treatment of municipal sewage (equivalent to
85% reduction of wastes), or more stringent treatment where required by local water
quality conditions. State and local governments have spent more than $25 billion of
their own funds for construction, as well.
Still, funding needs remain very high: an additional $181 billion nationwide for
all types of projects eligible for funding under the act, according to the most recent

CRS-5
Needs Survey estimate by EPA and the states, published in August 2003.2 In
September 2002, EPA released a study called the Gap Analysis that assesses the
difference between current spending for wastewater infrastructure and total funding
needs (both capital and operation and maintenance).3 In that report, EPA estimated
that, over the next two decades, the United States needs to spend nearly $390 billion
to replace existing wastewater infrastructure systems and to build new ones. Funding
needs for operation and maintenance (not eligible for Clean Water Act funding) are
an additional $148 billion, the agency estimated. According to the Gap Analysis, if
there is no increase in investment, there will be about a $6 billion gap between
current annual capital expenditures for wastewater treatment ($13 billion annually)
and projected spending needs of approximately $19 billion. The study also estimated
that, if wastewater spending increases by 3% annually, the gap would shrink by
nearly 90% (to about $1 billion annually). At issue has been what the federal role
should be in assisting states and cities, especially in view of such high projected
funding needs.
Debate over the nature of the nation’s efforts regarding wastewater
infrastructure was a central and controversial part of the 1987 amendments to the act.
The amendments extended through FY1990 the traditional Title II program of grants
for sewage treatment project construction, under which the federal share was 55% of
project costs. The 1987 law initiated a program of grants to capitalize State Water
Pollution Control Revolving Funds (SRFs), which are loan programs, in a new Title
VI. States are required to deposit an amount equal to at least 20% of the federal
capitalization grant in the Fund established under Title VI. Under the revolving fund
concept, monies used for wastewater treatment construction would be repaid by loan
recipients to the states (repayment was not required for grants under the Title II
program), to be recycled for future construction in other communities, thus providing
an ongoing source of financing. The expectation in 1987 was that the federal
contributions to SRFs would assist in making a transition to full state and local
financing by FY1995. Although most states believe that the SRF is working well,
early funding and administrative problems have delayed the anticipated shift to full
state responsibility. Thus, SRF issues have been prominent on the Clean Water Act
reauthorization agenda in recent Congresses.4
SRF monies may be used for certain types of financial activity, including loans
for as much as 100% of project costs (at or below market interest rates, including
interest-free loans), to buy or refinance cities’ debt obligation, or as a source of
revenue or security for payment of principal and interest on a state-issued bond. SRF
monies also may be used to provide loan guarantees or credit enhancement for
localities. Loans made by a state from its SRF are to be used first to assure progress
towards the goals of the act and, in particular, on projects to meet the standards and
enforceable requirements of the act. After states achieve those requirements of the
2 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Clean Watersheds Needs Survey 2000, Report to
Congress,
Washington, August 2003, EPA 832-03-001, 1 vol.
3 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, The Clean Water and Drinking Water
Infrastructure Gap Analysis,
September 2002, EPA 816-R-02-020, 50 p.
4 For further information, see CRS Report 98-323, Wastewater Treatment: Overview and
Background
, by Claudia Copeland.

CRS-6
act, SRF monies also may be used to implement nonpoint pollution management and
national estuary programs.
All states have established the mechanisms to administer the new loan programs
and have been receiving SRF capitalization funds under Title VI for several years.
Many have complained that the SRF program is unduly complicated by federal rules,
even though Congress had intended that states were to have greater flexibility.
Congressional oversight has examined the progress toward reducing the backlog of
wastewater treatment facilities needed to achieve the act’s water quality objectives,
while newer estimates of future funding needs have drawn increased attention to the
role of the SRF program in meeting such needs. Although there has been some
criticism of the SRF program, and debate continues over specific concerns, the basic
approach is well supported. Congress used the clean water SRF as the model when
it established a drinking water SRF in 1996 (P.L. 104-182).5
While the initial intent was to phase out federal support for this program,
Congress has continued to appropriate SRF capitalization grants to the states,
providing an average of $1.35 billion annually in recent years. Table 1 summarizes
wastewater treatment funding under Title II (traditional grants program) and Title VI
(capitalization grants for revolving loan programs) since the 1987 amendments.6
One issue of continuing interest is impacts on small communities. These
entities in particular have found it difficult to participate in the SRF loan program,
since many are characterized by narrow or weak tax bases, limited or no access to
capital markets, lower relative household incomes, and higher per capita needs. They
often find it harder to borrow to meet their capital needs and pay relatively high
premiums to do so. Meeting the special needs of small towns, through a
reestablished grant program, other funding source, or loan program with special rules,
has been an issue of interest to Congress.
Because remaining clean water funding needs are still so large nationally, at
issue is whether and how to extend SRF assistance to address those needs, how to
allocate SRF funds among the states, and how to prioritize projects and funding.
Additionally, there is concern about the adequacy of SRF or other funding
specifically for high-cost projects dealing with problems of overflows from
municipal combined and separate sewers which can release partially treated or
untreated wastewaters that harm public health and the environment. EPA estimates
that the cost of projects to control sewer overflows, from combined and separate
sanitary sewer systems, is nearly $140 billion nationwide. And more recently,
wastewater utilities have sought assistance to assess operational vulnerabilities and
5 For further information, see CRS Report RS22037, Drinking Water State Revolving Fund:
Program Overview and Issues
, by Mary Tiemann.
6 Note: Table 1 does not include appropriations for special project grants in individual cities.
Issues associated with special project grants are discussed in CRS Report RL32201, Water
Infrastructure Project Earmarks in EPA Appropriations: Trends and Policy Implications
,
by Claudia Copeland.

