U.S. Reps. Greg Walden (R-OR) and Fred Upton (R-MI) recently helped advance legislation that would ensure local communities can provide safe drinking water by supporting infrastructure improvements.
The House Energy and Commerce Committee approved the Drinking Water System Improvement Act, H.R. 3387, on July 27. The measure would invest $8 billion in the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF) over five years, and it would make DWSRF funds available for pre-construction activities and replacement of drinking water treatment, storage or distribution facilities.
“Moving a serious reauthorization of any major environmental law, like the Safe Drinking Water Act, takes a lot of cooperation and willingness to talk out the issues and find common ground,” Walden, the chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, said. “H.R. 3387 focuses on addressing drinking water systems’ physical needs, aiding states and utilities with compliance and operation of the drinking water program, and encouraging the wisest use of money that is spent.”
The bill also calls for a strategic plan to develop an electronic system for water utilities to submit compliance data to states, and for states to submit the data to the Environmental Protection Agency. Additionally, funding for voluntary water source water protection programs would be reauthorized.
“We lived through a terrible tragedy in Flint,” Upton, the chairman on the Subcommittee on Energy, said, referring to a crisis where residents were exposed to lead in the water. “And yes, there is still more work to be done there. But Flint was a wake-up call for the rest of the country. Whether rural or urban, folks raised their hands and asked the same question: Is our water safe?”
While drinking water quality across the country is generally considered high, many of the pipes that were laid to deliver water to the public are deteriorating.
Upton referred to the bill as “a major step forward in modernizing our nation’s drinking water and water infrastructure.”