During the COVID-19 press conference on April 5, President Trump addressed a question on the need and timing of infrastructure improvements for the U.S. President Trump supports a massive investment in much-needed improvements to U.S. roads, rail, bridges, levees, drinking water, seaports, airports, etc. that will also help spur the economy post-COVID-19 pandemic. President Trump…
Part 3 of 5 Antiquated Regulations Challenges to improved infrastructure and procurement practices are exacerbated by antiquated regulations that remain in place. These antiquated regulations do not acknowledge new, innovative drinking water conveyance technologies. Outdated regulations create regulatory ambiguity and complying with these old regulations contributes to project delays and increased costs to water ratepayers.…
Part 2 of 5 Antiquated Procurement Practices We have learned that there is growing bipartisan support in Congress to require state and local governments to maintain open and fair competition for materials used by public water systems when using federal financing programs. According to some members working closely on the proposed infrastructure package Congress hopes…
On August 2, President Trump signed into law a two-year federal budget deal totaling $2.7 trillion. Background The White House and congressional leaders announced on July 22 that a comprehensive deal had been worked out on the top line spending numbers for the U.S. discretionary budget for fiscal years 2020 and 2021. Pressure had been…
(Part 1 of 5) Introduction According to the American Society of Civil Engineers (@ASCETweets) 2017 Infrastructure Report Card, “Most Americans – just under 300 million people – receive their drinking water from one of the nation’s 51,356 community water systems. Of these, just 8,674 systems, or approximately 17%, serve close to 92% of the total…
House Maintains Modest Increases in all 12 Appropriations Bills Above FY 2019 Levels On June 11 officials from the White House & Office of Management and Budget will meet with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) & Senate Appropriations Chairman Richard Shelby (R-AL) to chart a path forward on the FY 2020 appropriations bills that…
U.S. House Appropriators continue to make progress on their twelve appropriations bills even without a congressional budget deal for FY 2020. Department of Interior and Environment The House Appropriations Committee has reported to the House the FY 2020 Interior and Environment Appropriations bill. The bill includes: A total $37.28 billion, an increase of $1.73 billion…
On Tuesday afternoon, January 15 the U.S. House Rules Committee is scheduled to debate the rules for floor consideration of H.R 268, making Supplemental Appropriations for necessary expenses related to flood mitigation, disaster relief, long-term recovery, and restoration of infrastructure in areas that received a major disaster designation as a result of Hurricanes Florence, Michael,…
Recently, President Obama signed the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) authorizing EPA, (Environmental Protection Agency) to provide assistance for a wide variety of projects including $170 million in aid to Flint, Michigan to help repair its drinking water system.
In a bill-signing ceremony at the White House, The President explained how WRDA will “put Americans to work modernizing our water infrastructure and restoring some of our most vital ecosystems.…
On Monday, December 19, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued an interim final rule on credit assistance for water infrastructure projects that will become immediately effective. The rule allows EPA to begin implementing the new Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) program.
In the rule, the EPA estimates the national funding need for capital improvements for such facilities totals approximately $660 billion over the next 20 years. The vast majority of that need, 90% or $591 billion, is for repair, rehabilitation, and replacement of existing infrastructure.
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Cansler Consulting is staying on top of the drinking water infrastructure challenges faced by our country and how the the government is responding to it now and in the future.
If history of the previous EPA assessments continue to repeat, there will likely be significant changes in some states’ needs in the new EPA assessment in 2017. These changes will result in adjustments to individual states’ DWSRF financial allotments. Most shifts in states’ needs can be attributed to expected changes in the status of projects from one survey to the next.…
The exterior of the Flint Water Plant in Michigan. Flint is in the spotlight as concerns over it’s water quality and lead content have made national headlines.
The drinking water crisis in Flint, Michigan heightened the public’s attention across the U.S. about the issue of the deteriorating decades-old drinking water infrastructure. Along with the rest of America, Cansler Consulting watched as the crisis unfolded. Members of Congress, state and federal regulatory officials conducted multiple hearings and site visits to learn more about these challenges occurring in multiple municipalities throughout the U.S. What they learned is, without future federal budget pressures, drinking water infrastructure issues are likely to remain prominent in the U.S. through 2037 and beyond. Lobbying and government relations are the most effective ways to apply those pressures.…
