Experts and senators both called repeatedly for increased infrastructure funding for rural communities, in particular, during an Environment and Public Works Committee hearing, with focus on ways to improve the 2021 law's water infrastructure provisions.

Schiff listed a number of issues that communities face including struggles with old, dilapidated water infrastructure, lead pipes and the pervasive challenge of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substance (PFAS) contamination. “These systems need to be brought into the 21st Century,” Schiff said. He added that the U.S. Government Accountability Office has warned that U.S. public drinking water systems face increasing cybersecurity-related risks as well.

Tom Goulette, city administrator and utility superintendent of West Point, Neb., who testified on behalf of the National Rural Water Association, said rural America does not have “the luxury of passing the buck. When water turns brown or pipes break, our neighbors call us, the water operators, directly.” One problem with federal funding is its complex application process with burdensome requirements, he said. There also are runaway project costs, supply chain delays, a shortage of qualified contractors and engineers and “competitive funding processes that favor larger utilities over those communities most in need,” Goulette added.

Water provisions under IIJA have been helpful to small and rural communities, especially funding for lead service line replacement, emerging contaminants, set-asides for disadvantaged communities and expansion of State Revolving Funds (SRFs) paired with technical assistance, Goulette said. The law has also respected local authority by avoiding new federal mandates on municipal systems, he added.

Eric Oswald, president of the Association of State Drinking Water Administrators, said the law helps address a “considerable” amount of deferred maintenance, repair and replacement and spurs overdue infrastructure projects. Low-cost financing as well as grant principal forgiveness has also helped push interest in the Drinking Water SRF, he added.

Experts mentioned access to funding issues and need for simplifying the funding process, especially for smaller communities that may lack technical expertise and resources of major metropolitan areas.

Kyle Dreyfuss-Wells, CEO of the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District, who testified on behalf of the National Association of Clean Water Agencies, said the Clean Water SRF is “essential” to help her region maintain necessary infrastructure to protect public health and water quality. But it has been difficult in the last two years for the group's member communities to access funds, due largely to local governments' hesitancy to absorb added debt, staffing shortfalls and competing community priorities, she said.

In a post-hearing statement, the National Utility Contractors Association said it supports IIJA, but that Congress must fully appropriate funding at authorized levels for fiscal 2026. This would mean at least $3.25 billion for both the Drinking Water and Clean Water SRFs.

“Beyond FY2026 and the end of the current IIJA authorization, long-term SRF funding is essential for strategic planning and to meet America's water infrastructure needs,” Zack Perconti, association vice president of government affairs, said in the statement. “Many water utilities, some with systems over a century old, face mounting repair costs and difficulty keeping up with the cost of compliance with state and federal standards.”

The hearing followed U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin’s announcement earlier in the week of a long list of planned actions to address PFAS, including establishing a liability framework in which the "polluter" pays and passive receivers such as utilities are protected.

“I have long been concerned about PFAS and the efforts to help states and communities dealing with legacy contamination in their backyards,” he said. “With today’s announcement, we are tackling PFAS from all of EPA’s program offices." Zeldin noted efforts to prevent it from getting into drinking water systems and to advance research and testing, as well as agency steps in "holding polluters accountable and providing certainty for passive receivers.”

He said the list is only the beginning of decisions and actions EPA will take to address PFAS over the course of the Trump administration.

In a statement, the Environmental Working Group said Zeldin’s announcement suggests that EPA will delay compliance with new PFAS drinking water standards released last year and will exempt some polluters from PFAS cleanup requirements.

“We all have PFAS in our blood, increasing our risk of cancer and cardiovascular disease,” the group said. It added that, while details of EPA’s plans are scarce, the announcement “suggests the Trump EPA will delay efforts to reduce PFAS in our tap water, exempt polluters from reducing and reporting their PFAS releases, fail to turn off the tap of PFAS pollution fouling air and water and block states from protecting us from PFAS in our everyday products.”

I think this is a good idea! America needs more investment in its infrastructure. The current cash balance of bitcoin is just enough to massively upgrade the water infrastructure in our country. Will be interesting to see what is in the FY26 budget.