ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENT COMMITTEE

INVESTING IN WATER INFRASTRUCTURE

WHEREAS, the water and wastewater infrastructure needs of cities and other local governments continue to escalate, despite annual local expenditures of about $60 billion annually; and

WHEREAS, requirements of the Clean Water Act and Safe Drinking Water Act continue to force additional capital and operating costs for the achievement of cleaner and safer water throughout the nation; and

WHEREAS, a recent national report on future water and wastewater infrastructure needs, prepared by the Water Infrastructure Network, shows the "gap" between local expenditures and the full cost of building, operating and maintaining needed drinking water and wastewater facilities is estimated at $14 billion annually for drinking water and $20 billion annually for wastewater over the next 20 years; and

WHEREAS, there is a new national effort, led by a coalition of governmental and private water organizations and other interested groups called the Water Infrastructure Network and supported within the Congress by the newly-created Water Infrastructure Caucus, which is intended to raise public awareness on the need for increased federal resource commitments to help communities close this funding gap; and

WHEREAS, the Conference of Mayors and other coalition member groups are seeking to renew and increase federal commitments to the financing of water and wastewater infrastructure needs; and

WHEREAS, such increased federal partnership commitments are needed to reverse the continuing decline over the last 20 years of the federal share of the financing for these investments, many of which are directed by federal law; and

WHEREAS, cities are increasingly seeking support from the private sector as partners in designing, financing, building, and operating drinking water and wastewater facilities, only to find the benefits to be achieved by such public-private partnerships constrained by federal tax and environmental policies; and

WHEREAS, the entire nation benefits from an increased federal commitment to the nation's water and wastewater infrastructure, and

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED , that The U.S. Conference of Mayors calls upon the Congress and the Administration to work with the Water Infrastructure Caucus, the Water Infrastructure Network, cities directly and others to craft a more comprehensive federal response to the growing water and wastewater needs of the nation;

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that The U.S. Conference of Mayors calls upon the Congress and the Administration to initiate legislation during the 107th Congress that increases the federal share of the financing of water and wastewater facilities, including investments and other mechanisms to help communities minimize future operating costs;

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that The U.S. Conference of Mayors calls upon the Congress and the Administration to include in this package direct grant and other financing tools to support investments by cities and local areas and additional tax-related incentives, including removal of restrictions to tax-exempt financing of public purpose projects through "Clean Water Bonds" exempt from state volume caps, to attract private sector support to help close the investment gap in water and wastewater infrastructure; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that The U.S. Conference of Mayors believes that a substantial commitment of general fund revenues, which are now in surplus, are an appropriate and desirable use of these federal resources in the short and near term, until such time as a dedicated financing mechanism is developed to ensure longer term funding commitments to these needs.