House Bill 43
By: Representatives Davis of the 87th, Schofield of the 63rd, Taylor of the 92nd, and Scott of
the 76th
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
To amend Part 1 of Article 3 of Chapter 5 of Title 12 of the Official Code of Georgia
Annotated, relating to general provisions of wells and drinking water, so as to establish the
Disadvantaged Community Drinking Water Assistance Program; to provide for purpose,
requirements, restrictions, and priorities of the program; to provide for definitions; to provide
for related matters; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION 1.
Part 1 of Article 3 of Chapter 5 of Title 12 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated,
relating to general provisions of wells and drinking water, is amended by adding a new Code
section to read as follows:
<ins>"12-5-74.
(a) As used in this Code section, the term:
(1) 'Director' means the director of the Environmental Protection Division of the
Department of Natural Resources.
</ins>
<ins>(2) 'Disadvantaged community' means any census block group in which 30 percent or
more of the population comprises individuals with an annual household income equal to
or less than 200 percent of the federal poverty level.
(3) 'Division' means the Environmental Protection Division of the Department of Natural
Resources.
(b) There is established the Disadvantaged Community Drinking Water Assistance
Program to be administered by the division.
(c) The purpose of the Disadvantaged Community Drinking Water Assistance Program
shall be to provide financial assistance, as shall be appropriated to the division, to
disadvantaged communities that have experienced a significant decline in quantity or
quality of drinking water and to obtain or maintain adequate quantities of water that meets
the standards set by the federal Safe Drinking Water Act, 42 U.S.C. Section 300f, et seq.
(d) Grants provided pursuant to this Code section may be used for the following purposes:
(1) Point of use treatment and point of entry systems;
(2) Wellhead treatment and distributed treatment facilities;
(3) Blending systems in compliance with state regulations;
(4) Costs related to the consolidation of a small rural water system or multiple small rural
water systems with a larger system;
(5) Construction of new water source facilities including wells and connections to
existing systems;
(6) Water distribution facilities;
(7) Water capacity fees, water supply development fees, water connections fees, and
similar fees that are assessed when a new connection is added to an existing public water
system as part of a consolidation;
(8) Assistance to households to connect to water facilities;
(9) Emergency water supplies; and
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<ins>(10) Application and technical assistance costs associated with the activities described
in paragraphs (1) through (9) of this subsection.
(e) In determining priorities for funding projects, the director shall take into consideration:
(1) Disadvantaged communities that are currently operating under notices of violation
for failing to provide potable water that meets primary drinking water standards;
(2) Whether the applicant has the ability to qualify for alternative funding sources that
do not result in water rate increases unable to be absorbed by the residential ratepayers;
(3) Disadvantaged communities deemed vulnerable to water shortage conditions because
the systems serving such disadvantaged communities are located in critically overdrafted
groundwater basins and have only a single water supply source;
(4) Rural disadvantaged communities served by individual, on-site domestic wells that
have documented dry well conditions or contaminated well conditions; and
(5) Public water systems that desire to consolidate with each other, or with a larger urban
system, to increase economies of scale to reduce cost of service and increase the level and
quality of water service delivery.
(f) A grant provided under this Code section shall not be used to fund:
(1) More than 100 percent of the costs for:
(A) Technical assistance and other costs associated with application for assistance
through the Disadvantaged Community Drinking Water Assistance Program;
(B) Initial operating costs incurred to start up, test, and place into service project
facilities or components; and
(C) Capital costs of construction of facilities or components to ensure such facilities
and components are properly operational; or
(2) More than 25 percent of operation and maintenance costs incurred subsequent to
placing the facilities or components into service to ensure service remains efficient and
effective.
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<ins>(g) No more than 25 percent of funds made available in any fiscal year for grants under
this Code section shall be used for operations and maintenance costs."
</ins> SECTION 2.
All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.