CRS-7
upgrade physical protection of their facilities against possible terrorist attacks that
could threaten water infrastructure systems.7
Table 1. Wastewater Treatment Funding
(billions of dollars)
Authorizations
Appropriations
Fiscal Year
Title II
Title VI
Title II
Title VI
1986
$2.4

$1.800

1987
2.4

2.360

1988
2.4

2.300

1989
1.2
1.2
0.941
0.941
1990
1.2
1.2
0.967
0.967
1991

2.4

2.100
1992

1.8

1.950
1993

1.2

1.930
1994

0.6

1.220
1995



1.240
1996



2.070
1997



0.625
1998



1.350
1999



1.350
2000



1.345
2001



1.350
2002



1.350
2003



1.341
2004



1.342
2005



1.091
2006



0.887
Bush Administration officials have said that infrastructure funding needs go
beyond what the federal government can do on its own. While saying that federal and
state funding can help water utilities meet future needs, EPA’s principal water
infrastructure initiative has been to support other types of responses to help ensure
that investment needs are met in an efficient, timely, and equitable manner. In
particular, since 2003 EPA has promoted strategies that it terms the Four Pillars of
Sustainable Infrastructure, based on concepts of better management, full-cost pricing,
efficient water use, and watershed approaches to protection.8 EPA is pursuing a
Sustainable Infrastructure Leadership Initiative in partnership with water utilities to
7 For additional information on many of these issues, see CRS Report RL31116, Water
Infrastructure Needs and Investment: Review and Analysis of Key Issues
, by Claudia
Copeland and Mary Tiemann.
8 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Sustainable Water Infrastructure for the 21st
Century
. See [http://www.epa.gov/waterinfrastructure].

CRS-8
promote the Four Pillars. The purpose of the initiative is to identify new and better
ways of doing business in the water and wastewater industries and promote them
widely, and thus ensure sustainability of water systems. For example, EPA is
working to encourage rate structures that lead to full cost pricing and will support
water metering and other conservation measures. EPA also is encouraging
consumers to use water-efficient products (e.g., residential bathroom products), with
the intent of reducing national water and wastewater infrastructure needs by reducing
projected water demand and wastewater flow, thus allowing deferral or downsizing
of capital projects.
Legislative Responses. Congress has actively considered water
infrastructure funding issues since the 107th Congress, when House and Senate
committees approved bills to extend the act’s SRF program and increase federal
assistance (H.R. 3930; S. 1961, S.Rept. 107-228). A report on H.R. 3930 was not
filed. Neither bill received further action, in large part due to controversies over
application of prevailing wage requirements of the Davis-Bacon Act and over the
formula for allocating SRF grants among the states. The issue of the applicability of
the Davis-Bacon Act to SRF-funded projects has affected consideration of water
infrastructure legislation for some time, because that act has both strong supporters
and critics in Congress. Critics of Davis-Bacon say that it unnecessarily increases
public construction costs and hampers competition, while supporters say that it helps
stabilize the local construction industry by preventing competition that would
undercut local wages and working conditions.
In the 108th Congress, four bills to reauthorize the Clean Water Act SRF
program were introduced (S. 170, S. 2550, H.R. 20, H.R. 1560). In addition, separate
bills to reauthorize funding for sewer overflow grants (CWA Section 221) were
introduced (H.R. 784, S. 567). In October 2004, the Senate Environment and Public
Works Committee reported legislation authorizing $41.25 billion over five years for
wastewater and drinking water infrastructure programs, including $20 billion for the
clean water SRF program (S. 2550, S.Rept. 108-386). The bill included a new
formula for state-by-state allocation of clean water SRF grants, renewal of the Clean
Water Act’s sewer overflow grant program, and provisions such as extended loan
repayments and subsidies for disadvantaged communities.
Prior to the Senate committee’s action, in July 2003, the House Transportation
and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment approved
H.R. 1560, legislation similar to H.R. 3930, the bill approved by that committee in
the 107th Congress. H.R. 1560 would have authorized $20 billion for the clean water
SRF program for FY2004-FY2008. It included several provisions intended to benefit
economically disadvantaged and small communities, such as allowing extended loan
repayments (30 years, rather than 20) and additional subsidies (e.g., principal
forgiveness and negative interest loans) for communities that meet a state’s
affordability criteria. It included provisions to require communities to plan for
capital replacement needs and to develop and implement an asset management plan
for the repair and maintenance of infrastructure that is being financed.9 No further
9 For information, see CRS Report RL32503, Water Infrastructure Financing Legislation,
(continued...)

