The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) has issued its Proposed 2022 Clean Water Act (CWA) Financial Capability Assessment (FCA) Guidance for public comment. The proposed guidance outlines strategies for communities to support affordable utility rates while planning investments in water infrastructure that are essential for CWA implementation.
The FCA Guidance is used by municipalities when devising plans to dramatically reduce discharges from Combined Sewer Systems. During that process, municipalities and USEPA negotiate schedules with specific timeframes for implementation. The Proposed 2022 FCA Guidance describes the financial information and formulas the USEPA intends to use to assess the financial resources a community has available to implement control measures and timeframes associated with implementation.
Once finalized, USEPA intends for the Proposed 2022 FCA to replace the 1997 FCA Guidance to evaluate a community’s capability to fund CWA control measures in both the permitting and enforcement context. The 2022 FCA will also supplement the public sector sections of the 1995 Water Quality Standards (WQS) Guidance to assist States and authorized Tribes in assessing the degree of economic and social impact of potential WQS decisions. The guidance document is not legally binding and is intended only to provide clarity to the public regarding existing requirements under the law or agency policies. USEPA will accept public comment until 60 days after publication in the Federal Register. To review the prepublication version of the Proposed 2022 CWA FCA Guidance, click here.
USEPA Proposes Guidance to Support Water Affordability & Clean Water Act Implementation
