State Allotment Percentages for the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund Program, 36583-36586 [05-12660]
Download as PDF
<![CDATA[
Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 121 / Friday, June 24, 2005 / Notices
Rating EC2.
Final EISs
EIS No. 20050145, ERP No. F–FHW–
H40178–MO, I–64/US 40 Corridor,
Reconstruction of the Existing 1–64/
US 40 Facility with New Interchange
Configurations and Roadway,
Funding, City of St. Louis, St. Louis
County, MO.
Dated: June 21, 2005.
Robert W. Hargrove,
Director, NEPA Compliance Division, Office
of Federal Activities.
[FR Doc. 05–12555 Filed 6–23–05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560–50–P
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
AGENCY
Summary
[FRL–7928–9]
EPA’s previous issues were resolved;
therefore, EPA has no objection to the
proposed action.
EIS No. 20050169, ERP No. F–BLM–
J65413–MT, Dillon Resource
Management Plan, Provide Direction
for Managing Public Lands within the
Dillion Field Office, Implementation,
Beaverheard and Madison Counties,
MT.
State Allotment Percentages for the
Drinking Water State Revolving Fund
Program
Summary
The Final EIS addressed most of
EPA’s concerns while balancing
multiple use objectives with protection,
restoration, and enhancement of
resources. However, we continue to
recommend additional management
direction to protect water quality,
fisheries and riparian habitat and restore
watershed functions.
EIS No. 20050170, ERP No. F–DOE–
K06007–CA, Site-wide Continued
Operation of Lawrence Livermore
National Laboratory (LLNL) and
Stockpile Stewardship and
Management, Implementation,
Alameda and San Joaquin Counties,
CA.
Summary
EPA previous issues have been
adequately addressed; therefore, EPA
has no objection to the action as
proposed.
EIS No. 20050178, ERP No. F–FHW–
G40173–LA, I–49 South Lafayette
Regional Airport to LA–88 Route US–
90 Project, Upgrading Existing US–90
from the Lafayette Regional Airport to
LA–88, Funding, Iberia, Lafayette and
St. Martin Parishes, LA.
Summary
No formal comment letter was sent to
the preparing agency.
EIS No. 20050218, ERP No. F–NPS–
L61227–OR, Crater Lake National Park
General Management Plan,
Implementation, Klamath, Jackson
and Douglas Counties, OR.
Summary
No formal letter was sent to the
preparing agency.
VerDate jul<14>2003
19:06 Jun 23, 2005
Jkt 205001
Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice.
AGENCY:
SUMMARY: The 1996 Safe Drinking Water
Act (SDWA) Amendments established a
Drinking Water State Revolving Fund
(DWSRF) program and authorized $9.6
billion to be appropriated for the
program through fiscal year 2003.
Congress directed that allotments for
fiscal year 1998 and subsequent years
would be distributed among States
based on the results of the most recent
Drinking Water Infrastructure Needs
Survey and Assessment. In this notice,
the Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA) is announcing revised DWSRF
program State allotment percentages in
accordance with the results from the
most recent 2003 Drinking Water
Infrastructure Needs Survey and
Assessment (Needs Assessment), which
was released on June 14, 2005. The
revised State allotment percentages
affect DWSRF program appropriations
for fiscal years 2006 through 2009.
Beginning in fiscal year 1998, EPA
established a formula that allocates
funds to the States based directly on
each State’s proportional share of the
total need for States, provided that each
State receives a minimum share of one
percent of the funds available to the
States, as required by the SDWA. EPA
has made the determination that it will
continue to use this method for
allocating DWSRF program funds. The
findings from the 2003 Needs
Assessment will change the percentage
of the DWSRF program funding received
by some States in prior years. This
change reflects an increase or decrease
in these States’ share of the total needs
for States and will allow appropriations
disbursements to more accurately reflect
the needs of the States to reach the
public health objectives of the SDWA.
The Agency believes that the 2003
Needs Survey and Assessment more
accurately captures needs for necessary
long-term rehabilitation and
replacement of deteriorating
PO 00000
Frm 00027
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
36583
infrastructure that were under-reported
in the earlier surveys.
DATES: This notice is effective June 24,
2005.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For
technical inquiries, contact Jeff
McPherson, Drinking Water Protection
Division, Office of Ground Water and
Drinking Water (4606M), Environmental
Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania
Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460;
telephone number: (202) 564–6878; fax
number: (202) 564–3757; e-mail address:
mcpherson.jeffrey@epa.gov. Copies of
this document and information on the
Drinking Water Infrastructure Needs
Survey and Assessment and the DWSRF
program can be found on EPA’s Office
of Ground Water and Drinking Water
Web site at https://www.epa.gov/
safewater/.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 1996
Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA)
Amendments established a Drinking
Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF)
program and authorized $9.6 billion to
be appropriated for the program through
fiscal year 2003. Through federal fiscal
year 2005, Congress has appropriated
$7.8 billion for the DWSRF program.
