§ 1632 — Safe Water And Sanitary Waste Disposal Facilities

(a) The Congress hereby finds and declares that— (1) the provision of safe water supply systems and sanitary sewage and solid waste disposal systems is primarily a health consideration and function; (2) Indian people suffer an inordinately high incidence of disease, injury, and illness directly attributable to the absence or inadequacy of such systems; (3) the long-term cost to the United States of treating and curing such disease, injury, and illness is substantially greater than the short-term cost of providing such systems and other preventive health measures; (4) many Indian homes and communities still lack safe water supply systems and sanitary sewage and solid waste disposal systems; and (5) it is in the interest of the United States, and it is the policy of the United States, that all Indian communities and Indian homes, new and existing, be provided with safe and adequate water supply systems and sanitary sewage waste disposal systems as soon as possible. (1) In furtherance of the findings and declarations made in subsection (a), Congress reaffirms the primary responsibility and authority of the Service to provide the necessary sanitation facilities and services as provided in section 2004a of title 42. (2) The Secretary, acting through the Service, is authorized to provide under section 2004a of title 42— (A) financial and technical assistance to Indian tribes and communities in the establishment, training, and equipping of utility organizations to operate and maintain Indian sanitation facilities; (B) ongoing technical assistance and training in the management of utility organizations which operate and maintain sanitation facilities; and (C) operation and maintenance assistance for, and emergency repairs to, tribal sanitation facilities when necessary to avoid a health hazard or to protect the Federal investment in sanitation facilities. (3) Notwithstanding any other provision of law— (A) the Secretary of Housing and Urban Affairs is authorized to transfer funds appropriated under the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5301, et seq.) to the Secretary of Health and Human Services, and (B) the Secretary of Health and Human Services is authorized to accept and use such funds for the purpose of providing sanitation facilities and services for Indians under section 2004a of title 42. (c) Beginning in fiscal year 1990, the Secretary, acting through the Service, shall develop and begin implementation of a 10-year plan to provide safe water supply and sanitation sewage and solid waste disposal facilities to existing Indian homes and communities and to new and renovated Indian homes. (d) The financial and technical capability of an Indian tribe or community to safely operate and maintain a sanitation facility shall not be a prerequisite to the provision or construction of sanitation facilities by the Secretary. (1) The Secretary is authorized to provide financial assistance to Indian tribes and communities in an amount equal to the Federal share of the costs of operating, managing, and maintaining the facilities provided under the plan described in subsection (c). (2) For the purposes of paragraph (1), the term “Federal share” means 80 percent of the costs described in paragraph (1). (3) With respect to Indian tribes with fewer than 1,000 enrolled members, the non-Federal portion of the costs of operating, managing, and maintaining such facilities may be provided, in part, through cash donations or in kind property, fairly evaluated. (f) Programs administered by Indian tribes or tribal organizations under the authority of the Indian Self-Determination Act [25 U.S.C. 5321 et seq.] shall be eligible for— (1) any funds appropriated pursuant to this section, and (2) any funds appropriated for the purpose of providing water supply or sewage disposal services, (1) The Secretary shall submit to the President, for inclusion in each report required to be transmitted to the Congress under section 1671 of this title, a report which sets forth— (A) the current Indian sanitation facility priority system of the Service; (B) the methodology for determining sanitation deficiencies; (C) the level of sanitation deficiency for each sanitation facilities project of each Indian tribe or community; (D) the amount of funds necessary to raise all Indian tribes and communities to a level I sanitation deficiency; and (E) the amount of funds necessary to raise all Indian tribes and communities to zero sanitation deficiency. (2) In preparing each report required under paragraph (1) (other than the initial report), the Secretary shall consult with Indian tribes and tribal organizations (including those tribes or tribal organizations operating health care programs or facilities under any contract entered into with the Service under the Indian Self-Determination Act [25 U.S.C. 5321 et seq.]) to determine the sanitation needs of each tribe. (3) The methodology used by the Secretary in determining sanitation deficiencies for purposes of paragraph (1) shall be applied uniformly to all Indian tribes and communities. (4) For purposes of this subsection, the sanitation deficiency levels for an Indian tribe or community are as follows: (A) level I is an Indian tribe or community with a sanitation system— (i) which complies with all applicable water supply and pollution control laws, and (ii) in which the deficiencies relate to routine replacement, repair, or maintenance needs; (B) level II is an Indian tribe or community with a sanitation system— (i) which complies with all applicable water supply and pollution control laws, and (ii) in which the deficiencies relate to capital improvements that are necessary to improve the facilities in order to meet the needs of such tribe or community for domestic sanitation facilities; (C) level III is an Indian tribe or community with a sanitation system which— (i) has an inadequate or partial water supply and a sewage disposal facility that does not comply with applicable water supply and pollution control laws, or (ii) has no solid waste disposal facility; (D) level IV is an Indian tribe or community with a sanitation system which lacks either a safe water supply system or a sewage disposal system; and (E) level V is an Indian tribe or community that lacks a safe water supply and a sewage disposal system. (5) For purposes of this subsection, any Indian tribe or community that lacks the operation and maintenance capability to enable its sanitation system to meet pollution control laws may not be treated as having a level I or II sanitation deficiency.