Clean Water Advocacy - Newsroom - AMSA in the News
Budget Committee Urged to Allocate $5.2 Billion for Infrastructure Loan Funds
Thirty-one senators urged the Senate Budget Committee in a March 2 letter to
provide $5.2 billion in combined fiscal year 2005 funding for the drinking water
and wastewater state revolving funds.
The letter was signed by Sen. James Jeffords (I-Vt.), ranking member of the
Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, 25 Democrats, and six
Republicans. The Budget Committee should make "clean water and drinking water
infrastructure a top environmental and health priority by providing an
allocation of $5.2 billion" for the two SRFs, the letter said.
The Budget Committee began consideration of the fiscal 2005 budget resolution
March 3.
Congress has appropriated for the past several years $1.35 billion for the clean
water SRF and about $800 million for the drinking water SRF, money mostly used
for water and sewer infrastructure projects. The money is allocated to the
states based on a prescribed formula.
However, the Environmental Protection Agency, municipal water and wastewater
groups, and others have estimated that an investment of between $535 billion and
$1 trillion over 20 years is needed to address problems associated with aging
infrastructure combined with increasing demands from a growing population.
"An increase in funding for the Clean Water SRF to $3.2 billion and for the
Drinking Water SRF to $2 billion in fiscal year 2005 is the first step necessary
to meet the Federal government's longstanding commitment in this regard," the
letter said.
Separately, environmental advocates and municipalities plan to push for a trust
fund for water and wastewater infrastructure that is similar to the dedicated
funding sources for highways and airports .