Water Resources Development Act of 2018 (H.R. 8) and America’s Water Infrastructure Act of 2018 (Amendment to H.R. 8): An Overview
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Water Resources Development Act of 2018
(H.R. 8) and America’s Water Infrastructure
Act of 2018 (Amendment to H.R. 8):
An Overview
(name redacted)
Specialist in Natural Resources Policy
(name redacted)
Specialist in Environmental Policy
Updated October 2, 2018
Congressional Research Service
7-....
www.crs.gov
R45212
Water Authorization Legislation in the 115th Congress
Summary
Omnibus Water Authorization Legislation in the 115th Congress. The 115th Congress initiated
deliberations on an omnibus water authorization bill with H.R. 8, the Water Resources
Development Act of 2018 (WRDA 2018), and S. 2800, America’s Water Infrastructure Act of
2018 (AWIA 2018). The House passed H.R. 8 on June 11, 2018. On July 9, 2018, the Senate
Committee on Environment and Public Works (Senate EPW) posted on its website an amendment
in the nature of a substitute to H.R. 8, also titled America’s Water Infrastructure Act of 2018.
The Senate did not take up S. 2800 or the Senate EPW-posted amendment to H.R. 8. Instead,
House and Senate committee leadership agreed on new legislative text. S. 3021, which the Senate
passed as a courthouse-naming bill, was amended and passed in the House on September 13,
2018, to include the negotiated water authorization text. The negotiated text contains provisions
from various pieces of legislation, most prominently H.R. 8, S. 2800, and H.R. 3387 (Drinking
Water Systems Improvement Act of 2017). Like S. 2800, the House-passed S. 3021 is titled
America’s Water Infrastructure Act of 2018. If the Senate agrees to the House amendments to the
bill, without proposing any further changes, the bill will be sent to the President.
This CRS report reflects H.R. 8 as it was passed by the House on June 11, 2018 (referred to
herein as WRDA 2018), and the amendment in the nature of a substitute to H.R. 8 as it was
posted by the Senate EPW on July 9, 2018 (referred to herein as AWIA 2018). Subsequent
legislative actions on omnibus water resource legislation (e.g., House-passed amendments to S.
3021) generally are not reflected in this report. Enactment of the House amendments to S. 3021
likely would mean that both of the bills discussed in this report would not receive further
attention in the 115th Congress. The House amendments to S. 3021 are discussed in CRS Report
R45185, Army Corps of Engineers: Water Resource Authorization and Project Delivery
Processes, by (name redacted), and CRS Report R45304, Drinking Water State Revolving Fund
(DWSRF): Overview, Issues, and Legislation, by (name redacted).
H.R. 8 and Senate EPW-Posted Amendment to H.R. 8. WRDA 2018 (H.R. 8) focused
primarily on authorizing water resource projects and activities of U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
(USACE) and dam and levee safety programs. AWIA 2018, as reflected in the amendment in the
nature of a substitute to H.R. 8 posted by the Senate EPW on July 9, 2018, included USACE and
dam and levee safety provisions. It also included provisions on clean water and drinking water
infrastructure programs and regulatory authorities of the Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA), tribal water-related authorities and programs, and water-related activities of the
Department of the Interior.
Both WRDA 2018 and AWIA 2018 would have authorized USACE to conduct new studies and
construct new projects, modified and extended existing project and program authorizations, and
altered deauthorization authorities. Both WRDA 2018 and AWIA 2018 included provisions
requiring studies of USACE civil works structure and efficiency. WRDA 2018 also would have
required a study of the agency’s budget processes; AWIA 2018 would have established a fiveyear budget process for the agency. Both WRDA 2018 and AWIA 2018 included provisions on
nature-based alternatives and projects. AWIA 2018 included a larger number and broader set of
provisions related to specific USACE projects than WRDA 2018.
AWIA 2018, primarily Title V, addressed various EPA-administered water quality and
infrastructure programs. Title V would have amended the Clean Water Act (CWA) for various
purposes (e.g., to authorize grants for sewer overflow and stormwater management projects).
AWIA 2018 also would have amended the Safe Drinking Water Act. It proposed several revisions
to the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund program, and it would have expressly authorized
Congressional Research Service
Water Authorization Legislation in the 115th Congress
EPA’s WaterSense program. AWIA 2018 would have amended the Water Infrastructure Finance
and Innovation Act (WIFIA) to authorize special terms for loan assistance provided to state Clean
Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Fund finance authorities. Further, it would have
required a study on WIFIA accessibility for certain communities. WRDA 2018 contained none of
the EPA-related provisions and generally focused on USACE and dam and levee safety
authorities.
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Water Authorization Legislation in the 115th Congress
Contents
Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 1
Omnibus Water Authorization Deliberations in the 115th Congress .......................................... 1
Introduction to H.R. 8 and Senate EPW-Posted Amendment to H.R. 8 Amendment
and Scope of Report ............................................................................................................... 2
Water Authorization Bills in Previous Congresses .................................................................... 3
Overview of WRDA 2018 (H.R. 8) and AWIA 2018 (Amendment to H.R. 8) ......................... 3
USACE in WRDA 2018 and AWIA 2018 ....................................................................................... 6
USACE-Related Context and Issues ......................................................................................... 6
USACE Topics Related to WRDA 2018 and AWIA 2018 Deliberations .................................. 7
EPA in WRDA 2018 and AWIA 2018 ........................................................................................... 13
EPA-Related Context and Issues ............................................................................................. 13
EPA Topics Related to WRDA 2018 and AWIA 2018 Deliberations ...................................... 14
Tables
Table 1. Title and Status of Legislative Text for Omnibus Water Authorization in the
115th Congress as of October 2, 2018 ........................................................................................... 2
Table 2. WRDA 2018 (H.R. 8) and AWIA 2018 (Amendment to H.R. 8) Overview: Titles,
Bill Status, and Related Documents ............................................................................................. 5
Table 3. Selected USACE Topics and Related Provisions in WRDA 2018 and AWIA
2018 .............................................................................................................................................. 9
Table 4. Selected EPA Topics and Related Provisions in WRDA 2018 and AWIA 2018 .............. 15
Contacts
Author Contact Information .......................................................................................................... 19
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Water Authorization Legislation in the 115th Congress
Introduction
Omnibus Water Authorization Deliberations in the 115th Congress
The 115th Congress initiated deliberations on an omnibus water authorization bill with H.R. 8, the
Water Resources Development Act of 2018 (WRDA 2018), and S. 2800, America’s Water
Infrastructure Act of 2018 (AWIA 2018). On June 6, 2018, the House passed H.R. 8, which was
subsequently received in the Senate and referred to the Senate Committee on Environment and
Public Works (Senate EPW). On July 9, 2018, the Senate EPW posted on its website an
amendment in the nature of a substitute to H.R. 8, titled America’s Water Infrastructure Act of
2018. This CRS report discusses H.R. 8 as passed by the House (referred to herein as WRDA
2018) and the Senate EPW-posted amendment in the nature of a substitute to H.R. 8 of July 9,
2018 (referred to herein as AWIA 2018).1 The Senate did not take up H.R. 8 or S. 2800. Instead,
House and Senate committee leadership agreed on new legislative text for an omnibus water
authorization bill.2 On September 13, 2018, the House amended an unrelated courthouse-naming
bill, passed by the Senate as S. 3021, to include the negotiated text. The negotiated text contained
provisions from various pieces of legislation, most prominently H.R. 8, S. 2800, and H.R. 3387
(Drinking Water Systems Improvement Act of 2017). 3 Like S. 2800, the House-passed S. 3021 is
titled America’s Water Infrastructure Act of 2018.
