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       This new law amends the Solid Waste
 Disposal Act to provide  for a hazardous
 waste regulatory program; a program to
 eliminate open dumping; financial and
 technical assistance for planning enhanced
 solid waste management programs; grants
 to rural communities to improve solid waste
 management systems; and authority for re-
 search, demonstrations, and studies.
 SUBTITLE A:  GENERAL PROVISIONS
      The Act expands the current provi-
sions of the Solid Waste Disposal Act requir-
ing formulation  of  guidelines for  solid
waste recovery to include the publication of
guidelines on alternative solid waste  man-
agement practices. The Administrator is di-
rected to issue these guidelines within one
year of enactment. They will aid the States
and regional authorities  in the develop-
ment of solid waste management plans, es-
pecially  in  regard  to compliance  with
hazardous waste and open dumping con-
trol regulations.  Descriptions of levels of
technical performance, leachate control,
ambient air quality, diseases, safety, and aes-
thetics will be included in similar guidelines
published not later than two years after the
enactment of this section. See section 1008.

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SUBTITLE B: OFFICE OF SOLID WASTE;
            AUTHORITIES OF THE
            ADMINISTRATOR
      The new law establishes an Office of
Solid Waste within the EPA (headed by a
Deputy Assistant Administrator) to oversee
the implementation of the hazardous waste
and open dumping provisions, in addition
to other resource conservation and recovery
programs called for under the Act. This Of-
fice will be the conduit through which tech-
nical and financial assistance will be pro-
vided to  the States and regional  agencies.
The Administrator  is authorized to pre-
scribe, in consultation with Federal, State,
and regional authorities, such regulations as
are necessary to carry out his functions
under this Act. Each regulation promul-
gated under this Act shall be reviewed and,
where necessary, revised not less frequently
than every three years. See section 2002.
Upon request the Administrator will  dis-
patch Panels comprised of Federal, State,
and local employees or contractors to pro-
vide States  and local governments with
technical assistance. See section 2003. The
Administrator will also  make available
grants equal to 5 percent of the purchase
price of tire shredders to private purchasers
and public bodies (owing  to the peculiar
problems of tire disposal  by burial or in
landfill).  See section 2004. The  Adminis-
trator is to transmit by January 1, each year,
a comprehensive and detailed report on all
activities of the Office during the preceding
fiscal year. See section 2005. For the Office's
activities for the 1977 fiscal year, $35 million

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 is authorized, with $38 million for next fiscal
 year, and $42 million for the 1979 fiscal year.
 See section 2006.
 SUBTITLE C:  HAZARDOUS WASTE
             MANAGEMENT
       One of the primary aspects of the Act
 is its new controls over hazardous wastes.
 The law directs the EPA, with  eighteen
 months of enactment, to identify which
 wastes, are hazardous  and in what quan-
 tities, qualities, concentrations, and forms
 of disposal they become a threat to health
 or the environment. The Governor of any
 State may  also petition to have any sub-
 stance so listed  and the  Administrator is
 then given 90 days in which to act on this
 petition. See section 3001. Additionally EPA
 will  be required to issue standards for
 generators and transporters of hazardous
 wastes, respecting  record-keeping,  prac-
tices, labeling, appropriate containers, use
 of a manifest system, and reporting of
 quantities and disposition. Substances listed
 by both the Administrator and the Secretary
of Transportation must be consistent  with
the requirements of the Hazardous Mate-
 rials Transportation Act. See sections 3002
and 3003.
      Most importantly, persons owning or
operating facilities for the treatment and
storage of hazardous wastes are required to
obtain permits within 90 days after identifi-
cation and listing. Permit applications must
 indicate composition, quantities, the rate at
which such wastes are  to be disposed of,
and the location of the disposal site. EPA or
States  (in jurisdictions  having hazardous

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waste programs)  may revoke  permits of
nonconforming users. Interim  authoriza-
tion is granted to anyone who has applied
for a permit. See section 3005.
      Eighteen months after  enactment
the  Administrator  must  also publish
guidelines to enable the States  to develop
approved  hazardous waste  programs.
States with existing programs may receive
interim authorization upon a showing that
their programs are substantially equivalent
to the Federal program (this temporary au-
thorization lasts for two years). The EPA
may withdraw authorization within 90 days
of notice of non-conformities. See section
3006.
      In order for EPA and State officials to
enforce these requirements, the Act au-
thorizes them to inspect facilities, copy rec-
ords, and obtain samples (information ob-
tained will then be made public). See Sec-
tion 3007.
      Compliance provisions of the law will
be enforced through  civil  and criminal
penalties. Civil actions will be commenced in
Federal courts for violations extending be-
yond 30 days for notification, and violators
will carry liability for a penalty of $25,000
for each day of continued non-compliance.
Criminal penalties may be imposed on per-
sons transporting  hazardous wastes with-
out a permit  or  making falsifications  in
labeling and reporting: Penalties of $25,000
per day or imprisonment for not more than
one year authorized. States may not provide
for penalties less than those provided under
the bill. See section 3008 and 3009.

