New legislation has been introduced led by Sens. Cardin (D-MD), Wicker (R-MS), and Stabenow (D-MI) to establish a pilot federal assistance program for water ratepayers. S. 3564, the Low-Income Water Customer Assistance Programs Act of 2018, fleshes out a concept proposed by NACWA several years ago, suggesting that – similar to the energy sector’s Low Income Household Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) – there may be a role for the federal government to offer assistance to communities and low-income ratepayers in paying water and sewer rates.

Despite Congress being adjourned until after the November mid-term elections, House and Senate conference committee negotiations continue among Congressional staff on the 2018 Farm Bill. Many in Congress remain hopeful that a final bill can be brought to a vote before the end of this Congressional Session in December.

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has released a report, entitled Public Spending on Transportation and Water Infrastructure, 1956 to 2017, which provides information on spending by federal, state, and local governments for transportation and water infrastructure. The report highlights important trends. In addition to presenting data on outlays for various types of infrastructure, the reports also examine spending in terms of two broad categories—spending for capital and spending for operation and maintenance.

The National Network on Water Quality Trading released a new report on October 15 entitled, Breaking Down Barriers: Priority Actions for Advancing Water Quality Trading. As a member of the National Network, NACWA and its members participated in a series of meetings and interviews that the Network conducted to better understand why there haven’t been more water quality trading programs to date.