Summary
# HEALTHY DRINKING WATER AFFORDABILITY ACT (H.R. 1721)
## WHAT THIS BILL DOES
This bill creates a grant program called the Healthy Drinking Water Affordability Assistance Program to help people in rural areas pay for drinking water filters and treatment systems. The grants can pay for buying, installing and maintaining point-of-use or point-of-entry water quality improvement products (filters that treat water at one location in a home or building, or systems that treat all water entering a building). The bill directs the U.S. Department of Agriculture to run this program within 120 days of the law passing.
## WHO IT AFFECTS
* Homeowners in rural areas
* Renters in rural areas
* Owners of apartment buildings with 25 or fewer units in rural areas
* Licensed child-care facilities in rural areas
* Nonprofit organizations
* The U.S. Department of Agriculture
* Third-party water treatment installers and maintenance professionals
## KEY PROVISIONS
* The Secretary of Agriculture must establish regulations and run the Healthy Drinking Water Affordability Assistance Program within 120 days of the law passing (Sec. 3(b))
* Grants can pay for purchasing drinking water quality improvement products, installing them through qualified professionals, replacing filter components, maintaining the systems, and conducting water quality tests (Sec. 3(c)(1))
* People can only receive grants if their household income does not exceed 150 percent of the median non-metropolitan household income for their state, based on the most recent 10-year census (Sec. 3(d)(2))
* The Secretary must prioritize funding to people whose drinking water comes from private wells and must ensure both individual homeowners and nonprofit organizations can access funds (Sec. 3(f))
* The Secretary must submit annual reports to Congress describing barriers to safe drinking water, technologies being used, trends in water contamination, and recommendations to increase access to the program (Sec. 3(g))
## WHAT CHANGES
If this law passes, the Department of Agriculture will create and manage a new federal grant program to help rural residents afford water treatment products. Rural homeowners, renters, small apartment building owners, and child-care facilities will be able to apply for grants to pay for water filters and treatment systems if they have contaminated drinking water. The law establishes new definitions and standards for what products qualify and who can install and maintain them. The Department of Agriculture will need to hire staff to administer the program and will receive funding to pay out grants annually.
## IMPORTANT DEFINITIONS
* **Approved installation**: Installation of a water quality improvement product by a qualified professional that follows all local and state rules and the manufacturer's instructions (Sec. 3(a)(1))
* **Certified filter component**: A replacement filter piece certified by an independent testing organization as meeting certain standards for filtering drinking water contaminants (Sec. 3(a)(3))
* **Eligible drinking water quality improvement product**: A point-of-use or point-of-entry filter system with a certified filter component that is certified to improve drinking water quality (Sec. 3(a)(4))
* **Eligible end user**: A person or organization in a rural area including homeowners, renters, small apartment building owners, and child-care facilities whose water tests show health contaminants (Sec. 3(a)(5))
* **Health contaminant**: Harmful substances in drinking water including lead, arsenic, nitrate, nitrite, perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, hexavalent chromium, volatile organic compounds, and other contaminants that can be filtered by eligible products (Sec. 3(a)(7))
* **Qualified water quality test**: An analysis of bacteria and chemicals in a drinking water sample tested by a certified laboratory that provides guidance on test results and treatment options (Sec. 3(a)(10))
## EFFECTIVE DATE
The Secretary of Agriculture must establish the program not later than 120 days after the bill becomes law. Not specified in bill text for all other provisions.
I
118TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION H. R. 1721
To amend the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act to establish
a grant program to assist with the purchase, installation, and mainte-
nance of point-of-entry and point-of-use drinking water quality improve-
ment products, and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
MARCH 22, 2023
Ms. PINGREE (for herself, Mr. ROUZER, and Mr. GALLAGHER) introduced the
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture
A BILL
To amend the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development
Act to establish a grant program to assist with the
purchase, installation, and maintenance of point-of-entry
and point-of-use drinking water quality improvement
products, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
1
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
2
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
3
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Healthy Drinking
4
Water Affordability Act’’ or the ‘‘Healthy H2O Act’’.
