U.S. Environmental Protection Agency updated its Clean Water Act Financial Capability Assessment guidance to help communities ensure access to clean and affordable water.
The latest Clean Water Act FCA is intended to help communities with public health protections and financial feasibility in plans to comply with the Act, according to a Feb. 1 news release. The assessment outlines strategies for affordable water rates while also making investment plans for the water infrastructure.
"EPA is committed to ensuring all communities have access to clean water and critical water services," EPA Assistant Administrator for Water Radhika Fox said in the news release. "We also recognize that a growing number of people struggle to afford their water bills."
The updated guidance outlines a better process to assess communities' ability to afford water quality improvements, the release reported. It also highlights tools, such as assistance programs, grants and subsidized loans, to help communities plan and pay for necessary water infrastructure improvements.
"The FCA guidance outlines the financial information and formulas used to assess a community's financial ability to make the needed water infrastructure investments essential for CWA implementation," the news release said. "The FCA guidance is also used to evaluate the economic impacts on public entities of certain water quality standards decisions."
The updated FCA provides a clear process for those communities that need extended Clean Water Act compliance schedules or changes to their water quality standards. In these cases, the FCA pays attention to financial capability with an eye toward ensuring a financial strategy will support needed infrastructure upgrades without overburdening the most vulnerable of a locality's ratepayers, according to the release.
The updated FCA also includes contains new measures for a community to provide a better description of its ability to afford water services, including poverty factors gleaned from census data, the release reported. EPA's Water Finance Center can also connect communities to technical assistance for help with asset management planning, rate design and analysis, funding source identification and State Revolving Fund applications.
"The FCA Guidance is a starting point for negotiations and is not legally binding," the news release said. "The FCA Guidance recognizes that a variety of factors should be included in CWA schedule negotiations and encourages communities to bring their individual circumstances to those discussions."
