Clean Water Current

NACWA and the Association of Metropolitan Water Agencies (AMWA) sent a joint letter last week to House and Senate Appropriations Committee Leadership requesting the highest level of Fiscal Year 2023 (FY23) funding for the Drinking Water and Clean Water State Revolving Funds (SRFs) and to fund an EPA pilot program for low-income water customer assistance.   

Since the start of FY23, which began on October 1, the federal government has been operating under a Continuing Resolution (CR) to keep the government funded at existing spending levels until December 16th while Congress works to finalize a final FY23 Omnibus Appropriations package.  

Specifically, the letter highlights the critical importance of the SRFs in helping public clean water utilities and local communities finance critical local water infrastructure, meet increasing Clean Water Act (CWA) and Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) regulatory obligations, and further improve water quality. The letter notes that these annual increases for the SRF will help build upon the direct appropriations provided for under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA)/Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) and further bridge the funding gap disparity where 95 percent of current wastewater and drinking water infrastructure investment comes from local ratepayers and states. 

Further, the letter highlights the strong need for Congress to begin funding EPA’s Rural and Low-Income Water Assistance Pilot Program to assist households struggling to pay their water and sewer bills. Both NACWA and AMWA worked to secure the establishment of this EPA pilot program in the IIJA.  

NACWA is also continuing to meet and discuss with appropriators the importance of providing the highest level of FY23 funding in any final Omnibus for other key clean water programs including Sewer Overflow and Stormwater grants, the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) program, water workforce development, and Integrated Planning (IP).  

NACWA encourages all of its members to do the same with their respective Congressional delegations and to utilize NACWA’s FY23 appropriations testimony that outlines all of these key funding requests, as well as the joint letter sent by NACWA and AMWA. 

Please contact Jason Isakovic, NACWA Director of Legislative Affairs, with any questions or to discuss further.