5
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
6
Congress finds that—
7
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(1) clean and safe drinking water is necessary
1
to ensure public health and a vibrant economy;
2
(2) communities that are dependent on private
3
groundwater supplies to meet domestic drinking
4
water needs, as well as those that continue to experi-
5
ence drinking water infrastructure challenges from
6
public water supplies, including with infrastructure
7
into and within households and living facilities, are
8
disproportionately impacted by drinking water qual-
9
ity issues;
10
(3) in many instances, those communities and
11
their households have been adversely impacted by
12
the presence of 1 or more naturally occurring and
13
human-caused contaminants found in drinking
14
water, such as lead, arsenic, nitrate, nitrite, and
15
volatile organic compounds, as well as federally un-
16
regulated contaminants, including perfluoroalkyl and
17
polyfluoroalkyl substances and hexavalent chromium
18
(chrome-6), in local groundwater or other drinking
19
water supplies;
20
(4) public health organizations and institutions,
21
such as the Centers for Disease Control and Preven-
22
tion,
have
cited
giardia,
enterovirus,
radon,
23
rotovirus, norovirus, shigella, campylobacter, sal-
24
monella, hepatitis A, cryptosporidium, and E. coli as
25
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among the major diseases and contaminants that
1
can be present in drinking water sources;
2
(5) investments in projects to improve and sup-
3
port drinking water infrastructure are critically im-
4
portant to addressing water quality in the United
5
States, but because those projects can typically take
6
many years to complete, the current, and in some
7
cases the ongoing, needs of communities impacted
8
with immediate drinking water quality challenges
9
cannot be or are not addressed in a timely manner;
10
(6) as an interim measure (and in some cases
11
in rural areas, for longer term or permanently),
12
point-of-entry and point-of-use water quality im-
13
provement products are viable solutions to address
14
drinking water contamination challenges for the peo-
15
ple of the United States; and
16
(7) grants provided under this Act are intended
17
to provide financial assistance for eligible grant re-
18
cipients (as defined in section 306F(a) of the Con-
19
solidated Farm and Rural Development Act (as
20
added by section 3)) that voluntarily seek to improve
21
the quality of the drinking water of eligible end
22
users (as defined in that section), and not to dem-
23
onstrate that an eligible end user is in compliance
24
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with a Federal, State, or local primary drinking
1
water standard or regulation.
2
SEC. 3. HEALTHY DRINKING WATER AFFORDABILITY AS-
3
SISTANCE PROGRAM.
4
Subtitle A of the Consolidated Farm and Rural De-
5
velopment Act is amended by inserting after section 306E
6
(7 U.S.C. 1926e) the following:
7
‘‘SEC. 306F. HEALTHY DRINKING WATER AFFORDABILITY
8
ASSISTANCE PROGRAM.
9
‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section:
10
‘‘(1) APPROVED INSTALLATION.—The term ‘ap-
11
proved installation’ means the installation of an eli-
12
gible drinking water quality improvement product or
13
a certified filter component by a qualified third-party
14
installer that—
15
‘‘(A) complies with all local and State reg-
16
ulations; and
17
‘‘(B) follows the installation instructions of
18
the manufacturer.
19
‘‘(2) APPROVED MAINTENANCE.—The term ‘ap-
20
proved maintenance’ means required maintenance—
21
‘‘(A) performed on an eligible drinking
22
water quality improvement product that in-
23
cludes maintenance and replacement of the cer-
24
tified filter component;
25
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‘‘(B) performed by a service technician
1
who—
2
‘‘(i) is—
3
‘‘(I) professionally qualified, cer-
4
tified, or licensed as a water treat-
5
ment product maintenance profes-
6
sional,
including
a
professional
7
credentialed through a manufacturer
8
or third party;
9
‘‘(II) operating under the super-
10
vision of a service technician described
11
in subclause (I);
12
‘‘(III) a licensed plumber or a
13
plumber operating under the super-
14
vision of a licensed plumbing con-
15
tractor; or
16
‘‘(IV) an individual who holds a
17
license or certification related to water
18
treatment technologies issued by a
19
State or local government; and
20
‘‘(ii) regularly completes continuing
21
education on water treatment technology
22
and other subjects that enhance the serv-
23
ices provided under this section;
24
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‘‘(C) that complies with all local and State
1
regulations; and
2
‘‘(D) that follows the maintenance instruc-
3
tions of the manufacturer.
