Southeast New England Program Authorization Act of 2026

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office] [S. 4350 Introduced in Senate (IS)] <DOC> 119th CONGRESS 2d Session S. 4350 To amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to establish the Southeast New England Program, and for other purposes. _______________________________________________________________________ IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES April 21, 2026 Mr. Reed (for himself, Mr. Whitehouse, Mr. Markey, and Ms. Warren) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works _______________________________________________________________________ A BILL To amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to establish the Southeast New England Program, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Southeast New England Program Authorization Act of 2026''. SEC. 2. SOUTHEAST NEW ENGLAND PROGRAM. Title I of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following: ``SEC. 127. SOUTHEAST NEW ENGLAND PROGRAM. ``(a) Definition of Coastal Watersheds of Southeast New England.-- In this section, the term `coastal watersheds of southeast New England' means all of the watersheds of Rhode Island and southeastern Massachusetts that drain into coastal waters between Long Island Sound and the Gulf of Maine. ``(b) Establishment.--There is established in the Environmental Protection Agency a program, to be known as the `Southeast New England Program' (referred to in this section as the `Program'). ``(c) Purpose.--The purpose of the Program shall be to protect, enhance, and restore the coastal watersheds of southeast New England by developing, funding, and advancing implementation of protection and restoration projects in collaboration with partners across the southeast New England region. ``(d