Senate Bill No. 434
(By Senator Helmick)
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[Introduced January 28, 2002; referred to the Committee
on Government Organization.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact section two, article thirteen-c,
chapter sixteen of the code of West Virginia, one thousand
nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to the
drinking water treatment revolving fund act; and
eliminating the membership requirement for nonprofit
organizations contracting with the department of health to
provide technical assistance to small drinking water
systems.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section two, article thirteen-c, chapter sixteen of the
code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as
amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 13C. DRINKING WATER TREATMENT REVOLVING FUND ACT.
§16-13C-2. Designation of division of health as state instrumentality; rules; small systems;
disadvantaged communities.
(a) The division of health shall act as the instrumentality
that is hereby empowered to enter into capitalization agreements
with the United States Environmental Protection Agency, to
accept capitalization grant awards made under the federal safe
drinking water act, and to direct the administration and
management of the drinking water treatment revolving fund
created in this article in accordance with the requirements of
federal law.
(b) The division of health shall propose rules for
legislative approval in accordance with provisions of article
three, chapter twenty-nine-a of the code for the purpose of
effecting the administration of the provisions of this article.
The rules shall include, but are not limited to, establishing
requirements for: (1) Capacity development; (2) environmental
review; (3) disadvantaged community designation; (4) receipt and
disbursement of fund moneys; and (5) establishment of a drinking
water treatment revolving fund program to direct the financial
management of the fund to water systems and establish the
interest rates and repayment terms of the loans.
(c) Two percent of the annual federal capitalization grants
made to this state shall be utilized to provide technical assistance services for small systems to assist those systems in
maintaining compliance with the federal safe drinking water act.
The division of health shall enter into contracts to provide
technical assistance services for small systems with such
nonprofit organizations that (1) Have a membership that
represent at least twenty-five percent of the small systems of
this state; and (2) have at least five years experience in
providing on-site technical assistance to small systems.
(d) The division of health shall, in accordance with the
provisions of the federal safe drinking water act, establish a
program for loan subsidies to disadvantaged communities. Thirty
percent of the annual federal capitalization grants made to this
state shall be dedicated to the funding of projects for
disadvantaged communities.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to eliminate the
membership requirements for nonprofit organizations that
contract with the department of health to provide technical
assistance to small drinking water systems.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken
from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language
that would be added.