H.R. 4136: Beach Act of 2015
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H.R. 4136: Beach Act of 2015
114th Congress · introduced 2015-11-30 · Environmental Protection · Latest: Referred to the Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment.
federal
Follow this bill, step by step
- Where it came from: introduced 2015-11-30 · official record
- Who proposed it: Rep. Pallone, Frank, Jr. [D-NJ-6] · what a sponsor is
- What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
- Where it stands now: Referred to the Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
- If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.
Official title
Beach Act of 2015
Plain summary
Beach Act of 2015 This bill amends the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly known as the Clean Water Act) to revise and reauthorize through FY2020 a grant program for monitoring, and notifying the public of, any pathogens in coastal recreation waters bordering public beaches. The bill reauthorizes through FY2018 the Beaches Environmental Assessment and Coastal Health Act of 2000. The bill establishes requirements with respect to: (1) using rapid testing methods to detect unsafe levels of pathogens or pathogen indicators in those waters, and (2) notifying governmental agencies when pathogens exceed water quality standards. Those methods must provide testing results within four hours of receiving a sample. Communication with governments must occur within two hours of the receipt of the results of water quality samples. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) must assess state and local compliance with coastal recreation water quality monitoring and notification legal requirements and grant conditions. The bill limits federal support of grants to non-compliant state or local governments. The Government Accountability Office must review the EPA's compliance assessments and corrective actions. States with coastal recreation waters must adopt the most protective water quality criteria and standards practicable for pathogens. The EPA must: (1) update the national list of beaches that are used by the public regardless of the presence of a lifeguard within 12 months and biennially thereafter (currently, periodically); (2) study the long-term impact of climate change on pathogenic contamination of coastal recreation waters; and (3) study the impacts of excess nutrients on coastal recreation waters.
Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.
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How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes
Officials and money
Sponsor: Rep. Pallone, Frank, Jr. [D-NJ-6] · 1 cosponsors
Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.
Cosponsors on this site
Sponsor's campaign money: Rep. Pallone, Frank, Jr. [D-NJ-6] reported raising $2.8 million (2025–2026). Details. Shown for context only; it does not mean any donor supported this bill.
No linked floor roll calls in our collected records yet. This does not mean the bill has never had a vote. Check the official bill history.
Words on this page, explained (1)
- Bill
- A proposed law. It becomes law only if it passes the legislature and is signed by the president or governor (or a veto is overridden).
Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.
Sources
- Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House)
- Congress.gov
- Data: GovInfo BILLSTATUS bulk data (Library of Congress), BILLSTATUS-114hr4136.xml <https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/114/hr>
Record fed-us-cong114-hr4136 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong114 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong114