State Drinking Water Administrators

1
State Drinking Water Administrators Current
Issues NARUC Committee on Water

• Jim Taft, Executive Director
• Association of State Drinking Water
  Administrators
• February 18, 2008

2
Overview of Topics

• Drinking Water Regulations Regulatory Tools
• Drinking Water Security
• Water System Capacity Development
• Source Water Protection
• Data Management
• Documenting and Measuring Success
• State Resources
• Importance of Partnerships

3
Implementing Recently Promulgated Drinking Water
Rules

• LT 2/Stage 2 (Microbial Contaminants/Disinfection
  By-Products)
• Some states heavily involved in pre-primacy
  activities others are preparing for post-primacy
  requirements.
• Implementation has gone reasonably well some of
  the main workloads are yet to hit with full
  force.
• Ground Water Rule
• States now preparing primacy applications.
• Lead Copper Rule Short Term Revisions
• States generally concur with the suite of rule
  fixes.
• Challenges
• Risked-based rules time resource consuming for
  states.
• States grapple with simultaneous compliance
  issues.

4
State Perspectives on Rule Development and
Regulatory Tools

• Regulatory Determinations from CCL2
• States commented on the FR notice and await final
  decisions.
• Small System Affordability
• States are concerned about approaches that would
  routinely
  
  
  
  
  
  
  lead to
  two-tier public health protection.
• 6-Year Review
• States supported the 6 yr. review process by
  voluntarily providing occurrence data and
  recommending implementation changes.
• Total Coliform-Distribution System Rule
• States are actively participating in the FACA
  Committee and the supporting Technical Workgroup.
  

5
Drinking Water Security Overview

• Integrating into Drinking Water Program
• States seek to embed security into their every
  day programs (e.g., sanitary surveys, capacity
  development).
• Areas of Emphasis
• State believe in the importance of an
  all-hazards approach that emphasizes, in
  addition to prevention/detection, resiliency and
  recovery.
• States Are the Vital Link
• State drinking water programs will continue play
  a vital communication link between the Federal
  govt., other state agencies, and local entities.

6
Drinking Water Security States Have Supported
National Initiatives

• Water Sector Specific Plan
• Heavy involvement in 12/06 submittal.
• Mutual Aid Networks
• Supporting start-up of new networks.
• The Water Security Initiative (i.e., Water
  Sentinel)
• State representative on steering committee.
• CIPAC Workgroups
• State representatives and ASDWA serve on CIPAC
  metrics workgroup and decontamination workgroup.
• Participation in Government Sector Coordinating
  Council and Water-ISAC Board of Directors

7
Water System Capacity Development/Small System
Focus

• At the national program development level, states
  and ASDWA have been active
• Input on EPAs Capacity Development Strategic
  Plan and Capacity Development Program Evaluation
  Tool (CDPET).
• Input on an array of guidances and training
  documents.
• States continue to work to ensure that systems
  have adequate capacity
• Building small system T, M, F capacity.
• Small system focus in implementation training.
• Direct technical assistance and work through
  partners.

8
Source Water Assessment and Protection

• Partnerships and Collaboration
• ASDWA state drinking water programs continue to
  work with partners at all levels to develop
  collaborative strategies that leverage scarce
  resources and move from assessment to protection
• Source Water Collaborative
• ASDWA/GWPC Workshop (September 2007)
• Representation at other workshops (e.g., AWWA
  January 2007)
• Updated guidance and information transfer
• Reporting Progress
• States have continued to do their best, in the
  face of resource constraints, to report on their
  voluntary source water protection programs.

9
Drinking Water Data Management

• Modernized Data Flow
• Weve largely completed the process of
  transitioning to the modernized data flow.
• Preparing to meet electronic reporting rule
  (CROMERR).
• Data Quality Reliability
• Weve been active in helping ensure accurate and
  reliable data with better measures of data
  quality.
• Triennial Data Reliability Report.
• Data Reliability Improvement Plan.
• Working on Data for a Variety of Users

10
Measures of Success

• Logic Model To Assess Program Effectiveness
• A state-EPA workgroup has kicked into high gear
  in piloting revising logic model (meeting in
  D.C. in June 2007) all states will soon be
  involved.
• Improving Measures in 5 Year Plan
• States have reported progress under the 2006-2011
  National Strategic Plan and 2007 National Water
  Program Guidance.
• Future Measures
• Weve continued to be active (especially through
  the NDWAC) in responding to the challenge of
  developing ultimate outcome measures of
  success.

11
State Drinking Water Resources

• Communicating Resource Needs
• Federal and state budgets are expected to
  continue to be extremely tight its a sometimes
  discouraging picture.
• States and ASDWA have continued to make the case
  at every opportunity for adequate state drinking
  water program resources.
• Making Tough Choices
• States simply cant do it all with declining
  resources and fuller plates weve made tough
  choices and set priorities.
• Wed like to continue to work with our partners
  as we navigate through these difficult times.

12
Importance of Partnerships

• A Key to Success
• States and ASDWA have continued to be willing and
  active partners with a variety of groups at all
  levels and seek to continue and improve on
  partnerships.
• Communication, Relationships, and Partnerships
• We continue to seek to improve communications,
  find common ground, and leverage shared
  resources.