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.

House Leaders Request Study on Clean Water Trust Fund
On Jan. 28, three Congressmen sent a letter to the Government Accountability Office (GAO) requesting a study to determine potential funding mechanisms and revenue sources to support a trust fund for water infrastructure needs.  The letter was signed by House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman, James Oberstar (D-MN); Water Resources Subcommittee Chair Bernice Johnson (D-TX); and House Ways and Means Committee member, Congressman Earl Blumenauer (D-OR). The letter requests the study be completed by Jan. 2009 and that it analyzes potential revenue sources to fund up to $10 billion dollars to establish a Clean Water Trust Fund.  

“It is time we make our domestic infrastructure a priority, and we must make the investment now.  While the House passed a bill last year that authorizes a study about funding sources for water systems, the legislation stalled in the Senate,” said Rep. Johnson in a press release from the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.  “Because the need for investment is increasing every day, we are requesting that GAO study the issue now, rather than waiting for Senate action.  As an independent, nonpartisan agency, the GAO can identify appropriate sources of revenue that will lead to bipartisan legislation establishing a Clean Water Trust Fund.”

Oberstar and Blumenauer have both indicated interest in introducing a trust fund bill.  The letter referenced the Water Infrastructure Network (WIN), of which WEF is a member.  WIN has been influential in making the trust fund a top legislative priority.  A copy of the letter is available here. 

Chairman Oberstar Outlines Legislative Agenda
At a news conference this week, Congressman James Oberstar (D-MN), Chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, outlined his key legislative agenda for this year.  He was joined by his subcommittee chairpersons, including Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson, Chairwoman of the Water Resources and Environment Subcommittee.  Mr. Oberstar indicated that he intends to hold oversight hearings on the president's fiscal year 2009 budget for EPA’s Office of Water and the regulatory program at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and take up legislation to reauthorize the brownfields program.  This is consistent with what subcommittee staff discussed at a meeting this week with WEF Government Affairs staff on WEF’s comments on the Raw Sewage Community Right to Know Act (H.R. 2452).  In addition to these legislative items, subcommittee staff told WEF that Mr. Oberstar plans to hold extensive hearings on the Clean Water Restoration Act, one of Mr. Oberstar’s top legislative priorities, which addresses recent Supreme Court decisions raising jurisdictional challenges to the Clean Water Act.  During the press conference, Mrs. Johnson indicated that she intends to move forward with the Raw Sewage Community Right to Know Act, will continue to hold hearings on Great Lakes water quality issues and drought conditions plaguing many parts of the country, and will consider legislation for projects that were not part of the recently passed Water Resources Development Act.  WEF comments on the sewage overflow public notification bill are available here.

WEF Encourages the Reauthorization of Clean Water State Revolving Fund
On Monday, WEF, along with six other organizations, sent a letter to Congresswoman Barbara Boxer (D-CA) to encourage her to introduce legislation to reauthorize the Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF). The letter also encourages the reauthorization bill to include the promotion of water conservation and efficiency, and specific provisions regarding funding and incentives for green infrastructure.   In March 2007, the House passed the Water Quality Financing Act of 2007 which would reauthorize the CWSRF at $14 billion over four years.  The Senate has yet to pass a similar bill.  Last month President Bush signed an omnibus bill that represented a nearly 40 percent cut for CWSRF and contained the lowest amount ever provided in the 20-year history of the program.  In addition to WEF, the letter was signed by the American Public Works Association, American Rivers, National Association of Clean Water Agencies, American Society of Landscape Architects, National Resources Defense Council, and The American Institute of Architects. The letter also encouraged the promotion of water conservation and efficiency within the bill.  A copy of the letter is available here.

USGS Study Reveals Agricultural Practices Contribute Majority of Nutrients to the Gulf of Mexico
On Jan. 29, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) announced that agricultural sources in 9 states in the Mississippi River Basin contribute the majority of nutrients to the Northern Gulf of Mexico.  Excessive nutrients have resulted in the hypoxic “dead zone,” an area of low dissolved oxygen caused by algal growth.  According to the results of a new USGS study, Illinois, Iowa, Indiana, Missouri, Arkansas, Kentucky, Tennessee, Ohio, and Mississippi contribute more than 75 percent of nitrogen and phosphorus to the Gulf.  Agricultural nonpoint sources contribute more than 70% of the nitrogen and phosphorus delivered to the Gulf, versus only about 9 to 12% from urban sources that include municipal wastewater treatment plants.

