More than $445 million in funding was announced by the Department of Agriculture for 89 water and wastewater infrastructure projects in local communities. The funding is part of the $1.4 billion that USDA received as part of the Recovery Act and is designed to protect public health and the environment by improving water quality and public sanitation services in 32 states and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. To date, USDA has announced $3.26 billion in Recovery Act funds for 884 water and environmental projects across the nation.

Click here for the list of projects by state.

AGC sponsored and participated in a briefing on Capitol Hill in an effort to educate staffers on the Clean Water Trust Fund (H.R. 3202). A Clean Water Trust Fund will protect vital sources of drinking water and fragile watersheds, including the nation's great water bodies, enhancing the health and security of citizens nationwide. EPA's most recent needs surveys estimates nationwide needs for drinking water and wastewater improvements at over $600 billion. With a rate of 28,500 jobs per billion spent, projects across the country would spur economic growth, create jobs and improve the environment and public health.

In a packed room of over 100 staffers, Kasim Reed, mayor of Atlanta, explained the challenges faced by big cities that need to service large numbers of people with outdated and aging water systems. The audience also heard about the challenges faced by small towns forced to shoulder the debt burden from the mayor of Buhl, Idaho, Tom McCauley. They heard about the state of the construction and equipment industries from AGC and United Rentals and the environmental benefits from the National Wildlife Foundation. Finally, staffers heard an impassioned appeal for water and wastewater infrastructure from the D.C. Water and Sewer Authority.  

AGC has been on the forefront of advocating for a Clean Water Trust Fund that would be deficit-neutral, financed by user fees, and help counteract the steady decline in federal investment in water and wastewater infrastructure. AGC will continue to garner support in the House for this important legislation.

The House Transportation & Infrastructure Subcommittee on Water and the Environment held a hearing today focusing on the need for clean water infrastructure investment and the positive impacts water infrastructure has on the environment, public health and  employment. During the hearing Chairwoman Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-Texas) and Vice Chairman John Boozman (R-Ark.) both cited statistics from the AGC co-chaired WIN Coalition on the overwhelming water infrastructure needs and AGC job creation data on jobs created per billion invested in infrastructure.

Several witnesses testifying before the Committee are affiliated with members of the WIN Coalition.

Witness testimony and video of the hearing can be viewed by clicking here http://transportation.house.gov/hearings/hearingDetail.aspx?NewsID=1230.

Today the U.S. EPA unveiled is 2008 Clean Watershed Needs Survey (CWNS).  The report identifies projected investment needs in excess of $298.1 billion for clean water infrastructure over the next 20 years for individual states. 

This total represents a 17 percent increase over EPA's 2004 study.  Combined with the latest Drinking Water Needs Survey released in March of 2009, the EPA has identified roughly $632.9 billion in total water infrastructure capital investment needs over the next 20 years.

Categories representing the largest segment of needs include:secondary treatment;  advanced treatment; replacement and rehabilitaion of sewers; and addressing Combined Sewer Overflows(CSO).

AGC will conduct additional analysis of the new report and share the data with our members.  This increase in the national needs supports AGC's request for additional funding for drinking and wastewater infrastructure. To learn more about water infrastructure needs and related legislation, please visit www.agc.org/water.

To read a complete copy of the report, click here.

The House Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials held a hearing on Implementation of the Pipeline Inspection, Protection, Enforcement and Safety Act of 2006 and Reauthorization of the Pipeline Safety Program.

Witnesses included Cynthia Quarterman, Administrator of the Department of Transportation's Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA).  In her testimony, Quarterman noted the significant role the AGC-supported Common Ground Alliance (CGA) and its "811 Call Before You Dig" campaign played in the reduction in incidents resulting in damages to underground facilities.

Quarterman noted that PHMSA was working with states to encourage them to adopt damage prevention laws and conduct outreach to damage prevention stakeholders.  Quarterman also referenced the rulemaking currently underway at PHMSA, which solicited comments in December 2009 to assess the adequacy of individual state's damage prevention enforcement regimes for oil, gas and other hazardous material pipelines.  PHMSA is currently in the process of reviewing comments and will develop criteria for federal enforcement of damage prevention laws in states that are deemed to have inadequate enforcement.

 AGC submitted comments to PHMSA  on the need for consensus and shared responsibility in damage prevention, the need for effective and balanced enforcement, and the statutory limitations defining the appropriate role of the federal government in state damage prevention under the Pipes Act of 2006. AGC will continue to monitor and weigh in on PHMSA reauthorization and will submit comments on the next phase of rulemaking.

