This Week in Washington is a weekly publication of the Water Environment Federation’s Government Affairs department. It provides updates on the latest legislative and regulatory developments that affect the water and wastewater communities.

March 3, 2006

Provided by the Water Environment Federation, Alexandria, VA

Interior Secretary Norton Testifies before Appropriations Panel
Department of Interior Secretary Gale Norton testified Wednesday before the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment and Related Agencies on the President’s fiscal year (FY) 2007 Budget request.  The Administration is proposing $10.5 billion for the Department, which, if enacted, would be a 3% reduction over current spending.  The Department’s programs include the National Park Service, the Bureau of Land Management, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and the U.S. Geological Survey, among others.  The Secretary defended the budget submission by saying that half the proposed cuts would be restored if Congress passes the FY06 Supplemental Appropriations bill which would provide $216 million for hurricane recovery efforts in the Gulf Coast.  This bill is currently pending.  The Budget request for the U.S. Geological Survey proposes a nearly $20 million reduction to USGS programs, including elimination of funding for the Cooperative Topographic Mapping Program and the Water Resources Institutes.  Slight increases are requested for the National Water Quality Assessment Program ($300,000), and for the National Streamflow Information Program ($2.8 million).  The Appropriations subcommittee is expected to report out its appropriations bill sometime in May or June. (PS)

House Water Resources and Environment Subcommittee Hears Army Corps Budget Request
The House Water Resources and Environment Subcommittee of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee held a hearing Wednesday on President Bush’s FY07 Budget request for the Army Corps of Engineers.  If enacted, the budget request would reduce funding for the Corps from the current level of $8.2 billion (which includes funding for the levee repairs in New Orleans) to $4.7 billion.  A pending FY06 Supplemental Appropriations bill contains an addition $1.5 billion for repairs to the levees in New Orleans.  The FY07 budget proposal would eliminate funding for 532 Congressional authorized projects and studies but continue funding for 91.  At Wednesday’s hearing, many Members blasted the Administration’s request, with Subcommittee Chairman John Duncan (R-TN) stating that “this budget request abandons our constituents and calls into question the credibility of the federal government to live up to its obligations.”  The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee is calling on Congress to provide the Corps with $5.5 billion for FY07, rather than enact the President’s reductions.  The Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies is expected to report out its recommendations for FY07 Corps funding in either May or June. (PS)

Subcommittee Members Urge Passage of Water Resources Development Act
During Wednesday’s budget hearing of the Water Resources and Environment Subcommittee, Members urged the Senate to work harder to pass the Water Resources Development Act of 2005 (WRDA).  The bill has been pending in the Senate since April when the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee (EPW) reported out its bill (S. 728).  WRDA would authorize up to $10 billion worth of water projects across the country, including many new projects in Member’s districts.  A spokesman for Senate EPW said the delay was due to a busy Senate floor calendar and that Senate leadership was finding it difficult to schedule a vote because of other business.  The White House is opposed to the House bill (HR 2684), which passed the House of Representatives in July 2005, issuing a Statement of Administration Policy that stated the bill’s cost and additional projects would “create expectations for future appropriations that cannot be met given competing spending priorities within the overall need for spending restraint, including deficit reduction.”  It is uncertain when the Senate might act on its bill. (PS)

EPA Defends Spending Cuts for Clean Water Fund at House Appropriations Hearing
The administration's proposed cuts in clean water funding came under fire at a hearing March 2 before the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies.  Rep. Dicks, the ranking Democrat on the panel, said the proposed $7.3 billion fiscal 2007 budget for EPA would cut about $400 million from its current budget and threaten a range of environmental programs around the nation. Dicks noted that EPA's total budget next year would be more than $1 billion below the $8.4 billion it was provided just three years ago. In total, the reductions would mean a 4 percent cut for the agency in fiscal 2007 compared to the current year. The cuts include a $200 million reduction from EPA's clean water state revolving fund (SRF), which provides low-interest loans to states and localities for stormwater improvement, prevention of sewage overflows, and other projects.