Because S. 3021 was sent to the Senate in the form of a House amendment, the Senate can begin
consideration of the text more quickly than it could if it were sent in the form of a House bill.4 If
the Senate agrees to the House amendments to the bill without proposing any further changes, the
bill will be sent to the President for his signature. Otherwise, the two chambers can attempt to
resolve their differences over the text of S. 3021 prior to the adjournment of the 115th Congress.
This could be through a further exchange of amendments between the chambers or through the
creation of a conference committee. For information on S. 3021, see CRS Report R45185, Army
Corps of Engineers: Water Resource Authorization and Project Delivery Processes, by (name reda
cted) , and CRS Report R45304, Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF): Overview,
Issues, and Legislation, by (name redacted).
Enactment of S. 3021 likely would mean that the 115th Congress would not take further action on
H.R. 8 or on the Senate EPW-posted amendment to H.R. 8, the two legislative texts discussed in
this report. For reference, Table 1 provides information on the title and status of the various
legislative texts for omnibus water authorization in the 115th Congress, as of October 2, 2018.
1 The text of the amendment in the nature of a substitute was made available on July 9, 2018, on the Senate Committee
on Environment and Public Works website: https://www.epw.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/addressing-americasinfrastructure-needs. The text of the amendment is no longer available at the link.
2 Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, “Senate and House Committee Leadership Announce
Agreement on Water Infrastructure Legislation,” press release, September 10, 2018, at https://www.epw.senate.gov/
public/index.cfm/press-releases-republican?ID=6E33F47F-2BF9-4BC8-A303-FD5B99B7F5FC.
3 Along with other drinking water-related provisions, Title II of the House amendment to S. 3021 largely parallels H.R.
3387, the Drinking Water Systems Improvement Act of 2017 (H.Rept. 115-380)—a Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA)
authorization bill with provisions to improve public water systems, SDWA compliance, infrastructure consumer
confidence, and drinking water infrastructure.
4 For more information, see CRS Report R41003, Amendments Between the Houses: Procedural Options and Effects,
by (name redacted) .
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Table 1. Title and Status of Legislative Text for
Omnibus Water Authorization in the 115th Congress as of October 2, 2018
S. 2800
H.R. 8
Senate EPW-Posted
Amendment
to H.R. 8
Title
AWIA 2018
WRDA 2018
AWIA 2018
AWIA 2018
Status
Senate Committee on
Environment and Public
Works (Senate EPW)
reported S. 2800
without a written
report on May 22,
2018.
House passed H.R. 8
by a 408-2 recorded
vote on June 6, 2018;
it was received in the
Senate on June 11,
2018.
Senate EPW posted an
amendment in the
nature of a substitute
to H.R. 8 on July 9,
2018; it included
various changes from S.
2800 as reported.
S. 3021, which was
passed by the Senate as
a courthouse-naming bill,
was amended in the
House on September 13,
2018, to include the
negotiated text. Message
on House action
received in Senate on
September 17, 2018.
House Amendment
to S. 3021
Source: Congressional Research Service (CRS).
Notes: AWIA 2018 = America’s Water Infrastructure Act of 2018; WRDA = Water Resources Development
Act of 2018.
Introduction to H.R. 8 and Senate EPW-Posted Amendment to H.R.
8 Amendment and Scope of Report
This CRS report reflects deliberations and effects of H.R. 8 as it was passed by the House
(referred to herein as WRDA 2018) on June 11, 2018, and the amendment in the nature of a
substitute to H.R. 8 as it was posted by the Senate EPW on July 9, 2018 (referred to herein as
AWIA 2018). Subsequent legislative actions on omnibus water resource legislation (e.g., Housepassed amendments to S. 3021) generally are not reflected in this report. Deliberations on WRDA
2018 and AWIA 2018 included discussions of the scope of water issues to be addressed and how
the legislation would influence federal and nonfederal investments in water infrastructure. In
addition, there was some interest in altering how the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE)
was structured and in modifying its operations and delivery of water resource projects. In the
Senate, deliberations also focused on a range of drinking water and water quality issues facing
communities and rural areas. Issues included infrastructure needs and the federal role and options
for funding projects, communities’ ability to comply with water quality regulatory requirements
and options for compliance flexibility and affordability, infrastructure resiliency, and technology
innovation, among others.
In the tradition of previous legislation with the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) title,
WRDA 2018 focused primarily on authorizing water resource projects and activities of the U.S.
Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and dam and levee safety programs. AWIA 2018 included
not only provisions related to USACE, but also provisions involving water quality and drinking
water programs administered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), particularly in
Title V of AWIA 2018 (“EPA-Related Provisions”). In addition, AWIA 2018 included a few other
provisions that relate primarily to tribal water-related programs and authorities, and certain
Department of the Interior (DOI) activities and programs.
This report provides an overview of WRDA 2018 (H.R. 8 as passed by the House) and AWIA
2018 (the amendment in the nature of a substitute to H.R. 8 posted by the Senate EPW on July 9,
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2018) and topics shaping deliberations.5 After a brief background, the report presents a broad
overview of WRDA 2018 and AWIA 2018. The subsequent section describes the context for the
USACE provisions of WRDA 2018 and AWIA 2018. The final section describes EPA-related
provisions.
Water Authorization Bills in Previous Congresses
Congress generally authorizes USACE water resource activities in authorization legislation prior
to funding the activities through appropriations legislation. USACE’s ability to act on an
authorization often is determined by funding. Congress generally authorizes numerous new
USACE site-specific activities and provides policy direction in an omnibus USACE authorization
bill, typically a WRDA. A few provisions in WRDA bills have time-limited authorizations;
therefore, some WRDA provisions may reauthorize expired or expiring authorities.
Beginning with WRDA 1986 (P.L. 99-662), Congress loosely followed a biennial WRDA cycle
for several years. WRDAs were enacted in 1988 (P.L. 100-676), 1990 (P.L. 101-640), 1992 (P.L.
102-580), 1996 (P.L. 104-303), 1999 (P.L. 106-53), 2000 (P.L. 106-541), and 2007 (P.L. 110-114).
The Water Resources Reform and Development Act of 2014 (WRRDA 2014; P.L. 113-121) was
enacted in June 2014.6
The most recently enacted water authorization legislation was the Water Infrastructure
Improvements for the Nation Act (WIIN; P.L. 114-322); it was enacted in December 2016.7 WIIN
included titles on water-related programs and projects spanning various agencies and
departments. Title I of the bill—which had a short title of WRDA 2016—focused specifically on
USACE water resource authorizations. Titles II, III, and IV focused primarily on other agencies;
many of the specific provisions in these titles had little or no relationship to USACE.
Overview of WRDA 2018 (H.R. 8) and AWIA 2018 (Amendment to
H.R. 8)
Both WRDA 2018 and AWIA 2018 included numerous provisions that address USACE-related
activities. For example, both WRDA 2018 and AWIA 2018 would have authorized USACE to
conduct new studies and construct new projects, and both WRDA 2018 and AWIA 2018 would
have modified existing authorizations.8 For example, USACE and the Federal Emergency
Management Agency (FEMA) have certain responsibilities related to national programs for dam
and levee safety. Both WRDA 2018 and AWIA 2018 would have extended beyond FY2019 the
authorization of appropriations for a federal levee safety initiative and a national dam safety
5 This report focuses on WRDA 2018 and AWIA 2018; generally the report does not reference other proposed
legislation in the 115th Congress that may have included provisions that were similar to or related to provisions in
WRDA 2018 or AWIA 2018.
6 For more information on WRRDA 2014, see CRS Report R43298, Water Resources Reform and Development Act of
2014: Comparison of Select Provisions, by (name redacted) et al.
7 For more information on WIIN, see CRS In Focus IF10536, Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation Act
(WIIN), by (name redacted) et al.
