Water Policies, Issues, and Advocacy

The year 2024 is shaping up to be an exciting one in Washington, D.C. Here are just a few of the issues NGWA will be working on in the coming year:

• Pass a five-year comprehensive Farm Bill with strong Conservation and Rural Development Titles to include critical resources for groundwater protection, rural water systems, and private wells.
• Support for the Healthy H2O Act to provide grants to private well owners to purchase point-of-entry (POE) water treatment equipment where contaminated water exists.
• Fully fund the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Decentralized Water Systems Grant Program at $20 million for fiscal year 2024.
• Fully fund the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s National Priority Areas: Rural Water Technical Assistance program, which supports communities to identify water challenges, build capacity, and develop application materials to access water infrastructure funding, include $3 million for the Private Well Program under National Priority Area 3.
• Urge the EPA to fully implement the Water Supply Cost Savings Act, which provides small communities across the nation with critical information on the use of water wells and water well systems to deliver high quality, affordable drinking water.

Directly affecting NGWA, the Association will be working on these initiatives and others in 2024:

• Continue to support the TRUCKS Act, which would allow states to issue a new “Small Business Restricted CDL” so Entry-Level Driver Training (ELDT) requirements would not affect small businesses with nine CDLs or less.
• Workforce development programs like Tomorrow’s Workforce Coalition, a new alliance created to support the passage of the Freedom to Invest in Tomorrow’s Workforce Act. This bipartisan bill would expand qualifying expenses for 529 college saving plans to include postsecondary training and credentialing programs.
• Work to expand authorization for Managed Aquifer Recharge (MAR) projects in the Water Resources Development Act of 2024.
• Include MAR funding in Energy and Water Appropriations for fiscal year 2025.
• Continued support for stormwater recharge programs.