On Jan. 10 WEF hosted a webcast titled "116th Congress Outlook and Opportunities for Water," which focused on the 116th Congress - and what we need to look out for in 2019 on Capitol Hill- as well as potential regulatory news. The webcast also touched on the current U.S. Government shutdown’s current impacts on the water sector and potential future impacts if the shutdown is not resolved in the near future.
Speakers included Claudio Ternieden, WEF Senior Director for Government Affairs and Strategic Partnerships, Steve Dye, WEF Legislative Director, and Julia Anastasio, Executive Director and General Counsel for the Association of Clean Water Administrators. Charlie Stevens, WEF Government Affairs Committee Vice-Chair and Kansas City Water Utility Officer, moderated.
The webcast focused on upcoming regulatory issues including the Maui ruling on pollutants, blending rulemaking, a delay in the Waters of the US comment period and a cancelled hearing due to the shutdown, and more. For more information on these issues you can click on the link below to listen to a recording of the webcast a view handouts. The webcast also focused on potential upcoming legislation in the 116th Congress (and how the Democrats newly in control of the House of Representatives may influence that). Improving infrastructure continues to be a bipartisan issue and will likely get a fair amount of attention. WEF and others in the water sector are working to ensure that this legislation includes water infrastructure – not just transportation. An FY20 funding bill will be expected at some point, too, and we will work to ensure our priorities are included in the bill.
The webcast recording and handouts can be accessed here.
