Clean Water Current

A bipartisan letter from over 90 Members of Congress was sent to the House Interior & Environment Appropriations Subcommittee last week, requesting a doubling of the State Revolving Funds (SRFs) in Fiscal Year 2019 (FY19) over currently enacted levels. This request mirrors asks from NACWA and other water sector groups.

NACWA and a number of members – including representatives from Texas where utilities are facing major permit challenges – met with key EPA staff on March 15 to discuss how the growing trend in surface water salinity impacts the municipal clean water community.

NACWA submitted a letter to Alexandra Dapolito Dunn, Regional Administrator, EPA Region 1, to expand on the issues that were raised during a February 15 meeting with Dunn and several senior EPA staff members.

NACWA and the Council of Infrastructure Financing Authorities (CIFA) plan to begin a series of discussion on potential policy reform proposals to streamline and simplify the Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF) Program.

Bob Winters, a Protective Security Advisor (PSA) for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), gave a presentation to NACWA’s Security & Emergency Preparedness Committee during a March 19 web meeting.

NACWA submitted comments on March 15 with recommendations for EPA’s preliminary ecological risk assessment for pyriproxyfen, a pesticide used in pet flea control products.

Speaker confirmations, registration and attendance projections for Water Week 2018 - and its highlight event, the National Water Policy Fly-In (NWPF) on April 17 and 18 - are growing. Don't miss out on your chance to attend the most significant national clean water policy event of the year!

Senate Democrats released their $1 trillion plan for rebuilding America’s infrastructure last week, on the heels of the White House’s infrastructure proposal that was released last month and as Congress begins crafting comprehensive infrastructure legislation.

NACWA is proud to release a valuable new resource to help your clean water utility succeed: The MS4 Stormwater Permitting Guide.

NACWA joined a large group of national and California county, municipal, and water associations to file an amici brief March 8 in support of a Petition for Rehearing en banc that was filed by NACWA Member Agency the Maui County Department of Environmental Management.

NACWA submitted comments on March 9 regarding EPA’s Draft Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks: 1990-2016. The annual Inventory provides nationwide estimates for greenhouse gas (GHG) emission for different sectors, including wastewater treatment, and is intended to be used only for informational purposes.

NACWA and its coalition partners in the Infrastructure Working Group took part in Capitol Hill Day visits with Members of Congress and their staffs last week to discuss the importance of advancing a legislative infrastructure package.

The latest installment of the Hot Topics in Clean Water Law webinar series, hosted on March 7, covered new and developing issues in clean water law and drew more than 130 attendees.

NACWA submitted comments to EPA on March 8 regarding the Agency’s preliminary efforts to make long-term revisions and updates to the Lead and Copper Rule (LCR).

NACWA participated in a roundtable discussion March 8 hosted by the Brookings Institution to examine water workforce issues.

During a congressional briefing on March 6, the US Water Alliance (USWA) released a new report, An Equitable Water Future: Opportunities for the Great Lakes Region, that lays out an agenda for creating more equitable water systems in the Great Lakes region.

Water Week 2018 and its highlight event, the National Water Policy Fly-in (NWPF), are only five weeks away – now is the time to make your plans to attend!

NACWA has sent letters to Congressional Appropriators reiterating several important funding asks, as the March 23 deadline approaches for Congress to pass a Fiscal Year (FY) 2018 appropriations measure based on a framework prescribed by the recently passed, bipartisan budget deal. Both letters, one to the full committee and one to the subcommittees, reflect the requests that NACWA and the water sector have been advocating throughout the past year.

The Senate began formal consideration of the White House infrastructure proposal last week, with a hearing in the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee.

NACWA joined the Illinois Association of Wastewater Agencies (IAWA) for its Spring Mini-Conference in Springfield, IL on February 28, to provide an update on the latest developments, from the federal level, on infrastructure funding, budget development, integrated planning and affordability, and a range of other policy issues that will impact the water sector.