Congress directed that allotments for
fiscal year 1998 and subsequent years be
distributed among States based on the
results of the most recent Drinking
Water Infrastructure Needs Survey and
Assessment (SDWA section
1452(a)(1)(D)(ii)), which must be
conducted every four years. The first
survey, which reflected 1995 data, was
released in February 1997 and the
second survey, which reflected 1999
data, was released in February 2001.
The 2003 Drinking Water Infrastructure
Needs Survey and Assessment, which
was conducted over the last two years,
was released on June 14, 2005 (EPA
816–R–05–001). The survey and
assessment was completed in
cooperation with the States. The States
participated in both the design and
development of the survey. The survey
examined the needs of water systems
and used these data to extrapolate needs
to each State. The survey included all of
the nation’s 1,342 largest systems (those
serving over 40,000 people) and a
statistical sample of 2,553 systems
serving 3,301—40,000 people. For the
1999 Needs Assessment, EPA conducted
site visits to approximately 600 small
community water systems and 100 notfor-profit noncommunity water systems.
The EPA believes that the needs
captured from the site visits in 1999
represented a fair and complete
assessment of these systems’ 20-year
needs. Findings from 1999 were very
similar to the findings in 1995,
E:\FR\FM\24JNN1.SGM
24JNN1
36584
Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 121 / Friday, June 24, 2005 / Notices
indicating that the systems needs did
not change significantly over a four-year
period. Therefore, EPA decided it could
estimate the 2003 needs for small
community water systems and not-forprofit noncommunity water systems by
adjusting the 1999 needs to 2003
dollars.
The sample design for the survey
produces a statistically valid State-byState estimate of need. The 2003 Needs
Assessment presents State-by-State
needs in several ways. For each State,
the Needs Assessment provides a
bottom-line estimate of the total need,
which reflects the capital costs for all
drinking water infrastructure projects
allowed for inclusion in the Survey. The
Needs Assessment also presents capital
needs for each State by system size, by
category of need (i.e., treatment,
distribution and transmission, storage,
source, and ‘‘other’’), by existing SDWA
regulation, and by current and future
need. Current needs are projects that a
system considers a high priority for
near-term implementation to enable a
water system to continue to deliver safe
drinking water. The Needs Assessment
also allocated the $0.9 billion need for
the recently promulgated Arsenic Rule.
The EPA used the total national cost for
the Arsenic Rule from the Economic
Analysis to allocate the Rule’s
implementation cost to each State based
on the occurrence data for the number
of systems with arsenic over 10 ppb.
The 2003 Needs Assessment found
that the total national need is $276.8
billion (Table 1). This estimate
represents the needs of the
approximately 53,000 community water
systems and 21,400 not-for-profit
noncommunity water systems that are
eligible to receive DWSRF program
assistance. These systems are found in
all 50 States, the District of Columbia,
Puerto Rico, on American Indian lands
and in Alaska Native Villages, and the
Virgin Island and Pacific Island
territories.
TABLE 1.—2003 DRINKING WATER INFRASTRUCTURE NEEDS SURVEY AND ASSESSMENT 20–YEAR NEEDS
Need
(billions)
Type of need
States .......................................................................................................................................................................................................
Territories .................................................................................................................................................................................................
American Indian and Alaska Native Villages ..........................................................................................................................................
Costs for Proposed and Recent Regulations (does not include the recently promulgated Arsenic Rule) .............................................
$263.8
0.6
2.4
9.9
Total National Need ..........................................................................................................................................................................
$276.8
Note: Numbers may not total due to rounding.
The total national need also includes
$9.9 billion in capital needs associated
with recently promulgated (excluding
the Arsenic Rule) and future
regulations, as identified in EPA
Economic Analyses accompanying the
rules. Although these needs are
included in the total national need, they
were not apportioned to the States based
upon the unanimous recommendation
of the State representatives who
participated in the survey design. The
States expressed concern that the
methods available for allocating the
costs of these regulations would not
represent the true costs of compliance
on a State level. The total State need,
which is the figure that EPA will use to
calculate the State allotments, includes
only the needs of the 50 States, the
District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico.
The 2003 Needs Assessment estimates
that the total State need is $263.8
billion.
