U.S. Senate Committee Passes Water Reuse Bill

New legislation aimed at boosting investment in water infrastructure and water reuse has passed through a key Senate committee and is awaiting action in the full Senate.

The Water Resources Development Act of 2016 (WRDA) was approved by the Environment and Public Works Committee on April 28.

The legislation cites a Water Environment Federation (WEF) and WateReuse Association sponsored economic study that demonstrates the value of robust funding for State Revolving Fund (SRF) programs.

The bill calls for a Water Technology Grant program to incubate new technologies for reuse, and and assembles a task force to create guidelines on recovering from drought by several means, including reuse.

U.S. Senators Jim Inhofe (R-OK), chairman of the EPW Committee, and Barbara Boxer (D-CA), ranking member of the Senate EPW Committee, introduced the bill.