{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.whitehouse.senate.gov/news/release/whitehouse-booker-menendez-reintroduce-bill-to-hold-polluters-responsible-for-cleanup-of-superfund-sites", "Whitehouse, Booker, Menendez Reintroduce Bill to Hold Polluters Responsible for Cleanup of Superfund Sites", "2017-12-07", "2017", "2017-12", "Democrat", "House", "RI", "Sheldon Whitehouse", "W000802", "www.whitehouse.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "12.07.17\n\t\t\t Whitehouse, Booker, Menendez Reintroduce Bill to Hold Polluters Responsible for Cleanup of Superfund Sites \n\t\t\t\n\t\t\tWASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013\u00a0U.S. Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ), a member of the Environment and Public Works Committee, Senator Bob Menendez (D-NJ) and Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) reintroduced a bill to hold polluters responsible for the cleanup of contaminated Superfund sites in New Jersey and across the country.\r\nThe Superfund Polluter Pays Restoration Act of 2017 reinstates the excise tax on polluting industries to pay for the cleanup of Superfund sites, relieving taxpayers of the expense. It also expands the definition of crude oil in order to make oil from tar sands and shale subject to the excise tax. Additionally, it makes funds available to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on an ongoing basis, not subject to annual appropriations.\r\n\u201cIn the face of the Trump Administration\u2019s efforts to gut the Superfund\u00a0program, it\u2019s more critical than ever that Congress hold polluting industries accountable for the devastating consequences that have been brought on communities across the country,\u201d said Senator Booker. \u201cSuperfund sites don\u2019t just contaminate the ground and water\u2014the high levels of carcinogens that seep out have led to heightened risks of cancers, birth defects and other serious health problems for too many Americans. The stakes could not be higher for New Jerseyans\u2014half of our state lives within three miles of one of these Superfund sites. It\u2019s time to address this injustice, clean up these sites, and hold polluting industries accountable for conditions they would never accept in their own communities.\u201d\r\n\u201cBusinesses cannot contaminate our land, exploit our resources and endanger our communities without consequence,\u201d said Senator Menendez.\u00a0 \u201cTaxpayers shouldn\u2019t have to pay for the mistakes of companies that contaminate our environment and risk our public health.\u00a0 Making polluters pay will help ensure the Superfund Trust Fund is solvent, strong, and effective to protect the health of our families and environment\u201d\r\n\u201cThe American taxpayer shouldn\u2019t be on the hook for cleaning up dangerous messes they didn\u2019t make,\u201d said Senator Whitehouse.\u00a0 \u201cThis bill will ensure that polluting industries help to cover the cost of making our communities safe.\u201d\r\nNew Jersey has 114 Superfund sites on the National Priority List (NPL), more than any other state. NPL sites are among the most heavily contaminated properties in the country, and are poisoning nearby residents, endangering the health of children, and thwarting economic development in local communities.\r\nAccording to the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), the EPA does not have adequate resources to clean up the more than 1,300 sites on the agency\u2019s list of most polluted areas, including 89 locations that have \u201cunacceptable human exposure\u201d to substances that can cause birth defects, cancers, and developmental disorders.\r\n###\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t  \n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t \n\t\t\n\t\t\tPrint\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\tEmail\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\tTweet\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t \n\t\n\t\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n    \n\t\n\t\n    \n    \n    \n    \t\n    \t\n\t    \t  \n\t\t    \n\t\t    \n\t\t    \tPrevious Article", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "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://www.whitehouse.senate.gov/news/release/whitehouse-booker-menendez-reintroduce-bill-to-hold-polluters-responsible-for-cleanup-of-superfund-sites"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.4979008119553328, "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"}