On May 23, the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee approved by voice vote legislation to encourage cities and towns to assess the vulnerability of their wastewater treatment plants to terrorist attacks and natural disasters. The Wastewater Treatment Works Security Act (S. 2781) would offer financial aid to utilities if they choose to do vulnerability assessments. The bill authorizes $220 million in grants to be disbursed by the Environmental Protection Agency for wastewater security improvements. The funding total includes $200 million for grants for vulnerability assessments and security enhancements, $15 million for technical assistance for small treatment plants, and $5 million for refinement of vulnerability assessment methodology for plants. The Water Environment Federation worked with Senator James Inhofe (R-OK), Chairman of the Committee, to include a provision in the bill that would authorize a training program to help wastewater treatment works conduct assessments and to undertake security enhancements. The legislation was introduced May 10 by Senator Inhofe and Senators Lincoln Chafee (R-R.I.) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) and followed on the heels of a Government Accountability Office report that found that while many wastewater treatment plants have already conducted vulnerability assessments, funding remains a barrier for many plants that want to undertake security enhancements. During committee deliberations on the bill, Senator James Jeffords (I-VT) offered an amendment in the form of a bill (S. 2855) that would have provided money for drinking water and wastewater treatment facilities that use chlorine as a disinfectant to convert to a safer alternative, such as sodium hypochlorite or ultraviolet light. The amendment failed. The bill now goes on to the full Senate for passage.