4
‘‘(3) CERTIFIED
FILTER
COMPONENT.—The
5
term ‘certified filter component’ means a replaceable
6
or replacement filter component—
7
‘‘(A) for which approved maintenance can
8
be performed; and
9
‘‘(B) that is certified by a third-party cer-
10
tifier as compliant with—
11
‘‘(i) NSF P231;
12
‘‘(ii) NSF/ANSI Standard 42, 44, 53,
13
55, 58, or 401; or
14
‘‘(iii) another successor or relevant
15
consensus-based standard for drinking
16
water treatment units or systems that ad-
17
dresses health contaminant reduction, as
18
determined by the Secretary.
19
‘‘(4) ELIGIBLE DRINKING WATER QUALITY IM-
20
PROVEMENT PRODUCT.—The term ‘eligible drinking
21
water quality improvement product’ means a point-
22
of-use or point-of-entry system—
23
‘‘(A) incorporating a certified filter compo-
24
nent; and
25
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‘‘(B) that is certified by a third-party cer-
1
tifier to meet standards described in paragraph
2
(3)(B)—
3
‘‘(i) for material safety and perform-
4
ance; and
5
‘‘(ii) to improve drinking water qual-
6
ity.
7
‘‘(5) ELIGIBLE END USER.—The term ‘eligible
8
end user’ means a person or entity located in a rural
9
area (as defined in section 343(a)(13)(B)) that is—
10
‘‘(A)(i) a homeowner;
11
‘‘(ii) an individual lessee or renter of a
12
home, apartment, or other dwelling;
13
‘‘(iii) a property owner of a multi-unit resi-
14
dential building with 25 or fewer owned, leased,
15
or rented dwelling units;
16
‘‘(iv) a licensed child-care facility; or
17
‘‘(v) an owned, leased, or rented facility;
18
and
19
‘‘(B) supported by a finding of need
20
through—
21
‘‘(i) a qualified water quality test
22
demonstrating the presence of 1 or more
23
health contaminants; or
24
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‘‘(ii) other documentation determined
1
to be satisfactory by the Secretary dem-
2
onstrating the presence of 1 or more
3
health contaminants.
4
‘‘(6) ELIGIBLE GRANT RECIPIENT.—The term
5
‘eligible grant recipient’ means—
6
‘‘(A) an eligible end user; and
7
‘‘(B) a nonprofit organization that uses a
8
grant provided under this section for the pur-
9
poses described in subsection (c)(2).
10
‘‘(7)
HEALTH
CONTAMINANT.—The
term
11
‘health contaminant’ means—
12
‘‘(A) a health contaminant found in drink-
13
ing water, including lead, arsenic, nitrate, ni-
14
trite, perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl sub-
15
stances, hexavalent chromium (chrome-6), and
16
volatile organic compounds; and
17
‘‘(B) any other contaminant—
18
‘‘(i) that can be reduced by an eligible
19
drinking water quality improvement prod-
20
uct or a certified filter component in ac-
21
cordance with the standards described in
22
paragraph (3)(B); and
23
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‘‘(ii)(I) with respect to which the Ad-
1
ministrator of the Environmental Protec-
2
tion Agency has established—
3
‘‘(aa) a primary drinking water
4
regulation (as defined in section 1401
5
of the Safe Drinking Water Act (42
6
U.S.C. 300f);
7
‘‘(bb) a maximum contaminant
8
level goal established in accordance
9
with section 1412(b) of that Act (42
10
U.S.C. 300g–1(b)); or
11
‘‘(cc) a health advisory issued
12
pursuant to section 1412(b)(1)(F) of
13
that
Act
(42
U.S.C.
300g–
14
1(b)(1)(F)); or
15
‘‘(II) that is regulated by a State
16
agency.