CRS-9
action occurred. H.R. 1560 did not include language specifying that the Davis-Bacon
Act shall apply to SRF-funded projects, while S. 2550 did include such a
requirement. Other factors that clouded these bills were Administration opposition
to authorization levels in both bills and disputes over funding allocation formulas.
In the 109th Congress, the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee
approved S. 1400, the Water Infrastructure Financing Act, in July 2005 (S.Rept. 109-
186). The bill was similar to S. 2550 in the 108th Congress; it would have authorized
$20 billion for grants to capitalize the Clean Water Act SRF program and $15 billion
for Safe Drinking Water Act SRFs through FY2010. As approved by the committee,
S. 1400 would have revised the CWA formula for state-by-state allocation of SRF
monies and also specified that the prevailing wage requirements of the Davis-Bacon
Act shall apply to all projects financed from an SRF (as similarly provided in the
committee’s bill in the 108th Congress). No further action on this bill occurred.
For some time, interest has been growing in identifying and developing new
mechanisms to help localities pay for water infrastructure projects, beyond federal
grants or SRFs, which appear insufficient to fully meet funding needs. In June 2005,
the House Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Water Resources and
Environment held hearings on alternative means to fund water infrastructure projects
in the future. At the first hearing, witnesses focused on one way to increase funding
for water infrastructure that has recently been advocated by some groups, creating a
national clean water trust fund that would conceptually be similar to trust funds that
exist for highway and aviation projects. Witnesses and subcommittee members
discussed difficulties in identifying potential revenue sources that would be deemed
fair and equitable. The second hearing addressed other financing options, such as
expanded use of tax-exempt private activity bonds, and more efficient management
techniques, such as asset management programs and sustainable infrastructure
initiatives. In December 2005, legislation was introduced to establish a $7.5 billion
federal trust fund for wastewater infrastructure improvements. This bill, H.R. 4560,
proposed to use a concept for funding such projects that has been promoted by
wastewater treatment industry officials, other stakeholders, and some
environmentalists, who argue it could provide a new source of money for necessary
system upgrades amid dwindling federal funds. The bill contemplated a system of
user fees to create the fund, but the source of revenue was not specified in the bill.
Congress did not act on this legislation.
Wastewater Security. Since the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in the
United States, congressional attention has focused on security, preparedness, and
emergency response issues. Among the topics of interest is protection of the nation’s
water infrastructure facilities (both drinking water and wastewater) from possible
physical damage, biological/chemical attacks, and cyber disruption.10
9 (...continued)
Comparison of S. 2550 and H.R. 1560, by Claudia Copeland and Mary Tiemann.
10 For information, see CRS Report RL32189, Terrorism and Security Issues Facing the
Water Infrastructure Sector
, by Claudia Copeland.

CRS-10
Policymakers have examined a number of legislative options in this area,
including enhanced physical security, communication and coordination, and research.
In October 2002, the House passed legislation to authorize $200 million in grants for
security activities at wastewater treatment plants (H.R. 5169). Similar legislation
was introduced in the Senate (S. 3037), but no further action occurred. Congress did
enact legislation directing medium and large drinking water utilities to assess their
vulnerabilities to terrorist attack and authorizing $160 million in grants for these
utilities to conduct assessments (P.L. 107-188).
Following on those new requirements affecting drinking water utilities, in the
108th Congress, the House passed legislation that would have authorized $200 million
in grants to wastewater utilities to conduct vulnerability assessments and an
additional $20 million for technical assistance and improved assessment tools (H.R.
866). The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee approved a similar bill
(S. 1039) in May 2003. No further action occurred, due in part to concerns expressed
by some that the legislation would not mandate vulnerability assessments and would
not require that they be submitted to EPA, as is the case with drinking water
assessments required by P.L. 107-188.
Wastewater security issues again received attention in the 109th Congress. In
May 2006, the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee approved S. 2781
(S.Rept. 109-345). It was similar to S. 1039 in the 108th Congress in that it would
have encouraged wastewater utilities to conduct vulnerability assessments and would
have authorized $220 million to assist utilities with assessments and preparation of
site security plans. It also included provisions responding to a March 2006 GAO
report that found that wastewater utilities have made little effort to address
vulnerabilities of collection systems, which may be used by terrorists to introduce
hazardous substances or as access points for underground travel to a potential
target.11 S. 2781 would have authorized EPA to conduct research on this topic.
During committee consideration of the bill, an amendment was rejected that would
have required, rather than encouraged, treatment works to conduct vulnerability
assessments and also would have required high-risk facilities to switch from using
chlorine and similar hazardous substances to other chemicals that are often referred
to as “inherently safer technologies.” No further action occurred on this bill.
Regulatory Protection of Wetlands
How best to protect the nation’s remaining wetlands and regulate activities
taking place in wetlands has become one of the most contentious environmental
policy issues, especially in the context of the CWA, which contains a key wetlands
regulatory tool, the permit program in Section 404. It requires landowners or
developers to obtain permits for disposal of dredged or fill material that is generated
by construction or similar activity into navigable waters of the United States,
including wetlands. Section 404 has evolved through judicial interpretation and
regulatory change to become one of the principal federal tools used to protect
11 U.S. Government Accountability Office, Securing Wastewater Facilities, Utilities Have
Made Upgrades but Further Improvements to Key System Components May Be Limited by
Costs and Other Constraints,
GAO-06-390, March 2006, 64 pp.

