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Safe Drinking Water Act
Principal federal law in the United States intended to ensure safe drinking water for the public / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) is the principal federal law in the United States intended to ensure safe drinking water for the public.[3] Pursuant to the act, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is required to set standards for drinking water quality and oversee all states, localities, and water suppliers that implement the standards.
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Long title | An Act to amend the Public Health Service Act to assure that the public is provided with safe drinking water, and for other purposes |
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Nicknames | SDWA |
Enacted by | the 93rd United States Congress |
Effective | December 16, 1974 |
Citations | |
Public law | Pub. L. 93-523 |
Statutes at Large | 88 Stat. 1660 (1974) |
Codification | |
Titles amended | 42 |
U.S.C. sections created | 42 U.S.C. § 300f |
Legislative history | |
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Major amendments | |
Safe Drinking Water Act Amendments of 1986,[1] Safe Drinking Water Act Amendments of 1996[2] |
The SDWA applies to every public water system (PWS) in the United States.[4] There are currently over 148,000 public water systems providing water to almost all Americans at some time in their lives.[5] The Act does not cover private wells (in 2020, 13% of US households were served by private wells).[6]
The SDWA does not apply to bottled water. Bottled water is regulated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act.[7]