17
‘‘(8) IMPROVE
DRINKING
WATER
QUALITY.—
18
The term ‘improve drinking water quality’ means to
19
improve the quality of the water supplied between its
20
source and human consumption by reducing or re-
21
moving 1 or more health contaminants.
22
‘‘(9) QUALIFIED
THIRD-PARTY
INSTALLER.—
23
The term ‘qualified third-party installer’ means a
24
person who—
25
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‘‘(A) is—
1
‘‘(i) a professionally qualified, cer-
2
tified, or licensed water treatment product
3
installation professional, including such a
4
professional credentialed through a manu-
5
facturer or third party;
6
‘‘(ii) a licensed plumber or individual
7
who holds a license or certification related
8
to water treatment technologies issued by a
9
State or local government; or
10
‘‘(iii) a company or plumbing con-
11
tractor employing individuals described in
12
clause (i) or (ii); and
13
‘‘(B) regularly completes, or requires appli-
14
cable employees to complete, continuing edu-
15
cation on water treatment technology and other
16
subjects that enhance the services provided
17
under this section.
18
‘‘(10) QUALIFIED WATER QUALITY TEST.—The
19
term ‘qualified water quality test’ means a baseline
20
analysis of the bacterial and chemical characteristics
21
of concern from a drinking water sample collected at
22
the point of consumption and tested by a laboratory
23
certified to conduct water quality testing—
24
‘‘(A) that is provided to—
25
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‘‘(i) the Secretary; and
1
‘‘(ii) as applicable—
2
‘‘(I) a person seeking a grant
3
under this section;
4
‘‘(II) an eligible end user receiv-
5
ing a grant under this section; or
6
‘‘(III) an eligible grant recipient
7
receiving a grant under this section
8
and any eligible end users served by
9
the eligible grant recipient; and
10
‘‘(B) that includes information that pro-
11
vides—
12
‘‘(i) guidance on test interpretation,
13
including whether the bacteria or chemical
14
characteristic of concern meets or exceeds
15
a prescribed health-based contaminant
16
level; and
17
‘‘(ii) sources and citations that eligible
18
grant recipients, independent third-party
19
organizations and institutions, and govern-
20
ment agencies may review and consult—
21
‘‘(I) to determine available eligi-
22
ble drinking water quality improve-
23
ment products for addressing detected
24
contaminants; and
25
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‘‘(II) to evaluate efficacy across
1
eligible drinking water quality im-
2
provement products.
3
‘‘(11) THIRD-PARTY
CERTIFIER.—The term
4
‘third-party certifier’ means an independent certifi-
5
cation body accredited to ISO Standard 17065,
6
‘Conformity assessment — Requirements for bodies
7
certifying products, processes and services’, by an
8
entity domiciled in the United States that is a signa-
9
tory to the International Accreditation Forum Multi-
10
lateral Recognition Arrangement, such as the Water
11
Quality Association, NSF International, the Inter-
12
national Association of Plumbing and Mechanical
13
Officials, and the International Code Council Eval-
14
uation Service.
15
‘‘(b) ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM.—Not later than
16
120 days after the date of enactment of this section, the
17
Secretary shall promulgate regulations to establish, and
18
shall carry out, a clean drinking water program, to be
19
known as the ‘Healthy Drinking Water Affordability As-
20
sistance Program’ or the ‘Healthy H2O Program’, to pro-
21
vide grants to eligible grant recipients to improve drinking
22
water quality of eligible end users.
23
‘‘(c) ELIGIBLE USES OF GRANTS.—
24
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‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A grant under this section
1
shall be used, as directed by the Secretary, for—
2
‘‘(A) the purchase of an eligible drinking
3
water quality improvement product or a re-
4
placement certified filter component;
5
‘‘(B) the approved installation by a quali-
6
fied third-party installer of an eligible drinking
7
water quality improvement product;
8
‘‘(C) the purchase and approved installa-
9
tion by a qualified third-party installer of a re-
10
placement certified filter component;
11
‘‘(D) the approved maintenance of an eligi-
12
ble drinking water quality improvement prod-
1
[Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]