Republican leadership in the U.S. House of Representatives released their comprehensive tax reform bill on November 2, kicking off what Congressional Republicans and the White House hope will be a focused effort to pass tax reform legislation by the end of the year.

NACWA expressed its support for elements of EPA’s draft Strategic Plan for 2018-2022 in comments filed October 31.

NACWA and a coalition of other water sector groups that have been developing shared recommendations for water infrastructure participated in a Congressional Roundtable last week to discuss ideas for advancing infrastructure investment.

Leaders from several NACWA member utilities and corporate affiliates, as well as representatives from EPA and the Water Environment & Reuse Foundation, were among the stakeholders joining colleagues from around the world last week in Toronto for World Water-Tech North America.

NACWA participated in the second annual Mid Atlantic Utility Conference -- held in Baltimore, MD, on November 2-3 -- to help foster discussion of how state and regional issues should influence the Association’s national advocacy.

NACWA participated in the second annual Mid Atlantic Utility Conference -- held in Baltimore, MD, on November 2-3 -- to help foster discussion of how state and regional issues should influence the Association’s national advocacy.

In the wake of Flint and extreme stormwater events, environmental justice has become even more relevant in the clean water sector, and many NACWA members are promoting an expanded definition of environmental justice. The Louisville Metropolitan Sewer District (MSD) is now working on several projects that not only reduce hazards from CSO’s and flooding, but also provide community benefits.

A number of nominees for senior EPA positions, including David Ross, who has been tapped to lead the Office of Water, were approved on October 25 by the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee.

The Senate passed a $36.5 billion Disaster Relief bill last week, which had previously passed out of the House, to fund recovery efforts for Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria, as well as the western wildfires.

NACWA’s Board of Directors met October 25 for their fall meeting in Salt Lake City, Utah and discussed a number of key strategic issues currently facing the Association.

More than 30 leaders from clean water utilities across EPA Region 8 gathered in Salt Lake City, Utah on October 26 to discuss challenges facing their utilities, provide input to NACWA’s national advocacy priorities and network with peers.

As the focus of environmental law shifts to the states, the Environmental Council of the States (ECOS) recently released a new website, ECOS Results Project, outlining “states’ pollution reduction efforts on a national scale using common measures.”

NACWA is collaborating on an EPA-funded study seeking perspectives of utility managers and decision makers on the effects of regulation on innovation and new technology implementation in the municipal wastewater treatment sector.