8 These studies, projects, and project modifications were identified using processes similar to the processes used for the
Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation Act (WIIN; P.L. 114-322). These processes shape the ability for
geographically specific provisions to be included in legislation while restrictions on congressionally directed spending
are in place. For more about these processes, see CRS Report R45185, Army Corps of Engineers: Water Resource
Authorization and Project Delivery Processes, by (name redacted).
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program; WRDA 2018 would have extended the authorizations of appropriations through
FY2023, and AWIA 2018 would have extended them through FY2021.
Table 2 provides a summary of the organization of WRDA 2018 and AWIA 2018 and their status.
A broad difference between the two was their scope. WRDA 2018 focused on USACE water
resource projects and programs and dam and levee safety program authorities; although the
majority of AWIA 2018’s titles and provisions also related to the USACE’s water resource
projects, numerous provisions of AWIA 2018 were not directly related to USACE water resource
activities. AWIA 2018 included provisions addressing a range of other topics, including EPA
administered water programs and regulatory authorities, and water-related activities and other
authorities of the Department of the Interior and other agencies. For example, the following DOIrelated provisions were in AWIA 2018:
Section 1046 related to the processing of take permits by DOI’s Fish and Wildlife
Service for bald and golden eagles or certain other migratory birds (e.g., permits
that allow birds to be killed, harassed, or captured);
Section 3301 related to the Bureau of Reclamation’s Fontenelle reservoir; and
Section 5007 related to water resources research institutes at state universities
that are supported through a program administered by the U.S. Geological
Survey.
AWIA 2018 also included provisions that were not tied to a specific agency; Section 1042, for
example, related to the use by federal and state agencies of geomatic data in the approval of
federal authorizations (conditional upon subsequent onsite inspection).9
In addition, AWIA 2018 would have addressed an array of water-related programs and activities
specific to tribes; most of these provisions were in Subtitle I of Title III. They included provisions
related to Indian dam safety and irrigation authorities and USACE housing assistance related to
certain dam construction in the Pacific Northwest. A few provisions were in other titles of AWIA
2018; for example, Section 1040 would have required that nonfederal interests for a water
resource development study or project be provided “the opportunity to participate in all
consultations with Federal and State agencies and Indian tribes required by Federal law.” WRDA
2018 had fewer provisions affecting tribes than AWIA 2018, and they directly related to USACE
activities.
9 Section 1042 described the data gathered by geomatic techniques as including “tools and techniques used in land
surveying, remote sensing, cartography, geographic information systems, global navigation satellite systems,
photogrammetry, geophysics, geography, or other remote means.” The provision would have required state and federal
entities considering aspects of an application for any federal authorization to consider geomatic data submitted by the
applicant, and allow the applicable agency to “grant conditional approval for Federal authorization, conditioned on the
verification of such data by subsequent onsite inspection.” The use of geomatic data in approvals has been seen as a
means to proceed with federal authorizations when permission to access private parcels for surveying has not been
provided. For example, a January 2017 article in a surveying industry magazine described how a developer of a natural
gas pipeline reverted to the courts in Ohio to gain access to certain private lands for surveys (“Landowner Rights vs.
Surveyor Access,” Point of Beginning, January 1, 2017, https://www.pobonline.com/articles/100715-landowner-rightsvs-surveyor-access).
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Table 2. WRDA 2018 (H.R. 8) and AWIA 2018 (Amendment to H.R. 8) Overview:
Titles, Bill Status, and Related Documents
WRDA 2018
(H.R. 8)
AWIA 2018
(Senate EPW-Posted
Amendment to H.R. 8)
Short Title of Proposed
Legislation
Water Resources Development Act of 2018
(WRDA 2018)
America’s Water Infrastructure Act of 2018
(AWIA 2018)
Titles in Bill Primarily
Related to U.S. Army
Corps of Engineersa
“Title I. General Provisions”
“Title I. General Provisions”
“Title II. Studies”
“Title II Studies, Modifications, and Project
Authorizations”
Topic
“Title III. Deauthorizations, Modifications,
and Related Provisions”
“Title IV. Water Resources Infrastructure”
“Title III. Primary Corps of Engineers
Activities”
Other Titles in Bill
None
“Title V. EPA-Related Provisions”
Status of Legislation as of
October 2, 2018
The House passed H.R. 8 by a 408-2
recorded vote on June 6, 2018; it was
received in the Senate on June 11, 2018.
(See S. 3021 for subsequent legislative
activity on omnibus water authorization
legislation.)
Senate Committee on Environment and Public
Works (Senate EPW) reported S. 2800
without a written report on May 22, 2018;
S.Rept. 115-294 was filed on July 10, 2018.
“Title IV. Sense of Congress Related to
Certain Projects”
Senate EPW posted an amendment in the
nature of a substitute to H.R. 8 on July 9,
2018; it included various changes from S. 2800
as reported.
(See S. 3021 for subsequent legislative
activity on omnibus water authorization
legislation.)
Congressional Budget
Office (CBO) Cost
Estimate
CBO estimate was available on June 4,
2018, for H.R. 8 as reported by the House
Transportation and Infrastructure
Committee.b
No CBO estimate of H.R. 8 as passed by
the House was available.
Statement of
Administration Policy
(SAP)
SAP on H.R. 8 (reflecting the House Rules
Committee Print 115-72, which was used
for purposes of drafting amendments for
the House floor).e
CBO estimate available on June 28, 2018, for
S. 2800 as reported by the Senate EPW.c
CBO estimate available on July 10, 2018, for
the July 9, 2018, Senate EPW-posted
amendment in the nature of a substitute to
H.R. 8; it estimated the direct spending and
revenue effects.d
None available as of October 2, 2018.
Sources: CRS using H.R. 8, Water Resources Development Act of 2018 (WRDA 2018), as passed by the
House, and the amendment in the nature of a substitute to H.R. 8, America’s Water Infrastructure Act of 2018
(AWIA 2018) posted by the Senate EPW on July 9, 2018, at https://www.epw.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/
addressing-americas-infrastructure-needs. It is no longer available at that website.
Notes: EPA = U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
a. Although the titles focused primarily on USACE, some provisions related both to USACE and to other
agencies, and a few provisions in some of the primarily USACE titles in AWIA 2018 did not appear to be
directly associated with USACE authorities.
b. The June 4, 2018, CBO estimate is available at https://www.cbo.gov/system/files?file=115th-congress-20172018/costestimate/hr8.pdf.
c. The June 28, 2018, CBO estimate is available at https://www.cbo.gov/system/files?file=2018-06/54143s2800.pdf.
d. The July 10, 2018, CBO estimate is available at https://www.cbo.gov/system/files?file=2018-07/hr8_S.pdf; it
did not estimate spending subject to appropriations.
e. The June 5, 2018, SAP is available at https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/
saphr8hr_20180605.pdf.
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USACE in WRDA 2018 and AWIA 2018
USACE-Related Context and Issues
Hearings and statements related to water resource projects during the 115th Congress have
referenced not only the importance of USACE activities in addressing demand for water resource
infrastructure and the resulting benefits but also the agency’s $96 billion backlog of construction
activities.10 This backlog reflects the costs associated with constructing new works and
rehabilitating existing infrastructure to maintain its safety and services. This backlog also reflects
the difference between federal funding appropriated for these projects and the rate of project
authorization. Among the issues that shaped the deliberation of WRDA 2018 and AWIA 2018
were the extent to which the legislation addresses the delivery of water resource projects and the
legislation’s effect on federal spending.
