These principles and recommendations, which are fully detailed in NACWA’s 21st Century Technologies and Policies to Meet 21st Century Clean Water Challenges white paper, were put together by NACWA’s Water Technology & Innovation Investment Task Force and recently adopted by the Association’s Board of Directors. The policy recommendations include the following four general areas: 

1. Ensuring full appropriations for recently reauthorized programs such as the Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF), the Sewer Overflow and Stormwater Reuse Municipal Grants Program, and the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) program, as well as for newly authorized programs such as for Clean Water Infrastructure Resilience and Sustainability grants;  

2. Expanding and prioritizing eligibilities for technological innovation through federal water programs, including a voluntary state technology set aside under the CWSRF; 

3. Congressional appropriations language that encourages and supports technological innovation in the water sector, such as the Innovative Technologies for Water Infrastructure report language included in the Senate’s FY23 Interior and Environment Appropriations bill; and  

4. Standalone legislation to enhance the federal government’s partnership with state and local governments, academic institutions, and the private sector to ensure the full scope of water technology can be fully developed and deployed across utilities of all sizes.