To:
Members & Affiliates
From:
National Office
Date:
April 19, 1999
Subject:
Lobbying Efforts on Funding
Request for Letters to CongressReference:
LA 99-7
Action Please By:
As Soon As Possible — No Later than April 28Now is the time to act. In order to capitalize on the momentum AMSA has received from the publication and widespread dissemination of The Cost of Clean, the Association's forecast for the nation's wastewater treatment needs, the National Office is engaging Congress in a call to reinvigorate the federal commitment to clean water. In short, AMSA has directly asked Congress to upgrade existing sources of federal funds, such as the state revolving loan fund (SRF), and to establish new ones, preferably in the form of grants. AMSA and the Water Environment Federation (WEF) sent a joint letter to Congress on April 13 requesting immediate attention to the monumental shortfall in clean water funding. In addition, AMSA has actively participated in an advertisement campaign in Roll Call, a daily newspaper on Congress issues, relating to clean water infrastructure. Two of these advertisements are attached.
Your participation is pivotal in giving this effort the high profile focus on local issues that is needed. It is critically important that each of you join the fray in this lobbying effort. As key municipal players in your State, you have the unique ability to inform and influence your Senator and/or Representative about the link between funding and water quality.
We ask that you send a letter, using the attached sample letter as a model (see attachment), to your Senators and Representatives in Congress to express support for the state revolving fund and grant funding. This letter is designed to capture the attention of your Senators and Representatives and to inform them of your support and need for a substantive increase in the availability of federal clean water funds. Please make every effort to prepare and send the letter by no later than Wednesday, April 28. It is extremely important that as many AMSA Members and Affiliates as possible reach Congress at roughly the same time.
We have attached a few helpful hints to assist you in making your letters most effective. If you have any questions about this Legislative Alert, please feel free to contact Greg Schaner, Manager of Government Affairs at 202/296-9836.
Thank you for your support and assistance!
ATTACHMENT:
- Sample Letter to Congress — Helpful Hints
- Sample Letter to Congress
This document is available for downloading in either WordPerfect format or Microsoft Word format. To download a file, click one of the links above; select "Save File" then pick the drive and directory into which you wish to save the file.