The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently announced new funding for states to reduce lead in drinking water and proposed a new rule to reduce regulatory hurdles for farmers and landowners by redefining Waters of the United States (WOTUS). In other water related news, Senators Warnock and Ossoff are now accepting Water Resource Development Act (WRDA) project requests.
New Funding to Reduce Lead in Drinking Water
After a review of previously awarded funding and updated lead service line data, the EPA will deliver $3 billion in new funding through Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF) programs. The funding will be used to find and replace lead pipes in water systems that were identified by a recent EPA survey of states.
In assessing the lead service line inventory from the states, they updated the estimate of lead service lines to 4 million, down from 9 million previously estimated. A new dashboard has been released to highlight the latest inventory identified by each state.
The EPA also announced the redistribution of an additional $1.1 billion in previously announced DWSRF funding to address lead. Since these funds were made available to states but have not been used, the Safe Drinking Water Act allows those funds to be reallocated and made available to different eligible states. States that haven’t obligated or spent any awarded funds since at least fiscal year 2023 will be required to submit a plan to EPA detailing their strategy for expeditiously using funds to address lead before being eligible for new funding.
Proposed Rule Redefining WOTUS
The EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers announced a proposed rule to redefine and clarify WOTUS under the Clean Water Act. The change aligns with a 2023 Supreme Court decision in Sackett vs. EPA where the court ruled unanimously in favor of the property owner looking to develop on what the EPA deemed protected wetlands. The new EPA definition codifies this limited assessment of what constitutes protected land, allowing farmers, landowners and local governments to face fewer regulatory hurdles.
WRDA Project Submissions
The Water Resources Development Act is biennial legislation that authorizes the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Civil Works Program to carry out locally-driven projects to improve the nation’s ports and harbors, inland waterway navigation, flood and storm protection, and other aspects of water resource infrastructure.
As they’ve done in the past, Senators Ossoff and Warnock are accepting projects and priorities from local governments with a joint request form that will allow you to simultaneously submit a request to both offices for consideration.
If you have any questions about submitting a WRDA project, please reach out to Federal Relations Manager Molly McLoughlin.