Allocation Method
On October 31, 1996, EPA solicited
public comment on six options for using
the results of the first Drinking Water
Infrastructure Needs Survey and
Assessment to allocate DWSRF program
funds to the States (61 FR 56231). On
March 18, 1997, EPA announced its
decision to allocate DWSRF program
funds for fiscal years 1998 through 2001
appropriations based on each State’s
proportional share of the total eligible
VerDate jul<14>2003
19:06 Jun 23, 2005
Jkt 205001
needs for the States as derived from the
1995 Needs Assessment (62 FR 12900).
EPA used this same method when
allocating DWSRF program funds for
fiscal years 2002 through 2005, utilizing
the results of the 1999 Needs
Assessment. EPA has made the
determination that it will continue to
use this method for allocating DWSRF
program funds for fiscal years 2006
through 2009 appropriations, utilizing
the results of the 2003 Needs
Assessment. The funds available to the
States will be the level of funds
appropriated by Congress, less the
national set-asides, which includes an
allocation for American Indian and
Alaska Native Village water systems. Of
the funds available to States, the SDWA
includes specific allocations for the
Pacific Islands, the Virgin Islands, and
the District of Columbia. Each State will
receive an allotment of DWSRF program
funds based on each State’s proportional
share of the total State need ($263.8
billion), provided that each State
receives a minimum allocation of one
percent of the funds available to States,
as required by the SDWA.
The 2003 Needs Assessment found
that 22 States, Puerto Rico, and the
District of Columbia each had less than
one percent of the total national need
(in aggregate, 8 percent of the total
national need); however, for 2006 to
2009, each of these States will be
eligible for one percent of the annual
PO 00000
Frm 00028
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
DWSRF funds made available to states
(or, in aggregate, 24 percent of the total
DWSRF funds made available to states).
The discrepancy between these States’
allocations percentages and their
proportional needs as identified in the
2003 Assessment may be due, in part, to
a number of these States participating in
the needs assessment effort to a lesser
degree than the other States.
The total State need includes all
documented projects collected by the
Needs Assessment. In general, a project
was included in the Needs Assessment
if project documentation demonstrated
that meeting the need would address the
public health objectives of the SDWA.
The total State need includes both
projects that are currently needed and
future projects that will be needed over
the next 20 years in four general
categories: treatment, source, storage,
and transmission and distribution. The
formula based on the total need makes
no distinction between the four
categories—that is, it assigns an equal
weight to all categories of need. Also,
projects to correct immediate public
health threats (e.g., replacing a
deteriorated filter plant) are given the
same weight as less critical needs (e.g.,
replacing a storage tank that is expected
to reach the end of its useful life in five
years). With the exception of the
Arsenic Rule, capital costs associated
with recently promulgated and future
regulations were included in the total
E:\FR\FM\24JNN1.SGM
24JNN1
36585
Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 121 / Friday, June 24, 2005 / Notices
national need but not distributed to
individual states. Costs associated with
the Arsenic Rule were allocated to each
State based on occurrence data. The
Needs Assessment excluded capital
projects that are ineligible for DWSRF
program assistance, such as dams,
reservoirs and projects needed solely for
growth.
Allocation of Funds
Table 2 contains each State’s expected
DWSRF program allotment based on an
appropriation of $850,000,000 and
national set-aside assumptions. The
appropriation amount is based on the
President’s budget request of
$850,000,000 for fiscal year 2006. The
national set-asides for fiscal year 2006
include funds for American Indian and
Alaska Native Village water systems at
the level of 1.5 percent of the total
appropriation. (SDWA Section 1452(i)).
The amount will be $12,750,000 for
Indian Tribes and Alaska Native
Villages if funds are appropriated at the
level of the President’s 2006 budget
request. Additional national set-asides
for fiscal year 2006 include $2,000,000
for monitoring for unregulated
contaminants. If funds are appropriated
for the DWSRF program at the level of
$850,000,000 and if the anticipated
national set-asides do not change, the
total funds available to the States, the
District of Columbia, and Territories
would equal $835,250,000. Because the
percentages are based on the total funds
available for allotment to the States,
they can be used for general planning
purposes for future years. Once the
appropriated amount and national setasides are known, a State’s allotment
can be estimated by subtracting the
national set-asides from the total funds
available for allotment and then
applying the appropriate percentage
shown below. EPA will annually notify
each State of their allotment from a
specific fiscal year’s appropriation after
the final budget has been passed.
