HR-8027-119
Referred to the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.
Sponsored by Haley Stevens (D-MI)
What it does
This bill would create a $1 billion federal grant program, administered by the EPA, to fund advanced wastewater treatment projects across all states from fiscal years 2026 through 2030. States would receive grants based on a formula set by the EPA Administrator, with at least 49% of funds reserved for projects serving disadvantaged communities, rural areas, small systems, and tribal treatment works. The bill would also direct the EPA, in partnership with the National Academies of Sciences, to study how well advanced wastewater technologies capture emerging contaminants such as PFAS ("forever chemicals") and nanomaterials, with interim and final reports due within 3 and 5 years, respectively.
Who benefits
Residents of disadvantaged communities who currently lack access to advanced wastewater treatment, who receive priority funding and a full federal cost share (no local match required). Rural, small, and tribal communities with publicly owned treatment works. State environmental agencies that would administer grant funds. Wastewater treatment contractors and engineering firms that would build and upgrade facilities. Public health broadly, through reduced exposure to PFAS and other emerging contaminants in water supplies. Researchers and scientists studying emerging contaminant treatment technologies.
Who is hurt
Taxpayers who fund the $1 billion authorization. Communities not classified as "disadvantaged" that must cover at least 50% of project costs themselves, potentially limiting their ability to participate. Competing federal priorities that may be crowded out by the appropriation. Private water treatment technology companies whose products are not selected under the grant program. States with fewer disadvantaged communities may receive proportionally less funding depending on the formula the EPA develops.
Supporters argue
Supporters argue that PFAS contamination affects an estimated 200 million Americans through drinking water sources, and that many rural and low-income communities lack the financial capacity to upgrade aging wastewater infrastructure on their own. They contend the bill's 49% set-aside for disadvantaged and rural communities directly targets the populations least able to self-fund treatment upgrades, while the cost-sharing waiver removes a key barrier for the most vulnerable systems. The accompanying scientific study would provide a rigorous, independent evidence base to guide future federal and state investment in emerging contaminant treatment.
Opponents argue
Opponents argue that the bill delegates significant discretion to the EPA Administrator — including defining "advanced wastewater treatment" and designing the state allotment formula — without sufficient congressional guardrails, potentially allowing the agency to favor certain technologies or states in ways Congress did not explicitly authorize. They contend that wastewater infrastructure is traditionally a state and local responsibility under the Tenth Amendment, and that a federal grant program with broad EPA discretion may crowd out local innovation and create long-term dependency on federal funding rather than sustainable local financing mechanisms.
Constitutional context
The bill rests on Congress's Commerce Clause authority (Art. I, §8, cl. 3), which underlies the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (Clean Water Act) to which this bill is linked. Post-Loper Bright (2024), the EPA's discretion to define "advanced wastewater treatment" and design the allotment formula will face independent judicial scrutiny rather than automatic deference, meaning courts will assess whether the statutory language clearly authorizes the agency's interpretive choices.
Checks and balances
The EPA Administrator gains new grant-making and formula-setting authority; Congress retains oversight through the appropriations process, and courts may independently review the EPA's definitional and formula decisions under the post-Loper Bright standard.
Historical precedent
The Clean Water State Revolving Fund (established under the 1987 Clean Water Act amendments) similarly provides federal grants to states for wastewater infrastructure, and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021 included $11.7 billion specifically for PFAS and emerging contaminant treatment in water systems.