Clean Water Current Archive

NACWA participated in meeting of the Infrastructure Working Group last week -- a collaborative effort led by the Associated General Contractors (AGC) and the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM).

(February 27, 2018) - The U.S. Supreme Court declined last week to review U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit decision that addressed the oversight process of EPA over state-issued NPDES permits and APA final agency action.

The U.S. Supreme Court denied certiorari in Catskill Mountains Chapter of Trout Unlimited Inc. v. EPA on Feb. 26, in effect upholding EPA’s Water Transfers Rule and providing a key legal victory for the water sector.

NACWA is pleased to see the recent introduction a bill to reinstate tax-exempt advance refunding bonds (H.R 5003).

NACWA hosted a conference call on February 20 with the Association’s State & Regional Exchange network, where representatives from various state and regional clean water organizations discussed upcoming national advocacy issues.

With policymakers in Washington, DC now firmly focused on infrastructure investment, it’s more critical than ever that YOU make plans to attend the National Water Policy Fly-In (April 17 – 18), the anchor event of Water Week 2018.

This question is next on the docket for NACWA's Hot Topics in Clean Water Law webinar series. The hot topic is both complex and high-stakes, as recent litigation shows.

NACWA staff and utility members of the Association — including the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority, Boston Water & Sewer Commission, Springfield Water & Sewer, Narragansett Bay Commission, and The Metropolitan District, Hartford — met with Alexandra Dunn, Regional Administrator, EPA Region 1, and several senior EPA staff members on February 15.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published a Federal Register notice today requesting comments on the Agency's previous statements regarding whether point source discharges through groundwater that has a direct hydrologic connection to jurisdictional surface water may be subject to regulation under the Clean Water Act (CWA).

NACWA sent a letter to House and Senate Appropriations leadership Feb. 15 requesting that strong Fiscal Year (FY) 2018 funding be allocated to the Interior & Environment Appropriations Subcommittee, which funds core clean water programs at the U.S. EPA including the State Revolving Funds, WIFIA, and related programs.

NACWA encourages all members to register for EPA’s upcoming webinar on Community Service Programs at Water and Wastewater Utilities, scheduled for March 1 from 1:00 to 2:30 PM ET.

More than 40 NACWA members from around the country convened by conference call February 14 to discuss whether to seek changes to EPA’s Maximum Achievable Control Technology (MACT) standards for sewage sludge incinerators (SSIs).

The White House released its long-awaited infrastructure proposal this week, which outlines the Trump Administration's framework for rebuilding overall infrastructure in America.

Shortly after government funding expired the morning of Friday, February 9, Congress passed, and the President signed into law, a sweeping budget deal that will increase current discretionary federal spending caps for domestic and defense programs by $300 billion over the next two fiscal years, and keep the Federal Government funded until March 23.

NACWA’s members gathered in Napa, CA last week to explore the critical balance between science and cost in clean water advocacy, and the possibility of using a net environmental benefit-based approach to addressing the nation’s water challenges.

With policymakers in Washington, DC now firmly focused on infrastructure investment, it’s more critical than ever that YOU make plans to attend the National Water Policy Fly-In (April 17 – 18), the anchor event of Water Week 2018.

NACWA participated in a webinar hosted by the U.S. Water Alliance (USWA) on February 7, to discuss the national perspective on water infrastructure funding. Other speakers on the webinar provided local and state perspectives.

EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance (OECA) issued a memo on January 22 -- Interim OECA Guidance on Enhancing Regional-State Planning and Communication on Compliance Assurance Work in Authorized States -- to all Regional Offices in order “to immediately begin the movement toward a more collaborative partnership between the EPA and authorized States.”

A three judge panel of the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit issued a unanimous decision in Hawaii Wildlife Fund v. County of Maui on February 1, addressing to what extent a point source discharge that reaches groundwater, and eventually discharges to a Clean Water Act (CWA) jurisdictional water, triggers the requirement for a CWA Section 402 National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit.

Congress has begun ramping up its legislative efforts in both the House and Senate to address water infrastructure funding.