EPA's 2000 Clean Watersheds Needs Survey estimated total water quality needs at $181.2 billion to accommodate future population growth, replacement of aging infrastructure, and other needs.  Democrats said that given those needs, the administration should not be targeting the clean water revolving fund for cuts. Dicks said the $688 million proposed for the clean water SRF in fiscal 2007, if enacted, would solidify three years of declines for the program, from a high of $1.35 billion in fiscal 2004, $1.1 billion in fiscal 2005, and $887 million in the current year. Congress in recent years has restored proposed cuts to the clean water fund using congressional earmarks later in the appropriations process, with individual members directing funding to specific community projects. But it is unclear how much of the $200 million cut poised for the clean water loan fund can be restored given other demands on domestic programs and the ongoing Iraq war, Democrats on the panel said. (SJH)
 
EPA Calls On Industry to Reduce Chemical Use
EPA unveiled on March 1 the National Challenge Commitment for Priority Chemicals, a collaborative initiative to shrink industrial use of 31 priority chemicals.  The challenge commitment seeks a 10 percent decrease in the use of one or more of the chemicals over three years at government and industrial facilities throughout the country.  The national challenge is sponsored by two EPA programs, the National Partnership for Environmental Priorities and the National Environmental Performance Track.  The National Partnership for Environmental Priorities is a voluntary program that encourages government and private industry to reduce the use of priority chemicals in products and waste.  Performance Track is a voluntary program that recognizes facilities for their commitment to effective environmental management, sustained record of compliance, commitment to measurable goals, and transparency to the public.  Additional information on the National Challenge Commitment for Priority Chemicals is available at http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/osw/conserve/priorities/chemical.htm.  (SJH)

EPA Scientists Share Innovations with Public and Businesses
More than 130 EPA scientific patents of technologies that benefit the environment can now be viewed at the new EPA TechMatch web site.  Under the Federal Technology Transfer Act (FTTA) of 1986, government agencies may patent and license inventions.  Entrepreneurs can view and license EPA technologies to develop new products that offer both environmental protection and economic growth.  "EPA is fortunate to have some of the best scientists in the world who do cutting-edge environmental research," said Dr. George Gray, EPA assistant administrator for the Office of Research and Development.  "TechMatch will encourage entrepreneurs to license technologies developed by EPA scientists for new products that both strengthen environmental protection and improve the growth of our economy."  TechMatch includes third-party independent analyses of the commercial potential of the technologies, information on in-house research, and links to the full U.S. Patent and Trademark Office description of each patent.  Technologies that have been assessed to have particularly high market potential are also featured.  TechMatch was developed by EPA in coordination with the West Virginia High Technology Consortium Foundation, and is available at:  http://www.epatechmatch.com/  (SJH)   

Conference Highlights Need for Better Drinking Water Monitoring
Carnegie Mellon University held a Crisis Readiness Conference this week in Washington, D.C. to discuss ways to improve how the nation can better protect essential systems against natural disasters and terrorist attacks.  At the conference, Jeanne VanBriesen, who co-heads the school’s urban water security program WaterQUEST, expressed concern that the systems monitoring the nation’s drinking water may need a significant overhaul in order to keep up with potential bioterror attacks.  VanBriesen noted that tests for dangerous microbes take 24 to 48 hours to complete, and that spot checks conducted by water officials do not generally include testing for dangerous microbes. The Carnegie Mellon water security project is currently looking at ways to use chlorine monitoring to track pathogens in water.  Carnegie Mellon was one of four research universities to receive $8 million from the MacArthur Foundation to increase the number of faculty positions and researchers working on projects at the intersection of science and security policy. Other universities that received funding were Cornell, Princeton and the Georgia Institute of Technology.  (SRT)

Quote of the Week: “Ask yourself what the world's most precious commodity is, and you might say gold; you might say diamonds. You'd be wrong on both counts. The answer is water.”  ~ Michael McCarthy, Independent Online (UK), Published: 28 February 2006

This Week in Washington is provided by the Water Environment Federation, Alexandria, VA. To receive This Week in Washington by e-mail, contact Lisa Jones, (703) 684-2400 ext. 7741, ljones@wef.org. For more information on this week's stories, please contact the WEF staff whose initials appear at the end of the item in which you are interested. TW –Tim Williams (703) 684-2437, twilliams@wef.org; SRT - Sharon Thomas, (703) 684-2423, sthomas@wef.org; SJH - Sam Hadeed (703) 684-2418, shadeed@wef.org; PS-Patricia Sinicropi (703) 684-2416, psinicropi@wef.org. This Week in Washington is available on-line at http://www.wef.org/PolicyAction/USGovernmentAffairs/TWIW/.