House Bill 1442-First Edition

GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA

SESSION 2009

H 1

HOUSE BILL 1442

Short Title: Protect Private Drinking Well Users' Health.		(Public)
Sponsors:	Representatives Harrison, Justice, Blue, Glazier (Primary Sponsors); Bryant, Cotham, Fisher, Goodwin, Hall, Hughes, Insko, Jones, Lucas, Luebke, Mackey, Weiss, and Wray.
Referred to:	Health, if favorable, Environment and Natural Resources, if favorable, Appropriations.

April 13, 2009

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT to protect public health and water quality for residents of the state who receive drinking water from private drinking water wells or improved springs.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

SECTION 1. Chapter 130A of the General Statutes is amended by adding a new Article to read:

"Article 10A.

"Protection of Private Drinking Water Wells and Improved Springs.

"§ 130A-330.1. Purpose.

The purpose of this Article is to ensure the safety and quality of potable water from private drinking water wells and improved springs in the State.

"§ 130A-330.2. Definitions.

As used in this Article:

(1) 'Certified laboratory' has the same meaning as in G.S. 130A-313.

(2) 'Contaminant' has the same meaning as in G.S. 130A-313.

(3) 'Department' means the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.

(4) 'Drinking water rules' has the same meaning as in G.S. 130A-313.

(5) 'Fund' means the Bernard Allen Memorial Emergency Drinking Water Fund established by G.S. 87-98.

(6) 'Groundwater standards' means water quality standards for groundwater adopted by the Environmental Management Commission pursuant to G.S. 143-214.1.

(7) 'Improved spring' means a natural release of groundwater to the surface without the assistance of a pump that has been protected by casing, grouting, and sealing, as required by Article 7 of Chapter 87 of the General Statutes.

(8) 'Owner' means each person who has a recorded present or future interest in real estate and each person who is named in a real estate contract except that 'owner' does not mean or include the trustee in a deed of trust, or the owner or holder of a mortgage, deed of trust, mechanic's or materialman's lien, or other lien or security interest in the real property, or the owner of any easement or license encumbering the real property.

(9) 'Private drinking water well' has the same meaning as in G.S. 87-85.

(10) 'Purchaser' means each person or entity named as 'buyer' or 'purchaser' in a real estate contract.

(11) 'Real estate contract' means a contract for the transfer of ownership of real property.

(12) 'Real property' means a lot, tract, or parcel of land, and any business dwelling unit located thereon that is described in a real estate contract.

(13) 'Transfer' means the transfer, sale, exchange, installment land sales contract, option, or lease with option to purchase of real estate property.

(14) 'Water test' means a test of drinking water conducted in accordance with G.S. 130A-330.4 and rules adopted by the Commission pursuant to this Article.

(15) 'Well user' means a person or group of persons residing in the same dwelling unit or working at the same business at which drinking water is supplied from a private drinking water well or improved spring.

"§ 130A-330.3. Scope of the Article.

The provisions of this Article shall apply to all transfers of real property in the State unless the transfer occurs under one of the following conditions:

(1) Transfers pursuant to court order, including transfers ordered by a court in administration of an estate, transfers pursuant to a writ of execution, transfers by foreclosure sale, transfers by a trustee in bankruptcy, transfers by eminent domain, and transfers resulting from a decree for specific performance.

(2) Transfers to a beneficiary from the grantor or his successor in interest in a deed of trust, or to a mortgagee from the mortgagor or his successor in interest in a mortgage, if the indebtedness is in default; transfers by a trustee under a deed of trust or a mortgagee under a mortgage, if the indebtedness is in default; transfers by a trustee under a deed of trust or a mortgagee under a mortgage pursuant to a foreclosure sale; or transfers by a beneficiary under a deed of trust who has acquired the real property at a sale conducted pursuant to a foreclosure sale under a deed of trust.

(3) Transfers by a fiduciary in the course of the administration of a decedent's estate, guardianship, conservatorship, or trust.

(4) Transfers from one or more co-owners solely to one or more other co-owners.

(5) Transfers made solely to a spouse or a person or persons in the lineal line of consanguinity of one or more transferors.

(6) Transfers between spouses resulting from a decree of divorce or a distribution pursuant to Chapter 50 of the General Statutes or comparable provision of another state.

(7) Transfers made by virtue of the record owner's failure to pay any federal, State, or local taxes.

(8) Transfers to or from the State or any political subdivision of the State.

"§ 130A-330.4. Water testing criteria and procedures.

(a) The Commission shall establish criteria and procedures to test water provided from private drinking water wells and improved springs to determine whether the water complies with drinking water rules. The criteria and procedures shall include an analysis for at least the following contaminants:

(1) Bacteria (total coliform).

