Rep. Susie Lee's Water Recycling Bill Included in Senate Bipartisan Infrastructure Legislation

Statement

WASHINGTON --Today, Rep. Susie Lee released the following statement in response to the text of her bill, H.R. 4099, the Large-Scale Water Recycling Project Investment Act, being included in the Senate's bipartisan infrastructure legislation, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.

"I'm so proud that my bill, the Large-Scale Water Recycling Project Investment Act, has made it into the bipartisan infrastructure legislation that I've worked on for months. As we negotiated this bipartisan deal, I fought for investments in western water storage and management funding," said Rep. Lee. "Southern Nevada -- and the entire desert southwest -- is facing an unprecedented drought that will require innovative solutions. This bill will pave the way for increased investment in such regional water recycling projects that will create reliable, virtually drought-proof water supplies."

In June, Rep. Susie Lee (NV-03) and Reps. Grace F. Napolitano (CA-32), Raúl Grijalva (AZ-03), and Jared Huffman (CA-02) introduced H.R. 4099, the Large-Scale Water Recycling Project Investment Act, to create a water recycling grant program for large-scale projects in California and sixteen other western states. U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto introduced companion legislation in the Senate.

The Large-Scale Water Recycling Project Investment Act establishes a competitive grant program within the Department of the Interior for large-scale water recycling projects that have a total estimated cost of at least $500 million. The legislation authorizes $450 million for the program and projects must be within one of the Bureau of Reclamation's seventeen western states.

Recently, water levels at Lake Mead reached the lowest point on record. Lake Mead currently supplies water to 25 million people across Nevada, Arizona, and California. This legislation will provide funding for water recycling programs across the west, helping western states be less dependent on Lake Mead.

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