Last month on this page, I addressed the transportation funding aspect of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (stimulus bill). The poor state of bridges and roads, as well as the need to fund their maintenance, repair, rehabilitation, or rebuilding, is a hot topic these days and commonly discussed by President Obama, other politicians, and the press. Perhaps the reason that these facilities are targeted is because traffic congestion and road and bridge closings are something the public experiences and can relate to easily. Public approval for money going to their improvement is likely greater than for things underground, overhead, or intangible.

However, other equally underfunded and critical infrastructure facilities, albeit less sexy ones in terms of public perception, are in need of money and attention too. And assisting with their design, maintenance, and operation are of utmost importance to a large percentage of our readers.

Well, there is good news for you too. The stimulus bill includes $4 billion for the Clean Water State Revolving fund, which funds water quality protection projects for wastewater treatment, nonpoint source pollution control, and watershed and estuary management. Additionally, the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund will receive $2 billion. Worth noting is the fact that states must provide at least 20 percent of their grants for green projects, including green infrastructure, energy or water efficiency, and environmentally innovative activities. And there’s more …

Last month, President Obama signed the $410 billion fiscal 2009 omnibus spending bill to fund federal agencies through Sept. 30, 2009. The bill increases the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) funding to an estimated $7.6 billion, a $174 million increase from fiscal year (FY) 2008. Funding for EPA’s clean water and drinking water infrastructure funds would remain stable at FY2008 levels. The Clean Water State Revolving Fund would receive $689 million, while the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund would garner $829 million; however, the president’s proposal for FY2010 does include a significant increase.

The president’s budget outline for FY2010 includes $10.5 billion total funding for the EPA—more than a one-third increase over the FY2009 level. This includes $3.9 billion for the Clean Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Funds (SrFs), which the White House calls, "an unprecedented federal commitment to water infrastructure investment in the United States." According to the budget outline, these programs will fund more than "1,000 clean water and nearly 700 drinking water projects annually in the nation’s states, tribes, and territories, based on average project costs."

Remarkably, the budget outline shows a further commitment than just providing funds: "The Administration will pursue program reforms that will put resources for these ongoing needs on a firmer foundation. EPA will work with state and local partners to develop a sustainability policy including management and pricing for future infrastructure funded through SrFs to encourage conservation and to provide adequate long-term funding for future capital needs. The 2010 budget also proposes to work with state and local governments to address federal drinking water policy in order to provide equitable consideration of small system customers."

While investment for building new or improving old water infrastructure facilities is of paramount importance, let’s not forget the follies of the past. Significant public money has been spent identifying "what lies beneath" at the onset of most underground utility projects. The number of inaccurate, incomplete, or non-existent as-builts of water and sewer systems boggles the mind, as does the time and energy it takes to assess underground infrastructure. We must be stalwart when working with water and sewer infrastructure owners that equally important to construction is improving asset management systems or creating them where they don’t exist.

Please share your comments about water infrastructure funding or other topics on your mind: sfauerbach@stagnitomedia.com.