[Project 2025] Reforming the Office of Water: Ensuring Clean and Safe Water for Future Generations

The Office of Water (OW) plays a critical role in safeguarding our water resources, ensuring safe drinking water, and maintaining the health of our oceans, watersheds, and aquatic ecosystems. Under the Clean Water Act (CWA) and the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA), OW’s mission is to protect human health, support economic and recreational activities, and provide habitats for diverse wildlife. However, the current regulatory framework and operational practices of OW have raised concerns about inefficiencies and overreach. In this post, we explore the necessary reforms to enhance transparency, adherence to statutory deadlines, and the implementation of new policies that respect private property rights while maintaining environmental integrity. By addressing these challenges, we can ensure that our water systems are robust, efficient, and capable of meeting the needs of future generations.

Overview of the Office of Water

The Office of Water (OW) is responsible for ensuring safe drinking water and restoring and maintaining oceans, watersheds, and their aquatic ecosystems. This is crucial for protecting human health, supporting economic and recreational activities, and providing healthy habitats for fish, plants, and wildlife. OW operates under two main statutes: the Clean Water Act (CWA) and the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA). However, OW has faced criticism for creating extensive regulations, such as the Waters of the U.S. (WOTUS) program, which many believe infringe on private property rights.

Needed Reforms

Guidance Document Reforms: OW heavily relies on outdated guidance documents, some of which remain in a “deliberative” state for years. It is crucial to enforce the August 6, 2019, “Office of Water Policy for Draft Documents” memorandum to ensure transparency and governance. This involves preventing guidance from lingering in draft form and clarifying that guidance documents are not laws.

Compliance with Statutory Deadlines: OW must adhere to legally established deadlines with minimal exceptions. In cases of potential delays, senior management should be informed to decide on alternative actions.

Regulation Revisions: Depending on outcomes from the Biden Administration and Supreme Court interventions on WOTUS and CWA Section 401, there should be a repeal and reissuance of new regulations.

New Policies

1. WOTUS Rule: Define “navigable waters” clearly, respecting private property rights. Coordinate with Congress to legislate the definition as stated in Rapanos v. United States.
2. CWA Section 401 Clarity: Establish a discharge-only approach for water quality certification. Limit assessments to water quality factors consistent with specific CWA sections, excluding speculative future harm analyses.
3. CWA Section 308 Enforcement: Set and enforce clear time limits for compliance.
4. Criminal Negligence Standard: Clarify standards under CWA Sections 402 and 404.
5. Permit Regulations: Prohibit retroactive or preemptive permits under CWA Section 404.
6. Nutrient Trading: Promote a carrot-versus-stick approach for nutrient compliance.
7. Compensatory Mitigation: Update rules without imposing additional requirements beyond current law.
8. CWA Needs Survey: Ensure effective use of the survey for water quality management.
9. State Primacy in CWA and SDWA Programs: An executive order to expedite the process for states to gain primacy, requiring coordination with relevant federal agencies.
10. Additional Policies: Address challenges in the water workforce, timely actions on primacy applications, and cybersecurity.

Budget Recommendations

While reducing government spending overall is a goal, targeted increases in funding for the Clean Water Act needs survey are crucial. Adequate funding ensures proper distribution of congressionally appropriated funds to state revolving funds, essential for infrastructure funding for drinking water and clean water. Increased targeted funding is needed to prevent infrastructure failures and address significant water service challenges.

Personnel Recommendations

OW could benefit from redistributing SES (Senior Executive Service) employees to different programs and regional offices to improve efficiency and address specific regional needs.

Conclusion

The Office of Water is essential to protecting our water resources, but it requires significant reforms to operate more effectively and fairly. By implementing these changes, we can enhance transparency, ensure compliance with statutory deadlines, and introduce new policies that respect private property rights while maintaining environmental integrity. This will help create a robust and efficient water system capable of meeting the needs of future generations.