Crucial WIFIA bill gets Senate approval

On Thursay, May 15, the long-awaited Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Authority (WIFIA) bill moved a step closer to reality. The U.S. Senate passed, 83-14, the Water Resources Development Act  of 2013 (S. 601), which includes legislation that would create WIFIA. Next stop: the House of Representatives.

WIFIA, if you recall, would help water utilities garner low-interest loans for infrastructure improvement. You can read one of our earlier posts about it here. LCA’s general manager and chief financial officer, Aurel Arndt, has testified several times about the importance of the legislation: “I want to emphasize that this is $1 trillion for buried drinking water assets only,” he told the House Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment last year. “Above-ground drinking water facilities, wastewater, stormwater, and other water-related investment needs are also very large, and must be added to reflect the true magnitude of the water investment needs before us.”

While LCA is leading the pack as far as infrastructure repair, we’re taking a leadership role in this important issue because, as with everything we do, our support of WIFIA is in the best interests of our customers. We urge you to contact your representatives and ask them to support the bill.

You can read more about the Senate’s vote on WIFIA here. To learn more about the nation’s failing water infrastructure and why WIFIA is so important, click here and here.