President’s Message

At Long Last, We Have an Infrastructure Bill! But, There is Still Work to be Done

As you are probably aware by now, Congress has finally passed a large-scale infrastructure bill. This historic $1 trillion infrastructure bill was years in the making, and on behalf of UCANE, I would like to thank the members of our Congressional Delegation who supported this legislation. I’d also like to thank our partners at the Clean Water Construction Coalition (CWCC) and all of our allies who have been vocal advocates for the passage of the bill, which contains an additional investment in water infrastructure that we have continuously advocated for.

Over the next five years, $55 billion will be spent to upgrade water systems and replace lead service lines. Masmajority of it will be distributed through the Clean Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (SRF) Program. With the influx of funds from sachusetts will receive at least $1.1 billion of that funding over the next five years to improve water infrastructure in municipalities across the Commonwealth. There is also $1.4 billion in grants included to specifically address combined sewage overflows and PFAS contaminations.

For UCANE members who do other types of infrastructure work in Massachusetts, the bill also contains $4.2 billion for road improvements, $1.1 billion for bridge replacements and repairs in the state, $2.5 billion for public transportation, and $100 million to help provide broadband coverage across the state. In addition, several hundred million dollars will be made available to upgrade our airports and ports.

I do not want to downplay the magnitude and importance of this bill, as it is a once-ina-generation investment in our infrastructure. But I do want to emphasize that there is still work to be done to maximize the impact of this funding.

For the water infrastructure funding, the vast the federal bill, along with the ARPA stimulus money being appropriated, the state has a unique opportunity to leverage these funds and increase the incentives available through the SRF program. This should include increases in principal forgiveness on loans, zero percent loans, planning grants, and any other incentives that will motivate municipalities and authorities to utilize the program, even those who have not traditionally done so in the past. In the coming weeks and months, we will be working closely with our Congressional Delegation, the Baker Administration, and the Massachusetts Clean Water Trust to ensure cities, towns, water and sewer authorities, districts, and commissions have all the information they need to access these funds and to put these critical projects out to bid. We need to realize all of the potential that this additional funding can provide, and only then can we truly celebrate.

But in the meantime, we know that

there is still much work to be done! n