» Update Archive

This edition of NACWA’s Legislative Update, current through January 29, 2010, provides information on the activities of the 111th Congress of interest to the nation’s publicly owned treatment works (POTWs).   For more detailed information regarding NACWA activities related to specific legislation, click on the web links in selected news items, visit NACWA’s website, or contact Pat Sinicropi at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or (202) 533-1823.

During January, the political landscape has taken on an air of uncertainty given the outcomes of off-year and special elections. This development will likely shape the issues and agenda for the second session of the 111th Congress as congressional Democrat’s re-examine their goals for the upcoming year.  Most immediately, Senate Democratic leadership has made known their intention to push forward a domestic jobs bill designed to get American’s back to work as the national unemployment rate continues to hover at 10% where it has been since October 2009 and, as discussed below, NACWA continues to focus on ensuring that water infrastructure is included in this package.

Funding and Appropriations

NACWA Continues Advocacy for Clean Water Funding in Senate Jobs Bill, Members Urged to Contact Senators

NACWA continued its efforts to build support for the inclusion of wastewater and water infrastructure funding in any jobs bill considered by the U.S. Senate.  During the month, NACWA met with staff in the office of Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) as well as professional staff on the Senate Appropriations Committee and the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee to press the case for inclusion of funding for the Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF).  During these discussions, NACWA staff highlighted the job creation benefits of water and wastewater infrastructure projects as well as a recent survey — conducted by the Environmental Council of the States (ECOS) — that shows a need of $56 billion in ready-to-go water and wastewater projects in just 33 states.

Following these discussions, NACWA issued its first Advocacy Alert (AA10-01) of the year.  The Alert, sent on January 11, urged members to contact their Senators to support SRF funding as part of the jobs bill.  At the same time, NACWA worked with the offices of Senator Ben Cardin (D-Md.) and Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) in developing a “Dear Colleague” letter to build support in the Senate for including wastewater and water infrastructure in the Senate’s jobs bill.  The letter, which is currently circulating in the Senate with signatures due by February 1, 2010, urges Senators to “support a robust investment in water and wastewater infrastructure in any jobs package Congress may enact”.  Specifically, it asks Senators to sign correspondence to Senate leadership asking for the inclusion of $3 billion for the CWSRF and DWSRF as part of a Senate jobs bill.  Following the letter’s release, NACWA issued another Advocacy Alert (AA10-03) urging Members to contact their Senators and request that they sign the “Dear Colleague” letter being circulated by Senators Cardin and Whitehouse.   NACWA has learned that these efforts have led to 10 additional Senators having signed on to the Dear Colleague as of January 29, 2010. Specifically, Senators Sanders (I-Vt.),  Brown (D-Ohio), Kerry (D-Mass.), Stabenow (D-Mo.), Wyden (D-Ore.), Landrieu (D-La.), Levin (D-Mich.), Kaufman (D-Del.), Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Reed (D-R.I.), have added their support to the letter.

If you have not done so already, NACWA staff strongly encourages you to contact your Senators offices to urge them to support the letter requesting funding for wastewater and water infrastructure as part of the Senate’s jobs bill.  If you have any questions regarding this effort you can contact Pat Sinicropi at (202) 533-1823 or John Krohn (202) 833-4655.

Trust Fund Continues to Gain Momentum in House of Representatives

The Water Protection and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (H.R. 3202) continued to gain supporters in the U.S. House of Representatives as NACWA, the Associated General Contractors (AGC) of America and other stakeholders from the Water Infrastructure Network (WIN) continued to press the issue during January.  As a result, Congressman Fortney “Pete” Stark (D-Calif.), Bill Delahunt (D-Mass.), and John Sarbanes (D-Md.) agreed to co-sponsor the bill- bringing the number of co-sponsors to 29.

As efforts to educate congressional offices continue, support for the legislation has increased in recent months.  The trust fund has gained co-sponsors for 5 consecutive months.  To capitalize on this momentum, NACWA, AGC and WIN stakeholders developed additional strategies to be pursued in the coming months.  Specifically, the group developed a refined strategy focused on gaining the support of members of the House Transportation and Infrastructure (T&I) Committee to help develop momentum toward ensuring the committee’s consideration of the bill this year.

As we continue to pursue additional support in Washington, D.C., we continue to encourage you to do so in your congressional members’ district offices.  To assist with your outreach efforts, NACWA has made available an array of educational materials on its Clean Water Funding Network website, www.cleanwaterfunding.org. These materials include sample letters of support to send to your Representatives, press kits, and other outreach tools.  Please contact NACWA’s Pat Sinicropi at (202) 533-1823 or John Krohn (202) 833-4655 for more information about this important effort.

