Recently, Congressman Simpson and I have seen a sharp increase in requests for rural water infrastructure funding. Federal and State drinking and waste water requirements are becoming increasingly restrictive and communities are left to figure out how to get into compliance. Additionally, many of Idaho's city and county officials are part-time public servants with limited resources to not only complete a project, but also get the proper planning accomplished.
To help the leaders of Idaho communities learn more about completing rural water projects, Congressman Simpson and I put together four regional workshops featuring presentations from and discusions with experts from a broad range of State and federal agencies. More information is provided below.
United States Senator Larry Craig & Congressman Mike Simpson
present four regional workshops on
RURAL WATER INFRASTRUCTURE
| Coeur d'Alene August 10 |
Boise August 15 |
Twin Falls August 16 |
Blackfoot August 17 |
each workshop will feature a series of panel discussions on:
COMPLIANCE
with quality standards
BUILDING
water infrastructure
FUNDING
community water systems
APPLYING
for federal appropriations
community leaders and officials, regional decision-makers, and all interested citizens are encouraged to join the discussion with experts from key state and federal agencies:
Environmental Protection Agency
Idaho Department of Commerce and Labor
Idaho Department of Environmental Quality
USDA Rural Development
US Army Corps of Engineers
Agenda Overview
Many communities are unpleasantly surprised when they learn their community water system does not meet water quality standards. This panel is aimed at highlighting current state compliance issues and possible future hurdles for local communities. The discussion should help policy makers better understand the issues that may face their communities in the future and assist in their attempt at getting ahead of the enforcement curve.
Most policy makers are not trained engineers and do not fully understand all that goes into building complex water infrastructure. This panel will highlight size, cost, and engineering hurdles that many communities are understandably not aware of. Also, this panel may provide specific examples of communities that have recently gone through the design/build phase and problems they had to work through.
Financing expensive water projects can be daunting, especially in rural communities. This panel will help outline funding options for communities and walk participants through the variety of processes.
Experience can be life's best teacher and this panel will provide first-hand testimony from local community leaders on how their community was ultimately successful in building their water infrastructure. Also, communities will have the chance to share ideas on how to fund projects and how to manage local constituencies.
The appropriations process can be confusing and downright painful. This panel will walk folks through the appropriations process and highlight the do's and don'ts when applying for federal appropriations. This will also be an opportunity for the audience to ask their final questions.
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