EPA aprova provisoriamente a revisão do programa de água potável de Porto Rico

On September 9, 2026, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published in the Federal Register the notice Public Water System Supervision Program Revision for Puerto Rico; Notice of Approval and Opportunity To Request Public Hearing (document 2026-18284, 91 FR 57341). The publication date coincides with the date of this note. The primary is a Notice from EPA Region 2 regarding the revision of the public drinking water system supervision program of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.

According to the summary, Puerto Rico reviewed its approved Public Water System Supervision Program and adopted drinking water regulations corresponding to the Consumer Confidence Report Rule Revisions. EPA determined that the revised regulations meet all minimum federal requirements and are not less stringent than the corresponding federal regulations. Therefore, EPA decided to tentatively approve the territorial program revisions. All interested parties can request a public hearing.

The primary dates are clear: requests for a public hearing must be received on or before October 9, 2026. Petitions are sent to the Regional Administrator, U.S. EPA Region 2, 290 Broadway, FL 24, New York, NY 10007. Related documents are available for inspection at EPA Region 2 Water Division and at the Puerto Rico Department of Health, Public Water Supply Supervision Program, 1594 Calle Indo, San Juan, Puerto Rico 00926. Listed contact: Katie Lynch, (212) 637-3808, lynch.katie@epa.gov.

The supplement cites 40 CFR 142.13(a): EPA must offer an opportunity to request a hearing before approving a primacy request. Frivolous or insubstantial petitions may be denied. If there is a substantial request by October 9, 2026, a hearing will be held. If there is no substantial request, the EPA's determination becomes effective in accordance with 40 CFR 142.13(b) and (g). The primacy details the minimum content of a petition: name, address, phone number, interest, information to be submitted, and signature.

The document was dated August 23, 2026, by Michael R. Martucci, Regional Administrator, Region 2, and filed on September 8, 2026, at 8:45 a.m. for publication on the 9th. Tentative approval is not an infrastructure grant nor a capital disbursement for pipelines. It is an act of regulatory oversight on Consumer Confidence Reports.

For the Puerto Rican public, the Consumer Confidence Reports are the annual way in which water systems report detected contaminants and compliance. Strengthening territorial adoption of federal reviews can improve transparency, but it does not by itself guarantee constant pressure, quality in every municipality, or an end to AAA breakdowns. This note does not invent specific violations or sampling results.

In the federal water mosaic, this notice is distinguished from CDBG, CWSRF/DWSRF awards, or Corps projects. Primacy program revision ≠ construction funding. Obligated ≠ disbursed. There is no accusation of fraud in the primary; there is no conviction.

The political angle is one of shared regulatory sovereignty: Puerto Rico manages the program with EPA oversight. The economic angle is indirect: consumer confidence, tourism, and compliance costs for systems. Both fit in the topic both.

Editorial summary: date 2026-09-09 = publication; Federal Register URL 2026-18284; claim = tentative approval of CCR revisions + hearing window until 2026-10-09; caution = do not confuse with equity funds. Cousin none.

File closure: if requested and a hearing is held, or if the approval becomes effective without it, the follow-up must be anchored in new EPA/Federal Register documents. Today remains the notice of tentative approval and the public opportunity, with exact anchor on September 9, 2026.

For the record, September 9 remains the day on which EPA Region 2 made public the tentative approval of Puerto Rico's CCR revisions. The next institutional clock is October 9, the deadline for hearing requests. Between these two dates, the territorial drinking water program remains under ordinary oversight, not in a cycle of capital grants announced by this notice.