Congress has, particularly in WRRDA 2014 and WIIN, provided opportunities for nonfederal
entities to have more prominent roles in the delivery and funding of projects, while maintaining
the division of costs and responsibilities between the federal government and nonfederal project
sponsors. Nonfederal entities have been using these authorities to conduct work on studies and
projects and to receive federal credit or be eligible for reimbursement for this work. WRRDA
2014 also provided for new or expanded authorities for novel financing of water resource
projects, including authorities for piloting public-private partnerships (P3) and the Water
Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) credit assistance program.11 USACE’s WIFIA
and P3 efforts have encountered implementation challenges.12
Although President Trump (as well as previous Presidents) and many Members of Congress have
expressed interest in improving the nation’s infrastructure, including its water resource
infrastructure, balancing the potential benefits of such improvements and concerns about
increased federal expenditures poses an ongoing challenge. Cost estimates by the Congressional
Budget Office (CBO) have been part of the deliberations about previous water authorization bills
and have influenced which provisions are included in enacted legislation. On June 4, 2018, CBO
released a cost estimate on H.R. 8 as reported by the House Committee on Transportation and
Infrastructure; on June 28, 2018, CBO released a cost estimate for S. 2800, as reported; and on
July 10, 2018, CBO released an estimate of the direct spending and revenue effects for the
amendment in the nature of a substitute to H.R. 8 (as posted on the Senate EPW website on July
9, 2018).13
10 For example, U.S. Congress, House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, Subcommittee on Water
Resources and Environment, America’s Water Resources Infrastructure: Approaches to Enhanced Project Delivery,
115th Cong., 2nd sess., January 18, 2018.
11 33 U.S.C. §§3901-3914. For more on the status of EPA and USACE WIFIA authorities, see CRS Report R43315,
Water Infrastructure Financing: The Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) Program, by (name red
acted) and (name redacted)
.
12 As of FY2018, USACE had yet to implement its WIFIA authority; the Trump Administration (like the Obama
Administration) had not requested and Congress had not appropriated funds to USACE for its WIFIA start-up costs. In
contrast, the Administration requested funds and received funding from Congress for EPA to implement its WIFIA
authority. For a discussion of some of the issues that have impeded greater private-sector participation and publicprivate partnerships efforts for USACE and water resource projects (e.g., limitations on USACE entering into longterm contracts and challenges to assessing project-specific user fees), see CRS Testimony TE10023, America’s Water
Resources Infrastructure: Approaches to Enhanced Project Delivery, by (name redacted).
13 June 4, 2018, CBO cost estimate available at https://www.cbo.gov/system/files?file=115th-congress-2017-2018/
costestimate/hr8.pdf. June 28, 2018, CBO cost estimate available at https://www.cbo.gov/system/files?file=2018-06/
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USACE Topics Related to WRDA 2018 and AWIA 2018
Deliberations
Provisions in WRDA 2018 and AWIA 2018 would have addressed the following selected broad
USACE topics:
information dissemination and public input;
USACE permissions and permits for nonfederal activities;
studies of USACE structure and efficiency;
budget processes for USACE;
nature-based alternatives and projects;
continuing authorities programs;
project and study deauthorization;
independent peer review;
innovative financing for water resource projects;14
permitting of nonfederal water storage;15 and
pricing of storage for domestic, municipal, and industrial water supply.16
Table 3 discusses each of these topics. Although both WRDA 2018 and AWIA 2018 included
provisions related to USACE structure and efficiency, neither proposed to shift USACE civil
works responsibilities out of the Department of Defense. In June 2018, the Trump Administration
proposed transferring the USACE navigation responsibilities to the Department of Transportation
and all other civil works responsibilities to the Department of the Interior.17
In addition to the topics and provisions described in Table 3, numerous other USACE policies,
authorities, and projects were addressed by other provisions of WRDA 2018 and AWIA 2018.
These other provisions, as well as concerns that have shaped previous deliberations on USACE
authorizing legislation, also shaped congressional deliberations of WRDA 2018 and AWIA 2018.
Examples of such topics include the following: authorities for credit and reimbursement for
54143-s2800.pdf. July 10, 2018, CBO cost estimate available at https://www.cbo.gov/system/files?file=2018-07/
hr8_S.pd.
14 Some of these topics were in hearings and bill markups during the 115 th Congress (e.g., budget process for USACE,
studies of USACE structure and efficiency, and USACE permissions and permits for nonfederal activities). Other
topics were notable because of their role in past deliberations related to USACE water resource authorization
legislation; for example, independent peer review was a prominent element of the debate associated with WRDA 2007.
15 For background on the USACE role in administering Section 404 of the Clean Water Act (33 U.S.C. §1344, under
which USACE authorizes activities that may discharge dredge or fill material into waters of the United States,
including wetlands), see CRS Report RL30030, Clean Water Act: A Summary of the Law, by (name redacted)
.
16 The Obama and Trump Administrations received comments on a December 2016 notice of a proposed rulemaking
related to the policies governing the use of USACE reservoirs for domestic, municipal, and industrial supply pursuant
to two statutory authorities (Department of the Army, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, “Use of U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers Reservoir Projects for Domestic, Municipal & Industrial Water Supply,” 81 Federal Register 91556-91590,
December 16, 2016, at https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2016/12/16/2016-30017/use-of-us-army-corps-ofengineers-reservoir-projects-for-domestic-municipal-and-industrial-water). Although subject to change, the most recent
published information for this rulemaking’s timeline is an estimated issuance of a final rule in January 2019.
17 Executive Office of the President of the United States, Delivering Government Solutions in the 21st Century: Reform
Plan and Reorganization Recommendations, June 2018, pp. 14, 30-31, at https://www.performance.gov/GovReform/
Reform-and-Reorg-Plan-Final.pdf.
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nonfederal investments associated with USACE projects, authorities for USACE beach
nourishment activities, USACE authorities for environmental infrastructure assistance, and
disposition of functioning and obsolete USACE infrastructure, private funding for the processing
of USACE permits and permissions, and mitigation of the wetlands and environmental effects of
USACE projects.18
WRDA 2018 included a limited number of project-specific provisions; AWIA 2018 included
project-specific provisions and numerous provisions that related to specific river basins or states.
These types of provisions have at times shaped past debates of omnibus USACE authorization
legislation. Congressional deliberations in the 115th Congress also were shaped by projectspecific provisions or provisions that address specific river basins or states.19
H.R. 8 as marked up by the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee included a
provision related to the use of the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund (HMTF) to support navigation;
the provision was not included in the House Rules Committee Print 115-72 or in H.R. 8 as passed
by the House.20 The HMTF provision would have provided that, for FY2029 and thereafter, the
Secretary of the Army shall have available without further appropriations monies from the HMTF
to cover the eligible operations and maintenance costs assigned to commercial navigation of all
U.S. harbors and inland harbors.21 AWIA 2018 did not contain an HMTF provision similar to the
one in H.R. 8 as marked up by House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.
18 Many of these topics were part of the deliberations during the congressional consideration of WRRDA 2014 and are
discussed in CRS Report R43298, Water Resources Reform and Development Act of 2014: Comparison of Select
Provisions, by (name redacted) et al. For more on USACE environmental infrastructure assistance (i.e., USACE
technical and financial assistance with design and construction of municipal drinking water and wastewater
infrastructure projects), see discussion in CRS Report R45185, Army Corps of Engineers: Water Resource
Authorization and Project Delivery Processes, by (name redacted).
19 For example, a basin topic that has been the subject of ongoing congressional interest is control of the movement of
Asian carp, an aquatic nuisance species, from the Mississippi River basin into the Great Lakes basin and related studies
and investments by USACE; §205 of WRDA 2018 and §2306 of AWIA 2018 would have addressed the USACE study
and USACE operations and maintenance investments at Brandon Road lock and dam on the Illinois Waterway.