The findings from the 2003 Needs
Assessment will change the individual
allotment percentage of the DWSRF
program funds received by some States
when compared to their current
allotment percentage. This change
reflects an increase or decrease in these
States’ proportion of the total State
need. The variation in needs occurred
principally as a result of the data
submitted by individual water systems,
but also in part due to refinements in
the survey methods. With the collection
of data from nearly 4,000 water systems
and over 128,600 projects submitted, a
change in some States’ allotments
represents an inevitable consequence of
conducting a survey of this scale.
TABLE 2.—DISTRIBUTION OF DRINKING WATER STATE REVOLVING FUND ALLOTMENTS
State
Percent
Alabama .......................................................................................................................................................................
Alaska ..........................................................................................................................................................................
Arizona .........................................................................................................................................................................
Arkansas ......................................................................................................................................................................
California ......................................................................................................................................................................
Colorado ......................................................................................................................................................................
Connecticut ..................................................................................................................................................................
Delaware ......................................................................................................................................................................
Florida ..........................................................................................................................................................................
Georgia ........................................................................................................................................................................
Hawaii ..........................................................................................................................................................................
Idaho ............................................................................................................................................................................
Illinois ...........................................................................................................................................................................
Indiana .........................................................................................................................................................................
Iowa .............................................................................................................................................................................
Kansas .........................................................................................................................................................................
Kentucky ......................................................................................................................................................................
Louisiana ......................................................................................................................................................................
Maine ...........................................................................................................................................................................
Maryland ......................................................................................................................................................................
Massachusetts .............................................................................................................................................................
Michigan .......................................................................................................................................................................
Minnesota ....................................................................................................................................................................
Mississippi ....................................................................................................................................................................
Missouri ........................................................................................................................................................................
Montana .......................................................................................................................................................................
Nebraska ......................................................................................................................................................................
Nevada .........................................................................................................................................................................
New Hampshire ...........................................................................................................................................................
New Jersey ..................................................................................................................................................................
New Mexico .................................................................................................................................................................
New York .....................................................................................................................................................................
North Carolina ..............................................................................................................................................................
North Dakota ................................................................................................................................................................
Ohio .............................................................................................................................................................................
Oklahoma .....................................................................................................................................................................
Oregon .........................................................................................................................................................................
Pennsylvania ................................................................................................................................................................
Puerto Rico ..................................................................................................................................................................
Rhode Island ................................................................................................................................................................
South Carolina .............................................................................................................................................................
South Dakota ...............................................................................................................................................................
Tennessee ...................................................................................................................................................................
Texas ...........................................................................................................................................................................
Utah .............................................................................................................................................................................
VerDate jul<14>2003
19:06 Jun 23, 2005
Jkt 205001
PO 00000
Frm 00029
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
E:\FR\FM\24JNN1.SGM
24JNN1
1.00
1.00
2.84
1.26
8.15
1.76
1.00
1.00
4.52
2.81
1.00
1.00
4.08
1.40
1.25
1.00
1.05
1.42
1.00
1.38
2.68
3.46
1.80
1.00
1.94
1.00
1.00
1.00
1.00
2.21
1.00
4.45
3.37
1.00
3.00
1.61
1.46
3.37
1.00
1.00
1.00
1.00
1.04
8.24
1.00
Amount
allotted
$8,352,500
8,352,500
23,704,100
10,487,900
68,108,400
14,714,300
8,352,500
8,352,500
37,724,800
23,461,900
8,352,500
8,352,500
34,068,800
11,655,600
10,405,500
8,352,500
8,759,400
11,833,100
8,352,500
11,493,200
22,365,800
28,893,000
15,038,600
8,352,500
16,217,400
8,352,500
8,352,500
8,352,500
8,352,500
18,484,300
8,352,500
37,184,400
28,109,400
8,352,500
25,040,200
13,484,400
12,213,900
28,133,00
8,352,500
8,352,500
8,352,500
8,352,500
8,668,600
68,814,200
8,352,500
36586
Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 121 / Friday, June 24, 2005 / Notices
TABLE 2.—DISTRIBUTION OF DRINKING WATER STATE REVOLVING FUND ALLOTMENTS—Continued
State
Percent
Amount
allotted
Vermont .......................................................................................................................................................................
Virginia .........................................................................................................................................................................
Washington ..................................................................................................................................................................
West Virginia ................................................................................................................................................................
Wisconsin .....................................................................................................................................................................
Wyoming ......................................................................................................................................................................
District of Columbia .....................................................................................................................................................
Other Areas * ...............................................................................................................................................................
1.00
1.06
2.14
1.00
1.94
1.00
1.00
0.33
8,352,500
8,892,600
17,906,900
8,352,500
16,169,700
8,352,500
8,352,500
2,756,300
Total ......................................................................................................................................................................