CRS-11
wetlands, although that term appears only once in Section 404 itself and is not
defined there. At the same time, its implementation has come to be seen as intrusive
and burdensome to those whose activities it regulates. At issue today is how to
address criticism of the Section 404 regulatory program while achieving desired
goals of wetlands protection.12
Unlike the rest of the act, the permit aspects of Section 404 are administered by
the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, rather than EPA, although the Corps uses EPA
environmental guidance. Other federal agencies including the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service (FWS) and Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) have more
limited roles in the Corps’ permitting decisions. Tension has existed for many years
between the regulation of activities in wetlands under Section 404 and related laws,
on the one hand, and the desire of landowners to develop property that may include
wetlands, on the other hand. The conflicts over wetlands regulation have for the
most part occurred in administrative proceedings, as Congress has not amended
Section 404 since 1977, when it provided exemptions for categories of routine
activities, such as normal farming and forestry. Controversy has grown over the
extent of federal jurisdiction and impacts on private property, burdens and delay of
permit procedures, and roles of federal agencies and states in issuing permits.
Judicial Proceedings Involving Section 404. One issue involving long-
standing controversy and litigation is whether isolated waters are properly within the
jurisdiction of Section 404. Isolated waters — wetlands which are not physically
adjacent to navigable surface waters — often appear to provide only some of the
values for which wetlands are protected, such as flood control or water purification,
even if they meet the technical definition of a wetland. On January 9, 2001, the
Supreme Court ruled on the question of whether the CWA provides the Corps and
EPA with authority over isolated waters. The Court’s 5-4 ruling in Solid Waste
Agency of Northern Cook County (SWANCC) v. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
(531
U.S. 159 (2001)) held that the Corps’ denial of a 404 permit for a disposal site on
isolated wetlands solely on the basis that migratory birds use the site exceeds the
authority provided in the act.
The full extent of impacts on the regulatory program resulting from this decision
remains unclear, even five years after the ruling, in part because of different
interpretations of SWANCC reflected in subsequent federal court cases. While it
continues to be difficult to fully assess how regulatory protection of wetlands will be
affected as a result of the SWANCC decision and other possible changes, the
remaining responsibility to protect affected wetlands falls on states and localities.13
Environmentalists believe that the Court misinterpreted congressional intent on the
matter, while industry and landowner groups welcomed the ruling. Policy
implications of how much the decision restricts federal regulation depend on how
broadly or narrowly the opinion is applied. Some federal courts have interpreted
12 For additional information, see CRS Report RL33483, Wetlands: An Overview of Issues,
by Jeffrey Zinn and Claudia Copeland.
13 For additional information, see CRS Report RL30849, The Supreme Court Addresses
Corps of Engineers Jurisdiction Over ‘Isolated Waters’: The SWANCC Decision
, by Robert
Meltz and Claudia Copeland.

CRS-12
SWANCC narrowly, thus limiting its effect on current permit rules, while a few read
the decision more broadly.
The government’s current view on this key question was expressed in EPA-
Corps guidance issued in January 2003. It provides a legal interpretation essentially
based on a narrow reading of the Court’s decision, thus allowing federal regulation
of some isolated waters to continue, but it calls for more headquarters review in
disputed cases. Administration press releases say that the guidance demonstrates the
government’s commitment to “no-net-loss” wetlands policy. However, it is apparent
that the issues remained under review, because at the same time, the Administration
issued an advance notice of proposed rulemaking (ANPRM) seeking comment on
how to define waters that are under jurisdiction of the regulatory program.14 The
ANPRM did not actually propose rule changes, but it indicated possible ways that
Clean Water Act rules might be modified to further limit federal jurisdiction,
building on SWANCC and some subsequent legal decisions.
The government received more than 133,000 comments on the ANPRM, most
of them negative, according to EPA and the Corps. Environmentalists and many
states opposed changing any rules, saying that the law and previous court rulings call
for the broadest possible interpretation of the Clean Water Act (and thus a narrow
interpretation of SWANCC), but developers sought changes to clarify interpretation
of SWANCC. In December 2003, EPA and the Corps announced that the
Administration would not pursue rule changes on federal regulatory jurisdiction over
isolated wetlands. The EPA Administrator said that the Administration wanted to
avoid a contentious and lengthy rulemaking debate over the issue. Environmentalists
and state representatives expressed relief at the announcement. Interest groups on all
sides have been critical of confusion in implementing the 2003 guidance, which
constitutes the main tool for interpreting the reach of the SWANCC decision.
Environmentalists remain concerned about diminished protection resulting from the
guidance, while developers said that without new regulations, confusing and
contradictory interpretations of wetland rules will continue.
Federal courts continue to have a key role in interpreting and clarifying the
SWANCC decision. On February 21, 2006, the Supreme Court heard arguments in
two cases brought by landowners (Rapanos v. United States; Carabell v. U.S. Army
Corps of Engineers
) seeking to narrow the scope of the CWA permit program as it
applies to development of wetlands. The issue in both cases had to do with the reach
of the CWA to cover “waters” that were not navigable waters, in the traditional
sense, but were connected somehow to navigable waters or “adjacent” to those
waters. (The act requires a federal permit to discharge dredged or fill materials into
“navigable waters.”) Many legal and other observers hoped that the Court’s ruling
in these cases would bring greater clarity about the scope of federal jurisdiction.
14 U.S. Department of Defense, Department of the Army, Corps of Engineers and U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency, “Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on the Clean
Water Act Regulatory Definition of ‘Waters of the United States’ and Joint Memorandum,”
68 Federal Register 1991-1998, Jan. 15, 2003.

