President Donald J. Trump on Monday signed the Water Infrastructure Improvement Act into law. This bill codifies the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) Integrated Planning (IP) approach into law, providing local communities with critical new flexibilities in meeting their Clean Water Act (CWA) obligations.
The National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA) is applauding the president’s signing of the bill, noting that integrated planning will allow clean water agencies to do even more to protect public health and the environment by targeting limited ratepayer dollars to achieve CWA compliance as effectively as possible.
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Advocacy efforts by NACWA, the U.S. Conference of Mayors, the National League of Cities, the National Association of Counties, the Water Environment Federation and other groups, have helped frame EPA’s recognition of the regulated community’s need for flexibility. EPA developed its Integrated Municipal Stormwater and Wastewater Planning Approach Framework in 2012, and since then, its water sector partners have been working with Congress on bipartisan legislation to codify the IP framework into law.
NACWA said it greatly appreciates the leadership shown by the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, led by Chairman Bill Shuster (R-Pa.) and Ranking Member Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.), and the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, led by Chairman John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) and Ranking Member Tom Carper (D-Del.) in getting this critical legislation to the president for his signature.
“As public clean water utilities and the communities they serve continue to face increasing water quality and affordability challenges each day, codifying Integrated Planning helps communities better sequence and prioritize, in a holistic fashion, how they comply with their clean water permit obligations,” said NACWA CEO Adam Krantz. “Enactment of this legislation is a major win for clean water utilities large and small across the country, enabling them to better provide their residents with safer, more reliable and affordable public clean water services.”