Another example of a basin topic of ongoing congressional interest related to USACE policies and practices on
domestic, municipal, and industrial water supply in the Upper Missouri mainstem reservoirs (e.g., U.S. Congress,
Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, Subcommittee on Superfund, Waste Management, and
Regulatory Oversight, Oversight of the Army Corps’ Regulation of Surplus Water and the Role of States’ Rights, 115th
Cong., 2nd sess., June 13, 2018). Section 1049 of AWIA 2018 would have established a process for obtaining a USACE
easement for a water withdrawal structure that crosses federal land at the agency’s Upper Missouri mainstem
reservoirs; §3302 of AWIA 2018, which would have altered how the Secretary of the Army determines the price of
water storage contracts nationally, is discussed in Table 3.
20 According to the website of the House Committee on Rules (https://rules.house.gov/bill/115/hr-8), “The Rules
Committee Print strikes section 102 of H.R. 8 as ordered reported; section 102 allows the balances in the Harbor
Maintenance Trust Fund to be spent in 2029 without appropriation. Section 102 was removed to ensure compliance
with the Rules of the House and the Congressional Budget Act.” During deliberations of H.R. 5303 during the 114th
Congress, a similar Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund provision was in the House Transportation and Infrastructure
Committee’s reported version and also was removed from the Rules Committee Print.
21 The funds made available by the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund (HMTF) provision would have been in addition to
the HMTF amounts appropriated through the annual discretionary appropriations process. The HMTF receives harbor
maintenance taxes (12.5 cents per $100 of cargo value) from importers and domestic shippers using coastal and Great
Lakes ports. Discretionary appropriations that draw from the HMTF often have not kept pace with tax collections. An
almost $10 billion HMTF surplus as of the start of FY2019 has developed. WRRDA 2014 included provisions to
promote greater HMTF spending by establishing near-term targets for spending from the trust fund.
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Table 3. Selected USACE Topics and
Related Provisions in WRDA 2018 and AWIA 2018
AWIA 2018
(Senate EPW-Posted
Amendment to H.R 8)
WRDA 2018
(H.R. 8)
Topic
Information
Dissemination
and Public Input
§113 would have require the U.S. Army
Corps of Engineers (USACE) to develop
education and awareness efforts for
nonfederal interests related to the
Section 7001 annual report process,
which is the process established by the
Water Resources Reform and
Development Act of 2014 (WRRDA
2014, P.L. 113-121) to identify proposals
for new studies, construction projects,
and project modifications.
§114 would have required public notice of
implementation guidance for provisions of
WRRDA 2014, the Water Resources
Development Act (WRDA, Title I of P.L.
114-322) of 2016, WRDA 2018, and
subsequent water resources development
laws and would have required nonfederal
entities to have an opportunity for input
on the guidance.
No provisions related to information
dissemination about the Section 7001 annual
report process.
§1011 in general would have required that
USACE issue the outstanding implementation
guidance for WRRDA 2014 and Water
Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation Act
(WIIN, P.L. 114-322) within 120 days of AWIA
2018 enactment.
§1012 would have required USACE in general
to develop implementation guidance for
provisions of AWIA 2018 within a year of
enactment, for there to be an opportunity for
public comment on the guidance and for
submission of the public comments and USACE
consideration of the comments to the
authorizing committees.
USACE
Permissions and
Permits for
Nonfederal
Activities
§116 would have excluded unimproved
real estate owned and operated by
USACE as part of a water resource
project from the definition of works in 33
U.S.C. §408 if the Secretary of the Army
determined that the modification of the
real estate would not have affected the
function or usefulness of the project.a
§122 would have removed the
requirement that a nonfederal entity
carrying out a federally authorized water
resource project must obtain federal
permits or approvals that would not be
required if USACE were carrying out the
project. §122 would have required
USACE to perform studies, engineering,
and technical assistance, including
obtaining permits for nonfederal-led
construction projects if requested and
paid for by a nonfederal interest.
§1033 would have provided USACE District
Engineers (or the Secretary of the Army on the
request of the applicant) the authority to
approve alterations to local flood control
projects in accordance with “section 208.10 of
title 33 Code of Federal Regulations (or
successor regulations), and other applicable
laws (including regulations) related to flood
control.”
§1034 would have allowed a nonfederal entity
carrying out a qualifying water resource project
pursuant to 33 U.S.C. §2232 to request from
USACE related data and documentation and
technical assistance for obtaining permits in the
most expeditious manner practicable.
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AWIA 2018
(Senate EPW-Posted
Amendment to H.R 8)
WRDA 2018
(H.R. 8)
Topic
Studies of
USACE
Structure and
Efficiency
§118 would have required the National
Academy of Sciences (NAS) to deliver a
study within two years after enactment
that (1) evaluated USACE’s ability of carry
out its mission and responsibilities and the
potential effects of transferring functions,
assets, staff, and so on from the
Department of Defense and (2)
recommended improvements to USACE
project delivery accounting for annual
appropriations and USACE leadership and
geographic structure.
§1002 would have required NAS to study ways
to improve transparency, whether a projectbased or system-wide authorization process
should be used, and the effectiveness of the
structure and organization of USACE.
§1014 would have required the Secretary of the
Army within a year of AWIA 2018 enactment
to complete a study (originally requested in
1986 WRDA 1986, P.L. 99-662) on increasing
USACE capabilities to undertake planning and
construction of water resource projects on an
expedited basis, including increased reliance on
the private sector.
Budget Process
for USACE
§126 would have required NAS to study
the economic principles and methods
used by the USACE to formulate,
evaluate, and budget for water resources
development projects and to make
recommendations on changes to improve
transparency, return on federal
investment, cost savings, and prioritization
in USACE budgeting of these projects.
§125 would have provided a sense of
Congress on the President’s USACE
budget submission to Congress.
§1001 would have established a five-year budget
and work plan process for USACE that
consisted of a headquarters plan, a plan for each
of the USACE districts, and criteria for the
development of these plans. The process would
have included the identification of projects or
initiatives of national significance to be managed
by USACE headquarters and projects or
initiatives of regional, tribal, or local significance
to be managed by the districts, as well as
opportunities for public and nonfederal sponsor
input into the process.
§1036 would have prohibited the Secretary of
the Army from updating the benefit-cost
analysis after the benefit-cost analysis has been
“administratively finalized” for a USACE project
for which construction had commenced with
certain exemptions.
Nature-Based
Alternatives and
Projects
§131 would have required the
Government Accountability Office to
study USACE consideration of natural and
nature-based features in feasibility studies
related to coastal and riverine flooding
and ecosystem restoration.
§1020 would have required that in each
feasibility study for flood or storm risk
reduction that both traditional and natural
infrastructure alternatives be considered, alone
or in conjunction with each other, if the
alternatives were practicable.
§1032 would have provided a sense of Congress
that the Secretary of the Army shall encourage
resilient structural and nonstructural
construction techniques and that nonstructural
approaches should include natural and naturebased solutions.
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AWIA 2018
(Senate EPW-Posted
Amendment to H.R 8)
WRDA 2018
(H.R. 8)
Topic
Continuing
Authorities
Program (CAP)b
§134 and §169 would have increased the
program authorization of appropriations
and per-project limit for the federal costs
for a two small navigation CAP projects
and for small shore and beach restoration
and protection CAP projects,
respectively.
§3001 would have increased the program
authorization of appropriations and/or the perproject limit for federal costs for eight specified
CAP authorities.
§3002 would have provided a sense of Congress
that for each fiscal year there should be made
available to USACE the full amount of
appropriations to carry out nine specified CAP
authorities (including the two CAPs amended in
§134 and §169 of WRDA 2018).
§3003 would have required that as soon as
practicable after AWIA 2018 enactment that
the CAP prioritization and annual reports called
for in previous legislation be published in the
Federal Register and made publicly available
online.
Project and
Study
Deauthorization
§301 would have established a process to
deauthorize $3.15 billion in unconstructed
water resource projects that meet certain
criteria.
