Jan. 26, 2018 — U.S. Sen. John Hoeven (R-N.D.) on Jan. 23, introduced S. 2329, the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Reauthorization Act of 2018. Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) signed on as an original co-sponsor.
WEF has joined with other water associations to send an endorsement letter for the bill, which is nearly identical to a bill introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives in December 2017 by U.S. Rep. Brian Mast (R-Fla).
S. 2329 reauthorizes for an additional 5 years the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act program, which is set to expire in 2019. It also authorizes projects under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) to be processed through the already established U.S. Environmental Protection Agency program office. USACE will retain decision-making authority and continue to act as the subject matter experts on WIFIA applications under their jurisdiction, while preventing duplication of effort in the EPA financial services process.
The bill also will increase the credit assistance from the current $45 million to $90 million and offer financial flexibility to utilities, municipalities, nonprofits, and other eligible entities to construct $5 billion in new water resources infrastructure.
Get the latest information on S. 2329 online.