Green Infrastructure Support Grows in House; Senate Efforts Underway

Since its introduction, The Green Infrastructure for Clean Water Act of 2009 has received a warm welcome in the U.S. House of Representatives gaining 11 co-sponsors during the past two months thanks to outreach efforts conducted by NACWA in conjunction with other key stakeholders.  Recent co-sponsors include: Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.); Barney Frank (D-Mass.); Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz.); Paul Hodes (D-N.H.); Sheila Jackson-Lee (D-Texas); Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.); Jesse Jackson, Jr. (D-Ill.); Gwen Moore (D-Wis.); Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.); Paul Tonko (D- N.Y.); and Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.).

While support continues to build in the House, NACWA has been working to have a companion bill introduced in the Senate.  To this end, NACWA has already met with the Offices of Senator Ben Cardin (D-Md.) and Senator Arlen Specter (D-Pa.) seeking their support for such a bill.  During these discussions, NACWA explains the many benefits green infrastructure projects can provide — citing examples across the nation of how several NACWA members are successfully employing green infrastructure techniques.

In the coming weeks, NACWA will continue to move forward on building support in the House and in having a bill introduced in the Senate.  If you have any questions regarding how you may be able to assist in this effort please don’t hesitate to contact Keith Jones or John Krohn at (202)-833-2672.

Senator Seeks NACWA  Support for Chesapeake Bay Reauthorization Bill

NACWA staff met this month with staff for Senator Ben Cardin (D-Md.) and the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee to discuss the status of S. 1816, the Chesapeake Clean Water and Ecosystem Restoration Act of 2009, and the timing for moving the legislation through the Senate and House.  Senator Cardin intends to have the legislation reported out of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee either in late February or early March when Congress returns from the President’s Day recess.  The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee will likely report out a nearly identical bill soon after the Senate Committee completes its work.  If enacted, S. 1816 would significantly change the current Chesapeake Bay Program and dramatically expand both federal and state authorities to clean up the Bay and restore it to ecological health.  The legislation could have significant implications for other watershed restoration efforts and could serve as a model for future watershed-based legislation.  Much of the legislative proposal would codify elements of the Chesapeake Bay program strategy outlined by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Draft Strategy for Protecting and Restoring the Chesapeake Bay issued on November 9, 2009.

The legislation sets out requirements for the six States within the Chesapeake Bay watershed region including New York, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, Virginia, and the District of Columbia that must be met in order to continue receiving federal clean water funding.  The legislation’s main focus is reducing adverse impacts on the Bay caused by nitrogen, phosphorus, and sediments -  the main sources of pollution to the Bay - and it does this by enforcing a watershed-wide Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) that EPA is on schedule to approve by December 31, 2010.  It requires all six Bay states plus the District of Columbia to develop and implement watershed improvement plans (WIPS) in order to meet TMDL reduction loads by 2025.  The WIPs must contain enforceable measures to control all sources of pollution in the Bay including agricultural, stormwater, air and septic systems.    The legislation authorizes EPA to award grants to States to help them implement their WIPs and to operate monitoring programs within their States.  If the States fail to implement WIPs that can achieve the TMDL reductions, EPA would have the authority to withhold funding to the State under the CWA.  In addition, the legislation requires specific stormwater management measures to occur for all new development, institutes a phosphate ban with some exceptions and authorizes a review that could lead to additional consumer product restrictions if those products are determined to lead to nutrient impairments in the Bay.  The legislation also requires the EPA to establish a nutrient trading program for nitrogen and phosphorus.

At NACWA’s Winter Conference in Austin, NACWA’s Legislative Policy Committee will undertake a discussion of the legislation to determine whether NACWA will support the bill.  NACWA will also be seeking the Board’s support for such an action. Senator Cardin’s staff has urged the point source community to be as supportive of the legislation as possible given that it is a serious effort to shift focus from controlling only point sources of pollution into the Bay to controlling nonpoint sources, and provides the States with the tools it needs to do so.  As part of our discussions with staff, NACWA raised the issue of allowing States to factor in cost-benefit analysis when determining which pollution source to control, which would be allowed under NACWA’s watershed proposal.  Senator Cardin’s staff was open to including language on this point.  Please contact Patricia Sinicropi, NACWA Legislative Director if you have comments on Senator Cardin’s Chesapeake Bay legislation.