The Landscape for Water Infrastructure Investments in 2019

Representative John Katko (R-NY) told vinyl industry advocates on May 14 that new investments in American infrastructure are critically needed and he urged participants to press their lawmakers to continue their push for more funding. His remarks came after he was presented with the inaugural Vinyl Congressional Champion award for his extraordinary work to secure significant new funding for water and wastewater infrastructure.

Katko said that his upstate New York district is a microcosm of the infrastructure problems posing a threat to safe drinking water across the country. He explained that his district has over 100 miles of aging and deteriorating sewer pipes. As a result, the region is dealing with significant storm runoff contaminating the freshwater lakes and overwhelming the sewage treatment plants. The solution, he said, is new financing to replace the aging pipes.

Next, Katko stressed that addressing the infrastructure issues facing the nation, including water quality and wastewater infrastructure, require bipartisan support. He specifically pointed to the need for passage of H.R. 1497, the Water Quality Protection and Job Creation Act of 2019, which would provide approximately $23.5 billion in direct infrastructure investments over the next 5 years through the Clean Water State Revolving Fund. Katko is an original sponsor of the legislation along with Peter DeFazio (D-OR), chair of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and Reps. Grace Napolitano (D-CA) and Don Young (R-AK).

A National Infrastructural Package?

In addition to his remarks on water infrastructure, Katko also talked about the possibility of a broader national infrastructure package. He said that while there is strong support among many lawmakers, a bipartisan package would probably need to be introduced no later than June. Any later, he said, and the chances of the 2020 election politicizing the issue become more likely.

Finally, Katko talked about the infrastructure work being done in the bipartisan Problem Solvers Caucus, of which he is a member. He said that the caucus is crafting an infrastructure proposal to reduce years of red tape and provide funding to get projects off the ground. Katko also talked about possible support for a gas tax to help fund infrastructure repairs. He said that companies are coming around to the idea as it would cost them less than they are now paying for vehicle repairs as a result of transporting goods on poor roads and bridges. Finally, Katko noted that there are still several details that need to be worked out, including indexing a gas tax to the market, accounting for electric vehicles (that are also using the roads), and addressing technology and privacy issues if Congress opts to move to a mileage-based system.

Katko was one in a series of Washington insiders who provided updates on the legislative and regulatory landscape. The briefings provided context to vinyl industry members before they headed up to Capitol Hill for a day of meetings with lawmakers and their staffs.