» Clean Water Current Archive

November 5, 2010

Republicans Score Significant Wins in Mid-Term Elections, NACWA to Continue Aggressive Legislative Advocacy

Republicans notched major victories in this week’s mid-term elections, changing the dynamic of power in Washington, and NACWA looks forward to working with the new Congress to advance the Association’s advocacy goals.  Republicans are back in control of the U.S. House of Representatives just four years after being ousted by the Democrats in 2006 after winning more than 60 seats in Tuesday’s elections to gain 239 seats to Democrats 185 (eleven seats are still undecided).  In the Senate, the Democrats held on to their majority, however their margin shrunk from a 59 to 41 seat advantage to just 53 to 46, as of this writing.  The Republican victory means that Congressman John Boehner (R-OH) will assume the title of Speaker of the House while over in the Senate, Senator Harry Reid (D-Nev.) will continue as Majority Leader.  

Some noteworthy outcomes for the clean water community included the defeat of House Transportation and Infrastructure (T&I) Committee Chairman James Oberstar (D-Minn.), who lost his bid for a 19th term.  Mr. Oberstar has been a strong champion for clean water issues since he began serving in Congress in 1975 and will be missed by NACWA and many others who care about clean water.  He is one of the few remaining members who worked on passage of the 1972 Clean Water Act as a staff member and ensured that it was adequately funded.  He led the effort during debate on the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act that secured $6 billion for water and wastewater investments.  Mr. Oberstar also championed issues such wetlands protection, non-point source controls and community right-to-know when sewage overflows occur.   NACWA appreciates his service and dedication to the cause of clean water.

With Mr. Oberstar’s departure from the House, the Democrats will appoint a new leader for their caucus on House T&I with Congressman Nick Rahall (D-W.V.) being second in seniority in line for that post.  Mr. Rahall currently serves as Chair of the House Natural Resources Committee but would give up the opportunity to serve as Ranking Member of that committee to assume the position at House T&I.  Another race that drew much attention of the clean water community was the reelection bid of Senator Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), Chair of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee (EPW) who was locked in a tight campaign.  Senator Boxer won reelection to a fourth term in the Senate and will likely continue serving as Chair of the EPW Committee.  Finally, Congressman John Boozman from Arkansas won his bid to serve as the state’s Senator against the sitting incumbent, Senator Blanche Lincoln.  During this session of Congress, Mr. Boozman served as Ranking Member of the House Water Resources and Environment Committee and understands the clean water community and the issues we face.

Congressman John Mica (R-Fla.) will assume the position of Chairman of House T&I but it is too soon to know who will assume leadership at the subcommittee level, including the Subcommittee on Water Resources and the Environment.  NACWA has worked well with Rep. Mica and his staff in the past and we look forward to a continued positive relationship.  Other House Committees of interest to NACWA members include the House Appropriations Committee with jurisdiction over discretionary spending, the House Energy and Commerce with jurisdiction over the Safe Drinking Water Act, the House Homeland Security Committee with jurisdiction over security issues, and House Agriculture Committee.  The leadership posts for these committees by and large remain very unclear at this point but should become more certain over the coming weeks.

In the Senate, as noted above, NACWA does not anticipate much change in the leadership at Senate EPW, with Senator Boxer remaining Chair and Senator Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) remaining Ranking Member.  We also anticipate that Senator Ben Cardin (D-Md.) will continue to Chair the Senate Subcommittee on Water and Wildlife and Senator Mike Crapo (R-Id.) will continue as Ranking Member. All these Senators understand clean water issues and are friends to NACWA.

As far as the clean water issues that will likely be on the agenda for Republicans, it is too early to tell.  Obviously the Republicans are coming into power on an agenda of deficit reduction and smaller government which does not bode well for seeing increases in discretionary funding for water and wastewater infrastructure.  However, the general consensus is that there will continue to be pressure to demonstrate some commitment to infrastructure investment, though what that investment will look like is unclear.  We will likely see more emphasis on leveraging the private markets to stimulate investment in infrastructure, such as greater use of the tax code to fund infrastructure investments.   The Republicans will likely be sympathetic to NACWA’s Money Matters campaign and support finding policy solutions for communities confronting financial and affordability challenges in meeting their clean water obligations.   We also anticipate that House Republicans will undertake more aggressive oversight of the Environmental Protection Agency, particularly as it relates to activities focused on mitigating greenhouse gas emissions.  NACWA looks forward to working productively with the new Congress on behalf of our members.  NACWA will continue to advocate for issues of importance to the clean water community and push forward the Association’s legislative agenda as aggressively as we can.  Stay tuned….