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 SUBTITLE D: STATE OR REGIONAL SOLID
             WASTE PLANS
      The EPA, within six months of enact-
ment, is required to publish guidelines iden-
tifying  areas with  common  solid waste
management  problems and  appropriate
units for planning regional  solid waste
management services. Such guidelines will
consider the size and location of areas  as
well as the volume of solid waste which they
produce. See section 4002(a).
      The Agency will, in addition, prom-
ulgate  within eighteen  months after
enactment, guidelines to aid States in the
development of solid waste management
plans. These guidelines will  be reviewed
frequently and  modified where  necessary.
They will encompass consideration of the
varying  characteristics of individual States,
including quality of groundwaters and am-
bient air, methods of waste collection,
methods for closing and upgrading open
dump, markets for recovered material, and
types of resource recovery systems. See sec-
tion 4002(b) and (c).
      In order for  a State plan  to be ap-
proved,  it must identify responsibilities  of
State, local, regional authorities in carrying
out the plan, show the distribution of Fed-
eral funds, and specify the  strategy for
coordinating regional planning.  Each plan
must also prohibit the establishment of new
open dumps and  require that all  non-
hazardous wastes be either  used for  re-
source recovery or disposed of in sanitary
landfills.  Existing open dumps will be im-
proved or phased-out. Plans will also pro-
vide a basis for such regulatory authority as

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will be required by the States to implement
the program. See section 4003.
      Within one year after enactment, the
EPA will promulgate regulations setting
forth criteria  for  determining which
facilities will be classified as sanitary landfills
and which as open dumps. Open dumps are
prohibited except  in situations where a
compliance schedule  is arrived at pursuant
to an approved State plan. See section 4004.
The Agency, in cooperation with the Bureau
of Census, will then publish an inventory of
all open dumps within the U.S.  See section
4005.
      The Governor  of each State, within
six  months  after   publication of  the
guidelines, will identify areas within each
State which will constitute regional solid
waste management units. Six months later,
each Governor will identify an agency to
implement the State plan. See section
4006(a) and (b). Since it is possible that des-
ignated regions may be interstate in nature,
Governors of neighboring States may agree
upon regional boundaries. Six months after
such regions are identified, agencies will be
established to develop their plans. See sec-
tion 4006(c).
      The EPA has six months to approve or
disapprove of a submitted State plan, but
the Administrator will retain the option of
revising or correcting approved plans from
time to time. Plans which are not revised to
conform to minimum requirements will,
after notice and  opportunity  for  public
hearing,  lose their approval. See section
4007(a).
      EPA can issue grants for the im-
plementation of solid waste management
programs for plan development and im-
plementation. In fiscal year 1978 $30 million
is authorized and $40 million in fiscal 1979

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 for States in the development and  im-
 plementation process. For fiscal 1978 and
 1979  $15 million  is authorized  for "im-
 plementation" grants  available  to  States,
 counties, municipalities and intermunicipal
 agencies,  and State and local public solid
 waste management authorities.
      This can be done to provide assist-
 ance in the form of facility feasibility studies,
 expert consultation, market studies, legal
 expenses and other fiscal or economic inves-
 tigations or studies. The monies cannot be
 used for construction, or acquisition of land.
 See section 4007(b) and (c). Sums will be
 allotted to the States in ratio to population.
      "Special Communities", with  low
 populations and high levels of solid waste
 disposal, will  be identified by the EPA and
 the States and will be eligible for grants to
 be used for conversion, improvement, con-
 solidation or construction of  solid  waste
 disposal facilities. For each of the fiscal years
 1978 and 1979, $2,500,000 is authorized for
 this purpose.  See section 4008.
      For each of the fiscal years 1978 and
 1979,  $25  million  is authorized to provide
 grants for "rural communities" assistance.
 These communities  are  defined  as
 municipalities  with populations of five
 thousand or less, or counties with a popula-
 tion of ten thousand or less, or less than
 twenty persons per square mile  and not
 within a metropolitan area. Grants will be
 used to upgrade solid waste management
facilities and will be apportioned by the EPA
to the States on a population ratio basis. See
 section 4009.
      For each of fiscal years 1978 and 1979,
$25 million is authorized to  the States to
 implement these  hazardous waste  provi-
sions.  See section 3011.

