Legislative Update: Infrastructure, Appropriations, & Plastics Tax

Infrastructure

The fate of the bipartisan infrastructure deal remains up in the air as Democratic Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) runs out of time on the congressional calendar and final negotiations remain fruitless.  In an effort to force negotiators to wrap up and move forward with the proposal, Schumer scheduled a July 21 cloture vote on the motion to proceed to the legislative vehicle (H.R. 3684) for the infrastructure package. Republicans, including those negotiating the deal, united in rejecting the motion to proceed, saying they were uncomfortable voting to begin debate on a bill in the middle of negotiations.   Negotiators say they have mostly resolved issues over how to pay for the bill as they iron out some transit issues and finish writing the text.

Republicans say they have 10 senators that will vote for cloture next week upon finalizing an agreement, which they hope will come over the weekend. Schumer has signaled he is open to trying again. With time dwindling and August recess right around the corner, it looks like the infrastructure package could be pushed to fall or may still collapse altogether before then. Meanwhile, Senate Budget Committee Chairman Bernie Sanders (I-VT) says he is drafting a much larger budget reconciliation bill that would include water infrastructure and transportation funding should negotiations on the bipartisan agreement fall apart.

On July 21, over 100 House Democrats wrote House Majority Speaker Nancy Pelosi asking the Democratic leadership to ensure that any infrastructure deal being considered by the House to provide “funding for full replacement of all lead services lines across the country as well as substantial water infrastructure investments be included in an infrastructure agreement at the earliest opportunity.”  Currently, the surface transportation bill, the INVEST Act, authorizes $45 billion over 10 years for removal of the lead lines, and the Senate’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Framework stated that the agreement would “eliminate the nation’s lead service lines and pipes.”

FY22 Energy and Water Development Appropriations

On July 16, the House Appropriations Committee voted 33-24 to advance the $56.2 billion Energy-Water Development spending bill, which funds improvements for the nation’s water infrastructure under the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Department of the Interior programs. The FY22 spending bill invests $53.2 billion in Energy and Water Development programs, an increase of $1.47 billion over the FY21 enacted level.

• Army Corp of Engineers – The bill provides a total of $8.66 billion, an increase of $1.9 billion above the President’s budget request. This allocation includes $2.6 billion in construction, which is the same level as FY21, but $799.4 million above the request.
• Department of the Interior and Bureau of Reclamation – The bill provides a total of $1.97 billion for the Department, an increase of $274.9 million above FY21 and $413 million above the President’s budget request. The bill provides $413 million in additional funding for water resources projects, including those authorized in the Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation (WIIN) Act.

FY22 Interior and Environment Appropriations

The full committee marked up the FY22 Interior and Environment and Related Agencies funding bill on July 1.  The legislation provides $5.32 billion in State and Tribal Assistance Grants (STAG), including $1.87 billion for the Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF) and $1.36 billion for the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF). From within the funds provided for these two revolving funds, $428.6 million is designated for Community Project Funding grants for over 280 drinking water, wastewater, and stormwater management projects across the country.

The committee report also includes the following language on plastics and water infrastructure:

• The Committee notes that it looks forward to receiving the Recycling Needs Survey and Assessment report called for in the FY2021 appropriations. The report collects and analyzes data collection efforts to strengthen residential recycling and accelerate the move towards a circular economy, as well as data on single-use plastics.
• Directs the National Parks Service (NPS) to develop and submit a plan to mitigate or prevent plastic pollution in the National Park System after repealing its prior “Recycling and Reduction of Disposable Plastic Bottles in Parks” policy in 2017.
• Provides $13.3 million for Waste Minimization and Recycling Supports to strengthen the U.S. recycling system and increase outreach, awareness, and education on recycling.  Within this funding, no less than $1 million is designated for the Agency to work with states, local governments, nonprofits, and public-private partnerships to educate and inform consumers and households about their residential and community recycling programs. Another $1 million is for the Agency to assist local communities in studying, designing, and constructing recycling infrastructure in order to recapture valuable materials for the U.S. economy and divert biodegradable materials from landfilling to reduce methane gas generation.
• Urges the Agency use its new authorities and responsibilities passed in the 116th Congress under the Save Our Seas 2.0 Act to improve domestic waste management and bolster U.S. recycling rates.
• Recommends $55 million for recycling infrastructure grants as authorized under section 302(a) of the Save Our Seas 2.0 Act.
• Directs the Department to contract the National Academy of Sciences to prepare a report on single-use plastics to reduce production and use of virgin plastics.  The report should analyze all plastics by type, recyclability rates, and state and local recycling policies intended to reduce single-use plastics.
• Praises the decision to review and revise the Lead and Copper Rule to reduce the risks of lead exposure through drinking water and directs the Environmental Protection Agency to study the merits of issuing a separate national drinking water regulation for schools that establishes a lead action level not more than the current federal action level.

The House plans to vote on a package of seven FY22 spending bills (H.R. 4502) the week of July 26. The proposal include both the Energy-Water and Interior-Environment bills, along with the Agriculture, Financial Services, Labor-HHS-Education, Military Construction-VA, and Transportation-HUD measures spending bills.

Senate Appropriations

Senate Appropriations Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT) reportedly plans to begin marking up some of his committee’s less controversial FY22 spending bills, including taking Energy-Water next week before the August recess and marking up the rest in September. The outlook for the Senate appropriations will undoubtedly be a little tricker as the Chairman faces an evenly split committee requiring at least one Republican to vote to report a bill.

Plastics Tax

The House Committee on Natural Resources on July 14 approved (23-19) a 5-cent-per-pound excise tax on virgin plastic used to manufacture single-use products. The tax is a provision in the Ocean-Based Climate Solutions Act (H.R. 3764) introduced by the committee Chairman Raul Grijalva (D-AZ). The legislation exempts medical and personal hygiene products. Part of the tax revenues will be designated for ocean conservation through a new Virgin Plastic Trust Fund.

As previously stated, the legislation fails to examine the important and innovative role that plastics have in limiting greenhouse gases and combating climate change or address the broader waste and recycling issue. Furthermore, the legislation lacks any details on how the administration is expected to achieve the global single-use plastic production goals. The VI remains committed to working to shape meaningful legislation that helps solve the difficult climate change and waste management issues the U.S. and other countries face.

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