CRS-13
The Court’s ruling was issued on June 19 (Rapanos , v. United States, 126 S.Ct.
2208 (2006)). In a 5-4 decision, a plurality of the Court, led by Justice Scalia, held
that the lower court had applied an incorrect standard to determine whether the
wetlands at issue are covered by the CWA. Justice Kennedy joined this plurality to
vacate the lower court decisions and remand the cases for further consideration, but
he took different positions on most of the substantive issues raised by the cases, as
did four other dissenting justices.15 Early judgments by legal observers suggest that
the implications of the ruling (both short-term and long-term) are far from clear.
Because the several opinions written by the justices did not draw a clear line
regarding which wetlands and other waters are subject to federal jurisdiction, one
likely result is more case-by-case determinations and continuing litigation. There
also could be renewed pressure on the Corps and EPA to clarify the issues through
an administrative rulemaking.
Congressional Actions. In September 2002, a House Government Reform
subcommittee held a hearing on the government’s response to the SWANCC decision.
Committee Members and public witnesses indicated that a lack of guidance from the
government clarifying its interpretation of the case had led to inconsistent regulatory
decisions by Corps officials in individual regions of the country, and subsequent
judicial decisions by other federal and state court have been mixed. At the hearing,
Corps and EPA officials testified on their efforts to develop guidance, which
subsequently was released in January 2003. Concern about lingering confusion over
the SWANCC decision and Corps implementation was the topic of an oversight
hearing by the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee in June 2003.
Developers and others in the regulated community criticized the Corps and EPA,
saying that the January 2003 guidance document had not clarified the reach of federal
jurisdiction. A House Transportation and Infrastructure subcommittee also held a
hearing on post-SWANCC issues in March 2004.
Controversies persist about the 2003 SWANCC guidance. In response, on May
18, 2006, the House adopted an amendment to a bill providing FY2007
appropriations for EPA (H.R. 5386). The amendment (passed by a 222-198 vote)
would bar EPA from spending funds to implement the 2003 policy guidance.
Supporters of the amendment said that the guidance goes beyond what the Supreme
Court required in SWANCC, has allowed many streams and wetlands to be
unprotected from development, and has been more confusing than helpful.
Opponents of the amendment predicted that it would make EPA’s and the Corps’
regulatory job more difficult than it already is. Congress adjourned sine die in
December 2006 without taking final action on H.R. 5386.
Legislation to overturn the SWANCC decision by providing a broad definition
of “waters of the United States” was introduced in the 109th Congress (H.R. 1356/S.
912, the Clean Water Authority Restoration Act of 2005). Other legislation to
narrow the definition of “waters of the United States” also was introduced (H.R.
15 For additional information, see CRS Report RL33263, The Wetlands Coverage of the
Clean Water Act is Revisited by the Supreme Court: Rapanos and Carabell,
by Robert Meltz
and Claudia Copeland.

CRS-14
2658, the Federal Wetlands Jurisdiction Act of 2005).16 No further action occurred
on either bill. For now, it is unclear whether the more recent decision in the Rapanos
and Carabell cases will accelerate congressional interest in these or other proposals
to address uncertainties about federal jurisdiction over wetlands and other waters.
On August 1, 2006, a Senate Environment and Public Works subcommittee held a
hearing on the Court’s Rapanos decision. While some witnesses urged Congress to
clarify the jurisdictional issues, others urged EPA and the Corps to issue new
guidance and/or initiate a rulemaking to change applicable regulations.
Administration witnesses said that EPA and the Corps are working on new guidance
for their regulatory staffs, but have not yet decided whether a rulemaking is needed.
Other Clean Water Act Issues
Several other issues affecting efforts to achieve the goals and objectives of the
Clean Water Act could draw attention during the 110th Congress through oversight
or legislation.
Stormwater Discharges. EPA has struggled since the 1970s to regulate
industrial and municipal stormwater discharges in a workable yet comprehensive
manner. For many years, it was generally believed that stormwater was largely clean,
or uncontaminated. However, studies have shown that this type of discharge carries
with it large amounts of organic and toxic pollutants that can harm water quality,
including oil and grease, heavy metals, pesticides, soil, and sediment. In P.L. 100-4,
Congress established firm deadlines and priorities for EPA to require permits for
discharges of stormwater that are not mixed or contaminated with household or
industrial waste. EPA issued rules in November 1990 (21 months after the statutory
deadline) that addressed Phase I of the program, detailing the process of applying for
stormwater permits for industries, medium and large municipalities, and construction
sites larger than 5 acres. The agency worked with an advisory committee of
stakeholders beginning in 1994 to develop rules for regulating smaller stormwater
dischargers, which were not covered by the 1990 rules. Rules for smaller dischargers
(unregulated industries, small construction sites, and small cities), Phase II of the
program, were issued in October 1999. The burden of complying with the rules
continues to be an issue with many affected industries and municipalities, especially
small cities, which faced compliance deadlines beginning in March 2003.17
Stormwater issues were addressed in one provision of omnibus energy
legislation in the 109th Congress. As the March 2003 compliance deadline for Phase
II small construction sites to comply with existing stormwater permit rules
approached, EPA proposed a two-year extension of those rules for small oil and gas
construction sites to allow the agency to assess the economic impact on that
particular industry. In March 2005, EPA again extended the deadline, until June
2006. During this time, Congress considered a legislative solution which it enacted
in Section 323 of H.R. 6, the Energy Policy Act of 2005. It provides a permanent
16 For additional information and discussion of similar legislation in the 108th Congress, see
CRS Report RL33483, Wetlands: An Overview of Issues.
17 For further information, see CRS Report 97-290, Stormwater Permits: Status of EPA’s
Regulatory Program
, by Claudia Copeland.

