Paul Tonko: “Exactly. Can you ill afford any waste of water? But it is not just water coming through those pipes. It is tax dollars…”

“Exactly. Can you ill afford any waste of water? But it is not just water coming through those pipes. It is tax dollars flowing with that water. It is treated water. So it is foolish for us to continue along this path of hidden infrastructure mentality because, when it is not addressed, water and tax dollars--hard-earned constituent money--are flowing out of those pipes. Before I came here, Representative Garamendi, you know that I worked at NYSERDA, the New York State Energy, Research, and Development Authority. We got national awards for energy efficiency incorporated at water treatment facilities. So we took that effort to reduce the price tag of day-to-day operational costs. There are ways to save money. A broken pipe is pouring money down the drain. So let's stop that foolish expenditure and go wisely to the investment that enables us with our intellect, our passion, and our sense of virtue to get things done correctly. Generations before us had that vision. Pioneers built this country. People came here as immigrants and tethered their American Dream. They climbed the ladder of opportunity and built strong communities based on that American Dream, and we in our present moment can't find it within ourselves to address those basic core needs? We pride ourselves on being a modern society and having the luxury of clean water. The blue infrastructure moment is now. Let's invest in that clean water infrastructure. Let's not torture our communities.…”