Senator the hearing is called to order. We are here to discuss this innovative financing and funding to address americas deficient Water Infrastructure. The purpose of this hearing is imple. Senator boozman many members of this committee, including myself reference the American Society card. Il engineers, report currently it grades americas Drinking Water infrastructure with a d. Waste water has a slightly better grade, a dplus. Some of us grades in school. [laughter] senator boozman this is not a rural problem or a big city problem or a democrat or republican problem but this is a national emergency. It is one thing to see these terrible grades on paper, but what does this mean for people in their daytoday lives. If we imagine life without clean and efficient Drinking Water, we picture communities that are not our own. We picture countries. Currently an estimated 1. 7 million americans live without access to clean running Drinking Water in their homes. There are tremendous infrastructure needs in rural america. The estimated cost to provide rural Drinking Water facilities totals 60 billion. With american, indian and alaska an natives. We are trying to address this problem and we have made this a top priority. Coupled with the bipartisan support in both the senate and the house, we have an Incredible Opportunity to work across the aisle and get back on track to making americas Water Infrastructure the best in the world. While we all agree that Infrastructure Investment is a necessity, this hearing will look at commonsense approaches with new ideas to fund these important projects so we can give the American People the basic service they desperately need and deserve. Our strategy at the moment is the publicprivate partnership. P. 3s are a scrurebl proponents and necessary to get the investment in infrastructure that the plan promises. While p3s are a great way, its not a magic cure for all. P3s are a great tool but it is important to realize, they dont always work in small rural states. That being said a combination of innovative financing, private investment along with state and [captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc. , in cooperation with the United States house of representatives. Ing such as loans and grants is a good way to address the problem. The problem will not be solved with a one size fits all. We will have to use every funding and Financing Mechanism at our disposal while giving communities the tools to fix the problem. For a moment, this picture of Small Community in rural arkansas is what we are trying to update an aging. This community has a small tax base, meaning any Infrastructure Improvements needed would make the cost of these utilities unaffordable. The Community Like the one i have described has few options to fund such a project. They could look towards the Water Infrastructure act which provides low interest treasury rates to finance water projects but this project is not likely large enough to receive any assistance. Not a problem that communities using to fund largescale projects will fund smaller communities. The Clean Water State Revolving Fund and the Drinking Water state fund provide funding assistance to expand waste Water Treatment systems consistent with the clean water act and safe drinking act. And this could fund the project since 1913, bond interest earnings have been exempt. Leading investors to offer low borrowing rates in 2016 alone. Communities issued 38 billion in Municipal Bonds to pay for Water Infrastructure projects translating into millions of dollars for local water ratepayers. The Small Community im describing could look to the federal government. There are grants available for communities to help them help themselves. We have many tools at our disposal. The trick is finding what works for each community rather than a one size fits all. What happens in rogers, arkansas might not help in chicago, illinois. The time to act is now. We have an Incredible Opportunity to develop an infrastructure bill that directly addresses americas Drinking Water and americas waste Water Infrastructure challenges. I thank our witnesses for attending todays hearing and i look forward to hearing examples of the problems average americans are facing and what kind of solutions we can agree upon. And i go to our Ranking Member. I have a terrible cold. Senator i sound like a boy going through pew bert. Im hoping to sound like Kathleen Turner but today is not so sexy. And i thank all of our witnesses for participating in this important conversation. Last week, Ranking Member carper and i organized a round table discussion to highlight some of our most pressing Drinking Water. We discussed 0 contaminant that e. P. A. Monitors like lead, mercury and arsenic and discussed young children, pregnant mothers and the elderly, whose exposure can alter the trajectory of their lives. And 56 Million People connecting to Treatment Plants by 2032. We are now six months into the Trump Administration and havent seen any details about the president s infrastructure plan. Despite a lot of campaignstyle rhetoric about the need to go into our