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A project of Common Dreams

For Immediate Release
Contact:

Kate Fried, Food & Water Watch, (202) 683-4905, kfried@fwwatch.org

Rep. John Conyers to Introduce Bill to Address Nation's Looming Water Infrastructure Crisis

On May 24, 2016, Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.) will announce the introduction of the Water Affordability, Transparency, Equity and Reliability (WATER) Act, which will provide billions of dollars a year in dedicated funding to modernize U.S. water infrastructure.

WHAT: Press conference to introduce the Water Affordability, Transparency, Equity and Reliability (WATER) Act.

WHERE: House Triangle on Capitol Hill, Washington, D.C.

WASHINGTON

On May 24, 2016, Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.) will announce the introduction of the Water Affordability, Transparency, Equity and Reliability (WATER) Act, which will provide billions of dollars a year in dedicated funding to modernize U.S. water infrastructure.

WHAT: Press conference to introduce the Water Affordability, Transparency, Equity and Reliability (WATER) Act.

WHERE: House Triangle on Capitol Hill, Washington, D.C.

WHEN: Tuesday, May 24, 2016, 1:00 p.m.

SPEAKERS: Rep. John Conyers; Rep. Brenda Lawrence; Wenonah Hauter, Food & Water Watch; Rev. Yearwood, Hip Hop Caucus; Mike Hersh - Progressive Democrats of America.

WHY: Since the 1980s, federal funding for water systems has declined. Analysis by Food & Water Watch finds that, on a per capita basis, federal funding has declined 82 percent since its peak in 1977. The federal government spent $76.27 per person on water services in 1977, but by 2014 that support had fallen to $13.68 per person.

Failing service lines pose a danger to the environment, and wastewater overflows threaten public health. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates that $697 billion is needed to upgrade our drinking water and wastewater systems over the next 20 years.

Without adequate federal support, communities often have to compensate for the funding gap by raising service rates, which some households cannot afford, leading some to lose access to water service.

Food & Water Watch champions healthy food and clean water for all. We stand up to corporations that put profits before people, and advocate for a democracy that improves people's lives and protects our environment.

Food & Water Watch mobilizes regular people to build political power to move bold and uncompromised solutions to the most pressing food, water, and climate problems of our time. We work to protect people's health, communities, and democracy from the growing destructive power of the most powerful economic interests.

(202) 683-2500