​EPA Announces Billions in Water Infrastructure Upgrade Funding

The $6.5 billion in new funding will help ensure communities have access to clean and safe drinking water

​EPA Announces Billions in Water Infrastructure Upgrade Funding

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The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has announced over $6.5 billion for states, Tribes and territories for essential drinking water infrastructure upgrades across the nation through the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund. Thanks to a $6 billion boost from President Joe Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the EPA is increasing the investments available to rebuild the nation’s water infrastructure.

EPA Administrator Michael Regan announced the $6.5 billion investment on the Biden-Harris Administration’s Investing in America tour in Rockford, Illinois, with Sen. Dick Durbin, Sen. Tammy Duckworth and Congressman Eric Sorensen. The Biden-Harris Administration has said it is committed to strengthening the nation’s water infrastructure, while providing significant resources to address key challenges, including climate change, emerging contaminants like PFAS, and cybersecurity.

These DWSRF allotments to states are based on the results of EPA’s 7th Drinking Water Infrastructure Needs Survey and Assessment. The survey, which is required by the 1996 Safe Drinking Water Act, assesses the nation’s public water systems’ infrastructure needs every four years and the findings are used to allocate DWSRF grants to states. The drinking water utilities need $625 billion in infrastructure investments over the next 20 years to ensure the nation’s public health, security and economic well-being, according to the EPA.

At the direction of Congress, EPA’s 7th Drinking Water Assessment for the first time included a survey on lead service lines and is projecting a national total of 9.2 million lead service lines across the country. This best available national and state-level projections of service line counts will help advance a unique opportunity to employ a separate lead service line allotment formula for the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law DWSRF Lead Service Line Replacement Funding that is based on need. Almost $3 billion of the funding announced will be provided specifically for lead service line identification and replacement, taking a key step toward the Biden-Harris Administration’s goal of achieving 100% lead free water systems.

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is investing over $50 billion in water and wastewater infrastructure improvements across the country between fiscal year 2022 and fiscal year 2026. In its second year of implementation, $6 billion of Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funding will be available to states, Tribes and territories through the DWSRF. Of that funding, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law will invest $3 billion in lead service line identification and improvement, $800 million to address PFAS and other emerging contaminants, and $2.2 billion in other critical drinking water system improvements. Additionally, approximately $500 million will also be available through the DWSRF annual appropriations, established by the Safe Drinking Water Act.

Click here for more information, including state-by-state allocation of 2023 funding and information on the DWINSA.

Click here for more information on the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.



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