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SUBTITLE E:  DUTIES OF THE SECRETARY
            OF COMMERCE
            IN RESOURCE RECOVERY
            AND CONSERVATION
      This portion of the Act directs the
Secretary of  Commerce to  stimulate
broader commercialization of proven  re-
source recovery technologies by  providing
accurate specifications for recovered mate-
rials, and encouraging the development of
markets for  recovered materials. Working
through the  National Bureau of Standards,
the Secretary of Commerce will within two
years after enactment publish guidelines for
the development of specifications  for the
classification of recovered materials and will
identify the geographical location of exist-
ing or potential markets for recovered ma-
terials. The  Secretary will also be  empo-
wered to evaluate the commercial feasibil-
ity for resource recovery facilities. See sec-
tions 5001-5004.
SUBTITLE F:  FEDERAL RESPONSIBILITIES
      Each Federal agency instrumentality
will be subject to all procedural, as well as
substantive requirements, including those
imposed by State and local jurisdiction. Fed-
eral employees and officers will not be im-
mune from injunctive enforcement of these
requirements. The President, however, may
exempt any solid waste management facil-
ity under the auspices  of the  Executive

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 Branch from compliance with substantive
 and procedural  requirements if he deter-
 mines it to be in the paramount interest of
 the United States to do so. Such an exemp-
 tion may last no longer than one year but
 may be extended  for an additional year
 upon a new determination by the President,
 See section 6001.
       Two years after enactment each Fed-
 eral procurement agency will be required to
 procure only those items composed of the
 highest percentage of recovered materials.
 This provision will apply to all procurement
 items exceeding $10,000 in purchase prices.
 Exemptions from this requirement will be
 provided for procurement items which are
 not available within a reasonable amount
 of time or which fail to  meet reasonable
 performance standards. Agencies now
 generating energy from fossil fuels, or sup-
 plementary fuels, will be  required to exer-
 cise this capacity to the greatest extent pos-
 sible. See section 6002.
      All  Federal agencies  that have  the
 responsibility for drafting or reviewing spe-
 cifications for procurement items procured
 by Federal agencies will be required to de-
termine whether such specifications con-
form with the recovered materials require-
 ment no later than eighteen months after
 enactment. See section 6002.
      This Subtitle also directs the EPA to
 prepare,  and update as  appropriate,
guidelines to aid procuring  agencies in
complying with the recovered materials re-
quirement. Such guidelines will contain in-
formation as to the availability and sources
of supply of such materials. This procure-
ment policy will be coordinated by the Of-
fice of Procurement Policy in the Executive
Office of the President, in cooperation with
the EPA. See section 6002.
      All Federal agencies having functions

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relating to solid or hazardous waste will be
required to cooperate with EPA in imple-
menting this Act and may be required to
provide appropriate resources to EPA upon
its request on a reimbursable basis. See sec-
tion 6003.
      Additionally,  all  Executive agencies
which have jurisdiction over solid waste dis-
posal facilities or  land on which  such
facilities are located must comply with all
guidelines and requirements of the Act. See
section 6004.
SUBTITLE G:  MISCELLANEOUS
             PROVISIONS
      Any employee who has failed  or
caused to be filed any proceeding under this
Act may not be discriminated against  or
fired from his work  on the basis of such
institution of proceedings. Any person who
feels that he/she has been affected in viola-
tion of  this restriction may apply within
thirty days to the Secretary of Labor for a
review of the incident. A "clean hands" ex-
ception is included here, however, providing
that no  employee who, acting without di-
rection from his employer, deliberately vio-
lates any requirement of the Act may come
under the  protection of this section. See
section 7001.
      Any person  may also commence  a
citizen suit against any person  (including
the U.S. government) who is alleged to be
in violation of any permit, standard, or regu-
lation under the Act or against the Adminis-
trator for alleged failure to perform any
duty under the Act which is not discretion-
ary. Plaintiff is required to  give sixty days

