On Wednesday, October 10, 2018, the U.S. Senate approved the biennial Water Resources Development Act (WRDA). The act includes a provision that originated with and was supported by coordinated efforts of the National Municipal Stormwater Alliance (NMSA) and the Water Environment Federation (WEF). The bill, known as America’s Water Infrastructure Act (S. 3021), was previously passed by the U.S. House of Representatives.
The bill includes a new stormwater financing federal task force. WRDA sets up a task force “composed of federal, state, and local governments and private (including nonprofit) entities to conduct a study on, and develop recommendations to improve, the availability of public and private sources of funding for the construction, rehabilitation, and operation and maintenance of stormwater infrastructure to meet the requirements of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.).”
NMSA is dedicated to assisting permittees in implementing their stormwater programs. The task force created under the WRDA bill will assist permittees in improving funding for stormwater and helping to fulfill NMSA’s vision of providing clean water for the nation. The partnership between NMSA and WEF was instrumental in pushing this past the goal line. Diligent efforts led by both NMSA and WEF leadership (especially WEF Legislative Director, Steve Dye) to shepherd this bill through the legislative process were key to successful passage of WRDA. This type of victory highlights the value of a well-coordinated and strong partnership between NMSA and WEF.