NACWA, Water Associations Meet on Climate Change

NACWA met this week with other water sector associations to discuss current activities related to climate change and water and to formulate strategies for water sector involvement.  The associations discussed the National Climate Assessment, a report to Congress that serves as an update on climate change science and impacts, and how the water sector can provide input to the Assessment.  The associations also plan to meet with EPA’s Office of Water to provide input to the National Water Program Climate Change Strategy.  The associations will rely heavily on the recommendations made in the Climate Ready Water Utilities Working Group report to the National Drinking Water Advisory Council (NDWAC).  NACWA and the other associations were represented on this Working Group, and the Group’s report contains recommendations for how EPA can help utilities adapt to climate change by providing appropriate information and regulatory support.  The associations also discussed how the water sector could benefit from climate change and energy legislation.   Along with NACWA, the Water Environment Federation (WEF), the Water Environment Research Foundation (WERF), the Association of Metropolitan Water Agencies (AMWA), the American Water Works Association (AWWA), the National Rural Water Association (NRWA), the National Association of Water Companies (NAWC), and the Association of California Water Agencies (ACWA) attended the meeting.

NACWA Active on Stormwater Advocacy Issues

NACWA was busy this week advocating on a number of important stormwater issues, providing oral comments Nov. 4 at EPA’s public listening session on possible Chesapeake Bay-specific components of a new national stormwater rule and speaking with both the Association of State and Interstate Water Pollution Control Administrators (ASIWPCA) and the Washington, DC Environmental Network regarding federal government facilities refusing payment of local stormwater fees.  NACWA’s comments at EPA’s listening session were made in response to a recent Federal Register notice requesting public input on a variety of additional requirements the Agency is considering for stormwater utilities located within the Chesapeake Bay watershed as part of a new national stormwater rule currently under development.  NACWA’s remarks acknowledged the need to address water quality impairment from urban stormwater runoff in the Bay watershed but also expressed significant concern with many of the ideas currently under consideration by EPA.  In particular, NACWA’s comments opposed EPA mandates for the use of new development or redevelopment standards or retrofit requirements for municipalities as part of the rulemaking process, citing the extreme financial burden these requirements would place on communities at a time of severe economic distress.    NACWA also noted that many clean water agencies both within the Chesapeake Bay region and nationally are already facing significant affordability concerns with regard to meeting their existing Clean Water Act mandates, and encouraged EPA to consider these affordability issues in crafting the new stormwater rule.

NACWA Talks Stormwater Fees With Stakeholder Groups
NACWA’s conversations with ASIWPCA and the DC Environmental Network also took place on Nov. 4 and focused on the growing issue of federal government facilities around the country refusing to pay local stormwater fees by claiming such fees represent an impermissible tax.  NACWA has engaged in active advocacy efforts over recent months with EPA, the U.S Department of Justice, and Congress to ensure that federal facilities pay their fair share of these critical local utility fees.  NACWA’s presentation to ASIWPCA focused on updating the states regarding this important issue, including the potential ramifications to local clean water utilities if the fees continue to be unpaid.  Similarly, NACWA’s comments to the DC Environmental Network, which is a coalition of environmental organizations in the Washington, DC area, highlighted the importance of this issue to both municipalities and environmental organizations.  The presentations to both organizations were well received, and NACWA encouraged members of both ASIWPCA and the DC Environmental Network to support the Association’s ongoing advocacy efforts to ensure federal payment of these fees.  More information regarding NACWA’s recent work on the stormwater fee issue and well as other stormwater issues is available on the Stormwater Management section of the Association’s webpage.

NACWA Meets with EPA about Registration of Nanosilver Products

NACWA met Nov. 4 with EPA’s Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP) to discuss NACWA’s comments on the conditional registration of a nanosilver active ingredient that will be used as a preservative in textiles.  NACWA is concerned about the lack of available information on the potential impacts of nanosilver that is introduced to the sewer system through consumer product use.  As NACWA pointed out in its comments, two studies have indicated that nanosilver may have different impacts than larger silver particles on the wastewater treatment process, particularly for nitrifying bacteria.  EPA acknowledged these concerns and described how its process for evaluating environmental effects of pesticides is evolving to consider these types of impacts.  EPA also explained its process for collecting data on pesticide registrations and the obligations that the manufacturer of this nanosilver product has to submit additional data on the possible impacts of nanosilver and its potential for leaching out of the textiles.  NACWA will continue to follow the approval process for this product and other proposed pesticide registrations that may affect wastewater treatment processes or have adverse environmental impacts.

NACWA also continues to focus on wastewater treatment and environmental impacts of a broad range of consumer products through the National Dialogue on Safe and Sustainable Consumer Products.   Participants in the Dialogue – including NACWA members, EPA staff, and representatives from environmental organizations – held a conference call this week to share information about recent developments regarding consumer products.  The Dialogue’s next call, which will be held in January, will discuss the most recent research on triclosan and strategies for reducing its use in consumer products.  NACWA members interested in participating in the Dialogue should contact Cynthia Finley at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .