Grassroots Rural and Small Community Water Systems Assistance Act
Public Law 114-98 · S. 611 · 114th Congress · began in the Senate
Signed by Barack Obama (D) on Dec 11, 2015 · Environmental Protection
Sponsor: Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MS)
Cosponsors (19): Sen. Heidi Heitkamp, Sen. John Boozman,
Passage votes
- HouseVoice vote
- SenateUnanimous consent
Data notes
The final version of the law, as each chamber passed it. A chamber that passed it by voice vote or unanimous consent has no count. “Method not stated” means the record does not say how the chamber voted. Where the record has a member-by-member vote, the “Who voted for it” section shows who voted yea.
Summary
The Congressional Research Service’s plain-language summary of what the law does.
Grassroots Rural and Small Community Water Systems Assistance Act
(Sec. 4) This bill amends the Safe Drinking Water Act to reauthorize through FY2020 the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) program providing technical assistance to small public water systems in complying with national primary drinking water regulations.
The EPA may use the funds to provide grants or cooperative agreements to nonprofit organizations that provide onsite technical assistance; circuit-rider technical assistance programs; multistate, regional technical assistance programs; onsite and regional training; assistance with implementing source water protection plans; and assistance with implementation monitoring plans, rules, regulations, and water security enhancements. Those grants and cooperative agreements may not be used for citizen suits brought under that Act.
In order to ensure that technical assistance funding is used in a manner that is most beneficial to the small and rural communities, the EPA must give preference to nonprofit organizations that are the most qualified and experienced and that the small community water systems find to be the most beneficial and effective.
Committees
The committees the bill was sent to, and what each did with it.
Energy and Commerce Committee · House · markup by, referred to, reported bySubcommittee: Environment, Manufacturing, and Critical Materials Subcommittee
Data notes
A committee links to its page only where it exists in the current Congress; older and renamed committees are named without a link.
Related bills
1 bill the Library of Congress relates to this one.
H.R. 2853Identical bill
Grassroots Rural and Small Community Water Systems Assistance Act
Data notes
Related bills are identified by the Congressional Research Service, the House and the Senate: companion and identical bills, bills with similar text, bills that were folded into this law, and rules that brought it to the floor. A bill that is itself a public law in this site’s data links here; the others link to Congress.gov.
Timeline
From introduction to signing, newest first: the committees, the floor and the president. 27 actions.
- Dec 11, 2015Became lawBecame law · Became Public Law No: 114-98.
- Became lawBecame law · Signed by President.
- Dec 2, 2015FloorFloor · Presented to President.
- Nov 30, 2015FloorFloor · Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
- FloorFloor · On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by voice vote.
- FloorFloor · DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on S. 611.
- FloorFloor · Considered under suspension of the rules.
- FloorFloor · Mr. Shimkus moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill.
- Nov 19, 2015CalendarCalendar · Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 264.
- CommitteeCommittee · Reported by the Committee on Energy and Commerce. H. Rept. 114-346.
- Nov 18, 2015CommitteeCommittee · Ordered to be Reported by Voice Vote.
- CommitteeCommittee · Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held.
- Nov 17, 2015CommitteeCommittee · Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held.
- Oct 28, 2015CommitteeCommittee · Forwarded by Subcommittee to Full Committee by Voice Vote .
- CommitteeCommittee · Subcommittee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held.
- Oct 22, 2015CommitteeCommittee · Subcommittee Hearings Held.
- CommitteeCommittee · Hearings by Environment, Manufacturing, and Critical Materials Subcommittee of the House Energy and Commerce Committee
- Jun 12, 2015CommitteeCommittee · Referred to the Subcommittee on Environment and the Economy.
- Jun 10, 2015FloorFloor · Received in the House.
- FloorFloor · Message on Senate action sent to the House.
- CommitteeCommittee · Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.
- Jun 9, 2015FloorFloor · Passed Senate without amendment by Unanimous Consent.
- May 18, 2015CalendarCalendar · Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 83.
- CommitteeCommittee · Committee on Environment and Public Works. Reported by Senator Inhofe without amendment. With written report No. 114-47.
- Apr 29, 2015CommitteeCommittee · Committee on Environment and Public Works. Ordered to be reported without amendment favorably.
- Feb 27, 2015CommitteeCommittee · Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.
- IntroducedIntroduced · Introduced in Senate
Data notes
Every action the Library of Congress lists for the bill, from introduction to signing, plus the dated committee hearings. The source lists many steps twice (the chamber’s own entry and the Library of Congress copy, or a presidential and a became-law entry with the same words); those are shown once. Amendments are listed in their own section.
Amendments
No amendments to this bill are on record.
Data notes
Amendments offered to this bill in either chamber, as the Library of Congress records them: each with a status read from its last recorded step: agreed to, rejected, withdrawn, ruled out of order, fell with another amendment, or offered with no vote recorded (most Senate amendments are only ever offered). The wording of each amendment is the source’s. Amendments to amendments and amendments to other bills are not listed.
Official record
The bill’s full text is on Congress.gov. Data through Oct 7, 2026.