CRS-15
exemption from stormwater runoff rules for the construction of exploration and
production facilities by oil and gas companies or the roads that service those sites.
Industry officials said that EPA’s original stormwater rule created costly
permitting requirements, even though the short construction period for drilling sites
carries little potential for stormwater runoff pollution. The provision in H.R. 6
makes EPA’s temporary delay permanent and makes it applicable to construction
activities at all oil and gas development and production sites, regardless of size,
including those covered by an earlier Phase I of the stormwater program. Opponents
argued that the provision did not belong in the energy legislation and that there was
no evidence that construction at oil and gas sites causes less pollution than other
construction activities. Congress passed the conference report on H.R. 6, with the
oil and gas stormwater provision, in July 2005. President Bush signed it into law on
August 8 (P.L. 109-58). In June 2006, EPA promulgated a rule to conform the CWA
to these provisions of P.L. 109-58.18
Combined and Separate Sewer Overflows. A total of 772 municipalities
have combined sewers where domestic sanitary sewage, industrial wastes, infiltration
from groundwater, and stormwater runoff are collected. These systems serve
approximately 40 million persons, mainly in older urban and coastal cities. Normally
(under dry-weather conditions), the combined wastes are conveyed to a municipal
sewage treatment plant.
Properly designed, sized, and maintained combined sewers can be an acceptable
part of a city’s water pollution control infrastructure. However, combined sewer
overflow (CSO) occurs when the capacity of the collection and treatment system is
exceeded due to high volumes of rainwater or snowmelt, and the excess volume is
diverted and discharged directly into receiving waters, bypassing the sewage
treatment plants. Often the excess flow that contains raw sewage, industrial wastes,
and stormwater is discharged untreated. Many combined sewer systems are found
in coastal areas where recreational areas, fish habitat and shellfish beds may be
contaminated by the discharges.
In 1994, following negotiations with key stakeholder groups, EPA issued a CSO
permitting strategy. Cities were to implement nine minimum controls by January 1,
1997 (e.g., proper operation and maintenance programs for sewer systems and
pollution prevention programs). Controls generally are based on combinations of
management techniques (such as temporary retention of excess flow during storm
events) and structural measures (ranging from screens that capture solids to
construction of separate sewer systems). EPA officials stated in 1998 that only about
one-half of the cities with combined sewers implemented the minimum measures
called for in the 1994 strategy. EPA is now working with states to remind cities of
their obligations to address CSO problems. However, a formal enforcement strategy
is not contemplated.
18 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, “Amendments to the National Pollutant Discharge
Elimination System (NPDES) Regulations for Storm Water Discharges Associated with Oil
and Gas Exploration, Production, Processing, or Treatment Operations, or Transmission
Facilities,” 71 Federal Register 33628, June 12, 2006.

CRS-16
A more recent issue concerning some cities is the problem of overflows from
municipal separate sanitary sewers (SSOs) that are not CSOs because they transport
only sanitary wastes. Discharges of untreated sewage from these sewers can occur
from manholes, broken pipes and deteriorated infrastructure, and undersized pipes,
and can occur in wet or dry weather. EPA estimates that there are about 18,000
municipalities with separate sanitary sewers, all of which can, under certain
circumstances, experience overflows. No explicit EPA or statutory control policy
currently exists. In 1995, EPA convened a stakeholders’ group to discuss how to
address those overflows that pose the highest environmental and public health risk
first. On January 5, 2001, the Clinton Administration proposed regulations to
improve the operation of municipal sanitary sewer collection systems, reduce the
frequency and occurrence of overflows, clarify the existing CWA prohibition on SSO
discharges, and clarify circumstances appropriate for enforcement action. The
Clinton proposal was not finalized by the Bush Administration, which reportedly is
continuing to consider SSO policy issues.
Funding for CSO and SSO projects is a major concern of states and cities. The
most recent clean water needs survey found that the largest needs category, totaling
$51 billion, is to address CSOs. EPA estimated that costs to restrict SSOs are $88.5
billion. In December 2000, Congress passed legislation, the Wet Weather Water
Quality Act, authorizing a two-year $1.5 billion grants program to reduce wet
weather flows from municipal sewer systems, both CSOs and SSOs. This bill was
included in the FY2001 Consolidated Appropriations bill (Section 112 of Division
B, P.L. 106-554), which codified EPA’s CSO policy on sewer overflows (discussed
above). Congress provided no appropriations for these wet weather grants during the
two years of authorization (FY2002-2003).
Nonpoint Pollution Management. Prior to the 1987 CWA amendments,
the act’s requirements focused primarily on controlling pollution from “point”
sources, that is, discharges from wastewater treatment plants and industrial facilities.
Yet, as industrial and municipal sources have abated pollution, uncontrolled nonpoint
sources have become a relatively larger portion of remaining water quality problems
— perhaps contributing as much as 50% of the nation’s water pollution. Nonpoint
pollution is rainfall or snowmelt runoff from farm and urban areas, as well as
contruction, forestry, and mining sites. In 1987 Congress added a new Section 319
to the act to strengthen the law regarding this major contributor to water pollution by
requiring states to develop and implement programs to control nonpoint sources of
pollution. States were required to identify waters not expected to meet water quality
standards because of nonpoint source pollution and to implement plans for managing
pollution from runoff. Federal grants totaling $400 million were authorized to cover
as much as 60% of the costs of implementing a state’s management plan.
At issue today is what progress is being made to manage nonpoint source
pollution and what additional efforts may be needed involving Section 319 or other
public and private activities. Several concerns have been raised about the program,
such as whether state plans have comprehensively addressed their nonpoint pollution
problems. Some observers are critical of the largely voluntary nature of the Section
319 program, consisting of “all carrot but no stick,” while others argue that the types
of individual land management decisions that are needed to manage nonpoint source
pollution cannot be regulated in the same ways that industrial sources are controlled.

