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Yahoo
4 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Worries fuel push to elevate water woes on policy agenda
BOSTON (SHNS) – The Joint Committee on Environment and Natural Resources got its feet wet Tuesday, diving into testimony on bills dealing with water. Water and water infrastructure generally do not grab the spotlight in the way that other policy areas like transportation, education and housing do, but lawmakers and advocates who testified before the committee stressed their major economic, public health and environmental implications. Testimony Tuesday touched on issues related to PFAS, lead and other contaminants; water quality standards for private wells; drought management strategies; and the future of the networks of pipes that move water to and from homes. 'Massachusetts is facing a growing water infrastructure crisis. The pipes that deliver drinking water, the systems that treat wastewater and the stormwater infrastructure that protects our neighborhoods is decades or even centuries old. The U.S. EPA estimates that Massachusetts needs almost $37 billion in drinking water and clean water investment over the next 20 years. That is billion, not million,' Jennifer Peterson, executive director of the Massachusetts Water Works Association, told lawmakers. Peterson pitched a bill (H 1022 / S 563) that would establish a program for upgrading and expanding water infrastructure and would call for $200 million in annual state funding. She said state assistance is critical since 'water infrastructure investment is a shared responsibility among rate payers, the state and the federal government.' Local ratepayers have been burdened by, in some cases, double-digit water rate increases in recent years and the Trump administration's fiscal 2026 budget proposes to reduce funding for the Clean Water State Revolving Fund by 90%, she said. The bill, filed by Rep. Ted Philips of Sharon and Sen. John Cronin of Fitchburg, would dedicate $2 billion to expand the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority's capacity with an emphasis on 'improving drinking water quality and increasing housing capacity,' designate $375 million for the HousingWorks infrastructure program, allocate $138 million for the Massachusetts Clean Water Trust, and provide $78.5 million for the Commonwealth Sewer Rate Relief Fund, according to a summary from Cronin. 'The infrastructure is aging, and we really need to start investing in it. And there's not enough money on the local level, there just isn't. Certainly not with Proposition 2 1/2, that makes it crushing,' Paul Anderson, vice president of the Barnstable County Water Utilities Association, told the committee. Sen. Becca Rausch, the Senate co-chair of the committee, pressed Peterson, Anderson and others on where the roughly $3 billion contemplated in the bill should come from. 'I'll be very frank, right, having done this role and for a number of years now … nobody ever wants to pay more taxes. So where would we get $3 billion for this?' she asked. Peterson responded that the bill calls for a revival of the Water Infrastructure Advisory Committee that was created in a 2014 water law but has been mostly dormant since about 2018. She said that group would 'discuss where the new revenue sources would come from.' She said the conversation in previous years revolved around taxes on products that have a connection to water infrastructure. 'Back in 2012 when Representative [Carolyn] Dykema and Senator [James] Eldridge were leading the Water Infrastructure Finance Commission, toilet paper tax, pharmaceutical tax — things that had a nexus to water — were discussed, but there was never any consensus around how to move those forward,' she said. Rep. Mike Connolly of Cambridge was joined by Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan to support legislation (H 920) that would require the Department of Environmental Protection to create and administer a voucher program to cover the costs of PFAS filtration equipment for households in municipalities where PFAS levels exceed the maximum contamination levels. Citing the Sierra Club, Connolly said 96 communities in Massachusetts had water systems that exceed that maximum containment level for PFAS as of February, up from 56 communities a few years earlier. 'There may be a question as to why the district attorney's office is involved in this water issue. It is what Representative Connolly referenced. I feel that part of the privilege of serving as the district attorney is to be looking at really a whole menu of prevention efforts,' Ryan said. 'We know, as the representative just mentioned, the problem with PFAS in water has grown by 47% in the last four years. Many of those communities are in my county.' The bill got a favorable report from the Environment Committee last session but then died in House Ways and Means, according to the committee's summary. Connolly said the version he filed this session has been updated to reflect feedback from key stakeholder groups. Ryan said the bill would provide vouchers for people to obtain two PFAS filtration devices in a five-year period, and it would cover the costs to change the filters every six months as recommended. She said the filters are placed at the point of water service, like faucets, washing machines, tub spouts and more. The district attorney said a set of filtration devices for a household costs about $300, and the replacement filters cost less than $50 each. Rep. Danillo Sena of Acton focused his testimony on well water, which he said is common throughout his district. Across Massachusetts, about 500,000 people rely on private wells for their water service, he said, but the state has no standards for private well testing or water quality. 