(2) Nitrates.

(3) Heavy metals.

(4) Volatile organic compounds where potential sources of these contaminants are present.

(5) Radon.

(6) Radium-222 and Radium-226.

(b) The Commission may require testing for contaminants not listed in subsection (a) of this section in any area of the State where additional contaminants may pose a threat to public health.

(d) The Commission shall develop a standard report form that certified laboratories shall use to report the results of a water test conducted pursuant to this Article.

(e) A certified laboratory shall submit results of the water test to the owner no later than 15 days after completion of any analysis required by transfer, sale, or lease of property or as required to obtain a well permit under a local well program. A certified laboratory shall electronically submit the results of a water test conducted pursuant to this Article to the Department and to the State Health Director no later than 15 days after completion of the analysis.

"§ 130A-330.5. Water test required before transfer of real property; rental or leased properties.

(a) No person shall transfer real property to which water is supplied from a private drinking water well or improved spring for human consumption unless a water test has been conducted on the well in accordance with this Article within six months prior to the transfer.

(b) Closing on a transfer of real property to which water is supplied from a private drinking water well or improved spring for human consumption shall not occur unless both the owner and the purchaser have received and reviewed a copy of the results of the most recent water test. At closing, both the owner and purchaser shall certify in writing that they have received and reviewed the results of the most recent water test.

(c) The lessor of any rental or leased property to which water is supplied from a private drinking water well or improved spring for human consumption shall conduct a water test pursuant to this Article at least once every three years. The lessor shall provide a copy of the results of the most recent water test to the tenants of each rental or leased property no later than 30 days after receipt of the test results. The lessor shall also provide a copy of the results of the most recent water test to a new lessee prior to the signing of a rental or lease agreement."

SECTION 2. Article 21 of Chapter 143 of the General Statutes is amended by adding a new Part to read:

"Part 12. Groundwater Quality Database.

"§ 143-215.74P. Definitions; Groundwater Quality Database established.

(a) The definitions in G.S. 130A-330.2 apply to this Part.

(b) The Department shall establish a Groundwater Quality Database as a resource center and repository for the results of groundwater quality monitoring conducted and submitted pursuant to programs administered by the Department under Article 7 of Chapter 87, Articles 9, 10, and 10A of Chapter 130A, and Articles 21 and 21A of Chapter 143 of the General Statutes. The Department shall:

(1) Collect, maintain, and make available the information contained in the Database in a manner that is accessible to State agencies, local governments, and the general public.

(2) Assess the quality and reliability of the data and organize the Database in a usable format. The Database shall include geographic information sufficient to map the groundwater resources of the State and to map areas in which groundwater contamination exceeds groundwater standards.

(3) Prescribe the format for submission of information and ensure quality control for all data collected or submitted.

"§ 143-215.74Q. Public notification of known contamination; free water tests for well users near contamination.

(a) The Department shall notify, to the extent practicable, all residents aged 18 and over who reside within a 1,500-foot radius of the known boundaries of each groundwater contamination site or incident identified in the Database or otherwise known to the Department. The notification shall be issued in both English and Spanish and shall include all of the following information:

(1) The location of the groundwater contamination.

(2) The name of each contaminant known to be present at the groundwater contamination site or incident at levels that exceed a groundwater or drinking water standard, the groundwater standard, and the level of exceedance of each contaminant that exceeds a groundwater or drinking water standard.

(3) The potential health effects that may result from exposure to each contaminant that exceeds a groundwater or drinking water standard.

(4) Instructions explaining how the well user resident can voluntarily request a water test of water provided from a private drinking water well by contacting the local well program, required under G.S. 87-97 and administered by the local health department that serves the county in which the well is located.

(5) Contact information for the local well program and the closest regional office of the Department.

(b) The Department shall offer well users notified under subsection (a) of this section free water tests to test water provided from a private drinking water well pursuant to G.S. 130A-330.4. The Department shall provide all of the following information to each well user whose well water is tested under this subsection:

(1) The location of the well from which the sample was collected.

(2) The name, groundwater standard, and level of each contaminant for which the well was tested.

(3) The potential health effects of each contaminant detected in the water sample.

(4) If any contamination is found to exceed groundwater standards, instructions for how the resident can seek alternative drinking water supplies or treatment of contaminated water from the Department on a temporary or permanent basis and whether the resident is eligible to have these costs paid from the Bernard Allen Memorial Emergency Drinking Water Fund pursuant to G.S.87-98.

(5) Contact information for the local well program and the closest regional office of the Department.

(6) Any other information required by the rules of the Commission.

(c) If the results of any water test known to the Department indicate an exceedance of groundwater or drinking water standards, the Department shall provide notice of the exceedance to all of the following within 15 business days of receipt of the water test results:

(1) The local health department that serves the county in which the well or improved spring is located.

