Clean Water Current

Congress and the Trump Administration have reached agreement on an Omnibus spending bill to keep the Federal Government funded through the end of September. It includes funding for many of NACWA’s key priorities.

NACWA has been involved in a variety of meetings with top EPA officials recently to ensure that any regulatory reform efforts fully account for the public clean water agency perspective.

Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and Sen. Rob Portman (R-OH) introduced bipartisan legislation on April 24 aimed at improving federal efforts to identify and respond to the public health effects of emerging contaminants.

Registration is now open for a timely and free webinar offered by NACWA on May 24 at 2:00 PM ET that will provide an update on the status of key Association advocacy priorities under the Trump Administration and the new Congress.

The NACWA Facility & Collection System (FACS) Committee held a web meeting on April 27 to discuss blending and wet weather treatment, including recent legal developments and potential regulatory reform related to blending, which is a focus for NACWA advocacy with EPA.

NACWA’s Water Reuse Workgroup held a call April 25 to examine current legislation affecting reuse funding and financing.

Eileen J. O’Neill, Executive Director of the Water Environment Federation (WEF), and Amanda Waters, NACWA General Counsel, updated and briefed water professionals April 27 at the KY/TN Water Environment Association (WEA) 2017 Management Conference in Murfreesboro, TN.

NACWA engaged senior EPA officials on a range of policy issues in three separate meetings over the past week, advancing many of the Association’s key advocacy priorities with Agency officials.

Congress returned to Washington, DC April 24 to face a looming deadline, as the Continuing Resolution currently funding the government will expire on April 28.

EPA is scheduled to file a response May 12 in litigation challenging the Agency’s efforts to impose certain testing requirements for whole effluent toxicity (WET) on dischargers without going through the rulemaking process required by the Administrative Procedure Act (APA).

NACWA submitted comments on April 24 to EPA’s recent Public Review Draft of Field-Based Methods for Developing Aquatic Life Criteria for Specific Conductivity.

NACWA will be offering a free webinar to members on May 24 at 2:00 pm ET, providing an update on the status of key Association advocacy priorities under the new Trump Administration and the new Congress.

As part of a continued effort to enhance positive networking and goodwill among government and the water sector, congressional staffers, along with NACWA staff, toured DC Water’s Blue Plains Wastewater Treatment Facility—the world’s largest treatment plant of its kind—on April 21.

NACWA’s Environmental Justice Task Force discussed via conference call on April 19 the Association’s planned Environmental Justice & Community Service Compendium document.

The Michigan Water Environment Association (MWEA) released a report April 15 highlighting how Michigan clean water utilities are pursuing “Utility of the Future (UOTF)” concepts.

EPA’s Water Infrastructure and Resiliency Finance Center will host a series of webinars on stormwater finance to help communities across the country identify financial strategies to leverage and support their stormwater management programs.

EPA published a request for comment in the Federal Register on April 13, in response to President Trump’s Executive Order 13777 on Enforcing the Regulatory Reform Agenda, seeking input on federal regulations that may be appropriate for repeal, replacement or modification. The notice requests feedback from the public by May 15, and asks that comments be as specific as possible and include any supporting data or information, including cost impacts.

The NACWA Board recently approved the filing of a joint amicus curiae brief in cooperation with The Wet Weather Partnership, to provide an important national perspective for issues crucial to municipal separate stormwater systems (MS4s).

A bipartisan group of congressional representatives recently sent a letter to the House Interior & Environment Appropriations Subcommittee requesting a doubling of the State Revolving Funds (SRFs) in Fiscal Year 2018 (FY18), relative to FY16 enacted level.

NACWA Deputy General Counsel, Erica Spitzig co-authored an article for the American Bar Association (ABA) publication, Natural Resources & Environment, evaluating the future of “presumptive approach” as a tool for meeting combined sewer overflow (CSO) controls.