infrastructure, this is a net loss of roughly 144 billion. The president has maintained funding for the state Revolving Fund but eliminates the rural programs and slashes e. P. A. Budget by 31 . Just last night, the white house announced president ial Advisory Council on infrastructure. How is the department of commerce to make recommendations to the president regarding funding, support and delivery of Infrastructure Projects . A report is due some time before december 31 of 2018. The confusion and delay is the president s goal, mission accomplished. Our goal is to enhance safety and create Public Health and protect jobs. I would like to advance those goals and put people back to work sooner rather than later. Our communities face daunting challenges to guarantee that what most of us take for granted, clean, safe, healthy water. We are here to understand the funding and financing challenges and work on bipartisan solutions. Whether it be taxexempt mune pal bonds or state Revolving Fund, im a Firm Believer of having the right tools to accomplish the job. And identify the gaps when tools need to be modified. Each provides communities with opportunities to address Water Infrastructure needs and each needs to be thoughtfully considered in their context. I thank the witnesses for their participation in this conversation. I look forward to your testimony. And i thank you, mr. Chairman. Senator boozman thank you, smor duck worthy. Duckworth. Mr. Frazier moved in 1990 to be closer to his family and was in a situation where he didnt have running water. In 2014, his mother contacted my office and we discussed the problem that the family was facing. After talking to mrs. Frazier, i got her in touch with the Water Systems council who were able to drill wells and bring Drinking Water to the home as well as the homes to their neighbors. This subcommittee hearing was to take place on june 20, but due to a scheduling conflict, we had to cancel. Unfortunately for mr. And mrs. Razier, they were on a plane flying to d. C. I got the opportunity to speak with him in my office about what his family and community went through and how the lives changed. Most people who had just got quenry liable and affordable Drinking Water would forget about the problem. To this day, he is getting the word out who is hauling water in their community. He told me whenever he sees them hauling water he tells them about the options available for assistance. I would like to thank you and your family for everything you have done for the area. I would like to thank your wife who is nice enough to travel up to d. C. Again to testify. And given your personal experience, these are the kind of stories that we need to get out. There is no substitute for it. Thank you very much for being here. I want to thank the chair and Ranking Member for holding this urgently needed hearing. Most people dont understand the problem. Discussed that there is more lead in the water. We are in crisis in this country greatest ng the natural treasure. And im very blessed to have a guy here who is one of our state who is doing work in a difficult environment in a city that has had a lot of challenges with Drinking Water. And for andy, i want to thank you for coming here. Andy, for the record is currently the executive director and chief engineer of the Camden County municipal authority. Before becoming the chief gineer in 2011, he was the deputy executive director from 1996 to 2011. Appedy has been an incredible Public Servant and made a reputation for himself even up to the northern counties. He is renowned in his field to rebuild and implementing cuttingedge changes including focusing on Green Infrastructure solutions. You see solutions in order to help address the other issues including camdens combined sewer overflow challenges. Andy and his team were able to make these improvements and i think this is some good news to all of us while holding user rates steady for 17 years. He serves on the board of the National Association of clean water agencies. As the chair of the clean water industry of the future committee and Community Service committee. He serves on the new Jersey Environmental justice Advisory Council. Im grateful that he is here right now to contribute to this committee and i always say washington would be a better lace if jersey came down here. I welcome josh ellis Vice President of the Planning Council in chicago. Had a 3 4, it has has prosperous region by implementing solutions. For more than a decade josh has been at the forefront through initiatives like green rivers chicago. Josh is the leading voice about storm Water Management and water supply management as well as advancing investment policy. I appreciate his willingness to join us today and i look forward to his testimony. Thank you. Senator boozman you are welcome to go ahead and present your testimony. Thank you, senator boozman. Thank you Ranking Member duckworth and members of the subcommittee i would like to express my gratitude for the opportunity to share my story. For most of my life my family lived without access to safe, reliable Drinking Water. Through