State agencies continue making progress on implementation of water rate assistance, wastewater arrearages, drinking water regulations, and other efforts that will affect special district providers of water and wastewater services. Check out the quick updates below to stay informed on some of the key developments CSDA is keeping an eye on.
Low Income Household Water Assistance Program (LIHWAP)
Water and wastewater systems should be on the lookout for an email regarding program enrollment in the California Department of Community Services and Development (CSD)’s new Low Income Household Water Assistance Program (LIHWAP). Agencies must enroll for customer accounts to be eligible for financial assistance through this program.
LIHWAP is a federally-funded program aimed at assisting customers with paying their water and wastewater bills. Unlike other pandemic-related assistance programs, households can receive funding for charges incurred outside of the customary COVID-19 timeframe of 3/4/20 – 6/15/21. California was awarded $116 million to administer under this program.
Last month, the CSD released the draft program guidelines and held a webinar for water and wastewater systems outlining the overall structure of the program. It will launch by June of this year.
Get more information about the program here.
State Water Resources Control Board Wastewater Arrearages Program
The State’s Wastewater Arrearages Program is currently accepting applications from wastewater agencies through April 1, 2022. The drinking water arrearages program has been completed, with approximately $350 million provided to systems requesting financial assistance. This leaves more than $600 million available for the wastewater program.
More information can be found here.
Drinking Water Regulations
On March 1, the State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) discussed prioritizing a number of drinking water regulations for 2022 and beyond. SWRCB staff indicated that setting a Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL) for Chromium-6 is the top priority this year, with the goal for a draft regulation being released this month, followed by stakeholder workshops and a formal rulemaking process anticipated to begin in late spring. Other California MCL priorities include PFAS, arsenic, and more.
The State of California is also moving toward meeting the statutory deadline of December 31, 2023 to develop criteria for Direct Potable Reuse, plus releasing recycled water regulations this year, as well as studying a standard for microplastics.
Additional details can be found in the formal resolution that the Board passed outlining these priorities.
Drinking Water Needs Assessment
The State Water Resources Control Board’s Drinking Water Needs Assessment (Assessment) will be published in April 2022. This Assessment is conducted annually to assist with prioritizing funding under the Safe and Affordable Drinking Water Fund (SAFER), which is allocated $130 million annually to address needs in communities lacking access to suitable drinking water.
This year, the Assessment may include systems with greater than 3,300 connections in their analysis, which is a change from the previous assessment that included only systems under this threshold. In addition, the Board is considering adding new indicators to their analysis to determine at-risk systems.
For further details, the Board’s white paper on this topic can be accessed here. The 2021 Needs Assessment is available here: https://bit.ly/33wSpUC.
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