852 



this title as If sucli requirement was part of a na- 

 tional primary drinking water regulation. 



(4) Each schedule prescribed by a State pursuant 

 to this subsection shall be deemed approved by the 

 Administrator unless the exemption for which it wae 

 prescribed is revoked by the Administrator under 

 subsection fd) (2) of this section or the schedule Is 

 revised by the Administrator under such subsection. 



(c) Notice to Administrator; reasons for exemption. 



Each State which grants an exemption under sub- 

 section (a) of this section shall promptly notify the 

 Administrator of the granting of such exemption. 

 Such notification shall contain the reasons for the 

 exemption (including the basis for the finding re- 

 quired by subsection (a) (3) of this section before the 

 exemption may be granted) and document the need 

 for the exemption. 



(d) Review of exemptions and schedules; publication 

 in Federal Register, notice and results of review; 

 notice to State; considerations respecting abuse 

 of discretion in granting exemptions or failing t« 

 prescribe schedules; State corrective action. 



(1) Not later than 18 months after the effective 

 date of the interim national primary drinking water 

 regulations the Administrator shall complete a com- 

 prehensive review of the exemptions granted (and 

 schedules prescribed pursuant thereto) by the States 

 during the one-year period beginning on such effec- 

 tive date. The Administrator shall conduct such sub- 

 sequent reviews of exemptions and schedules as he 

 deems necessary to carry out the purposes of this 

 subchapter, but each subsequent review shall be com- 

 pleted within each 3-year period following the com- 

 pletion of the first review under this subparagraph. 

 Before conducting any review under this subpara- 

 graph, the Administrator shall publish notice of the 

 proposed review in the Federal Register. Such notice 

 shall (A) provide information respecting the loca- 

 tion of data and other Information respecting the ex- 

 emptions to be reviewed (including data and other 

 information concerning new scientific matters bear- 

 ing on such exemptions), and (B) advise of the op- 

 portunity to submit comments on the exemptions re- 

 viewed and on the need for continuing them. Upon 

 completion of any such review, the Administrator 

 shall publish In the Federal Register the results of 

 his review, together with findings responsive to com- 

 ments submitted In connection with such review. 



(2) (A) If the Administrator finds that a State 

 haa. In a substantial number of Instances, abused Its 

 discretion In granting exemptions under subsection 

 (a) of this section or failed to prescribe schedules in 

 accordance with subsection (b) of this section, the 

 Administrator shall notify the State of his finding. 

 In determining If a State has abused its discretion in 

 granting exemptions In a substantial number of In- 

 stances, the Administrator shall consider the number 

 of persons who are affected by the exemptions and 

 if the requirements applicable to the granting of the 

 exemptions were complied with. A notice under this 

 subparagraph shall — 



(I) identify each exempt public water system 

 with respect to which the finding was made, 



(II) specify the reasons for the finding, and 



(111) as appropriate, propose revocations of spe- 

 ciflc exemptions or propose revised schedules for 

 specific exempt public water systems, or both. 



(B) The Administrator shall provide reasonable 

 notice and public hearing on the provisions of each 

 notice given pursuant to subparagraph (A) . After a 

 hearing on a notice pursuant to subparagraph (A), 

 the Administrator shall (i) rescind the finding foi^ 

 which the notice wus given and promptly notify the 

 State of such rescission, or (il) promulgate (with 

 such modifications as he deems appropriate) such ex- 

 emption revocations and revised schedules proposed 

 in such notice as be deems appropriate. Not later 

 than 180 days after the date notice is given pursuant 

 to subparagraph (A) , the Administrator shall com- 

 plete the hearing on the notice and take the action 

 required by the preceding sentence. 



(C) If a Stat« is notified under subparagraph (A) 

 of a finding of the Administrator made with respect 

 to an exemption granted a public water system with- 

 in that State or to a schedule prescribed pursuant to 

 such an exemption and if before a revocation of such 

 exemption or a revision of such schedule promul- 

 gated by the Administrator takes effect the State 

 takes corrective action with respect to such exemp- 

 tion or schedule which the Administrator deter- 

 mines makes his finding inapplicable to such exemp- 

 tion or schedule, the Administrator shall rescind the 

 application of his finding to that exemption or 

 schedule. No exemption revocation or revised sched- 

 ule may take effect before the expiration of 90 days 

 following the date of the notice in which the revoca- 

 tion or revised schedule was proposed. * 



(e) "Treatment technique requirement" defined. 



For purposes of this section, the term "treatment 

 technique requirement" means a requirement In a 

 national primary drinking water regulation which 

 specifies for a contaminant (in accordance with sec- 

 tion 300fil)<C)(il) of this title) each ti-eatment 

 technique known to the Administrator which leads 

 to a reduction in the level of such contaminant suffi- 

 cient to satisfy the requirements of section 300g-l 

 (b)(3) of this title. 



(f) Authority of Administrator in a State without 

 primary enforcement responsibility. 



If a State does not have primary enforcement re- 

 sponsibility for public water systems, the Adminis- 

 trator shall have the same authority to exempt pub- 

 lic water systems in such State from maximum con- 

 taminant level requirements and treatment tech- 

 nique requirements under the same conditions and 

 in the same manner as the State would be author- 

 ized to grant exemptions under this section if it had 

 primary enforcement responsibiUty. 



(g) Applications for exemptions; regulations: reason- 

 able time for acting. 



If an application for an exemption under this sec- 

 tion is made, the State receiving the application or 

 the Administrator, as the case may be, shall act upon 

 such application within a reasonable period *as de- 

 termined under regulations prescribed by the Ad- 

 ministrator) after the date of its submission. (July 1, 



