Washington, D.C. – February 12, 2016 – (RealEstateRama) — Today, the House of Representatives passed the Safe Drinking Water Act Improved Compliance Awareness Act. The bill passed the House with overwhelming bipartisan support.
The legislation will require the EPA to notify the public when enforceable requirements for lead in drinking water are exceeded if a state or a local water system fails to do so. The bill also requires consumer notification when water being transported in a lead pipe is sufficiently corrosive that it could leach lead into public drinking water.
In Flint, the EPA knew as early as last April that Flint water was not being treated with corrosion controls. Instead of informing the public, the EPA kept quiet and silenced an employee who tried to speak out.
The legislation passed today will prevent that from happening in the future.
Rep. John Moolenaar (R-Midland) voted for the legislation and spoke in support of it on the House floor. Here is video of his remarks. A transcript of his remarks is below.
Rep. John Moolenaar: I want to join my Michigan colleagues as a co-sponsor of this legislation and thank Representative Kildee and Chairman Upton for bringing this legislation forward.
Our hearts go out to the people of Flint who are enduring so much and persevering during this time. It’s heartwarming to see the way people across the country have come together and supported the people of Flint.
The sad thing is that this situation could have been prevented, and should have been prevented.
The legislation we’re discussing today here in the House of Representatives is because of failures in local, state and federal government.
And the fact is that the officials at the EPA knew last April, 10 months ago, that the Flint Utilities Department was not using corrosion controls, putting water safety at risk.
Instead of alerting the public, the EPA stayed silent.
When an EPA employee tried to speak out, he was silenced.
The EPA deferred to a state agency – the MDEQ – which also failed to tell the public.
Last month, the EPA administrator sent a memo creating a formal policy on the importance of assessing and responding to critical public health issues.
That the administrator had to remind employees of the importance of public health speaks to the misplaced priority of the EPA and its officials.
So today, we have to pass a law requiring the agency to notify the public when water quality is unsafe and constitutes a public health threat.
This legislation is a reminder to the EPA that it needs to focus on its core responsibility with safe drinking water using its authority, rather than overreaching outside of its jurisdiction.
This is an example of one community who has been adversely affected. Flint is not alone in this challenge and this has ramifications all across our country.
I urge my colleagues to support this bill and I yield back.
