Congress completed its major legislative work for the year this month after the House and Senate each passed Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) legislation that authorizes federal assistance for Flint, Michigan, and a four-month continuing resolution (CR) to keep the federal government operating through April. President Obama subsequently signed both measures into law.
Passage of a CR was necessary to avoid a government shutdown, as a previous federal funding extension was set to expire on December 9. The CR extends appropriations for most federal departments and agencies at their current levels through April 28, 2017, at which point Congress will have to either pass another funding extension or develop a new spending plan to govern federal operations for the remainder of the 2017 fiscal year.
Among several funding “anomalies” in the CR is a provision that provides EPA with an additional $20 million to subsidize Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) loans – marking the first time Congress has appropriated funds for this purpose. Of the total, $3 million is reserved to cover EPA administrative expenses, but the bill suggests the remaining $17 million could be leveraged into more than $2 billion worth of loan principal for water projects nationwide.
The inclusion of the WIFIA funds in the bill is an important victory for the program. A straight extension of EPA’s existing funding levels would have omitted dollars for WIFIA loans, as they were not a part of the agency’s FY16 budget. At a minimum this would have delayed WIFIA’s operations well into next year, but with the funding in place the agency is expected to begin soliciting loan applications in the first half of 2017.
Also added to the CR was infrastructure and public health program funding to help Flint, Michigan recover from its water crisis. One component of this funding is $100 million for lead removal projects in Flint, to be delivered through extra Drinking Water State Revolving Fund dollars directed to Michigan. The WRDA legislation earlier approved by Congress authorized this additional SRF funding.
With the holidays approaching, lawmakers are not expected back in Washington until the 115th Congress convenes on January 3.