(2) Owners of real property served by any other private drinking water well or improved spring that is located within a 1,500-foot radius of the well or improved spring.

(3) Well users who occupy a dwelling or work at a business within a 1,500-foot radius of the well or improved spring.

(d) The notification required under subsection (c) of this section shall be issued in both English and Spanish and shall include all of the information required for notification under subdivisions (1) through (6) of subsection (b) of this section.

(e) The Commission, in consultation with the State Health Director, shall establish criteria and procedures for notification required by this section.

"§ 143-215.74R. Grants to local well programs for well tests.

(a) To facilitate coordination and support of notification and testing activities under G.S. 143-215.74Q with the local well programs required under G.S. 87-97 and administered by the local health departments, the Department shall develop a program to provide grants to cover the costs of notification and water tests of water provided from private drinking water wells in the vicinity of known groundwater contamination. The Department shall approve grants to any eligible local well program that applies for grant funds so long as funds are available. The Department shall consider for grant assistance any local well program that meets all of the following criteria:

(1) The local well program identified one or more groundwater contamination sites or incidents that it determines pose a threat to public health, based on the toxicity of contaminants, the known concentration and geographic extent of contamination, the contaminants' propensity to migrate, and the number of drinking water wells estimated to be in the area.

(2) The local well program provides notice in accordance with the provisions of G.S. 143-215.74Q(a).

(3) The local well program provides free water tests and these water tests are conducted in accordance with the provisions of G.S. 143-215.74Q(b), and, in addition, the certified laboratory that conducted the water test must electronically submit the results of the water test to the Department no later than 30 days after completion of the analysis.

(b) Grants under this section shall not exceed twenty thousand dollars ($20,000) to each local well program for any calendar year.

"§ 143-215.74S. Annual report.

The Department shall report no later than 1 October of each year to the Environmental Review Commission on the status of groundwater quality in the State. The report shall include information on the status of the Groundwater Quality Database, public notification efforts, groundwater monitoring efforts conducted by the Department, and trends in groundwater quality. The report may also include an analysis of issues related to groundwater quality, identification of deficiencies in groundwater quality information, and recommendations to improve the quality of groundwater resources in the State."

SECTION 3. G.S. 87-97(a) reads as rewritten:

"(a) Mandatory Local Well Programs. - Each county, through the local health department that serves the county, shall implement a private drinking water well permitting, inspection, and testing program. Local health departments shall administer the program and enforce the minimum well construction, permitting, inspection, repair, and testing requirements set out in this Article and rules adopted pursuant to this Article. Local well programs may provide notification and free water testing of private drinking water wells under G.S. 143-215.74R."

SECTION 4. The first report required pursuant to G.S. 143-215.74S, as enacted by Section 2 of this act, is due on or before October 1, 2010.

SECTION 5.(a) There is appropriated from the General Fund to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources the sum of two hundred fifty thousand dollars ($250,000) for the 2009-2010 fiscal year and the sum of two hundred fifty thousand dollars ($250,000) for the 2010-2011 fiscal year for the Division of Environmental Health to allocate as follows:

(1) The sum of one hundred sixty thousand dollars ($160,000) for the 2009-2010 fiscal year and the sum of one hundred sixty thousand dollars ($160,000) for the 2010-2011 fiscal year shall be used to provide grants to local health departments for their mandatory local well programs under G.S. 87-97 for conducting water tests under G.S. 143-215.74Q, as enacted by Section 2 of this act.

(2) The sum of ninety thousand dollars ($90,000) for the 2009-2010 fiscal year and the sum of ninety thousand dollars ($90,000) for the 2010-2011 fiscal year shall be used by the Department to implement Part 12 of Article 21 of Chapter 143 of the General Statutes, as enacted by Section 2 of this act.

SECTION 5.(b) It is the intention of the General Assembly that the appropriation under subsection (a) of this act be a recurring appropriation.

SECTION 6. Nothing in this act shall be construed to limit or preempt the authority of a local health department or local board of health to make or cause to be made an inspection or test of a private well as may be necessary to ensure the health and safety of the residents of the State.

SECTION 7. Nothing in this act shall be construed to modify the liability of any person who is responsible for an exceedance of groundwater or drinking water standards to the State or to third parties.

SECTION 8. Sections 2, 3, and 5 of this act become effective July 1, 2009. G.S. 130A-330.5, as enacted by Section 1 of this act, becomes effective January 1, 2010. The remainder of Article 10A of Chapter 130A of the General Statutes, as enacted by Section 1 of this act, and Sections 4, 6, 7, and 8 of this act are effective when this act becomes law.