NACWA Treasurer Kyle Dreyfuss-Wells, CEO of the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District (NEORSD), testified on behalf of the Association during an April 30 Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee hearing titled “Building on the IIJA’s Successes: Identifying Opportunities to Strengthen Water Infrastructure Programs.” 

Dreyfuss-Wells focused her testimony on the importance of the Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF) and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA).

She emphasized how NEORSD, Ohio’s largest clean water utility, relies on the CWSRF for affordable financing to support major infrastructure projects — such as for a $220 million tunnel project, which is saving the utility an estimated $50 million through favorable loan terms.

Additionally, Dreyfuss-Wells highlighted how IIJA funding and principal forgiveness have expanded access to the CWSRF, particularly for smaller communities. She urged Congress to reauthorize the CWSRF using IIJA funding levels as a baseline.

The hearing marked the formal launch of efforts to reauthorize the Drinking Water and Wastewater Infrastructure Act (DWWIA), which was incorporated into the IIJA and is set to expire at the end of Fiscal Year 2026. The IIJA delivered a historic $50 billion investment in water infrastructure over five years, representing the largest federal commitment to drinking water, wastewater, and stormwater systems in a generation.

EPW Committee chair Sen. Shelly Moore Capito (R-W. Va.) emphasized the need to reauthorize the IIJA’s water infrastructure programs before they expire next year, highlighting the law’s historic investment and its role in advancing thousands of projects nationwide. She outlined key priorities for reauthorization: improving access to funding for small and underserved communities, restoring the balance of cooperative federalism by reaffirming state leadership, and ensuring programs remain focused on outcomes.

Additionally, representatives from the National Rural Water Association and the Association of State Drinking Water Administrators also testified before the Committee.

EPW Committee members engaged the panel on a range of critical issues facing the water sector, including the importance of upholding the foundational principle of cooperative federalism in water infrastructure policy, ensuring water affordability for all communities, addressing the costs and challenges of removing PFAS from drinking water, and other key priorities such as infrastructure resilience, regulatory flexibility, and the capacity needs of small and rural systems.

A recording of the hearing can be viewed here and full testimony is available here.

Members with questions may contact Matt McKenna, NACWA’s Director of Government Affairs, to discuss.