Political Quotes

“one of the most difficult issues that we have grappled with in the Environment and Public Works Committee during reauthorization of the Safe Drinking Water Act has been how to best help small systems. My amendment would build on the other provisions of this bill by providing an additional option to help small systems. When EPA develops its primary drinking water regulations, it chooses a standard that is both protective of public health and is technologically feasible, taking the cost of achieving the standard into consideration. The baseline system size for EPA's selection of a drinking water standard is, more often than not, a public water system that serves 100,000 or more customers. Thus, most Americans who receive their drinking water from large systems get the maximum protection affordable. Unfortunately, most of the public water systems in the United States are small. They serve a population of under 3,300 and, in fact, a good many serve populations of less than 400. Needless to say, the expensive treatment systems required by most EPA standards are out of reach for most small public water systems. We grappled with this problem in committee, providing State revolving fund funding, extending loan forgiveness to disadvantaged communities, and providing a streamlined method for States to give variances to small systems.”