[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 36 (Wednesday, February 28, 2024)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1045-S1046]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS

      By Mr. PADILLA:
  S. 3830. A bill to authorize the Low-Income Household Water 
Assistance Program, and for other purposes; to the Committee on Health, 
Education, Labor, and Pensions.
  Mr. PADILLA. Madam President, I rise to introduce the Low-Income 
Household Water Assistance Program Establishment Act or LIHWAP 
Establishment Act. This legislation would establish the first-ever 
permanent, national water assistance program to help low-income 
households pay their water bills.
  In 2021, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Congress provided 
$1.1 billion of critical assistance through the Consolidated 
Appropriations Act of 2021 and American Rescue Plan of 2021 to low-
income households struggling to pay water and sewer bills. Since then,

[[Page S1046]]

LIHWAP has helped 1.4 million households across the country maintain or 
restore access to water service. However, LIHWAP was created as an 
emergency program and expired at the end of fiscal year 2023.
  Recognizing the importance of Federal water assistance, Congress 
passed the Infrastructure Investment Jobs Act, which directed the U.S. 
Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, to create a Rural and Low-Income 
Water Assistance Pilot Program and report to Congress on the results of 
the pilot.
  The LIHWAP Establishment Act would provide the necessary 
congressional authorization for a permanent LIHWAP beyond the COVID-19 
emergency.
  The LIHWAP Establishment Act would direct the Secretary of Health and 
Human Services, in consultation with the Administrator of the EPA, to 
establish a permanent low-income water assistance program. Just as the 
program did during the pandemic, LIHWAP would award grants to States, 
territories, and Tribes to assist low-income households in paying for 
drinking water or wastewater services.
  The bill would also empower nonprofit organizations to assist small, 
rural, underserved, and Tribal water systems apply for and access 
LIHWAP funding, as well as direct HHS to provide technical assistance 
to help agencies and water systems set up data sharing agreements to 
streamline eligibility requirements for low-income households.
  In addition, the bill would transfer authority for the program from 
HHS to the EPA upon completion of the EPA's Rural and Low-Income Water 
Assistance Pilot Program.
  Safeguarding water affordability for all Americans remains critical 
as household water and sewer bills rise faster than electric bills and 
inflation. Families continue to struggle to pay their water bills on 
time, and low-income communities suffer from disproportionate 
vulnerabilities affecting their access to clean, affordable water 
services.
  Like heat and nutrition, which already have established Federal 
assistance programs, water is a vital and fundamental resource for 
public health and economic prosperity in all communities across the 
country. A permanent LIHWAP ensures we can continue to provide the 
necessary water assistance to low-income households at risk of losing 
access.
  I look forward to working with my colleagues to pass the LIHWAP 
Establishment Act as quickly as possible.

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