Washington, D.C. — The following are opening remarks, as prepared for delivery, from Ranking Member of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Rick Larsen (D-WA) and Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment Frederica Wilson (D-FL) during today’s hearing titled, “Water Infrastructure Financing: WIFIA and the Clean Water State Revolving Fund.”
Video of Ranking Member Wilson’s opening statement is here.
More information on the hearing can be found here.
Ranking Member Larsen:
Thank you, Chairman Collins and Ranking Member Wilson, for holding this hearing on ways to continue federal investments in job-creating water infrastructure.
As we will hear today from the National Utility Contractors Association, for every $1 billion invested in clean water infrastructure, approximately 28,000 jobs are created.
That’s why Congress invested $13.8 billion in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to upgrade wastewater systems, prevent pollution and support a good quality of life across the country.
These investments create jobs and protect clean water.
These investments also help drive the low, 4.1 percent unemployment rate while modernizing our infrastructure.
In my district, Washington’s Second District, these investments in upgrading aging sewer and water equipment provide good paying jobs to working women and men.
From a $1.4 million SRF loan in Whatcom County to replace antiquated equipment to a $200,000 engineering review grant to Lummi Nation for assessing their wastewater needs, these job-creating investments are making a difference.
For too long, historically underserved communities have lacked access to clean water, including rural communities and Tribes like Lummi Nation.
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law made the largest investment of water infrastructure funding to Tribes in the history of the EPA. This critical funding means that Tribes in Northwest Washington and around the country can advance public health protections, replace lead service lines and address harmful contaminants like PFAS to improve overall water quality.
This type of funding is critical for projects like Lummi Tribal Sewer and Water District’s Gooseberry Point Wastewater Treatment Plant, which serves both Tribal and non-Tribal residents.
Gooseberry Point is a working wastewater system that not only benefits local residents but also protects the water in Bellingham Bay, protects critical habitat for salmon and orca and improves water quality in shellfish growing areas.
Let’s keep these investments going.
Investments from the BIL are making a difference in communities across the country.
Reducing or eliminating these investments will force American families to pay more for dirtier water.
The President recently outlined his plan to cut EPA programs, including water infrastructure programs, by at least 65 percent.
If this proposal sounds familiar, it is because House Republicans proposed almost the exact same plan last Congress to cut 67 percent from clean water infrastructure programs.
Fortunately, Congressional Democrats were able to stop last year’s efforts to gut federal infrastructure spending but this year the outcome is still unclear.
The $1 billion cut proposed by President Trump and House Republicans would pull the rug out from states and local communities and hurt companies and supply chains that depend on predictable funding—risking jobs.
Ultimately, the biggest loser will be everyday American families who will see their monthly bills continue to increase, and their access to clean water decrease.
I look forward to hearing from our witnesses today about the importance of federal investments in clean water and why these cuts should be opposed.
Thank you, and I yield back.
Ranking Member Wilson:
Thank you so much, Chair Collins, for holding today’s hearing on the critical issue of affordable investments in water infrastructure.
This is my first time here as Ranking Member, and I’d like to take this opportunity to add my congratulations to your selection to lead this very important Subcommittee.
I look forward to working with you as the Ranking Member in working towards meeting the water needs of our nation, our communities, and the hard-working families that we represent.
I am privileged to represent Florida’s 24th Congressional District in South Florida—a district known for its stunning beaches, crystal-clear water and vibrant outdoor lifestyle.
Like much of Florida, our local economy is intertwined with the quality of our environment. Florida is a peninsula surrounded by water from head to toe.
Clean water is the foundation of our region’s environment, quality of life, and the approximately 1.2 million Florida jobs that depend on Florida’s tourism.
Our very existence depends on clean water for everyday consumption, commerce, recreation and the economic vitality of the region—not to mention that my community is ground zero for the climate crisis that our world faces.
That is why I am deeply concerned about the chaos that Republicans are creating with our clean water future.
At the last Committee hearing, witnesses from across the United States highlighted how the uncertainty caused by Republican funding freezes in water infrastructure financing is jeopardizing water projects across the nation.
This situation is leading to project delays, escalating costs and even the potential abandonment of crucial local water infrastructure projects.
And the Republicans’ response? Proposing more slashes to water infrastructure investments by at least another 65 percent.
This one-two punch to our nation’s water infrastructure needs will directly hit the wallets of hard-working American families who will pay more in their water bills—if that water is even available.
The Republican-created chaos also undermines the roughly 28,000 jobs that are created for every billion dollars invested in water infrastructure—putting the jobs of laborers, manufacturers and supply chains at risk.
What is most chilling about all of this is the silence from my colleagues across the aisle. Their constituents are equally concerned about the Administration’s actions to undermine our water supply.
I truly hope that Republicans’ silence is not a green light for them to further slash protections for our water supply.
Our communities cannot withstand further setbacks to Federal and State efforts to protecting our water and our environment, and we cannot allow this Republican administration to weigh down American families with higher costs and public health risks.
I stand with our communities who are simply trying to affordably meet their local water needs. I yield back the balance of my time, and I look forward to hearing from our witnesses.
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