{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://nunn.house.gov/2025/12/11/nunn-clean-water-amendment-passes-house-in-permitting-reform-package/", "Nunn Clean Water Amendment Passes House in Permitting Reform Package", "2025-12-11", "2025", "2025-12", "Republican", "House", "IA", "Zachary Nunn", "N000193", "nunn.house.gov", "nunn", "https://nunn.house.gov/category/news/press-releases/", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2014 Representative Zach Nunn (IA-03) today secured passage of a clean water amendment as part of the Promoting Efficient Review for Modern Infrastructure Today (PERMIT) Act, a bill to modernize outdated permitting rules under the Clean Water Act. Rep. Nunn\u2019s amendment creates a new pilot program empowering states to lead water quality improvement projects in areas facing high nitrogen and phosphorus levels\u2014areas like Iowa that urgently need targeted solutions.\n\n\u201cEvery family deserves peace of mind when they turn on the tap,\u201d said Rep. Nunn. \u201cIn Iowa, rivers that supply drinking water for hundreds of thousands of people have recorded dangerously high nitrate levels. My amendment puts farmers, engineers, and local communities\u2014not Washington bureaucrats\u2014in the driver\u2019s seat to improve water quality and bring nitrate levels down.\u201d\n\nIowa is currently experiencing one of its worst nitrate pollution seasons in recent years. Nitrate levels in the Raccoon River recently reached twice the federal limit. In total, more than 600 water segments statewide are classified as polluted under Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) standards. Health experts warn that elevated nitrate exposure in drinking water can contribute to blue baby syndrome in infants, increased risk of cancer in adults, and health complications for pregnant women.\n\nRep. Nunn\u2019s amendment establishes a voluntary EPA pilot program to streamline coordination between state and federal agencies on water-quality projects in nitrogen- or phosphorus-impaired watersheds. The program is strictly state-led, voluntary for producers, and does not expand federal authority, ensuring Iowa retains control over local conservation priorities.\n\n\u201cIn Iowa, commonsense conservation projects like wetlands or streamside restoration too often get held up by overlapping bureaucratic reviews,\u201d continued Rep. Nunn. \u201cThis pilot program allows states like Iowa to move these water-quality projects forward faster and more efficiently\u2014while still protecting our land and communities.\u201d\n\nText of the amendment can be found here.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T20:09:11Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://nunn.house.gov/2025/12/11/nunn-clean-water-amendment-passes-house-in-permitting-reform-package/"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.8445000275969505, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}