§302 would have provided for
deauthorization of unconstructed projects
authorized by WRDA 2018 after 10 years
if no funds had been obligated for
construction, unless specific conditions
apply. §302 would have changed the
deauthorization of projects authorized in
WRRDA 2014 from 7 years to 10 years
following WRRDA 2014 enactment in
June 2014.
§312 would have required that the
unconstructed projects on the list
transmitted to Congress on December
15, 2016, not be deauthorized if the
projects did not meet criteria in
§1301(b)(1)(A) of WRDA 2016.c
No provision on a deauthorization
process of inactive studies similar to
§2108 of AWIA 2018.
§2107 would have changed the deauthorization
of projects authorized in WRRDA 2014 from 7
years to 10 years following date of WRRDA
2014 enactment and would have changed the
deauthorization of studies started after
WRRDA 2014 from 7 years to 10 years after
initiation.
§2108 would have established a process to
deauthorize $7.5 billion in water resource
feasibility studies that had not received federal
funds during the 10 years preceding AWIA
2018 enactment.
§2113 would have appeared to deauthorize
upon AWIA 2018 enactment unconstructed
projects that never received obligations or had
not received obligations for planning, design, or
construction since FY2000, and were on a list
transmitted to Congress on December 15,
2016; the provision did not apply to a project
for Pearl River basin, MS.d
No provision on a deauthorization process of
unconstructed projects similar to §301 of
WRDA 2018. No provisions related to
deauthorization of projects authorized by
AWIA 2018 similar to §302 of WRDA 2018.
Independent
Peer Review
No similar provisions.
§1023 would have extended the authorization
of independent peer review of USACE studies
for an additional five years (i.e., from 2019 to
2024) and would have required the Secretary of
the Army to report on the effect of the
required peer reviews.
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Water Authorization Legislation in the 115th Congress
AWIA 2018
(Senate EPW-Posted
Amendment to H.R 8)
WRDA 2018
(H.R. 8)
Topic
Innovative
Financing
No similar provisions.
§1025 would have required the Secretary of the
Army within a year of AWIA 2018 enactment
to report to the authorizing committees on the
results of a study of impediments to USACE
implementation of the Water Infrastructure
Financing Innovation Act (WIFIA), potential
projects for WIFIA assistance, and identified
amendments to statutes and regulation to
improve USACE implementation of WIFIA.
§5002 would have reauthorized appropriations
for WIFIA for USACE through FY2021.
Permitting of
Nonfederal
Water Storage
No similar provision.
§1028 would have required that the USACE
District Engineer provide a purpose and need
statement to the applicant for a permit for a
water storage project within 90 days of a
complete application. Prior to issuing a permit
decision, the Secretary of the Army would have
been required to provide the applicant a record
of decision that described all applicable permit
conditions. The Secretary of the Army would
have been required to establish a board of
appeals to make a determination regarding an
appeal of a purpose and need statement and/or
permit condition; the District Engineer would
have been required to then reconsider the
purpose and need statement or permit
condition, taking into consideration the board’s
determination.
§3305 would have established a 10-year USACE
permit pilot program to expedite review for
drinking water reservoirs that met certain
criteria.
Pricing of
Storage for
Domestic,
Municipal, and
Industrial Water
Supply
No similar provision.
§3302 would have required that the Secretary
of the Army establish the price for domestic,
municipal, and industrial water storage
contracts at a reservoir at no more than 110%
of the lowest-contracted price (adjusted for
inflation) used in water storage contracts
executed prior to January 1, 2018, for USACE
facilities within 50 miles of the water source
covered by the storage contract. The provision
would have applied only to the contracts
executed by the Secretary of the Army under
the authority at 43 U.S.C. §390b and would
have been limited to projects that did not
include hydropower as an authorized project
purpose.
Sources: CRS using H.R. 8, Water Resources Development Act of 2018 (WRDA 2018), as passed by the House
on June 11, 2018, and the amendment in the nature of a substitute to H.R. 8, America’s Water Infrastructure Act
of 2018 (AWIA 2018) as posted by the Senate EPW on July 9, 2018, at https://www.epw.senate.gov/public/
index.cfm/addressing-americas-infrastructure-needs. It is no longer available at that website.
a. Permissions to alter USACE water resource projects are referred to as Section 408 permissions. The
provision would have eliminated the need for a Section 408 permission for qualifying non-USACE
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b.
c.
d.
alterations of USACE real estate; other actions by USACE may still have been required (e.g., granting of a
right-of-way).
For more information on CAP, see CRS Report R45185, Army Corps of Engineers: Water Resource
Authorization and Project Delivery Processes, by (name redacted) .
Under current statute, the projects on the list are anticipated to be deauthorized on October 1, 2018. The
criteria in WRDA 2016 that would have applied to the transmitted list pursuant to §312 would be the
following: the project had been authorized prior to November 8, 2007 (which is the day prior to enactment
of the Water Resources Development Act of 2007, P.L. 110-114), and had not had planning, design, or
construction initiated either before WRDA 2016 enactment or in the six preceding fiscal years.
Under current statute, the projects on the list were deauthorized on October 1, 2018.
EPA in WRDA 2018 and AWIA 2018
EPA-Related Context and Issues
In addition to water resource issues, the 115th Congress has given considerable attention to
drinking water and wastewater infrastructure management and funding issues. Numerous bills
have been introduced to amend EPA-administered programs under the Clean Water Act (CWA)22
and/or the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA)23 to help municipalities meet public health and
environmental quality goals through drinking water and wastewater infrastructure improvements
and other means. These bills would variously increase federal investment in water infrastructure,
promote infrastructure resiliency and sustainability, and increase capacity to comply with CWA
and SDWA mandates.24 Many of these objectives were incorporated in provisions of AWIA 2018.
Similarly, WRRDA 2014 and WIIN in 2016 addressed water infrastructure programs
administered by EPA. WRRDA 2014 included WIFIA, which authorized EPA and USACE to
provide credit assistance for an array of water infrastructure projects, including projects to build
and upgrade wastewater and drinking water treatment systems—and, specifically, projects
eligible to receive assistance under the Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF) and
Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF) programs.25 WIFIA specifies that state
infrastructure finance authorities are eligible to receive WIFIA assistance. WRRDA 2014 also
made significant revisions to the CWSRF program. In 2016, WIIN, Title II (Water and Waste Act
of 2016), made numerous amendments to SDWA.26
22 33 U.S.C. §§1251-1387.
23 42 U.S.C. §§300f-300j-24.
24 For more information, see CRS Report R45304, Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF): Overview, Issues,
and Legislation, by (name redacted),and CRS Report R44963, Wastewater Infrastructure: Overview, Funding, and
Legislative Developments, by (name redacted)
.
25 In contrast to EPA, USACE has yet to implement its WIFIA authority; the Trump Administration (like the Obama
Administration) has not requested and Congress has not appropriated funds to USACE for its WIFIA start-up costs. For
more information, see CRS Report R43315, Water Infrastructure Financing: The Water Infrastructure Finance and
Innovation Act (WIFIA) Program, by (name redacted) and (name redacted)
.
26 P.L. 114-322, Title II, comprised the Water and Waste Act of 2016. WIIN, Title II, Subtitle A, made numerous
revisions to the Safe Drinking Water Act, including the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF) provisions
(42 U.S.C. §§300f-300j-26). Title II, Subtitle B, authorized $100 million in DWSRF capitalization grants and other
emergency assistance for Flint, MI, to address lead in the water system. For more information, see CRS In Focus
IF10577, Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation (WIIN) Act, P.L. 114-322: Drinking Water Provisions, by
(name redacted).
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EPA Topics Related to WRDA 2018 and AWIA 2018 Deliberations
AWIA 2018 included numerous provisions involving EPA-administered water quality
infrastructure programs and other authorities. Most of these provisions occurred in Title V, but
other titles also featured EPA-relevant provisions (e.g., Section 3702 proposed to amend and
reauthorize EPA’s Long Island Sound programs).
