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May 2, 2003 AMSA Fax Alert

Member Pipeline - Fax Alerts - May 2, 2003

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May 2, 2003

AMSA Urges Members to Contact Representatives on Funding
The Davis-Bacon Act prevailing wage laws remain a sticking point for congressional passage of meaningful water infrastructure funding legislation. Democrats will not pass such legislation without Davis-Bacon Act coverage and the Republican leadership will not allow legislation with Davis-Bacon Act provisions to advance to the House floor. As part of a strategy to overcome this hurdle, key Republican legislators have urged AMSA to obtain 218 cosponsors for the Clean Water Infrastructure Financing Act of 2003 (H.R. 20, or, as it is being called, “H2O”). H20, which was introduced by Sue Kelly (R-NY) in early January and provides for prevailing wage coverage under the Davis-Bacon Act, has already obtained over 130 cosponsors. Critically, bipartisan support for H20 will put pressure on the Republican leadership to move infrastructure funding legislation forward, including legislation such as H.R. 1560, which was introduced in April by House Transportation & Infrastructure (T&I) Chairman Don Young (R-AK) and Rep. John Duncan (R-TN). H.R. 1560 is scheduled for a full T&I Committee markup on May 21. To ensure that legislation such as H.R. 1560 can move forward, AMSA is urging its members to contact key Republican Representatives to urge them to cosponsor H20. A list of these key Representatives is available on AMSA’s web site at http://www.amsa-cleanwater.org/private/faxalerts/050203a.pdf. H20 and H.R. 1560 are available http://www.amsa-cleanwater.org/private/legreg/legupdate/leg_tracker.cfm.

AMSA Sends Final Version of Anthrax Protocol for EPA Review
AMSA this week sent a final version of the much-anticipated Anthrax Protocol to EPA's Water Protection Task Force for final review and approval. After the anthrax attacks in the fall of 2001, developing a protocol to deal with decontamination wastewater — the water resulting from the wash down of equipment and personnel that were sent into contaminated areas for clean up — became a critical focus. At some sites there were more than 100 55-gallon drums of this decontamination wastewater being stored. As a result, publicly owned treatment works (POTWs) wanted a protocol that would provide them and the communities they serve reassurance that the wastewater would not present a risk. A group of experts including representatives from EPA's Water Protection Task Force, EPA Regions I and III, the Centers for Disease Control, and Guy Aydlett, Director of Water Quality, Hampton Roads Sanitation District, Virginia Beach, Va., and Chair of AMSA's Pretreatment and Hazardous Waste Committee, worked to reach consensus on a protocol that would ensure maximum disinfection and ensure POTWs would retain ultimate authority over whether to accept the decontamination wastewater. AMSA took the lead on drafting much of the protocol, coordinating conference calls with the experts and incorporating their comments. The document will likely be approved in the next few weeks and will then be made available to the POTW community.

Key National Policy Makers to Address AMSA’s May Forum
Washington, DC will set the stage for AMSA’s 2003 National Environmental Policy Forum & 33rd Annual Meeting, May 17 - 21. This year’s Forum, Making Our Voices Heard . . . Mobilizing in Support of the National Clean Water Agenda, is timed perfectly as the 108th Congress and the Administration continue to identify their environmental priorities. AMSA is pleased to have Senate Environment and Public Works Committee member, Lincoln Chafee (R-RI), House Water Resources Committee Chairman, John J. Duncan, Jr. (R-TN), and EPA’s Deputy Assistant Administrator for Water, Benjamin Grumbles speaking at the Forum. Also, the Forum’s 2003 Annual Business Meeting includes the election of new Board members and other important items. Members unable to attend the Forum are urged to complete the proxy form which was sent out today via Member Update 03-07 and is at http://www.amsa-cleanwater.org/private/membcomm/memupdate/mu03-07.cfm. If you have not yet registered for the Forum, please do so online as soon as possible at http://www.amsa-cleanwater.org/meetings/03nepf/.