CRS-17
Funding has become an important issue as states moved from assessment and
plan development to management, since Congress intended that Section 319 funds
be used primarily to implement nonpoint pollution controls on the ground. Precise
estimates of management costs are not available, because so much depends on the
site-specific nature of problems and solutions. However, in 1994 EPA estimated that
current and planned spending by private sources, states, and cities under provisions
of current law is between $750 million and $1.1 billion per year. Without adequate
funding to implement state management plans, it is doubtful that much will be
achieved under Section 319 to control nonpoint source pollution.
Because agricultural activities are known to be a significant source of nonpoint
pollution nationwide, the adequacy of efforts to address these sources has received
much attention. Questions have been raised about the 319 grant program’s efficacy
and overlap with farm bill conservation funding. In particular, the White House
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) found that EPA had not demonstrated
results under the program and has urged the agency to shift its focus away from
implementing projects in agricultural areas and toward implementing plans in
impaired waters. State officials have been concerned that OMB is not fully aware of
the extent to which Section 319 funds address a range of nonpoint pollution control
needs beyond the agricultural sector.
Strategy Concerning Animal Feeding Operations. As noted previously,
EPA’s water quality reports identify agricultural activities as the leading contributor
to water quality impairments nationwide. Animal feeding operations (AFOs) are
only a subset of the agriculture category, but because more than one-half of the states
specifically identify AFOs as contributing to impairments, public and policy attention
has increased on how to minimize public health and environmental impacts of runoff
from them. AFOs are agricultural facilities that confine livestock and their feeding
activities, thus concentrating animal populations and waste. Animal waste is
frequently applied to land for disposal and to utilize the nutrient value of manure to
benefit crops. If not managed properly, however, it can pose risks to water quality
and public health, contributing pollutants such as nutrients, sediment, pathogens, and
ammonia to the environment.
Clean water regulations issued in the 1970s required discharge permits for the
largest AFOs, termed confined animal feeding operations (CAFOs). However, EPA
acknowledged that compliance and enforcement of these permit rules was poor (less
than one-third of covered facilities actually have permits) and that the regulations
themselves were outdated. In December 2002, EPA issued revised rules to regulate
waste discharges from CAFOs. Among the key elements, the rules include
requirements for development of nutrient management plans to better manage land
application of manure. EPA estimated that 15,500 CAFOs would be regulated by the
rule, at an annual compliance cost of $335 million. Farm groups said that the
regulations are generally workable and consistent with environmental initiatives in
the 2002 farm bill (P.L. 107-171), but environmental groups criticized the rule for
inadequately addressing animal waste runoff problems.19 A January 2003 GAO
19 For additional information, see CRS Report RL31851, Animal Waste and Water Quality:
(continued...)

CRS-18
report concluded that the rules will be ineffective unless EPA increases its oversight
of state regulatory programs, which have primary responsibility for ensuring
compliance by feedlot operators.20
In February 2005, a federal court issued a ruling in a set of challenges to the
CAFO rule (Waterkeeper Alliance, American Farm Bureau, et al. v. EPA, 399 F.3d
486 (2d Cir. 2005)). The litigation involved challenges to the permitting scheme of
the rule, the type of discharges subject to regulation, and the effluent limitations
established in the rules. The court upheld major parts of the EPA rule, held in favor
of some of industry’s challenges, held in favor of several of environmentalists’
challenges, and in some cases directed EPA to explain more fully why it did or did
not do certain things with regard to specific provisions of the rule. In June 2006,
EPA proposed revisions to the CAFO rules in response to the court’s decision and
expects to promulgate revised regulations by June 2007.21
Other Implementation Issues. Also of legislative interest are the impacts
of court rulings in several cases concerning implementation of existing provisions of
the law and involving questions of whether certain activities require a Clean Water
Act discharge permit. A fundamental element of the act is the requirement that the
“discharge of a pollutant” from a point source shall be carried out pursuant to a
permit authorized by the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES)
program under Section 402 of the law. In 2004, the Supreme Court held that the
transfer of polluted water from one waterbody to another requires a permit,
notwithstanding that no new pollutant is added in the process of transfer (South
Florida Water Management District v. Miccosukee Tribe of Indians
, 124 S. Ct. 1537
(2004)).22 The decision raised concerns in agricultural areas where such transfers
often occur in supplying irrigation water, presently without a permit. Congress did
not hold oversight hearings on impacts of the Court’s decision, and legislation that
might have addressed the ruling was not introduced.
Decisions of federal courts in two cases have held that aerial application of a
pesticide over and into U.S. waters requires a CWA permit, even when the pesticide
use meets other requirements of federal law, including the Federal Insecticide,
Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA). These and related decisions drew the
attention of many pesticide applicators, including public health entities such as
mosquito control districts, concerned with how the rulings might affect their need to
control pests associated with diseases such as the West Nile virus. In November
19 (...continued)
EPA Regulation of Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations, by Claudia Copeland.
20 U.S. Government Accountability Office, Increased EPA Oversight Will Improve
Environmental Program for Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations
, GAO-03-285,
January 2003, 42 p.
21 For additional information, see CRS Report RL33656, Animal Waste and Water Quality:
EPA’s Response to the “Waterkeeper Alliance” Court Decision on Regulation of CAFOs,
by Claudia Copeland.
22 For information, see CRS Report RL32569, The Supreme Court Revisits the Environment:
Seven Cases Decided or Accepted in the 2003-2004 Term
, by Robert Meltz.

