Summer 2025 - Flipbook - Page 5
In his opening remarks, Subcommittee Chairman Mike Collins (R-GA) expressed support for the
program, but stated his belief that providing additional funds for the program should be accompanied
by environmental regulatory reform to improve program e昀케ciency. The hearing follows the release
of an overview of the White House’s budget for the 2026 昀椀scal year, which proposes a cut to EPA of
approximately $5 billion- or nearly 55% of the agency’s budget.
ASCE strongly supports continued 昀椀nancial assistance for redevelopment of brown昀椀elds sites. This
includes support for full funding for the EPA’s Brown昀椀elds Program.
ASCE sends letter to Congress in support of National Climate Assessment
On May 12th, ASCE sent a letter calling on Congress to ensure that federal law is followed and
the sixth National Climate Assessment be completed by 2028. The National Climate Assessment
details the e昀昀ects of climate change on the United States. On April 28th, the Trump Administration
announced that nearly 400 scientists working on the National Climate Assessment had been
dismissed from their positions.
In 2023, the 昀椀fth National Climate Assessment warned that the e昀昀ects of climate change would
continue to worsen over the next decade and that increasingly severe weather events were a direct
result of a warming climate. Under federal law, the National Climate Assessment is required to be
released approximately every four years; however, in light of the recent dismissals, it is unclear
whether the administration will meet this deadline. ASCE’s letter notes the importance of being able to
assess the e昀昀ects of climate change to design and build sustainable, resilient infrastructure systems
that can stand up to increasingly harsh conditions.
EPA announces $31 million in grant funding for rural drinking water and wastewater
infrastructure
On May 20th, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the provision of nearly $31
million in grant funding for training and technical assistance to improve water quality in small and rural
communities. Funding will support technical, 昀椀nancial, and managerial needs for small public water
systems and assist in achieving compliance with the Clean Water Act and Safe Drinking Water Act.
These funds are being provided through EPA’s Training and Technical Assistance to Improve Water
Quality and Enable Small Public Water Systems to Provide Safe Drinking Water Grant Program.
Grants are expected to be awarded to the National Rural Water Association, the Rural Community
Assistance Partnership, and the University of New Mexico’s Southwest Environmental Finance
Center.
Supreme Court rules in favor of limiting scope of NEPA reviews
The United States Supreme Court issued an 8-0 ruling in Seven County Infrastructure Coalition
v. Eagle County that will narrow the scope of environmental review allowed under the National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). Speci昀椀cally, the court ruled that environmental reviews conducted
pursuant to NEPA do not need to consider certain broader downstream impacts when evaluating an
infrastructure project. Writing for the court, Justice Kavanaugh noted how some federal judges have
wrongly applied NEPA and turned into a “blunt and haphazard tool employed by project opponents” to
halt or otherwise delay “new infrastructure and construction projects.”
In Seven County, the court ruled in favor of a coalition of local counties supporting the construction of
88-mile rail project that would link Utah’s Unita Basin to the national freight rail network. The court’s
verdict is not the 昀椀nal hurdle for the local county coalition – the project must undergo additional review
by the federal Surface Transportation Board before it can proceed. Justice Neil Gorsuch did not join
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