AGC Coalition Urge Colleagues to Support Private Funding for Water

The AGC co-chaired Sustainable Water Infrastructure Investment Coalition sent a letter to Senate Finance Committee members urging their support of and inclusion of S. 3262 in a $10 billion-plus package of small-business incentives, which the Committee may consider as early as next Wednesday. On May 5, Senators Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) and Mike Crapo (D-Idaho) sent a "Dear Colleague" to the rest of the Senate urging their support for this bi-partisan legislation. S. 3262 is the Senate companion to H.R. 537, a bill authored by Congressman Bill Pascrell (D-N.J.) that passed the House in March as part of the Small Business and Infrastructure Tax Act.  AGC, along with the National Association of Water Companies and American Water, led the coalition effort in seeking the introduction of the Senate bill. The legislation will remove state volume caps on private activity bonds for water and wastewater projects and lead to the investment of billions of dollars in private money flowing into our nation's water infrastructure. AGC and coalition partners have been working to garner additional support for the Senate bill and include it in broader tax legislation. Based on water and financial industry estimates, the bill would facilitate at least $2 billion worth of private water investment in 2010 and up to $5 billion or more annually as the market matures. To learn more about this legislation, visit the AGC Legislative Action Center.