To access a recording of the hearing, associated documents and written testimony, click here.

The House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Energy and Environment held a hearing Thursday on the Assistance, Quality, and Affordability Act of 2010, the first new legislation reauthorizing the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (SRF) since the program's inception in 1996. The legislation authorizes $12.7 billion over five years for drinking water-related infrastructure - a significant increase over historical funding levels. This legislation contains similar funding and provisions to AGC and WIN Coalition-supported legislation S.1005, The Water Infrastructure Financing Act of 2009, which is currently awaiting a vote by the full Senate.

In addition to reauthorizing the drinking water state revolving fund, the legislation also provides technical and financial assistance for disadvantaged communities, favors preventative infrastructure investments, and aims to replace aging facilities, among other key features.  Additional features of the legislation relevant to the construction industry include the addition of Qualification Based Selection criteria (QBS) for A/E services for certain populations and Davis Bacon prevailing wages for construction funded by the SRF.

To view additional information, including full legislative language and video of the hearing, click here.

The AGC co-chaired Sustainable Water Infrastructure Investment Coalition sent a letter to Senate Finance Committee members urging their support of and inclusion of S. 3262 in a $10 billion-plus package of small-business incentives, which the Committee may consider as early as next Wednesday. On May 5, Senators Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) and Mike Crapo (D-Idaho) sent a "Dear Colleague" to the rest of the Senate urging their support for this bi-partisan legislation.

S. 3262 is the Senate companion to H.R. 537, a bill authored by Congressman Bill Pascrell (D-N.J.) that passed the House in March as part of the Small Business and Infrastructure Tax Act.  AGC, along with the National Association of Water Companies and American Water, led the coalition effort in seeking the introduction of the Senate bill. The legislation will remove state volume caps on private activity bonds for water and wastewater projects and lead to the investment of billions of dollars in private money flowing into our nation's water infrastructure. AGC and coalition partners have been working to garner additional support for the Senate bill and include it in broader tax legislation. Based on water and financial industry estimates, the bill would facilitate at least $2 billion worth of private water investment in 2010 and up to $5 billion or more annually as the market matures.

To learn more about this legislation, visit the AGC Legislative Action Center.

On May 5, 2010 Congress passed a resolution sponsored by Representative Bill Shuster recognizing National Safe Digging Month.  This event sponsored the Common Ground Alliance of which AGC of America is a sponsor and founding member. Safe Digging Month is intended to raise awareness of the national "811 Call Before You Dig Campaign."

The Common Ground Alliance (CGA) is a member-driven association dedicated to ensuring public safety, environmental protection, and the integrity of services by promoting effective damage prevention practices.    In recent years, the association has established itself as the leading organization in an effort to reduce damages to all underground facilities in North America through shared responsibility among all stakeholders.

Click here to read the resolution passed by Congress.

On April 27, Senator Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) and cosponsors Kit Bond (R-Mo.), Mike Crapo (D-Idaho), and John Kerry (D-Mass.) introduced the Sustainable Water Infrastructure Investment Act  (S. 3262). The legislation will remove state volume caps on private activity bonds for water and wastewater projects and lead to the investment of billions of dollars in private money flowing into our nation's water infrastructure. 

S. 3262 is the Senate companion to H.R. 537, a bill authored by Congressman Bill Pascrell (D-N.J.) that passed the House in March as part of the Small Business and Infrastructure Tax Act.  AGC, along with the National Association of Water Companies and American Water, led the coalition effort in seeking the introduction of the Senate bill.

On October 29, the U.S. Department of Transportation's Pipeline and Hazardous Material Safety Administration (PHMSA) issued an Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) on Pipeline Safety: Pipeline Damage Prevention Programs.

The purpose of the ANPRM is to begin soliciting comments in order to assess the adequacy of state's damage prevention enforcement regimes for oil, gas and other hazardous material pipelines.  PHMSA will use this information to develop criteria for federal enforcement of damage prevention laws in states that are deemed to have inadequate enforcement of damage prevention laws for excavators, utility/facility owners, one-call centers and professional locaters as mandated by the 2006 PIPES Act.

AGC and its members are extremely supportive of state one-call programs, and we have been working with states to improve compliance, enforcement, and the effectiveness of one-call and damage prevention programs all over the country. For details on the ANPRM, click here.

For additional information, contact Perry L. Fowler at (702) 837-5321 or fowlerp@agc.org.