The House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee held a markup Oct. 29 of an amended H.R. 1497, the Water Quality Protection and Job Creation Act of 2019, and passed the legislation with strong bipartisan support.

NACWA and the Montana League of Cities and Towns (the League) filed an appeal with the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit of the March and July federal district court rulings in a case brought by an environmental group challenging the EPA’s approval of Montana’s general nutrient variance for municipal dischargers.

EPA held a regulatory briefing Oct. 25 for intergovernmental associations on the Agency’s proposed Lead and Copper Rule (LCR) Long-Term Revisions.

The US Senate this week is debating a multi-bill Fiscal Year 2020 (FY20) appropriations package which includes the Interior & Environment Appropriations measure to fund the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and key clean water programs.

Two key pieces of legislation NACWA strongly supports have been introduce on a bipartisan basis in the Senate and House in recent days.

EPA announced its Preliminary Effluent Guidelines Program Plan 14 in an October 24 Federal Register notice.

The Water Research Foundation (WRF), the American Water Works Association (AWWA), and NACWA joined together this week to release a guide that can help drinking water utilities and clean water utilities evaluate potential utility partnerships.