The WateReuse Association urges our members to engage with Congress during virtual Water Week 2020 to make the case for increased federal investment in water recycling. Your stories about local needs and opportunities to spur economic growth are powerful. Please tell your representatives about the need to invest in water recycling as part of the FY 2021 appropriations process, in the next COVID-19 stimulus package, and in the next Water Resources Development Act.

Use the following Water Week 2020 checklist to take action virtually:

• Download the Water Week handout, America’s Water Infrastructure: Investing & Building the Future, which summarizes our requests for federal programs that invest in water reuse infrastructure.
• Call the Capitol switchboard at (202) 224-3121. When you reach the office of your representative or senator, ask for the staffer who handles water issues and tell them why you are calling. If the front office transfers you to that staffer’s voicemail (which is common!), leave a message.
• Request a video conference with your congressional offices using software such as Zoom to share your stories and priorities. Use recorded video to offer a virtual tour of your facility during or after your meeting.
• Share your water reuse stories on social media using #WaterWeek2020 and #InvestInWater to elevate the Water Week messages in Washington, DC and beyond. Use the sample tweets and graphics on the Water Week website as appropriate.
• Join the Water Week Webinar, Insights from Washington, DC, on Wednesday April 29 at 2 pm ET to hear the latest water policy developments from EPA senior staff, messages from Members of Congress about the value of water sector advocacy, and updates from key Water Week partners.

If you want to talk with us first or have questions about the handout, please call Greg Fogel, WRA’s Policy Director, at 571-445-5506.

Last week, in a 6-3 decision, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that groundwater discharges are subject to National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permitting, if the groundwater discharge is “functionally equivalent” to a discharge into a navigable water. The ruling stems from a case brought by environmental groups against the County of Maui, and overturns previous standards that had been established by lower courts. The justices remanded the case back to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to apply the new “functional equivalent of direct discharge” test.

This new interpretation opens the door for lawsuits regarding facilities that discharge water into groundwater, and could have a significant adverse impact on recycling projects, including those intended to recharge aquifers, establish saltwater intrusion barriers, and mitigate land subsidence. The WateReuse Association is working to provide our members with an in-depth analysis in the coming days, and will work with our partners to limit the negative impacts of the decision.

Last week, Congress passed a fourth relief package that includes $484 billion in relief for small businesses, money for hospitals and expanding COVID-19 testing, additional lending authority for the Paycheck Protection Program, and disaster loans to small businesses. The largest portion of this stimulus will replenish the Paycheck Protection Program, where small businesses can access loans which can covert to grants if businesses maintain their payroll. President Trump is expected to sign the bill into law. This is the forth in a series of relief bills that Congress has passed in recent weeks.

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) has indicated that the House may begin work on a fifth package in coming weeks. House Democrats have offered their Moving Forward Framework as a starting point for discussions for that package, which would focus more on stimulus investments and assistance to states and localities.

Action Needed: Submit Your Water Recycling Projects for Stimulus Investment
In preparation for negotiations over a larger economic stimulus package in the weeks and months ahead, we want to make sure that Congress is aware that shovel-ready water recycling projects can assist in our country’s economic recovery. To that end, if your utility or business has projects or project expansions that are primed to move forward in the next 12 to 24 months, we want to know.

Congressional staff are looking for the following information ahead of Congress’ return later this month: 

• What would you be able to accomplish in the next 12-24 months if you had an additional infusion of funding? 
• How much federal and non-federal money could you spend on the project over the next 12-24 months?  
• Is there an existing federal program through which this money could be invested? 
• Do you have any sense of the economic benefits that this project would generate in your community? Any idea how many jobs would be created or sustained given an additional infusion of funds? 

If you have information regarding shovel-ready water recycling projects or expansions, please tell WateReuse about it by sending your information to Greg Fogel (gfogel@watereuse.org). 

On Tuesday, April 21, the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee released two pieces of water infrastructure legislation—the America’s Water Infrastructure Act (AWIA) of 2020 and the Drinking Water Infrastructure Act of 2020.

Every two years, Congress passes a major water infrastructure bill known as the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA). The two bills released by the EPW Committee last week are intended to form the 2020 WRDA in the months ahead; due to jurisdictional issues, the Committee is beginning this year’s process by separating drinking water policies from clean water policies.

Among other WateReuse priorities, the Senate bills include:

• $25 million per year for the Alternative Water Source Grants Pilot Program;
• A stair-step up to $3 billion in FY 2024 for the Clean Water State Revolving Fund Program;
• Reauthorization and expansion of the Drinking Water Infrastructure Risk and Resiliency Program, and the creation of a companion program for clean water systems; and
• Reauthorization of the Sewer Overflow and Stormwater Reuse Grant Program.

The WateReuse Association commends Committee Chairman John Barrasso (R-WY) and Ranking Member Tom Carper (D-DE) for their leadership in developing the legislation, and for including important water reuse provisions. We extend particular thanks to Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Ben Cardin (D-MD), and Jeff Merkley (D-OR) for championing the reauthorization of the Alternative Water Source Grants Program.

Overall, the draft of AWIA includes approximately $17 billion in new federal authorizations, while the draft Drinking Water Infrastructure Act authorizes approximately $2.5 billion in new spending. The Senate drafts are the first step in this year’s WRDA cycle. WateReuse will submit formal comments to the Committee on the bills before May 1, and will continue to urge improvements moving forward. We expect the Committee to debate and pass the bills as early as next month. At the same time, the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure has started to develop a draft of their own, and is likely to release it in the coming weeks.

A group of 150 western state associations and water districts submitted a letter to Congress and President Trump asking for western water infrastructure investment in the next stimulus package. The letter represents the interests of thousands of Western farmers, ranchers, and businesses essential in providing food for the nation. Collectively, the entities argue that investment in water recycling is crucial for ensuring a safe and stable domestic food production.

In the letter, the organizations ask for funding for “water conservation, water recycling, watershed management, conveyance, desalination, water transfers, groundwater storage, and surface storage” to allow diversification of water management portfolios. In particular, the signatories urge additional investments in programs authorized in the Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation (WIIN) act of 2016, including additional funding for the Bureau of Reclamation’s Title XVI water reuse program.