Last progress May 13, 2025 (6 months ago)
Introduced on May 13, 2025 by Bonnie Watson Coleman
Referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and in addition to the Committees on Energy and Commerce, Ways and Means, Agriculture, Natural Resources, and Education and Workforce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
This bill creates a national trust fund to fix and upgrade drinking water and sewer systems. The fund is filled with extra federal revenue from a corporate tax change and can provide up to $35 billion a year, based on documented needs. Most dollars go through existing state water loan programs; other parts help schools remove lead, improve household wells, support colonias, invest in Tribal and Indian Health Service water projects, and train water workers. It also blocks this money from being used for certain anti‑union consulting.
It aims to make water service fair and affordable. The EPA must study and report within one year on water bills, shutoffs, discrimination in service and funding, and how the public is included when systems merge. The study must also collect data on households without water, shutoffs, tax liens, and how these harms hit vulnerable groups. States can use water funds to buy private water or sewer systems or end private management contracts. States must give more grant‑like aid to disadvantaged communities, and small public systems serving under 10,000 people can also get help; guidance must promote affordable, transparent service and protections against shutoffs. The bill supports replacing lead service lines at no cost to homeowners, helps systems deal with PFAS chemicals, and gives grants for household well filters. It encourages project labor agreements and keeps prevailing‑wage rules. It also launches water‑operator job‑training grants within a year that prioritize low‑income residents in high‑poverty areas and communities of color, with no local match required. It raises funding for household water well programs to $348.5 million a year and updates colonias assistance so both states and local governments can apply, with funding set for 2025–2029.