100.00
835,250,000
Dated: June 17, 2005.
Benjamin H. Grumbles,
Assistant Administrator, Office of Water.
[FR Doc. 05–12660 Filed 6–23–05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560–50–P
8005; e-mail address:
plummer.stephanie@epa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. General Information
A. Does this Action Apply to Me?
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
AGENCY
[OPP–2005–0162; FRL–7719–2]
Carbofuran Risk Assessment; Notice
of Availability
Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice.
AGENCY:
SUMMARY: This notice announces the
availability of EPA’s environmental fate
and effects risk assessment for the
pesticide carbofuran, and opens a public
comment period on this document. EPA
is developing an Interim Reregistration
Eligibility Decision (IRED), for
carbofuran through the full, 6-Phase
public participation process that the
Agency uses to involve the public in
developing pesticide reregistration and
tolerance reassessment decisions.
Through these programs, EPA is
ensuring that all pesticides meet current
health and safety standards.
DATES: Comments, identified by docket
identification (ID) number OPP–2005–
0162, must be received on or before
August 23, 2005.
ADDRESSES: Comments may be
submitted electronically, by mail, or
through hand delivery/courier. Follow
the detailed instructions as provided in
Unit I. of the SUPPLEMENTARY
INFORMATION.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Stephanie Plummer, Special Review
and Reregistration Division (7508C),
Office of Pesticide Programs,
Environmental Protection Agency, 1200
Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington,
DC 20460–0001; telephone number:
(703) 305–0076; fax number: (703) 308–
VerDate jul<14>2003
19:06 Jun 23, 2005
Jkt 205001
This action is directed to the public
in general, and may be of interest to a
wide range of stakeholders including
environmental, human health, and
agricultural advocates; the chemical
industry; pesticide users; and members
of the public interested in the sale,
distribution, or use of pesticides. Since
others also may be interested, the
Agency has not attempted to describe all
the specific entities that may be affected
by this action. If you have any questions
regarding the applicability of this action
to a particular entity, consult the person
listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
CONTACT.
B. How Can I Get Copies of this
Document and Other Related
Information?
1. Docket. EPA has established an
official public docket for this action
under docket ID number OPP–2005–
0162. The official public docket consists
of the documents specifically referenced
in this action, any public comments
received, and other information related
to this action. Although a part of the
official docket, the public docket does
not include Confidential Business
Information (CBI) or other information
whose disclosure is restricted by statute.
The official public docket is the
collection of materials that is available
for public viewing at the Public
Information and Records Integrity
Branch (PIRIB), Rm. 119, Crystal Mall
#2, 1801 S. Bell St., Arlington, VA. This
docket facility is open from 8:30 a.m. to
4 p.m., Monday through Friday,
excluding legal holidays. The docket
telephone number is (703) 305–5805.
2. Electronic access. You may access
this Federal Register document
electronically through the EPA Internet
PO 00000
Frm 00030
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
under the ‘‘Federal Register’’ listings at
https://www.epa.gov/fedrgstr/.
An electronic version of the public
docket is available through EPA’s
electronic public docket and comment
system, EPA Dockets. You may use EPA
Dockets at https://www.epa.gov/edocket/
to submit or view public comments,
access the index listing of the contents
of the official public docket, and to
access those documents in the public
docket that are available electronically.
Once in the system, select ‘‘search,’’
then key in the appropriate docket ID
number.
Certain types of information will not
be placed in the EPA Dockets.
Information claimed as CBI and other
information whose disclosure is
restricted by statute, which is not
included in the official public docket,
will not be available for public viewing
in EPA’s electronic public docket. EPA’s
policy is that copyrighted material will
not be placed in EPA’s electronic public
docket but will be available only in
printed, paper form in the official public
docket. To the extent feasible, publicly
available docket materials will be made
available in EPA’s electronic public
docket. When a document is selected
from the index list in EPA Dockets, the
system will identify whether the
document is available for viewing in
EPA’s electronic public docket.
Although not all docket materials may
be available electronically, you may still
access any of the publicly available
docket materials through the docket
facility identified in Unit I.B.1. EPA
intends to work towards providing
electronic access to all of the publicly
available docket materials through
EPA’s electronic public docket.