Title V of AWIA 2018 would have amended the CWA to (1) reauthorize the appropriation of
grants for municipal sewer overflow projects and to make stormwater management projects
eligible for these grants; (2) authorize a technical assistance program for small- and mediumsized wastewater treatment works; and (3) formally authorize EPA’s integrated planning
initiative, which is intended to help municipalities comply with multiple CWA wastewater
discharge mandates.27 AWIA 2018 would have further amended the CWA to require certain EPA
offices to promote the use and coordinate the integration of green infrastructure into permitting,
planning, research, funding guidance, and other activities, among other provisions.
Section 3308 of AWIA 2018 proposed to amend the CWA to codify in statute the existing EPA
regulations on water transfers.28 It would have defined water transfer as “an activity that conveys
or connects waters of the United States without subjecting the water to intervening industrial,
municipal, or commercial use.” It would also have specified that discharges from water transfers
do not require a CWA permit, with the exception of pollutants introduced by the water transfer
activity itself to the water being transferred. That is, surface water containing pollutants (e.g.,
nutrients, sediment, or invasive species) could be transferred to another waterbody or watershed
without being subject to CWA controls.
Regarding SDWA authorities, Title V of AWIA 2018 would have made several changes to the
act’s DWSRF provisions, including making permanent the requirement that projects receiving
DWSRF assistance must use iron and steel products produced in the United States. Among other
SDWA amendments, AWIA 2018 would have (1) expressly authorized EPA’s WaterSense
program, and (2) revised the SDWA grant program for testing for lead in school and childcareprogram drinking water.29
Additionally, AWIA 2018 included several WIFIA amendments. Title V would have removed
WIFIA’s designation as a pilot program and added a new section to WIFIA regarding loans to
state CWSRF and DWSRF finance authorities. Although state SRF financing authorities are
currently eligible to receive WIFIA assistance, these provisions would have authorized EPA to
provide secured loans at subsidized interest rates for states meeting certain conditions.30 Unlike
other WIFIA assistance, this section also would have allowed the use of federal assistance to
27 In response to municipalities’ concerns regarding the financial challenges they face in addressing needs for
wastewater and stormwater control projects, EPA issued an integrated permitting and planning policy in 2012. The
policy’s intention is to provide communities with flexibility to prioritize and sequence needed water infrastructure
investments so that limited public dollars can be invested in ways that each municipality finds most valuable. Section
5006 of AWIA 2018 would have formally authorized comparable efforts. See CRS Report R44223, EPA Policies
Concerning Integrated Planning and Affordability of Water Infrastructure, by (name redacted)
.
28 40 C.F.R. §122.3(i).
29 For more information on the WaterSense program, see CRS In Focus IF10787, WaterSense®: Water-Efficiency
Label and Partnership Program, by Keara B. Moore.
30 Certain states would have been able to receive WIFIA loans at 80% (and, in certain cases, between 80% and 50%) of
the Treasury rate for comparable securities. EPA generally would have been required to use 50% of funds available to
provide secured loans at reduced interest rates. This subsidy would have first been available to (1) states that received
less than 2% of the total amount of funds made available to states for their Drinking Water and Clean Water SRFs for
the most recent fiscal year and (2) states for which the President had declared a major disaster any time from January 1,
2017, to the date of AWIA 2018 enactment.
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support 100% of project costs, and it would have waived application fees. In addition, AWIA
2018 proposed to authorize EPA to establish a water infrastructure resiliency and sustainability
grant program; authorize an Indian reservation drinking water and wastewater infrastructure pilot
program at EPA; and support water utility workforce development.
AWIA 2018 also called for studies on “intractable water systems” and on WIFIA accessibility for
certain communities. These and other water quality and drinking water provisions are described
below in Table 4. In contrast, WRDA 2018 contained none of these provisions.
Table 4. Selected EPA Topics and Related Provisions in WRDA 2018 and AWIA 2018
Topic
WRDA 2018
(H.R. 8)
AWIA 2018
(Senate EPW-Posted
Amendment to H.R. 8)
Clean Water
Act (CWA)
Water Transfer
Discharges
No similar provisions.
§3308 would have amended CWA Section 402 to add a definition of
water transfer to mean “an activity that conveys or connects waters
of the United States without subjecting the water being transferred
to intervening industrial, municipal, or commercial use.” It would
have specified that discharges from water transfers do not require a
permit under CWA Section 402, with the exception of pollutants
introduced to the water by the water transfer itself.
CWA
Stormwater and
Sewer Overflow
Projects
No similar provisions.
§5001 would have directed the EPA Administrator to establish a
stormwater infrastructure task force to develop recommendations
to improve funding and financing of municipal stormwater
infrastructure and to report study results to Congress.
§5005(b) would have amended CWA Section 221 to reauthorize the
appropriation of grants for municipal sewer overflow projects, and
make stormwater management projects eligible, at a level of $225
million for each of FY2019 and FY2020. Congress established this
grant program in 2000 (P.L. 106-554) but never provided
implementing appropriations.
CWA
Technical
Assistance,
Report on
Compliance
Costs and
Benefits
No similar provisions.
§5004 would have amended the CWA to authorize EPA to provide
grants to qualified nonprofit groups to provide technical assistance
to small- and medium-sized wastewater treatment works to assist
with CWA compliance and obtaining financing for CWA-eligible
projects. This section would have authorized to be appropriated for
each of FY2019-FY2021 $15 million for grants to assist small
treatment works and $10 million for medium-sized facilities. It
would have authorized states to use 2% of the annual Clean Water
State Revolving Fund (CWSRF) for these purposes.
§5004 would also have required EPA to report to Congress on the
difficulties faced by these treatment works in complying with the
CWA (including a cost-benefit analysis of CWA requirements and
regulations that make compliance difficult) and on the effect of
technical assistance on their ability to obtain CWA financing and
achieve compliance.
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Water Authorization Legislation in the 115th Congress
Topic
WRDA 2018
(H.R. 8)
AWIA 2018
(Senate EPW-Posted
Amendment to H.R. 8)
CWA
Compliance
Flexibility,
Integrated Plans,
Green
Infrastructure,
and Affordability
No similar provisions.
§5006 would have amended CWA Section 402. Similarly to a 2012
EPA initiative, this section proposed to allow municipalities to
develop integrated plans for complying with CWA stormwater and
other wastewater discharge requirements. Extended compliance
schedules would have been allowed in permits that incorporated
such plans, if authorized by state water quality standards; effluent
limitations would have remained applicable. EPA would have been
directed, in conjunction with an enforcement action, to inform a
municipality of the opportunity to develop an integrated plan.
§5006 would have amended the CWA to direct the EPA
Administrator to ensure that certain EPA offices promote the use
and coordinate integration of green infrastructure into permitting
programs, planning, research, technical assistance, and funding
guidance. The provision would have required the Administrator to
direct regional offices to integrate use of green infrastructure in
permitting, consent decrees, and other actions. EPA would have
been required to coordinate governmental efforts to increase green
infrastructure use and promote green infrastructure information
sharing.
§5006 would have directed EPA to publish new financial capability
guidance, which may influence schedules established by EPA and
states for communities to meet CWA requirements.
WIFIA
Reauthorization
and
Amendments for
SRF Programs
No similar provisions.
§5002 would have reauthorized appropriations for WIFIA for both
EPA and USACE at a level of $50 million for each of FY2020 and
FY2021.
§5012 called for the Government Accountability Office to conduct a
study on ways to improve access to WIFIA assistance in rural and
other selected communities.
§5016 would have added a section to WIFIA authorizing new terms
for EPA loans to state CWSRF and DWSRF finance authorities.
