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Economic
Stimulus Package Passes House Without Addressing Infrastructure
From the Water Environmental
Association (WEF)
The U.S. House of Representatives
narrowly approved a $100 billion economic stimulus package bill on
October 25 that focused strictly on tax cuts and unemployment
benefits. The package will now be considered by the Senate, which
may narrow the tax cuts and expand the focus to address
infrastructure programs including water and wastewater.
Senator Jim Jeffords (I-VT) and Bob
Smith (R-NH) recently wrote a letter to Majority Leader Tom
Daschle (D-SD) advocating that $1 to $5 billion be included in the
stimulus package for water and wastewater infrastructure. On
October 25, WEF wrote a letter to Daschle, Minority Leader Trent
Lott (R-MS), Jeffords, and Smith outlining the immediate and
long-term benefits of water and wastewater infrastructure to the
national economy.
While many Senators have cautioned
against a "spending bill" as opposed to a "stimulus
bill", water and wastewater infrastructure money that can be
used in a six to nine month timeframe is being considered by the
Senate leadership, according to Capitol Hill staff. For a copy of
the WEF letter contact Lisa Scott at lscott@wef.org.
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