Message
From:
Mike Keegan [keegan@ruralwater.org]
Sent:
5/25/2017 9:33:50 PM
To:
Greenwalt, Sarah [/o=ExchangeLabs/ou=Exchange Administrative Group
(FYDIBOHF23SPDLT)/cn=Recipients/cn=6cl3775b8f424e90802669b87bl35024-Greenwalt/]
CC:
Sam Wade [sam@nrwa.org]; matt [matt@nrwa.org]
Subject:
Re: Small and rural community EPA technical assistance
Attachments: EPA on-site technical assistance FY17 DRAFT.docx
Hi Sarah, attached is the letter to the Administrator circulating in the Senate by Senators Wicker (MS) and Heitkamp (ND) urging the Administrator to adopt the policy we discussed last week. We will get the final signed version to you as soon as it is completed. We believe the leadership of the EPA authorizing and appropriations subcommittees will be cosigners.
On Wed, May 17, 2017 at 12:07 PM, Mike Keegan <keegan@ruralwater.org> wrote:
Sarah, Thank you for the meeting. To clarify a few of the items we discussed:
1. Small and rural communities (all regulated by the EPA under the Safe Drinking Water Act) believe that the Congressional funding for technical assistance for compliance help would be much more helpful and beneficial if EPA were to dedicate all the $12,7 million in the FY2017 appropriations bill to the recently authorized technical assistance in the Safe Drinking Water Act (42 U.S.C.300j-l(e)), and we believe that EPA has such discretion.
2. It is my understanding the sponsors of the recently enacted legislation (PL 114-98) that authorized technical assistance support such an EPA decision and may write the Administrator requesting such a decision - something similar to this draft.
3. We believe the criteria in the authorized technical assistance (42 U.S.C.300j-l(e)) would allow for EPA to have a more obj ective and easier assessment of competing applicants for the funding. It would be simpler for EPA to request applicants to demonstrate to what degree does their application show "small community water systemsfind [it] to he the most beneficial and effective." For example, see previous demonstrations of small community findings in Mississippi and Georgia.
4. And, we urge the Administrator to adopt a new initiative to increase the technical assistance support to rural and small communities by, for the first time, exploiting the 2 percent set-aide provision of the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund to dedicate upwards of $16 million for additional "help" versus regulation for rural and small town America. Such a new initiative could come with specific and documented environmental improvements for drinking water safety or compliance.
I will also follow-up on our thoughts on the proposed revisions to the Lead and Copper Rule early next week.
Thank you again and please contact any of us if we can be of any assistance.
Mike Keegan, Analyst National Rural W ater Association Washington, DC IM & C e l l : [ 3 / j C / j
Sierra Club v. EPA 18cv3472 NDCA
Tier 5
ED 002061 00107740-00001