United States 118th Congress Status: Died 1 D cosponsors

HR 5373 — Increasing Penalties for Offshore Polluters Act

Last action — Referred to the Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment.

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  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. ✓
    In Committee
  3. Died in session

This bill died with 118th Congress. It reached “In Committee” and never advanced before the session ended, so it can no longer move — a new version would have to be reintroduced in the current session.

This bill is no longer active — its legislative session has ended, so there is no live prognosis. It would have to be reintroduced in the current session to move again.

Summary

To amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to increase the civil and criminal penalties for oil spills, and for other purposes.

Bill Text

Sections of law this bill changes

2 sections in 1 law

From the bill's own amending language, matched to the official United States Code (current through Public Law 119-124).

Water pollution prevention and control · 33 U.S.C. ch. 26 2 sections
  • § 1319 Enforcement Amends

    33 U.S.C. § 1319 — at 1319(c)

    The law today

    (a) State enforcement; compliance orders (1) Whenever, on the basis of any information available to him, the Administrator finds that any person is in violation of any condition or limitation which implements section 1311, 1312, 1316, 1317, 1318, 1328, or 1345 of this title in a permit issued by a State under an approved permit program under section 1342 or 1344 of this title he shall proceed under his authority in paragraph (3) of this subsection or he shall notify the person in alleged violation and such State of such finding. If beyond the thirtieth day after the Administrator’s notification the State has not commenced appropriate enforcement action, the Administrator shall issue an order requiring such person to comply with such condition or limitation or shall bring a civil action in accordance with subsection (b) of this section. (2) Whenever, on the basis of information available to him, the Administrator finds that violations of permit conditions or limitations as set forth in paragraph (1) of this subsection are so widespread that such violations appear to result from a failure of the State to enforce such permit conditions or limitations effectively, he shall so notify the State. If the Administrator finds such failure extends beyond the thirtieth day after such notice, he shall give public notice of such finding. During the period beginning with such public notice and ending when such State satisfies the Administrator that it will enforce such conditions and limitations (hereafter referred to in this section as the period of “federally assumed enforcement”), except where an extension has been granted under paragraph (5)(B) of this subsection, the Administrator shall enforce any permit condition or limitation with respect to any person— (A) by issuing an order to comply with such condition or limitation, or (B) by bringing a civil action under subsection (b) of this section. (3) Whenever on the basis of any information available to him the Administrator finds that any person is in violation of section 1311, 1312, 1316, 1317, 1318, 1322(p), 1328, or 1345 of this title, or is in violation of any permit condition or limitation implementing any of such sections in a permit issued under section 1342 of this title by him or by a State or in a permit issued under section 1344 of this title by a State, he shall issue an order requiring such person to comply with such section or requirement, or he shall bring a civil action in accordance with subsection (b) of this section. (4) A copy of any order issued under this subsection shall be sent immediately by the Administrator to the State in which the violation occurs and other affected States. In any case in which an order under this subsection (or notice to a violator under paragraph (1) of this subsection) is issued to a corporation, a copy of such order (or notice) shall be served on any appropriate corporate officers. An order issued under this subsection relating to a violation of section 1318 of this title shall not take effect until the person to whom it is issued has had an opportunity to confer with the Administrator concerning the alleged violation. (5) (A) Any order issued under this subsection shall be by personal service, shall state with reasonable specificity the nature of the violation, and shall specify a time for compliance not to exceed thirty days in the case of a violation of an interim compliance schedule or operation and maintenance requirement and not to exceed a time the Administrator determines to be reasonable in the case of a violation of a final deadline, taking into account the seriousness of the violation and any good faith efforts to comply with applicable requirements. (B) The Administrator may, if he determines (i) that any person who is a violator of, or any person who is otherwise not in compliance with, the time requirements under this chapter or in any permit issued under this chapter, has acted in good faith, and has made a commitment (i...

    11 other bills also change this section · Follow it → Official text at uscode.house.gov ↗

