Clean Water Justice Act

The Clean Water Justice Act would strengthen enforcement of water pollution laws by increasing criminal penalties for polluters. Specifically, the bill would raise the minimum and maximum fines for individuals and companies that knowingly dump illegal pollutants into sewer systems or wastewater treatment plants. The legislation also would automatically adjust these penalties for inflation in future years. Currently, the Clean Water Act's criminal penalties have not been updated by Congress for over 35 years, which supporters argue limits the government's ability to deter serious water pollution violations. The bill is intended to make penalties more proportional to corporate profits and create stronger incentives for companies to comply with water pollution laws. The bill is currently in committee and has not yet been voted on by the full House.