Paying for Water Quality: Managing Funding Programs to Achieve the Greatest Environmental Benefit: Report to Congress

Recent studies by EPA and others suggest that the Nation’s wastewater infrastructure faces significant challenges in the coming decades. At the same time, the Nation will need to address wet weather pollution discharges, failing decentralized wastewater systems, and nonpoint sources of pollution that threaten our Nation’s resources. Because the Federal government funds only a portion of the Nation’s investment in water quality, States have urged maximum flexibility in their use of Federal resources, so as to direct investments at the water quality problems of greatest priority.

The report is not an exhaustive record of all details discussed during the public workshop nor does it attempt to embellish or interpret matters that were incomplete or left unclear during the event. Instead, the report summarizes the main themes and messages of each session’s presentation(s) and the public input provided during the session. A workshop summary was prepared to provide a more detailed description of the public comments and responses from panel members or other audience members.