Report Card Wins
The passage of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act – IIJA – represents a historic, once-in-a-generation investment in our roads, bridges, water and wastewater networks, ports, electric grid, dams, and more. It increases funding, makes smart improvements to policy such as streamlining permitting, and creates new programs targeted at almost all 17 categories in the 2021 Report Card for America’s Infrastructure. The bill is a significant down payment on the $2.5 trillion infrastructure investment gap that was identified in the 2021 Report Card and will benefit American businesses and families for years to come.
IIJA addresses 12 of ASCE’s recommendations concerning drinking water, stormwater, and wastewater. ASCE recommendations address the drinking waters needs by increasing funding, adding resilience, and aiding for vulnerable communities. Stormwater needs should be addressed by more efficient dissemination of information, better planning and design, and targeted funding. Wastewater recommendations include additional funding, research, and the elimination of combined sewers.
IIIJA provides $55 billion to upgrade water infrastructure, including reauthorization of the Clean Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Funds (SRF), IIJA also provides funding to eliminate lead service lines, $50 million for a resilience and sustainability grant program, and $510 million over five years to establish disadvantaged communities grant program. To address stormwater needs, IIJA provides $5 million per year to complete the Clean Watershed Needs Survey biennially, funding on Stormwater Best Management Practices, NOAA flood mapping assistance and authorizes $280 million annually for sanitary sewer overflows with requirements to allocate at least 25% of such funds towards systems serving rural or disadvantaged communities. For wastewater, IIJA reauthorizes the Clean Water SRF at $11.7 billion over 5 years and provides $10 billion to address emerging contaminants.