Although state SRF financing authorities are currently eligible to
receive WIFIA assistance, the new section would have authorized
EPA to provide secured loans at subsidized interest rates for states
meeting certain conditions (see footnote 30). Unlike other WIFIA
assistance, this section would have allowed loans to be used to
support 100% of project costs, and would have waived application
fees. For these SRF WIFIA loans, §5015 would have authorized to be
appropriated $4 million for FY2019 and $5 million for FY2020.
Funding for these provisions would not be made available for a fiscal
year if the total amount made available for the SRF programs was
less than the amount made available for FY2018 and the total
amount made available for the WIFIA program was less than the
amount authorized to be appropriated for WIFIA for FY2018. EPA
would have been required to distribute assistance among SRFs based
on need.
§5016 would have removed WIFIA’s designation as a ‘pilot’ program.
Indian
Reservation Pilot
Program
No similar provisions.
§5003 would have authorized EPA to carry out a pilot program of at
least 20 projects to improve various types of drinking water and
wastewater infrastructure at Indian reservations located in the
Upper Mississippi River and Upper Rio Grande basins (subject to
the availability of appropriations).
Congressional Research Service
R45212 · VERSION 7 · UPDATED
16
Water Authorization Legislation in the 115th Congress
Topic
WRDA 2018
(H.R. 8)
AWIA 2018
(Senate EPW-Posted
Amendment to H.R. 8)
Safe Drinking
Water Act
(SDWA)
DWSRF
Source Water
Protection,
WaterSense
No similar provisions.
§5005(a) would have amended SDWA to authorize states to use a
portion of their DWSRF funds for source water protection
activities. For communities with populations over 10,000, this
section would have applied Brooks Act (40 U.S.C. Ch. 11) or
equivalent state requirements to negotiation of contracts involving
DWSRF funds.
§5005(a) would have further amended SDWA to expressly
authorize a WaterSense program at EPA.
SDWA
Intractable
Water Systems
No similar provisions.
§5008 would have added new SDWA §1459C to (1) require EPA
and the Department of Health and Human Services to conduct a
study identifying intractable water systems and describing barriers to
delivery of potable water to individuals served by such systems, and
report to Congress; and (2) provide certain enforcement
protections for other systems carrying out approved consolidation
plans to address intractable systems. An intractable water system
was defined as one that serves fewer than 1,000 persons and for
which the owner or operator is unable or unwilling to provide safe
and adequate service or has experienced other specified
operational, financial, or compliance failures.
CWA, WIFIA,
USDA
Onsite
Wastewater
Recycling
No similar provisions.
§5009 would have directed EPA to use existing programs to provide
information to local governments and nonprofit organizations
regarding the cost effectiveness of alternative wastewater recycling
and treatment systems. It would have required, as a condition of
providing CWSRF assistance for wastewater projects serving 2,500
or fewer persons, states to certify that the recipient has considered
onsite decentralized wastewater systems. This requirement would
also have applied to wastewater project assistance provided through
WIFIA and U.S. Department of Agriculture water and waste loan
and grant programs.
SDWA
Water Utility
Workforce
No similar provisions.
§5010 would have defined intractable water system for purposes of
this section. It would have required EPA and USACE to establish a
competitive grant program for water utilities or intractable water
systems for a wide variety of activities to support water utility
workforce development. For this purpose, it would have authorized
to be appropriated $1 million for each of FY2019 and FY2020.
SDWA
DWSRF
American Iron
and Steel
No similar provisions.
§5013 would have amended SDWA to make permanent the
requirement that projects receiving DWSRF assistance must use
iron and steel products manufactured in the United States.
SDWA
DWSRF
Compliance with
State Law
No similar provisions.
§5014 would have required states to ensure that DWSRF funds
were not used to purchase products or materials used in water
treatment or delivery unless such products or materials were in
compliance with state laws and regulations regarding the National
Sanitation Foundation and American National Standards Institute
Standard 61 (NSF/ANSI 61).
Water Reuse
No similar provisions.
§5015 included a ‘sense of Congress’ that industry access to
nonpotable water can relieve water supply and demand challenges,
and to encourage water users to continue implementing and
incentivizing nonpotable water reuse programs that save water and
meet conservation needs.
Congressional Research Service
R45212 · VERSION 7 · UPDATED
17
Water Authorization Legislation in the 115th Congress
Topic
WRDA 2018
(H.R. 8)
AWIA 2018
(Senate EPW-Posted
Amendment to H.R. 8)
Water
Infrastructure
Resiliency and
Sustainability
No similar provisions.
§5017 would have required EPA to establish a program to provide
grants to owners or operators of a wide variety of water systems
(e.g., community water systems and irrigation water delivery
systems) for projects or programs that would increase resiliency or
adaptability to forecasted changes to regional hydrologic conditions.
This section would have authorized to be appropriated $12.5 million
for each of FY2019 and FY2020 for this purpose.
EPA Regional
Liaisons
No similar provisions.
§5018 would have directed the EPA Administrator to appoint at
least one liaison to minority, tribal and low-income communities in
each EPA regional office.
SDWA
School and Child
Care Program
Lead Testing
Grants
No similar provisions.
§5019 would have amended the grant program for testing for lead in
school and child care program drinking water (SDWA §1464(d)) to
require EPA to provide technical assistance to help grant recipients
identify sources of lead in water and apply for assistance to eliminate
contamination. It would have authorized to be appropriated $30
million for each of FY2020 and FY2021 (currently authorized at $20
million per fiscal year).
Innovative
Water
Technologies
No similar provisions.
§5020 would have required EPA to establish a program to provide
grants to public utilities, local governments, farmers and other
private entities, states, and various organizations to (1) finance
projects to develop, deploy, and improve emerging water
technologies; (2) fund entities that provide technical assistance to
deploy innovative water technologies; and (3) support specified
types of innovative technologies. §5020 would have authorized to be
appropriated $10 million for each of FY2019 and FY2020 for these
purposes.
CWA
Grants for
Individual
Household
Wastewater
Systems
No similar provisions.
§5021 would have amended the CWA to require EPA to establish a
grant program for construction, refurbishing, and servicing of
individual household decentralized wastewater systems for low- or
moderate-income individuals. It would have required EPA to provide
grants to nonprofit organizations that would provide subgrants to
individuals residing in the mid-Atlantic, southeast, and Appalachian
regions.
§5021 would have authorized to be appropriated $15 million, and
program authority would have expired 2 years after enactment.
WIFIA
Bureau of
Reclamation
No similar provision.
§5022 would have amended WIFIA to direct the EPA Administrator
to enter into a memorandum of understanding with the
Commissioner of the Bureau of Reclamation to establish a process
for the Commissioner to make recommendations to EPA for certain
water resource projects to receive WIFIA assistance. The
Commissioner would have been authorized to recommend projects
that are (1) eligible under WIFIA Section 5026 (6) and (7) [e.g.,
desalination projects, projects to reduce aquifer depletion, and
projects to prevent or mitigate drought], and (2) located in a
Reclamation state.
Sources: CRS using H.R. 8, Water Resources Development Act of 2018 (WRDA 2018), as passed by the House
on June 11, 2018, and the amendment in the nature of a substitute to H.R. 8, America’s Water Infrastructure Act
of 2018 (AWIA 2018) as posted by the Senate EPW on July 9, 2018, at https://www.epw.senate.gov/public/
index.cfm/addressing-americas-infrastructure-needs. It is no longer available at that website.
Congressional Research Service
R45212 · VERSION 7 · UPDATED
18
Water Authorization Legislation in the 115th Congress
Author Contact Information
(name redacted)
Specialist in Natural Resources Policy
/redacted/@crs.loc.gov
, 7-....
Congressional Research Service
(name redacted)
Specialist in Environmental Policy
/redacted/@crs.loc.gov, 7-....
R45212 · VERSION 7 · UPDATED
19
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