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. (Wi S S': . "WESTERN STATES Colorado Water WATER Conservation Board . October 20, !995 Issue No. 1118 ---.-.,.--, . ... _..',_.~~_u. I,.,. DIR j5C : ASC II F .1 LL recycled p<\per conserves "'ater '! THE WEEKLY NEWSLETTER OF THE WESTERN STATES WATER COUNCIL Creekview Plaza, Suite A-201/942 East 7145 So. / Midvale, Utah 84047 / (801) 561-5300 / FAX (801) 255-9642 Chairman - Larry Anderson; Executive Director - Craig Bell; Editor - Tony Willardson; Typist - Alona Banks CONGRESSIONAL UPDATE Budget Reconciliation/Appropriations . Last week, the House Budget Committee reported a reconciliation bill, but Chairman John Kasich (R-OH) will offer a substitute without some of the controversial provisions such as allowing oil exploration in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) and authorizing the sale of federal power marketing administrations. The original bill packages various authorizing committees' measures and cannot be altered by the Budget Committee. However, the substitute bill can and will likely include any number of changes, agreeable to the Republican Leadership, such as tax cuts, Medicaid and Medicare reforms, the Freedom to Farm bill, and legislation to dismantle the Commerce Department. The Rules Committee will clear a substitute reconciliation bill for consideration on the House floor, followed by Senate and conference action. The President may veto the bill. The Conoress must also complete action on ~level1 of thirteen federal appropriations bills. The House rejected a conference committee report on the Interior Department appropriations bill (H.R 1977), and a conference committee meeting has yet to be scheduled on legislation with appropriations for EPA (H.R 2099). Conference committee negotiations continue over the energy and water appropriations bill that funds the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Bureau of Reclamation. Once passed, the Administration and the Congress must still reach an agreement on tax and spending priorities before November 13, when the temporary continuing resolution funding current government activities expires, or agree to another extension. . WATER QUALITY Safe Drinking Water Act Senator Dirk Kempthorne (R-ID) introduced his anticipated Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) Amendments of 1995 on October 12 (WSW # 1117). Under S. 1316, the U.S. government would guarantee that the water supply is safe and that appropriated funds for safe drinking water are appropriately prioritized. It would authorize $1 billion annually for state revolving fund (SRF) loans for drinking water, while requiring states to provide a 20% match. SRFs could be used to assist in achieving compliance with drinking water standards, and "built-in flexibility" for disadvantaged communities is included. The bill would also authorize about $53 million for health research, especially on cryptosporidium, disinfectants, arsenic, and the health effects of drinking water contaminants on fragile populations such as children, the elderly, pregnant women, and people with serious illnesses. S. 1316 would require that EPA use the best available peer-reviewed science to identify and regulate drinking water contaminants. The bill would rescind the requirement that EPA regulate 25 new contaminants ,=ve~J 3 years. Instead, it '.'.'cu!d lnztitute a procee::: to guarantee that the EPA has the resources and authority necessary to regulate those contaminants posing the greatest risks. It also provides new authority for EPA to regulate contaminants posing a pressing public health concem. It strengthens the current partnership between state and federal governments in SDWA administration and implementation, and would institute a new procedure whereby states could grant variances to small systems serving up to 10,000 people. WATER RESOURCES Watersheds Senator Mark Hatfield (R-OR) and Rep. Elizabeth Furse (D-OR) have jointly introduced legislation entitled the Waterways Restoration Act (S. 626 and H.R 1331) that is virtually identical to H.R 4289, which was . reported last year by the House Merchant Marine Committee with unanimous bipartisan support. Rep.