Natural Resources Committee Home

May 9, 2008

Dear Chairman Byrd, Ranking Member Cochran, Chairman Obey and Ranking Member Lewis:

On behalf of the nation’s governors, we write to express our support for the Clean Water and Safe Drinking Water state revolving loan funds (SRFs). We urge you to provide both the House and Senate Department of Interior Appropriations Subcommittees a sufficient allocation to account for an increase in funding for both the clean water SRF (CWSRF) and the drinking water SRF (DWSRF).

Publicly-owned treatment works and community water systems are required to upgrade their water infrastructure to meet a variety of water quality or drinking water standards. The repair costs for these upgrades are enormous. According to the most recent Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Clean Watershed Needs Survey, the states reported $202.5 billion in clean water needs over the next 20 years. This reflects an 8.6 percent increase from the previous estimate of just four years earlier. In the EPA’s most recent drinking water needs survey, drinking water systems reported $276 billion in needs over the next 20 years.

The SRFs are excellent examples of successful environmental programs and federal-state partnerships. According to the EPA, over the past 19 years, the states have leveraged approximately $25 billion in federal money into $61 billion in water infrastructure investments. The DWSRF has been equally successful, accumulating $13 billion in its first 10 years of operation. In 2006, for the first time in the 10-year-old program, the DWSRF provided $5 billion worth of assistance in any one year.

Governors urge the committee to provide the Interior subcommittees with a sufficient allocation to maximize funding to both the SRFs.

Thank you for your attention.

Sincerely,