For public commenters, it is
important to note that EPA’s policy is
that public comments, whether
submitted electronically or in paper,
will be made available for public
viewing in EPA’s electronic public
docket as EPA receives them and
without change, unless the comment
contains copyrighted material, CBI, or
E:\FR\FM\24JNN1.SGM
24JNN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 121 (Friday, June 24, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 36583-36586]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-12660]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[FRL-7928-9]
State Allotment Percentages for the Drinking Water State
Revolving Fund Program
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The 1996 Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) Amendments established
a Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF) program and authorized
$9.6 billion to be appropriated for the program through fiscal year
2003. Congress directed that allotments for fiscal year 1998 and
subsequent years would be distributed among States based on the results
of the most recent Drinking Water Infrastructure Needs Survey and
Assessment. In this notice, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
is announcing revised DWSRF program State allotment percentages in
accordance with the results from the most recent 2003 Drinking Water
Infrastructure Needs Survey and Assessment (Needs Assessment), which
was released on June 14, 2005. The revised State allotment percentages
affect DWSRF program appropriations for fiscal years 2006 through 2009.
Beginning in fiscal year 1998, EPA established a formula that allocates
funds to the States based directly on each State's proportional share
of the total need for States, provided that each State receives a
minimum share of one percent of the funds available to the States, as
required by the SDWA. EPA has made the determination that it will
continue to use this method for allocating DWSRF program funds. The
findings from the 2003 Needs Assessment will change the percentage of
the DWSRF program funding received by some States in prior years. This
change reflects an increase or decrease in these States' share of the
total needs for States and will allow appropriations disbursements to
more accurately reflect the needs of the States to reach the public
health objectives of the SDWA. The Agency believes that the 2003 Needs
Survey and Assessment more accurately captures needs for necessary
long-term rehabilitation and replacement of deteriorating
infrastructure that were under-reported in the earlier surveys.
DATES: This notice is effective June 24, 2005.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For technical inquiries, contact Jeff
McPherson, Drinking Water Protection Division, Office of Ground Water
and Drinking Water (4606M), Environmental Protection Agency, 1200
Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460; telephone number: (202)
564-6878; fax number: (202) 564-3757; e-mail address:
mcpherson.jeffrey@epa.gov. Copies of this document and information on
the Drinking Water Infrastructure Needs Survey and Assessment and the
DWSRF program can be found on EPA's Office of Ground Water and Drinking
Water Web site at https://www.epa.gov/safewater/.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 1996 Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA)
Amendments established a Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF)
program and authorized $9.6 billion to be appropriated for the program
through fiscal year 2003. Through federal fiscal year 2005, Congress
has appropriated $7.8 billion for the DWSRF program. Congress directed
that allotments for fiscal year 1998 and subsequent years be
distributed among States based on the results of the most recent
Drinking Water Infrastructure Needs Survey and Assessment (SDWA section
1452(a)(1)(D)(ii)), which must be conducted every four years. The first
survey, which reflected 1995 data, was released in February 1997 and
the second survey, which reflected 1999 data, was released in February
2001. The 2003 Drinking Water Infrastructure Needs Survey and
Assessment, which was conducted over the last two years, was released
on June 14, 2005 (EPA 816-R-05-001). The survey and assessment was
completed in cooperation with the States. The States participated in
both the design and development of the survey. The survey examined the
needs of water systems and used these data to extrapolate needs to each
State. The survey included all of the nation's 1,342 largest systems
(those serving over 40,000 people) and a statistical sample of 2,553
systems serving 3,301--40,000 people. For the 1999 Needs Assessment,
EPA conducted site visits to approximately 600 small community water
systems and 100 not-for-profit noncommunity water systems. The EPA
believes that the needs captured from the site visits in 1999
represented a fair and complete assessment of these systems' 20-year
needs. Findings from 1999 were very similar to the findings in 1995,
[[Page 36584]]
indicating that the systems needs did not change significantly over a
four-year period. Therefore, EPA decided it could estimate the 2003
needs for small community water systems and not-for-profit noncommunity
water systems by adjusting the 1999 needs to 2003 dollars.
The sample design for the survey produces a statistically valid
State-by-State estimate of need. The 2003 Needs Assessment presents
State-by-State needs in several ways. For each State, the Needs
Assessment provides a bottom-line estimate of the total need, which
reflects the capital costs for all drinking water infrastructure
projects allowed for inclusion in the Survey. The Needs Assessment also
presents capital needs for each State by system size, by category of
need (i.e., treatment, distribution and transmission, storage, source,
and ``other''), by existing SDWA regulation, and by current and future
need. Current needs are projects that a system considers a high
priority for near-term implementation to enable a water system to
continue to deliver safe drinking water. The Needs Assessment also
allocated the $0.9 billion need for the recently promulgated Arsenic
Rule. The EPA used the total national cost for the Arsenic Rule from
the Economic Analysis to allocate the Rule's implementation cost to
each State based on the occurrence data for the number of systems with
arsenic over 10 ppb.
