As you all know, it has been two and one-half years since Congress overwhelmingly passed the Safe Drinking Water Act Amendments of 1996. This Act is an excellent example of what can be achieved when we work together on a bipartisan basis. When we were drafting this legislation, the Committee worked closely with the Administration, state and local governments, and stakeholders to ensure that when all was said and done, the result would be safe and clean drinking water for the American people.
I have to say that I am happy with the outcome and the list of achievements is long. Since passage of the Act, EPA has worked closely with the expanded Drinking Water Advisory Committee on a number of issues. This process ensures that all interested parties are heard and their concerns addressed to the extent possible prior to the release of regulations. In addition, more than 350 loans have been issued from the State Revolving Loan Fund totaling $849 million dollars. These funds will further aid compliance, especially for the numerous small systems.
I am extremely pleased to say that EPA has not missed one statutory requirement included in the 1996 Amendments. This accomplishment would not have been possible without Cynthia Dougherty, Director of EPA's Office of Water. I applaud and thank her for all the hard work that she has expended in making sure that implementation of the Act is successful. I know my office has called her on a number of occasions and she is always responsive to our questions or concerns.
Despite what has been achieved, there are a significant number of challenges that lie ahead. One of our biggest challenges will be ensuring that future regulations are based on sound and reliable science. The hard work has just begun, and to make this Act a success we will have to continue to work together.
I look forward to hearing from the witnesses.