About - AMSA Year in Review - 2001-2002 - Water Infrastructure Funding Gains National Prominence

Last year’s Year in Review article on the Association’s water infrastructure funding initiative reads “AMSA Builds Momentum for Water-21.” Since then, momentum has continued to gather for wastewater infrastructure funding, culminating in the introduction this year by the House and Senate of two bills. While both the House and Senate infrastructure bills would raise the authorization levels for the clean water state revolving fund (SRF) to $20 billion over five years, the Senate version contains many unnecessary and unacceptable regulatory provisions, which would serve only to deter wastewater utilities from applying for these funds. The House bill, however, is more flexible than its Senate counterpart and would also provide significant grant funding for wet weather projects, which the Senate bill fails to include.

The introduction of these infrastructure bills marks an important step toward the ultimate goal of getting Congress to recognize and act upon the clear need for an enduring federal presence in the wastewater infrastructure arena. Indeed, over this past year, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Government Accounting Office, and other federal agencies have all recognized the need for an increased federal role to overcome a funding shortfall that has been estimated to be as large as $1 trillion over the next 20 years.

Christine Todd Whitman, Administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, spoke at AMSA’s 2002 National Environmental Policy Forum in Washington, D.C., calling water quality the single greatest environmental challenge of the 21st century. Governor Whitman expressed appreciation for the work AMSA has done to raise awareness of the tremendous challenges posed by wastewater infrastructure and security funding needs.

Legislative and Grassroots Efforts Raise Awareness of Infrastructure Needs
AMSA has been focused on obtaining significant wastewater infrastructure funding from Congress over this past year, waging a legislative campaign on behalf of wastewater infrastructure funding that has included raising its lobbying presence on Capitol Hill, especially with the key Environment and Public Works and House Transportation and Infrastructure Committees. Additionally, between May 2001, and September 2002, AMSA members testified before Congress multiple times, attesting to the enormous municipal need for federal wastewater infrastructure funds.

These two WIN ads appeared in Congress' Roll Call publication in 2001, 2002

AMSA’s grassroots effort on wastewater infrastructure funding, in conjunction with the Water Infrastructure Network (WIN) Public Relations Subcommittee, dramatically increased attention on the infrastructure issue in the national press, with over 100 articles published in the national press, including The Wall Street Journal, Chicago Tribune, Los Angeles Times, The Washington Post, and others. AMSA’s members also played a key role in signing onto and placing editorials in their local press calling on Congress to act on the wastewater infrastructure funding shortfall. WIN also implemented an advertising strategy, which included two timely ad placements in Roll Call, Congress’ most widely read newspaper, calling for the passage of meaningful, long-term water infrastructure legislation.

House Committee Approves Wastewater Funding Bill
In March, the House Transportation and Infrastructure (T&I) Committee introduced and unanimously reported the Water Quality Financing Act of 2002 (H.R. 3930). AMSA has supported the bill which would authorize $20 billion over five years for the Clean Water State Revolving Loan Fund, would provide over $1 billion in grants to municipalities for sewer overflow control projects and does not saddle municipalities seeking funds with overly burdensome regulatory requirements. Despite EPA Administrator Whitman’s comments that water infrastructure is among the nation’s top environmental priorities, the White House has expressed firm opposition to the $20 billion funding level in the bill, stating that the authorization levels are not in keeping with the President's current budget priorities, especially homeland security.

Paul Pinault, Executive Director of the Narragansett Bay Commission in Providence, Rhode Island and AMSA’s then Vice President testifies before the Senate Subcommittee on Fisheries, Wildlife and Water on behalf of AMSA. Pinault thanked the Senators for introducing the Water Investment Act of 2002 (S. 1961), making it clear, however, that AMSA would be seeking key modifications to the bill.

Senate Moves Water/ Wastewater Infrastructure Funding Bill
The Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee’s combined water and wastewater infrastructure funding bill, the Water Investment Act of 2002 (S. 1961) amends the funding provisions of the Clean Water and Safe Drinking Water Act to provide $20 billion over five years to the clean water state revolving fund and $15 billion to the drinking water state revolving loan fund. S. 1961 would also end federal funding after the five year period, and would place additional burdens on loan applicants to obtain funding.

Recent efforts by the Senate Democratic leadership to move S.1961 on a fast track met with significant opposition from their own party over the funding formula used to calculate the amount of money each state receives for its clean water loan fund and Davis-Bacon Act provisions that ensure prevailing wage requirements are part of S. 1961. Several Senators have also raised the concerns with S. 1961 that AMSA and other key municipal and state organizations have raised, including provisions that would give state oversight authority over local rate-setting; unreasonable noncompliance provisions that would only deter applicants from seeking the funds; and putting states in the untenable position of acting as legal counsel, financial planner, management consultant and quality controller for virtually every wastewater utility seeking funds.