telling my story and struggles to secure safe reliable Drinking Water that congress will put in place policies that will bring water to millions of americans that live in our nations rural areas. May be theaurl areas single most important form of assistance our government can provide. I lived in rural northwest arkansas, an area of great Natural Beauty but Drinking Water can be extremely difficult. Life without Drinking Water can be strenuous and stressful. You are worried about how much water you have and how much will be consumed in a simple daytoday activities. People drive every day thousands to iles a year to get water their homes and if the water station is broke or theres bad weather conditions, you may have to go several days out water. Hauling water consumes many hours a week and has resulted in a number of deadly accidents. My dad, who is a disabled vet spent much of his life hauling water. My water was stressed out about how much water we had. Many people in our area, veterans, the disabled, Single Parents are down on their luck just trying to do right and survive. These folks cant go to a bank and ask for a loan to pay for a well. We cant tap into rural city systems. Many of my neighbors struggle to get water. We have single moms taking their children to haul water in buckets. One worries about the quality of the water being hauled. The water station uses a sign that states we cant ensure the quality of water. How awful is that . In 2014, our prayers for reliable sources were answered. My mother contacted senator oozman who listened to our story and took action to get Drinking Water. Snoor boozman arranged meetings that result in drilling of wells that brought fresh reliable Drinking Water into my mothers home and my home. Wells and well systems are a godsend to communities like mine. We were never going to have resources to pay for Drinking Water or Treatment Facilities or run water lines many miles. Wells provide to be a Cost Effective alternative for me and my neighbors. The Water Systems council has provided my parents, myself and families across arkansas quality Drinking Water at a reasonable price through wells. And last year, senator boozman worked with senator cardin, thank you, senator cardin, to have the act enacted into law, legislation requiring the e. P. A. To set up clearinghouse is with information on the use of wells, well systems to meet rural Drinking Water challenges. The Water Systems council has proven that they can provide Drinking Water by over 75 . Estimates. P. A. Survey the shortfall of Drinking Water funding for small communities at 64. 5 billion. We have seen in arkansas, they reduce the cost of providing Drinking Water in small communities and congress should do everything it can to promote the use of wells in these rural areas. I know firsthand the importance of safe well water and wells are a part of that solution. Thanks again to senator boozman, senator cardin, for your work to bring the promise of wells and well systems to communities across rural america. I would like to show you a brief video documenting the role that played in ng water he lives of our community. Video] we are blessed to have water. Lake, streams. It is unfortunate with that water that people dont have access. The contacted to build wells. We have been without water for 17 years. I have been hauling water. You have to take shoulder baths and make sure that the dish washer is completely full before you run the dish washer. I have a 460gallon tank. We take it 6. 2 miles from here and once its full, it is 3,200 foot and i drive it to my water tank here in the ground and i do that three times a week. This is 12 to 14 inches. This road doesnt get serviced by the county. During the winter time i have had close. People have crashed and killed themselves. You have to watch what you are doing. Hauling water is dangerous. You can lose control of the vehicle and weather conditions such as rain, snow or ice are present. Im so grateful that its not going to happen anymore. I take the lid off. And insert the hose. Hauling water is expensive. According to one survey, over the 17 years he has been hauling water, 26,000 and gone through three pickup trucks and spent ver 8,000 on these trips. 30,000 spent just getting water. It goes out of the lines and into a funnel and it becomes my water. So i turn around and i have time on my hands and i sit back and. It we have been hauling water for 16 years. They said we would have residential water here in three years, but it never happened. The expense to return public Water Supplies is prohibited for the water districts and the residents who have to absorb the cost. Estimated it will cost 1 million. This tank is filled once a day and sometimes it isnt enough. I lived in my home without water for eight years. My husband has to haul water in a truck. He drives five miles each day. My husband will no longer have to fill it, drive five miles and dont wash away the clothes. 150 families that haul their own water. This would be crazy and benefit rom it, too. I serve on the board of directors of the National Association which is a n