[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 9286 Introduced in House (IH)]
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118th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 9286
To direct the Secretary of Defense to expedite the implementation of
early actions to mitigate the migration of groundwater contaminated by
per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances from a source located on a military
installation to protect or minimize the effects on groundwater, surface
water, underground sources of drinking water, and sediment, and for
other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
August 2, 2024
Ms. Slotkin (for herself and Mrs. Kiggans of Virginia) introduced the
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Armed Services
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To direct the Secretary of Defense to expedite the implementation of
early actions to mitigate the migration of groundwater contaminated by
per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances from a source located on a military
installation to protect or minimize the effects on groundwater, surface
water, underground sources of drinking water, and sediment, and for
other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Accelerating DoD PFAS Cleanups Act
of 2024''.
SEC. 2. EXPEDITED ACTION TO ADDRESS THE MIGRATION OF PER- AND
POLYFLUOROALKYL SUBSTANCES FROM DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
INSTALLATIONS AND NATIONAL GUARD FACILITIES.
(a) In General.--The Secretary of Defense shall expedite the
implementation of early actions to mitigate the migration of
groundwater contaminated by per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances
(hereinafter in this section referred to as ``PFAS'') from a source
located on a military installation to protect or minimize the effects
on groundwater, surface water, underground sources of drinking water,
and sediment.
(b) Evaluation and Assessment.--Not later than 180 days after the
date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall complete an
evaluation and assessment of all covered facilities where a release, or
a threat of a release, of PFAS subject to a response action under the
Defense Environmental Restoration Program under section 2701 of title
10, United States Code, to--
(1) identify potential early actions that may be
implemented at such facilities to prevent or remediate the
release or threatened release of PFAS;
(2) identify such facilities at which an underground source
of drinking water is, or may be, contaminated by a release or a
threat of a release of PFAS; and
(3) prioritize facilities for the implementation of early
actions or other actions to prevent or reduce risks to human
health and the environment.
(c) Public Participation.--The Secretary shall make the results of
an evaluation and assessment for a covered facility conducted under
subsection (b) available to communities and individuals affected by a
release, or the threat of a release, of PFAS at the covered facility.
(d) Report.--For each covered facility for which an evaluation and
assessment is required under subsection (b), not later than 270 days
after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall make
publicly available on an appropriate website of the Department--
(1) a description of early actions identified by the
evaluation and assessment;
(2) a description of interim remedies or other early
actions that have been implemented;
(3) a list of facilities at which the migration of
contaminated ground water is not under control or for which
data are insufficient to determine whether contaminated ground
water migration is controlled; and
(4) a schedule for the implementation of interim remedies
or other early actions.
(e) Provision of Alternative Water to Protect Public Health.--
(1) Notice; provision of water.--Not later than 60 days
after the discovery of the release, or the threat of release,
of PFAS from a covered facility into an underground source of
drinking water, the Secretary shall--
(A) provide notice pursuant to section 2705 of
title 10, United States Code, to the regional offices
of the Environmental Protection Agency and appropriate
State, Tribal and local authorities;
(B) identify private and public water wells with a
concentration of a PFAS chemical that exceeds the
maximum contaminant level established pursuant to the
Safe Drinking Water Act (42 U.S.C. 300f et seq.); and
(C) provide alternative water to households and
communities served by wells identified pursuant to
paragraph (2)(B)(ii) as expeditiously as possible, but
in no case more than 30 days after the notice is
required under paragraph (1).
(2) Requirements of notice.--A notice provided under this
subsection shall--
(A) be made available to the public and provided to
communities and households served by private and public
wells identified under paragraph (1)(B); and
(B) include--
(i) an identification of any private or
public water well that is affected by a
release, or the threat of a release, of PFAS
from the covered facility;
(ii) an identification of any private or
public water well with a concentration of a
PFAS chemical that exceeds the maximum
contaminant level established pursuant to the
Safe Drinking Water Act (42 U.S.C. 300f et
seq.); and
(iii) a plan and schedule for the provision
of safe alternative water for households and
communities served by water wells identified
under clause (ii).
(f) Emergency Authority.--The Secretary shall expedite the
provision of alternative water to avoid, mitigate, or eliminate an
imminent and substantial endangerment to the health of persons
presented by a release or threatened release of a pollutant or
contaminant from an on-base source, including the use of emergency
authorities for approval of contracting services and the commitment of
funds.
(g) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) The term ``covered facility'' means--
(A) a military installation, as such term is
defined in section 2801(c)(4) of title 10, United
States Code;
(B) a formerly used defense site; or
(C) a National Guard facility, under the meaning of
such term in section 2700(4) of title 10, United States
Code.
(2) The term ``formerly used defense site'' means any site
formerly used by the Department of Defense or National Guard
eligible for environmental restoration by the Secretary of
Defense funded under the ``Environmental Restoration Account,
Formerly Used Defense Sites'' account established under section
2703(a)(5) of title 10, United States Code.
(3) The term ``underground source of drinking water'' has
the meaning given such term in section 144.3 of title 40, Code
of Federal Regulations, or any successor regulation.
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