Lawmakers of all political stripes came out swinging last week against the Obama Administration’s proposal to cut Drinking Water and Clean Water State Revolving Fund (SRF) funding by $581 million next year, calling the programs essential to local water utilities.
The most stinging criticism came from members of the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee during a hearing to examine EPA’s FY15 budget proposal. Further complaints about the SRF cuts were leveled a day later during a House Interior and Environment Appropriations Subcommittee hearing. In each case, EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy attempted to justify the SRF cuts in her testimony, but many lawmakers on each panel appeared unswayed.
EPW Chairman Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) told McCarthy she was “particularly concerned” about the proposed cuts to the SRFs, which she said are “critical to protecting public health” across the country. Several other senators echoed these sentiments, including Rhode Island Democrat Sheldon Whitehouse (who called the cuts “unfortunate”), and Idaho Republican Mike Crapo (who said he was “perplexed” and “discouraged” by the SRF reductions and called the programs critical to small communities that need water infrastructure improvements).
At a House hearing the following day, Interior and Environment Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman Ken Calvert (R-Calif.) noted the importance of maintaining water infrastructure and full Appropriations Committee Ranking Member Nita Lowey (D-N.Y.) called the SRF cuts “unacceptable.”
For her part, Administrator McCarthy called water infrastructure “the lifeblood of our communities” and testified to the Senate that in spite of the proposed cuts the Obama Administration has delivered more than $22 billion in federal capitalization for the SRFs since the 2009 fiscal year. She also told committee members that the FY15 budget puts an increased focus on implementing the President’s Climate Adaptation Plan and includes $2 million “for technical assistance for adaptation planning for water utilities at greatest risk from storm surges.”
President Obama’s FY15 budget request would trim overall EPA spending by $300 million, while cutting the two SRFs by a total of $581 million. The DWSRF would be reduced from $906.9 million in FY14 to $757 million, while the CWSRF would have its funding cut from $1.449 billion to $1.018 billion.