» Update Archive

This edition of NACWA’s Legislative Update, current through February 29, 2012, provides information on the activities of the 112th Congress of interest to the nation’s public clean water agencies.  For more detailed information regarding NACWA activities, click on the web links in selected news items or visit NACWA’s website.  Please contact NACWA’s Pat Sinicropi at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or Hannah Mellman at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it with any questions or information on the Update topics.

ISSUE AREAS

Hot Topics

Senator Sherrod Brown Introduces Money Matters/Affordability Bill

Senator Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) introduced the Clean Water Affordability Act of 2012 , a bill to authorize $1.8 billion over five years for sewer overflow control grants.  The bill also requires the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to address community affordability issues with respect to increasingly costly Clean Water Act requirements.  NACWA is pleased to see that the bill contains many of the Association’s proposals, including provisions to guide an EPA-led integrated permitting process, in line with NACWA’s Money Matters…Smarter Investment for Clean Water™ campaign.  For more information on Senator Brown’s affordability legislation, please see NACWA’s Advocacy Alert 12-02.

NACWA sent Senator Brown a letter of support for his bill, noting that this legislation represents a vital step toward helping communities address water infrastructure and affordability challenges in a sound and viable manner.  Ken Kirk, NACWA’s Executive Director, along with Tony Parrott, Executive Director of the Metropolitan Sewer District of Greater Cincinnati and NACWA Board Member, were both invited to participate as resources on a press call with Senator Brown to mark the bill’s introduction.  On the call, Brown expressed his concern for municipalities throughout Ohio that are struggling to pay for necessary water infrastructure upgrades, including the costly correction of combined sewer overflows.  Senator Brown said his bill would provide some relief to municipalities in Ohio and around the country facing expensive upgrades, all while protecting ratepayers, public health, and local economies.

Senator Brown is now looking for Republican co-sponsors to help propel his bill through the Senate.  This is likely to be difficult however, as the $1.8 billion grant program has no funding offset.  Still, he remains optimistic, and NACWA will continue to pursue bipartisan support for integrated permitting legislation.

Biosolids and Incineration

EPA to Deny Reconsideration of SSI Rule, Briefing in Legal Case Temporarily Delayed

Following NACWA’s December 20 meeting with EPA Deputy Administrator Bob Perciasepe, NACWA received word that EPA is planning to officially deny the Association’s administrative petition for reconsideration of the Agency’s sewage sludge incineration (SSI) rule.   EPA is planning to publish a formal denial of the reconsideration requests in the Federal Register, which is expected to be released later this month.  While NACWA is disappointed, this final decision by the Agency is not entirely surprising given EPA’s indication last August that it would likely deny the Association’s request.

NACWA will now be incorporating the Agency’s denial of reconsideration into the legal case which is currently pending.  Briefing was scheduled to begin in late February, although it has been temporarily delayed to account for EPA’s decision to formally deny reconsideration.  A revised briefing schedule is due to the court no later than June 1. NACWA is hopeful that opening merits briefs will be filed soon thereafter, with all briefing completed by late 2012.   NACWA will also be using the letters it received from a variety of key Senators and Representatives on the SSI issue to demonstrate support on behalf of NACWA’s position as the legal case proceeds.

Climate and Energy

Senate Renewable Energy Bill Expected to be Released Soon

Senator Jeff Bingaman (D-N.M.), Chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, expects to release a Clean Electricity Standard bill any week now.  NACWA has learned that the bill will include a ‘waste-to-energy’ section, under which the energy generated from biogas and solids produced in the municipal wastewater treatment process would be eligible for renewable energy credit.  Estimates show that the energy contained in wastewater and biosolids has the potential to meet up to 12% of the nation’s electricity demand, so inclusion of this type of renewable energy is very significant. NACWA will release an Advocacy Alert with more details on the bill once it has been introduced.

Funding

NACWA Testifies at House Water Resources Hearing

David Williams, NACWA President and Director of Wastewater for the East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD) in Oakland, California, testified  February 28 on behalf of NACWA at the House Subcommittee on Water Resources & Environment hearing, A Review of Innovative Financing Approaches for Community Water Infrastructure Projects.  The hearing focused on potential innovative financing tools, including the Subcommittee’s draft legislation to create a “Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Authority” modeled after a similar loan guaranty authority in the Federal Highway Program.  The draft legislation would also exempt water and wastewater facilities from the volume cap on private activity bonds.

Williams’ Testimony Focused on Innovation, Utility of the Future

NACWA’s testimony stated that it is time for a more far-reaching support of innovation and called on Congress to embrace a “2020 Vision for the Water Resources Utility of the Future.”  Williams recommended that, as utilities across the country engage in innovative programs – from energy conservation to resource recovery to water reuse – the increasingly limited federal funding available should be used to help utilities advance these innovations.  The testimony made an economic case for such investments and featured the food waste to energy recovery program at EBMUD as an example of the important and innovative work being done at utilities across the country.

Williams received several questions regarding his testimony as well as statements from Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) and Donna Edwards (D-Md.), thanking NACWA for its advocacy efforts to ensure passage of stormwater fee legislation and the introduction of green infrastructure legislation.  NACWA’s testimony is available here .

Senate Water and Wildlife Subcommittee Holds Hearing on Local Water Infrastructure Needs

The Senate Subcommittee on Water and Wildlife also held a February 28 hearing entitled Local Government Perspectives on Water Infrastructure to explore urban and rural viewpoints as they relate to water and wastewater infrastructure.  Panelists included Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, Jerry Johnson, General Manager for NACWA Member the Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission, and Kathy Horne from the Alabama Rural Water Association.  All three witnesses made it clear that the country’s water infrastructure, from the largest cities to the smallest towns, are in dire need of greater federal assistance as communities are simply unable to shoulder the massive burden of upgrading the country’s water systems.