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 notice of the violation to the Administrator,
 to the State in which the alleged violation
 occurred, and to any alledged violator. If not
 included as a party, the Administrator may
 intervene in the suit as a matter of right. See
 section 7002.
       The Administrator may bring suit to
 enjoin  any handling, storage,  treatment,
 transportation, or disposal  of any solid or
 hazardous waste  which is presenting an
 imminent hazard  to public health  or the
 environment. See section 7003. Any  person
 may also petition the Administrator for the
 promulgation, amendment, or repeal  of
 any regulation under the Act. The Adminis-
 trator is charged with developing minimum
 guidelines for public participation in  the re-
 vision, implementation, and enforcement
 of any regulation under the Act. See section
 7004. Should any portion of the Act be in-
 validated, the unaffected portion of the law
 will remain valid. See section 7005. The Act
 also provides for judicial  review of final reg-
 ulations in the  United States Court of Ap-
 peals for the District of  Columbia. See sec-
 tion 7006.
      EPA is authorized to make grants to
 and  contracts with eligible  organizations
 (agencies or groups which are deemed  ca-
 pable of carrying out a project) for training
 supervisory personnel for solid  waste dis-
 posal and resource recovery facilities; and
 the Administrator is directed to investigate
 and study the need for  additional trained
 State  and local  personnel necessary to im-
 plement the Act. See section 7007. No such
 grant may  be made to any private profit-
 making organization.  See section  7008.
 Also, no grant will be made unless the appli-
 cant organization adheres to  prevailing
 labor standards in wages and rates (as de-
termined by the Secretary of Labor).  See
section 7009.

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SUBTITLE H: RESEARCH, DEVELOPMENT,
            DEMONSTRATION AND
            INFORMATION
      After consultation with  EPA and
ERDA, EPA  will conduct  and encourage
studies  and research on  financing  solid
waste programs, health  effects of  solid
waste disposal, marketing  of recovered re-
sources, production  of fuel  from  solid
waste, collection  of solid  waste, resource
recovery source separation systems,  land
disposal practices, sludge, hazardous waste
and the effect  of burning solid waste on air
quality. See section 8001.
      EPA will also assist and  demonstrate
research projects  and pilot systems devel-
oped without  Federal assistance. Energy-
related  projects will  be carried out in ac-
cordance with the May 7,1976 Interagency
Agreement  between EPA  and ERDA  (they
will be conducted jointly, following which
project responsibility will be assigned to one
agency). ERDA will retain responsibility for
energy-related portions of projects for re-
covery of synthetic fuels and EPA  will as-
sume responsibility for the environmental,
economic, and institutional aspects  of solid
waste projects. The EPA will be allowed to
detail agency  personnel to the instrumen-
talities eligible for assistance under this sec-
tion. See section 8001.
      The Agency will study and  publish
reports on glass and plastic waste, and will
anticipate future changes in composition of
the waste stream. EPA will likewise study
small-scale and low technology systems,
front-end source  separation  technologies

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 mining wastes, sludge, discarded tires, the
 economics of resource recovery facility
 development, and the hazards of bird con-
 gregations near landfills. The Administrator
 will also serve as Chairman of a Resource
 Conservation Committee (comprised of var-
 ious agency heads) which will study re-
 source  conservation with  respect  to eco-
 nomic  incentives and  disincentives and
 product changes. To carry out the Commit-
 tee's effort $2 million is authorized and $8
 million  is authorized in fiscal years 1978 and
 1979 to finance  the  studies.  See  section
 8002.
      EPA will also collect, develop, and
 evaluate information on costs of waste col-
 lection, waste  management practices, re-
 covery of energy from waste, waste reduc-
 tion, new technologies for  resource  re-
 covery,  hazardous waste control, sanitary
 landfills, markets for  recovered materials,
 and research and development projects in-
 volving  solid waste. The Administrator will,
 in addition, establish  a Central  Reference
 Library  for information dealing with these
 concerns and  for collection of model  ac-
 counting systems. The Agency will develop a
 recommended model cost and revenue ac-
 counting- system  applicable to the  solid
 waste management programs of State and
 local governments  and will also publish
 model  codes for use by State  and  local
 agencies. This subtitle further provides that
 no representative of EPA may, in an official
 capacity, lobby for resource recovery or re-
 source conservation as a policy  alternative
 for enactment by State and local govern-
 ments. See section 8003.
      EPA is given authority to enter into
 contracts with public agencies or with pri-
vate persons for construction and operation
of full-scale demonstration facilities or pro-
vide financial assistance in the form  of

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 grants for new or improved technologies.
 EPA may make no obligation with respectto
 this provision after ten years from enact-
 ment nor may it make any expenditure of
 funds for this section more than 14 years
 after enactment. An attempt will be made
 under this provision for cost sharing with all
 State and local persons  and instrumen-
 talities involved. See section 8004.
      The Agency will also conduct-special
 studies  on markets  for energy  recovered
 from solid waste, methods of disposal which
 will conserve energy, the use of Federal pro-
 curement to develop market demand,-rec-
 ommended  economic  incentives,  agricul-
 tural waste management and'rriih'intj, and
 the effect of Barriers to acquis7tTpn"of dis-
•posal sites. It maythen-irnplerneriFclernon-
 stration projects to test study finding's. See
 section 8005.   "•    - :-:"..:-;-\    """"
                                 /uo-1456
                                'SW-564

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