The Clean Water And Drinking Water Infrastructure Gap Analysis

Contents: (1) Intro.; (2) Background: History of Fed. Involvement; Wastewater; Drinking Water; USDA Assistance Programs; (3) Water Infrastructure Debate: Invest. Needs; EPA Needs Surveys; Drinking Water and Wastewater Needs; Future Investment; Gap Analysis Report; (4) Issues: (a) Priorities: What are the Problems to be Solved?: Infrastructure Replace.; Security; Funding Other Priorities; (b) Fed. Role; (c) Delivering Fed. Support: Admin. Entity; Type of Assistance Provided: Grants and Loans; Fed. Funds for Private Infrastructure Systems; Fed. Tax Issues; Fed. Cross-Cutting Requirements; Set-Asides; Allotment of Funds and Congress. Directed Project Grants; (d) Res. on New Technol.; (5) Congress. and Admin. Activity, 107th-110th Congress. Tables.

The EPA has estimated that a potential gap between future needs and current spending for wastewater infrastructure of $150 billion to $400 billion could occur over the next decade. A number of entities are involved in planning, financing, building, and operating this infrastructure. Some of these stakeholders have suggested a variety of approaches to bridge this potential gap. One such proposal is to establish a clean water trust fund. In this context, the auditor was asked to: (1) obtain stakeholders' views on the issues that would need to be addressed in designing and establishing a clean water trust fund; and (2) identify and describe potential options that could generate about $10 billion in revenue to support a clean water trust fund. Charts and tables.