"This study is important because it reveals new details about sources of phosphorus," said Richard Alexander, USGS scientist and lead investigator, who said at a press conference that phosphorus is a more important contributor to Gulf hypoxia than nitrogen.  The report shows that animal manure on pasture and range lands contribute nearly as much phosphorus as cultivated crops, 37 versus 43%.  Phosphorus associated with the wastes of unconfined animals is a much larger source than previously recognized.  Corn and soybean cultivation is the largest contributor of nitrogen to the Gulf (66%).  Atmospheric contributions account for 16% of nitrogen and are most likely generated by power plants in the Midwest, according to Alexander.

The joint federal-state Gulf of Mexico Hypoxia Task Force is evaluating recommendations by EPA's Science Advisory Board to set reduction targets of at least 45 percent for both nitrogen and phosphorus in an effort to shrink the size of the dead zone in half (to 5000 square kilometers) by 2015.  Ben Grumbles, EPA Assistant Administrator for Water, said that it is not too late in the process for the Task Force, which is meeting in late February, to change their action plan, issued as a draft in November 2007.  USGS has been briefing the Task Force on the study for several months.

The report, Differences in Phosphorus and Nitrogen Delivery to the Gulf of Mexico from the Mississippi River Basin, is available at water.usgs.gov/nawqa/sparrow/gulf_findings, along with frequently asked questions, maps, and other graphics. 

New USDA Chief Confirmed
On Monday, former North Dakota Governor Ed Schafer (R) was sworn in as the 29th chief of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Schafer was confirmed in the Senate by unanimous consent. Members of the Senate Agriculture Committee have expressed hope that the new chief will be able to help resolve the standoff on the pending farm bill.  “It is critical that USDA work with Congress to overcome the challenges in completing a new farm bill for the department to implement,” said Committee Chairman Tom Harkin (D-Iowa).  Harkin believes approving Schafer could “make this new farm bill a reality.”  Schafer was the first Republican governor in South Dakota history to be elected to a second term.  He was elected chair of the Republican Governors Association in 2000 and in that year also co-founded and co-chaired the Governors Biotechnology Partnership to increase public understanding and support for the benefits of agricultural biotechnology. Schafer said he would like to bring balance between farmland conservation and production, and between energy crops and the need to produce food.  Schafer’s bio is available on the USDA website.

Mark Your Calendar for the National Clean Water Policy Forum
WEF and the National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA) will host the 2008 National Clean Water Policy Forum on May 4 – 7 in Washington, DC.  The Forum will cover the latest federal legislative, regulatory, and legal developments, including Clean Water Act jurisdiction, sewer overflow notification, clean water funding, and climate change.  Panelists and speakers will discuss and debate these and other issues, providing attendees with a level of detail and insight only available at the Forum.  In addition to a program focused on critical issues with up-to-the-minute information, the Policy Forum will include opportunities for networking and discussion, such as the Technical Roundtable Breakfast and the Utility Executives Forum.  Reserve a room by calling the Renaissance Mayflower Hotel at 202.347.3000 by April 14 to guarantee the special conference rate.  An agenda and additional details will be available soon at www.wef.org/GovernmentAffairs/GAEvents/ or www.nacwa.org. 

AWWA Selects New Executive Director
On Jan. 28, the Board of Directors for the American Water Works Association (AWWA) selected Gary J. Zimmerman as the Association’s new executive director.  Zimmerman replaces Jack W. Hoffbuhr, who is retiring after leading AWWA for 12 years.   Born in Chicago in 1960, Zimmerman graduated from the University of Colorado - Boulder in 1982.  He has experience in the paper and packaging industry and most recently was the executive vice-president of the Arabian Horse Association.  

Quote of the Week:
“You begin saving the world by saving one man at a time; all else is grandiose romanticism or politics.”
- Charles Bukowski

To receive This Week in Washington via e-mail, contact Martha Ravenhill at mravenhill@wef.org.