Critical Water Supplies for Resilient Communities Act
Summary
What This Bill Does
The Critical Water Supplies for Resilient Communities Act updates the alternative water source project authority in section 220 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act. It changes the section heading from a pilot program to grants and turns EPA's role from establishing a pilot to having grant authority. It removes treatment from one definition and replaces the project definition with critical water supply needs: existing or reasonably anticipated future water supply needs identified in a public-engagement plan or assessment for comprehensive local, statewide, or regional water supply, or for local or regional drought resiliency. The bill also requires EPA, each year when the President's budget is submitted, to report to the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and Senate Environment and Public Works Committee on each funded alternative water source project from the prior fiscal year and how it addresses the critical water supply needs it is designed to meet. It extends the authorization from 2026 through 2031.
Who Benefits and How
Communities facing drought risk benefit because projects must address critical water supply needs identified through public planning. Local water agencies benefit because the authority shifts from a pilot program to a grant program. Regional water supply planners benefit because comprehensive local, statewide, or regional plans can support eligible projects. Congressional water infrastructure committees benefit from annual project-by-project EPA reporting.
Who Bears the Burden and How
EPA water grant staff must administer the grant authority and prepare annual reports tied to the President's budget submission. Project sponsors must show that funded projects address critical water supply needs identified in public-engagement plans or assessments. Local planning agencies must document public engagement and drought-resiliency or water-supply needs. Federal taxpayers fund the extended alternative water source grant authority through 2031.
Key Provisions
- Converts the alternative water source pilot program heading and authority into grants.
- Defines critical water supply needs through public-engagement plans or assessments.
- Requires annual EPA reports on each funded project and how it addresses critical water supply needs.
- Extends the authorization from 2026 through 2031.
Evidence Chain:
This summary is generated from the full bill text using AI analysis. Expand "Detailed Analysis" below for identified beneficiaries/burden bearers with clause-level evidence links.
At a Glance
What This Bill Does
Converts the Federal Water Pollution Control Act alternative water source pilot into a grant authority, narrows the project definition to critical water supply needs identified through public planning, extends authorization through 2031, and requires annual EPA reports to Congress.
Key Policy Areas
Water Supply, Drought Resilience, EPA
Primary Purpose
Converts the Federal Water Pollution Control Act alternative water source pilot into a grant authority, narrows the project definition to critical water supply needs identified through public planning, extends authorization through 2031, and requires annual EPA reports to Congress.
Policy Domains
Substantive provisions
Identified Gains
- Communities facing drought risk
- Local water agencies
- Regional water supply planners
- Congressional water infrastructure committees
Identified Costs
- EPA water grant staff
- Alternative water project sponsors
- Local planning agencies
- Federal taxpayers
Legislative Progress
In CommitteeReferred to the Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment.
Ms. Wilson of Florida introduced the following bill; which was …
Referred to the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.
Introduced in House
Stakeholder Effects
cui bono?How this legislation distributes effects. Mention counts reflect frequency, not effect magnitude.
Communities and projects addressing critical water-supply needs
EPA and federal funding resources supporting the expanded program
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.
Learn more about our methodology