The National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA) is pleased to provide you with the March 2022 Regulatory Update.

The recently passed infrastructure bill has put renewed focus on the role of advanced technologies and the power of digital solutions to cost-effectively modernize our critical networks. As the single largest investment in infrastructure that the federal government has ever made, the timing couldn’t be more significant. Utilities continue to navigate the operational and economic complexities of a...

NACWA recently teamed up with a member utility, the Sanford Sewerage District in Maine, to co-author an opinion editorial highlighting significant flaws with a state legislative effort on PFAS in Maine.

The White House released its proposed Fiscal Year 2023 (FY23) Federal Budget on March 28. The long-awaited proposal lays out the President’s request for how to advance the Biden Administration’s priorities through annual spending in the federal fiscal year beginning October 1.

NACWA Board Member Josh Schimmel, Executive Director of the Springfield, Massachusetts Water and Sewer Commission, is scheduled to testify April 5 on behalf of NACWA before the Senate Environment and Public Works Subcommittee on Fisheries, Wildlife, and Water about implementation of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) and maximizing the utilization of this historic federal infrastructure investment.

As previously reported, NACWA has been engaging with the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and EPA as they prepare for Build America, Buy America (BABA) requirements to take effect on May 15th.

EPA’s proposed budget for fiscal year (FY) 2023 and FY 2022-FY 2026 Strategic Plan both reflect the Biden Administration’s ongoing commitment to advancing environmental justice (EJ) initiatives in the coming months.

NACWA will host a webinar on May 6, Wastewater-Based Epidemiology – Looking Back and Moving Forward on the Intersection of Public Health and Wastewater Surveillance, featuring the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and NACWA members New York City Department of Environment, LuminUltra, and AquaVitas.

NACWA held the third installment of its Lunch & Learn webinar series March 23 during which Association affiliate member Raftelis focused on utility storytelling with Tellevate Your Story.

Thanks to the hard work and dedicated advocacy of NACWA’s members, the public clean water sector has secured billions of dollars in new federal funding over the past two years.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit last week heard oral argument in NACWA member the San Francisco Public Utility Commission’s challenge to their first National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit issued after completion of their combined sewer overflow (CSO) long term control plan (LTCP).

The White House issued a statement on March 20 about an increased potential for Russian cyber-attacks against the US, urging owners and operators of critical infrastructure to increase their cybersecurity protections. A fact sheet includes cybersecurity steps that should be taken immediately.

NACWA joined with other water and cross-industry sector organizations in signing a letter March 21 to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) advocating for a public comment period for the forthcoming Build America, Buy America (BABA) guidance.

NACWA staff joined the National Energy Assistance Directors Association (NEADA) last week at their virtual annual winter meeting for a discussion of clean water utility perspectives on the federal Low-Income Household Water Assistance Program (LIHWAP), which was created in response to the COVID-19 emergency.