EPA’s integrated planning program was also explored by the panel as a flexible approach that prioritizes cost-effective expenditures to achieve clean-water results. Committee Chairman Ben Cardin (D-Md.) and Ranking Member Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) both agreed and highlighted the success of the State Revolving Fund programs, saying it is in the country’s best interest to maintain their funding levels for fiscal year (FY) 2013.

Obama Administration Releases FY2013 Budget Request: Several Key Programs See Cuts

The Obama Administration released its fiscal year FY 2013 budget package, which included a funding request of $8.3 billion for EPA.  This is a 1.2 percent, or $105 million, reduction from EPA’s FY 2012 budget.  Although the decrease comes as no surprise as all federal agencies have been directed to cut spending, funding for the Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF) and Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF) took a heavy hit, decreasing by $268,806,000 and $59,363,000 respectively.  Based on a press conference the Agency held, EPA estimates this will lead to 370 fewer SRF projects around the country.  See Advocacy Alert 12-01 for further details.  For more information, please see the chart below which compares the FY2013 budget request for water programs to the 2012 enacted budget.

In addition, the U.S. Department of Agriculture budget saw a reduction of almost $700 million from the 2012 enacted level.  Funding for the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), which provides incentive payments and cost-sharing to induce farmers to begin conservation practices to support ongoing stewardship of agricultural land and help reduce nutrient run-off, was decreased by $347 million.  The U.S. Geological Survey’s (USGS) National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program, which provides consistent monitoring of waterbodies to determine the levels of key pollutants and contaminants as well as their pollution sources, also took a significant hit in the FY2013 proposed budget.  This would mean the closing of hundreds of water quality monitoring sites and threaten the success of NAWQA’s SPARROW modeling tool.

President Obama’s FY2013 budget request will serve as a baseline for Congressional budget negotiations in the coming months and House Republicans are expected to present their budget proposal soon.  NACWA will be promoting all of the programs mentioned above on Capitol Hill throughout the course of the year to help Members understand the value of these programs and ensure further cuts are not taken.  We will keep members apprised on the budget as developments occur.

Nutrient Issues/Farm Bill Reauthorization

Healthy Waters Coalition Hosts Event Releasing Farm Bill Policy Recommendations

On March 6, NACWA will be hosting a press event at 12:00pm at the National Press Club to formally release a set of Farm Bill policy recommendations aimed at reducing nutrient run-off from agricultural lands.  The recommendations were developed with input from NACWA’s Farm Bill workgroup and from members of the broad-based Healthy Waters Coalition, a group of municipal water, wastewater, public works, state regulators, agriculture and conservation organizations convened by NACWA to advocate for stronger agricultural policies to reduce nutrient run-off.  The recommendations represent a consensus on key policies that should be pursued if serious efforts are to be made to address excessive phosphorus and nitrogen levels in U.S. waterways.

In the meantime, NACWA is urging your utility to sign onto these recommendations now to demonstrate that wastewater utilities from across the country are concerned about this issue and want Congressional action to address it.  Please contact NACWA’s Thea Graybill, at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it to endorse the policy recommendations.

RECENTLY INTRODUCED CONGRESSIONAL LEGISLATION

• Representative George Miller (D-Calif.) introduced the Bay Area Regional Water Recycling Program Expansion Act of 2012 (H.R. 3910) on February 6, 2012 to amend the Reclamation Wastewater and Groundwater Study and Facilities Act to expand the Bay Area Regional Water Recycling Program, and for other purposes.  The legislation currently has seven cosponsors.

• Representative John Campbell (R-Calif.) introduced H.R. 4001 on February 9, 2012 to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow partnerships invested in infrastructure property to be treated as publicly traded partnerships, to reduce the depreciation recovery periods for such property, and for other purposes.  The legislation currently does not have any cosponsors.

• Senator Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) introduced the Clean Water Affordability Act of 2012 (S. 2094) on February 9, 2012 to amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to update a program to provide assistance for the planning, design, and construction of treatment works to intercept, transport, control, or treat municipal combined sewer overflows and sanitary sewer overflows, and to require the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to update certain guidance used to develop and determine the financial capability of communities to implement clean water infrastructure programs (see article above).  The legislation currently does not have any cosponsors.

• Senator Benjamin Cardin (D-Md.) introduced the Water Resources Research Amendments Act of 2012 (S. 2104) on February 14, 2012 to amend the Water Resources Research Act of 1984 to reauthorize grants for, and require applied water supply research regarding, the water resources research and technology institutes established under that Act.  The legislation currently has three cosponsors: Senator John Boozman (R-Ark.), Senator Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), and Senator James Inhofe (R-Okla.).

• Senator Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) introduced the State Waters Partnership Act of 2012 (S. 2115) on February 16, 2012 to limit the authority of the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency with respect to certain numeric nutrient criteria, and for other purposes.  The legislation currently does not have any cosponsors.

CONGRESSIONAL HEARINGS

• The House of Representatives Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment held a hearing entitled Review of Innovative Financing Approaches for Community Water Infrastructure Projects -- Part I on February 28, 2012 (see article above).  For more information on the hearing, please see the Subcommittee’s website.

• The Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry held a hearing entitled Strengthening Conservation through the 2012 Farm Bill on February 28, 2012.  The hearing explored the Conservation Title’s important investment in America through policies that help farmers maintain healthy soil, clean water and protect wildlife while producing abundant and safe food.  For more information on the hearing, please see the Committee’s website.

• The Senate Subcommittee on Water and Wildlife held a hearing entitled Local Government Perspectives on Water Infrastructure on February 28, 2012 (see article above).  For more information on the hearing, please see the Subcommittee’s website.