On January 12, 2021, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) signed a Federal Register notice finalizing the 2021 Financial Capability Assessment (FCA) for Clean Water Act (CWA) Obligations. It marks the first major update to the original FCA, which was finalized in 1997.

The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies has advanced a major appropriations bill by voice vote. The bill included large increases in spending on many water related projects.

The Water Environment Federation’s Disinfection and Public Health Committee created an informative, in-depth section on WEF’s website to provide up-to-date information on the outbreak of the 2019 Novel Coronavirus as it continues to spread.

The Administration’s Federal Budget for EPA’s Chesapeake Bay Program for FY 2020 would slash the program’s federal funding by 90 percent - a dramatic cut that the President had also recommended last year. In 2017, he suggested eliminating federal contributions all together. In both cases, Congress rejected the President’s proposals.

On Feb. 25, EPA announced the WIFIA program closed its seventh loan to the City of Baltimore, making EPA’s total of credit assistance nearly $2 billion. The City of Baltimore $202 million loan will be used to complete a program of 14 projects to repair, rehabilitate, and replace existing wastewater conveyances, update treatment plants, and manage stormwater. In turn, this will better protect public health and water quality for 1.8 million Baltimore residents.

WEF was very sad to hear of the passing of former Congressman and water champion John D. Dingell (D-MI) on Feb. 7. Congressman Dingell represented the Detroit region for nearly 60 years and was the longest serving member of Congress in American history.

After months of delays, Congress passed an $867 million farm bill known as the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 (H.R. 2) easily this week. The Senate passed the legislation on December 11 by a vote of 87-13 in an earlier-than-expected vote, and the House passed it shortly after on December 12 by a vote of 369-47. President Trump has indicated he is likely to sign it. (The Hill, 12/12/18)

On November 29, President Trump's nominee to head EPA's chemical and pesticide safety office, current Region 1 Administrator and longtime environmental lawyer Alexandra Dapolito Dunn, went before the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee. Dunn, who is widely seen as a centrist choice, has bipartisan backing, according to Committee Chair John Barrasso (R-WY) and could be confirmed as early as next week.

May 11, 2018 - On May 9th, EPA released a semiannual regulatory agenda that lays out plans for a proposal date – July 2019 – and a rule date – July 2020- for blending wastewater. This means that EPA will decide by July 2020 the circumstances under which treatment plants can reroute some stormwater and sewage around the required treatment process and then combine both with treated water.