CRS-19
2006, EPA finalized a rulemaking seeking to resolve the conflict over the regulatory
scope of the CWA and FIFRA related to pesticide use, in light of the recent litigation,
by promulgating regulations to clarify circumstances under which a CWA permit is
or is not required for activities carried out pursuant to FIFRA. Congress examined
these issues in oversight hearings, one by a House Transportation and Infrastructure
subcommittee in October 2002 and another by a House Government Reform
subcommittee in October 2004. Legislation intended to affirm that a CWA permit
is not required for use of FIFRA-approved pesticides was introduced in the 109th
Congress, the Pest Management and Fire Suppression Flexibility Act (H.R. 1749,
S. 1269). A House Transportation and Infrastructure subcommittee held a hearing
on H.R. 1749 on September 29, 2005. No further action occurred.23
Finally, concerns have been expressed about a court ruling on regulation of
ballast water, which is used by tankers, bulk cargo carriers, and cruise ships to
stabilize vessels during transport. Ballast water is often taken on in the coastal
waters of one region and discharged at the next port of call, as cargo is off-loaded or
added. Clean Water Act rules currently exempt ballast water discharges from CWA
permit requirements. Because of the growing problem of the introduction of invasive
species into U.S. waters via ballast waters, environmental groups sued EPA to force
the agency to rescind the regulatory exemption. In March 2005, a federal district
court ruled in favor of the groups, and in September 2006, the court remanded the
matter to EPA with an order that the challenged regulation be set aside by September
30, 2008, and requiring the agency to issue CWA permits after that date (Northwest
Environmental Advocates v. EPA
, No. C 03-05760 SI (N.D.Cal, Sept. 18, 2006)).
Significantly, the court’s ruling applies fully to all types of vessel discharges that are
covered by the regulatory exemption, including sewage, gray water, and bilge water.
EPA and the shipping industry have appealed the ruling; some observers argue that
legislative clarification of this issue is needed, because an appeal might not be
resolved before the deadline mandated by the district court.
Continuing Issue: Appropriations
Although the 1987 Clean Water Act amendments dealt extensively with
financial aid issues, funding questions have continued to arise and be addressed in
the context of appropriations.24
FY2007. The President’s FY2007 budget requested $687.6 million for clean
water State Revolving Fund capitalization grants, 22% less than in FY2006 and 37%
below the FY2005 funding level. As in recent budgets, the Administration proposed
no funding for congressionally designated water infrastructure grants, but it did seek
a total of $40.6 million for Administration priority projects in Puerto Rico, Alaska
Native Villages, and at the U.S.-Mexico border. Advocates of the SRF program
23 For background, see CRS Report RL32884, Pesticide Use and Water Quality: Are the
Laws Complementary or In Conflict?
by Claudia Copeland.
24 For additional information, see CRS Report 96-647, Water Infrastructure Financing:
History of EPA Appropriations,
by Claudia Copeland.

CRS-20
(especially state and local government officials) contended that the cuts will impair
their ability to carry out needed municipal wastewater treatment plant improvement
projects. Administration officials said that cuts for the SRF in FY2007 were
necessary because Congress boosted funds above the requested level in FY2005 and
2006. A group of state officials contended that the budget unfairly targeted state and
local environmental grants.
On May 18, 2006, the House passed H.R. 5386 (H.Rept. 109-465), providing
the requested level of $687.6 million for clean water SRF grants. The Senate
Appropriations Committee approved the same funding level for clean water SRF
grants when it reported H.R. 5386 on June 29 (S.Rept. 109-275). However, the
Senate did not act on this bill before the 109th Congress adjourned in December 2006,
thus delaying final action until early 2007. The amount in both bills for these clean
water grants is significant because, if enacted at that level in a final FY2007 measure,
it would be first time since FY1997 that Congress has not appropriated more than
was requested in the President’s budget. However, both bills included funds for
congressionally earmarked water infrastructure project grants not requested by the
Administration ($200 million in the House bill, $210 million in the Senate bill).
The House-passed bill included $29.6 million for cleanup of contaminated
sediments in the Great Lakes ($20 million less than requested), $204 million for
Section 319 grants ($10 million more than requested), and $221.7 million for Section
106 state program administration grants (as requested). The Senate-reported bill
included slightly different amounts for these programs: $30.6 million for cleanup of
contaminated sediments in the Great Lakes, $200 million for Section 319 grants, and
$218.7 million for Section 106 grants.
When the 109th Congress adjourned in December 2006, it had not completed
action on appropriations legislation to fund EPA (or on nine other appropriations
bills covering the majority of domestic discretionary agencies and departments).
Congress enacted a continuing resolution (CR), P.L. 109-383 (the third such CR
since the start of the fiscal year on October 1), providing funds for EPA and the other
affected agencies and departments until February 15, 2007. Funding levels provided
under this CR follow a “lowest level” concept for individual programs, that is, the
lowest level under House-passed FY2007 appropriations, Senate-passed
appropriations, or the FY2006 funding. For clean water SRF grants, the resulting
appropriation through mid-February is $687.6 million, as in House-passed H.R.
5386.