The 2003 Needs Assessment found that the total national need is
$276.8 billion (Table 1). This estimate represents the needs of the
approximately 53,000 community water systems and 21,400 not-for-profit
noncommunity water systems that are eligible to receive DWSRF program
assistance. These systems are found in all 50 States, the District of
Columbia, Puerto Rico, on American Indian lands and in Alaska Native
Villages, and the Virgin Island and Pacific Island territories.
Table 1.--2003 Drinking Water Infrastructure Needs Survey and Assessment
20-Year Needs
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Need
Type of need (billions)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
States..................................................... $263.8
Territories................................................ 0.6
American Indian and Alaska Native Villages................. 2.4
Costs for Proposed and Recent Regulations (does not include 9.9
the recently promulgated Arsenic Rule)....................
------------
Total National Need.................................... $276.8
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Note: Numbers may not total due to rounding.
The total national need also includes $9.9 billion in capital needs
associated with recently promulgated (excluding the Arsenic Rule) and
future regulations, as identified in EPA Economic Analyses accompanying
the rules. Although these needs are included in the total national
need, they were not apportioned to the States based upon the unanimous
recommendation of the State representatives who participated in the
survey design. The States expressed concern that the methods available
for allocating the costs of these regulations would not represent the
true costs of compliance on a State level. The total State need, which
is the figure that EPA will use to calculate the State allotments,
includes only the needs of the 50 States, the District of Columbia, and
Puerto Rico. The 2003 Needs Assessment estimates that the total State
need is $263.8 billion.
Allocation Method
On October 31, 1996, EPA solicited public comment on six options
for using the results of the first Drinking Water Infrastructure Needs
Survey and Assessment to allocate DWSRF program funds to the States (61
FR 56231). On March 18, 1997, EPA announced its decision to allocate
DWSRF program funds for fiscal years 1998 through 2001 appropriations
based on each State's proportional share of the total eligible needs
for the States as derived from the 1995 Needs Assessment (62 FR 12900).
EPA used this same method when allocating DWSRF program funds for
fiscal years 2002 through 2005, utilizing the results of the 1999 Needs
Assessment. EPA has made the determination that it will continue to use
this method for allocating DWSRF program funds for fiscal years 2006
through 2009 appropriations, utilizing the results of the 2003 Needs
Assessment. The funds available to the States will be the level of
funds appropriated by Congress, less the national set-asides, which
includes an allocation for American Indian and Alaska Native Village
water systems. Of the funds available to States, the SDWA includes
specific allocations for the Pacific Islands, the Virgin Islands, and
the District of Columbia. Each State will receive an allotment of DWSRF
program funds based on each State's proportional share of the total
State need ($263.8 billion), provided that each State receives a
minimum allocation of one percent of the funds available to States, as
required by the SDWA.
The 2003 Needs Assessment found that 22 States, Puerto Rico, and
the District of Columbia each had less than one percent of the total
national need (in aggregate, 8 percent of the total national need);
however, for 2006 to 2009, each of these States will be eligible for
one percent of the annual DWSRF funds made available to states (or, in
aggregate, 24 percent of the total DWSRF funds made available to
states). The discrepancy between these States' allocations percentages
and their proportional needs as identified in the 2003 Assessment may
be due, in part, to a number of these States participating in the needs
assessment effort to a lesser degree than the other States.
The total State need includes all documented projects collected by
the Needs Assessment. In general, a project was included in the Needs
Assessment if project documentation demonstrated that meeting the need
would address the public health objectives of the SDWA. The total State
need includes both projects that are currently needed and future
projects that will be needed over the next 20 years in four general
categories: treatment, source, storage, and transmission and
distribution. The formula based on the total need makes no distinction
between the four categories--that is, it assigns an equal weight to all
categories of need. Also, projects to correct immediate public health
threats (e.g., replacing a deteriorated filter plant) are given the
same weight as less critical needs (e.g., replacing a storage tank that
is expected to reach the end of its useful life in five years). With
the exception of the Arsenic Rule, capital costs associated with
recently promulgated and future regulations were included in the total
[[Page 36585]]
national need but not distributed to individual states. Costs
associated with the Arsenic Rule were allocated to each State based on
occurrence data. The Needs Assessment excluded capital projects that
are ineligible for DWSRF program assistance, such as dams, reservoirs
and projects needed solely for growth.
