S. 347 · On the floor · Environmental Protection

Brownfields Reauthorization Act of 2025

Sponsor: Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV)

What it does

• Extends the EPA Brownfields Program through fiscal year 2030 and modifies it.
• Expands eligibility for program resources to tax-exempt 501(c)(6) organizations such as chambers of commerce.
• Raises the maximum remediation grant to $1 million per site, removes the 5% cap on administrative costs, and cuts the cost-sharing requirement from 20% to 10%.
• Requires the EPA to waive cost sharing for recipients in small communities or disadvantaged areas and allows states and tribes to use grants to implement response programs.
• Adds to grant ranking criteria whether the applicant plans to engage a diverse set of local groups representing community views.

Official summary

Brownfields Reauthorization Act of 2025 This bill extends through FY2030 and modifies the Brownfields Program under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA). The Brownfields Program is administered by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to provide grants and technical assistance to states, communities, tribes, and other entities to assess, clean up, and reuse contaminated properties. First, the bill expands eligibility for Brownfields Program resources to tax-exempt organizations defined under section 501(c)(6) of the Internal Revenue Code, which are organizations that are not organized for profit and do not provide net earnings to private shareholders or individuals (e.g., chambers of commerce). Additionally, the bill increases to $1 million the maximum grant amount that the EPA may provide for brownfield remediation per site, removes the 5% cap that a grant recipient may use for administrative costs, reduces the cost-sharing requirement for grant recipients from 20% to 10%, requires the EPA to waive cost-sharing requirements for grant recipients located in small communities or disadvantaged areas, authorizes the use of…

Latest action

Feb 5, 2025: Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 6.

Committee: Senate Environment and Public Works