  • § 1321 Oil and hazardous substance liability Amends

    33 U.S.C. § 1321 — at 1321(b)(7)

    The law today

    (a) Definitions For the purpose of this section, the term— (1) “oil” means oil of any kind or in any form, including, but not limited to, petroleum, fuel oil, sludge, oil refuse, and oil mixed with wastes other than dredged spoil; (2) “discharge” includes, but is not limited to, any spilling, leaking, pumping, pouring, emitting, emptying or dumping, but excludes (A) discharges in compliance with a permit under section 1342 of this title, (B) discharges resulting from circumstances identified and reviewed and made a part of the public record with respect to a permit issued or modified under section 1342 of this title, and subject to a condition in such permit,,1 (C) continuous or anticipated intermittent discharges from a point source, identified in a permit or permit application under section 1342 of this title, which are caused by events occurring within the scope of relevant operating or treatment systems, and (D) discharges incidental to mechanical removal authorized by the President under subsection (c) of this section; (3) “vessel” means every description of watercraft or other artificial contrivance used, or capable of being used, as a means of transportation on water other than a public vessel; (4) “public vessel” means a vessel owned or bareboat-chartered and operated by the United States, or by a State or political subdivision thereof, or by a foreign nation, except when such vessel is engaged in commerce; (5) “United States” means the States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, American Samoa, the Virgin Islands, and the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands; (6) “owner or operator” means (A) in the case of a vessel, any person owning, operating, or chartering by demise, such vessel, and (B) in the case of an onshore facility, and an offshore facility, any person owning or operating such onshore facility or offshore facility, and (C) in the case of any abandoned offshore facility, the person who owned or operated such facility immediately prior to such abandonment; (7) “person” includes an individual, firm, corporation, association, and a partnership; (8) “remove” or “removal” refers to containment and removal of the oil or hazardous substances from the water and shorelines or the taking of such other actions as may be necessary to prevent, minimize, or mitigate damage to the public health or welfare, including, but not limited to, fish, shellfish, wildlife, and public and private property, shorelines, and beaches; (9) “contiguous zone” means the entire zone established or to be established by the United States under article 24 of the Convention on the Territorial Sea and the Contiguous Zone; (10) “onshore facility” means any facility (including, but not limited to, motor vehicles and rolling stock) of any kind located in, on, or under, any land within the United States other than submerged land; (11) “offshore facility” means any facility of any kind located in, on, or under, any of the navigable waters of the United States, any facility of any kind which is subject to the jurisdiction of the United States and is located in, on, or under any other waters, other than a vessel or a public vessel, and, for the purposes of applying subsections (b), (c), (e), and (o), any foreign offshore unit (as defined in section 1001 of the Oil Pollution Act 2) or any other facility located seaward of the exclusive economic zone; (12) “act of God” means an act occasioned by an unanticipated grave natural disaster; (13) “barrel” means 42 United States gallons at 60 degrees Fahrenheit; (14) “hazardous substance” means any substance designated pursuant to subsection (b)(2) of this section; (15) “inland oil barge” means a non-self-propelled vessel carrying oil in bulk as cargo and certificated to operate only in the inland waters of the United States, while operating in such waters; (16) “inland waters of the United States” means those waters of the United...

    23 other bills also change this section · Follow it → Official text at uscode.house.gov ↗

How this bill changes current law

13 changes Share ↗

Compared against current U.S. Code AI-generated reading aid — verify against the official bill.

The bill increases civil and criminal penalties for oil spills under the Federal Water Pollution Control Act.

  • 33 U.S.C. 1321(b)(7)

    an amount up to → an amount that is at least

    This change raises the minimum penalties for oil spills.

  • 33 U.S.C. 1321(b)(7)

    not more than → at least

    This change ensures that minimum penalties cannot go below a certain amount.

  • 33 U.S.C. 1319(c)

    $2,500 → $5,000

    This change doubles the minimum fine for certain violations.

  • 33 U.S.C. 1319(c)

    $25,000 → $50,000

    This change doubles the minimum fine for higher level violations.

  • 33 U.S.C. 1319(c)

    not more than 1 year → not more than 2 years

    This change increases the maximum imprisonment duration for certain violations.

  • 33 U.S.C. 1319(c)

    punishment shall be by a fine of not more than $50,000 per day of violation, or by imprisonment of not more than 2 years, or by both → the maximum punishment shall be doubled with respect to both fine and imprisonment

    This change significantly increases the potential penalties for violations.

  • 33 U.S.C. 1319(c)

    not less that $5,000 → not less than $10,000

    This change raises the minimum fine for a second set of violations.

  • 33 U.S.C. 1319(c)

    $50,000 → $100,000

    This change doubles the fine for a higher level of violations.

  • 33 U.S.C. 1319(c)

    not more than 3 years → not more than 6 years

    This change extends the maximum prison time for certain violations.

  • 33 U.S.C. 1319(c)

    punishment shall be by a fine of not more than $100,000 per day of violation, or imprisonment of not more than 6 years, or by both → the maximum punishment shall be doubled with respect to both fine and imprisonment

    This change significantly raises both fines and imprisonment terms for repeated violations.

  • 33 U.S.C. 1319(c)

    $250,000 → $500,000

    This change doubles the maximum fine for highest level violations.

  • 33 U.S.C. 1319(c)

    not more than 15 years → not more than 30 years

    This change increases the maximum prison sentence for severe violations.

  • 33 U.S.C. 1319(c)

    $1,000,000 → $2,000,000

    This change doubles the maximum penalty amount for the most severe violations.

Action History

  1. Referred to the Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment.

  2. Introduced in House

  3. Introduced in House

  4. Referred to the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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1 sponsors · 0 co-sponsors · 546 not signed on

Sponsors (1)

Co-sponsors (0)

None.

Not signed on (546)

546 members have not signed on to this bill.

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"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Subjects

environment
Cross-referencing the record. Reading this bill against every other bill in the corpus by meaning, not keywords. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Matching · Ranking · Engrossing

Frequently asked questions

What does HR 5373 do?
To amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to increase the civil and criminal penalties for oil spills, and for other purposes.
Who sponsors HR 5373?
HR 5373 is sponsored by Lieu, Ted (Democratic).
What is the current status of HR 5373?
This bill died with 118th Congress. It reached “In Committee” and never advanced before the session ended, so it can no longer move — a new version would have to be reintroduced in the current session.
Where can I track HR 5373?
Track HR 5373 free on One Click Politics — get push/email alerts when it moves.

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