Allocation of Funds
Table 2 contains each State's expected DWSRF program allotment
based on an appropriation of $850,000,000 and national set-aside
assumptions. The appropriation amount is based on the President's
budget request of $850,000,000 for fiscal year 2006. The national set-
asides for fiscal year 2006 include funds for American Indian and
Alaska Native Village water systems at the level of 1.5 percent of the
total appropriation. (SDWA Section 1452(i)). The amount will be
$12,750,000 for Indian Tribes and Alaska Native Villages if funds are
appropriated at the level of the President's 2006 budget request.
Additional national set-asides for fiscal year 2006 include $2,000,000
for monitoring for unregulated contaminants. If funds are appropriated
for the DWSRF program at the level of $850,000,000 and if the
anticipated national set-asides do not change, the total funds
available to the States, the District of Columbia, and Territories
would equal $835,250,000. Because the percentages are based on the
total funds available for allotment to the States, they can be used for
general planning purposes for future years. Once the appropriated
amount and national set-asides are known, a State's allotment can be
estimated by subtracting the national set-asides from the total funds
available for allotment and then applying the appropriate percentage
shown below. EPA will annually notify each State of their allotment
from a specific fiscal year's appropriation after the final budget has
been passed.
The findings from the 2003 Needs Assessment will change the
individual allotment percentage of the DWSRF program funds received by
some States when compared to their current allotment percentage. This
change reflects an increase or decrease in these States' proportion of
the total State need. The variation in needs occurred principally as a
result of the data submitted by individual water systems, but also in
part due to refinements in the survey methods. With the collection of
data from nearly 4,000 water systems and over 128,600 projects
submitted, a change in some States' allotments represents an inevitable
consequence of conducting a survey of this scale.
Table 2.--Distribution of Drinking Water State Revolving Fund Allotments
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Amount
State Percent allotted
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Alabama.................................... 1.00 $8,352,500
Alaska..................................... 1.00 8,352,500
Arizona.................................... 2.84 23,704,100
Arkansas................................... 1.26 10,487,900
California................................. 8.15 68,108,400
Colorado................................... 1.76 14,714,300
Connecticut................................ 1.00 8,352,500
Delaware................................... 1.00 8,352,500
Florida.................................... 4.52 37,724,800
Georgia.................................... 2.81 23,461,900
Hawaii..................................... 1.00 8,352,500
Idaho...................................... 1.00 8,352,500
Illinois................................... 4.08 34,068,800
Indiana.................................... 1.40 11,655,600
Iowa....................................... 1.25 10,405,500
Kansas..................................... 1.00 8,352,500
Kentucky................................... 1.05 8,759,400
Louisiana.................................. 1.42 11,833,100
Maine...................................... 1.00 8,352,500
Maryland................................... 1.38 11,493,200
Massachusetts.............................. 2.68 22,365,800
Michigan................................... 3.46 28,893,000
Minnesota.................................. 1.80 15,038,600
Mississippi................................ 1.00 8,352,500
Missouri................................... 1.94 16,217,400
Montana.................................... 1.00 8,352,500
Nebraska................................... 1.00 8,352,500
Nevada..................................... 1.00 8,352,500
New Hampshire.............................. 1.00 8,352,500
New Jersey................................. 2.21 18,484,300
New Mexico................................. 1.00 8,352,500
New York................................... 4.45 37,184,400
North Carolina............................. 3.37 28,109,400
North Dakota............................... 1.00 8,352,500
Ohio....................................... 3.00 25,040,200
Oklahoma................................... 1.61 13,484,400
Oregon..................................... 1.46 12,213,900
Pennsylvania............................... 3.37 28,133,00
Puerto Rico................................ 1.00 8,352,500
Rhode Island............................... 1.00 8,352,500
South Carolina............................. 1.00 8,352,500
South Dakota............................... 1.00 8,352,500
Tennessee.................................. 1.04 8,668,600
Texas...................................... 8.24 68,814,200
Utah....................................... 1.00 8,352,500
[[Page 36586]]
Vermont.................................... 1.00 8,352,500
Virginia................................... 1.06 8,892,600
Washington................................. 2.14 17,906,900
West Virginia.............................. 1.00 8,352,500
Wisconsin.................................. 1.94 16,169,700
Wyoming.................................... 1.00 8,352,500
District of Columbia....................... 1.00 8,352,500
Other Areas *.............................. 0.33 2,756,300
--------------
Total.................................. 100.00 835,250,000
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dated: June 17, 2005.
Benjamin H. Grumbles,
Assistant Administrator, Office of Water.
[FR Doc. 05-12660 Filed 6-23-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