'Because of this, many families don't know what is in their water. They purchase their home with no guarantee that their water is safe. Contaminants like lead, arsenic, bacteria and PFAS have been found in wells across Massachusetts. These have long-term effects on health, and with children at more risk than adults,' he said, testifying in support of a bill (H 1049) he filed. 'This legislation ensures that homeowners do not need to worry about the quality of their water through creating standards of wells [and requiring] testing. The Massachusetts Constitution established the right of clean air and water. We must uphold that right and protect 500,000 residents that currently do not have any legal protection.' Similar legislation from Sen. Jamie Eldridge and Reps. Natalie Blais and Meghan Kilcoyne (S 585 / H 900) was also on the committee docket Tuesday. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
27-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
MBTA communities must make zoning changes to comply with law
Mass. (WPRI) — The deadline has passed for MBTA communities to become compliant with a zoning law aimed at creating more housing in Massachusetts. The MBTA Communities Act was signed into law in 2021 by former Governor Charlie Baker. It requires communities near the commuter rail to have at least one district zoned for multi-family housing without age restrictions. RELATED: South Coast Rail service officially begins March 24 Following a ruling from the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court last year, 30 municipalities were given until Feb. 13 to submit an 'action plan' for coming into compliance with the law. Freetown, Wrentham and Raynham were among the communities that needed to do so. The Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities told 12 News on Tuesday that 24 of the 30 communities, including those three, submitted plans and are now temporarily in compliance with the law. Those towns have until July 14 to pass zoning locally. Communities that are not in compliance with the law may lose access to state programs including MassWorks and HousingWorks. Middleborough is one of the six communities currently considered noncompliant. MORE: South Coast Rail service, parking free for first few weekends At the request of several municipalities, including Middleborough and Wrentham, the Division of Local Mandates (DLM) through the state auditor's office reviewed the MBTA communities law and called it an 'unfunded mandate.' In a statement to 12 News on Wednesday, the DLM said in part, 'our office cautions municipalities that this determination does not guarantee that a municipality will be reimbursed for expenses incurred in complying with the Act. Municipalities can either continue to comply with no guarantee of reimbursement for expenses incurred or, under the Local Mandate Law, petition the Superior Court for an exemption from compliance until funding is provided.' Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell slammed the opinion, saying that other communities have tried and failed to claim that the law is an unfunded mandate in court. 'High housing costs burden our residents and stifle our economy – and responsible zoning is the solution to this crisis, as most of our communities understand,' Campbell explained. 'The Auditor's claim that the MBTA Communities Law is an unfunded mandate is wrong, and, more importantly, this letter has no effect whatsoever on implementation of the Law.' Campbell also noted that the state will 'vigorously defend' the MBTA Communities Law should there be further pushback. Download the and apps to get breaking news and weather alerts. Watch or with the new . Follow us on social media: Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
10-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
HIV/AIDS Activists Halt Traffic Outside State Department Protesting Trump's PEPFAR Freeze
Alexa Wilkinson Dozens of AIDS activists and advocates shut down Constitution Avenue outside the U.S. State Department in Washington, D.C. on Friday to protest Donald Trump and Secretary Marco Rubio's proposed pause on the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) funding. Linking arms, protestors chanted, 'Hands off PEPFAR!,' calling attention to the 20 million people whose lives are jeopardized by a federal halt on AIDS and HIV relief funding abroad. Speakers like Broadway actor Javier Muñoz shared personal stories and calls to action in conjunction with the civil disobedience. On January 25, Rubio ordered the freeze on nearly all foreign aid, including PEPFAR, a federal program providing HIV medications that has been credited with saving 25 million lives and preventing over 5.5 million children from being born with HIV in over 50 countries. Three days later, Rubio announced a waiver resuming aid for 'life-saving humanitarian assistance' during the State Department's 90-day pause on foreign aid. Although the waiver appears to allow for the distribution of HIV medications in other countries to resume, the New York Times reports that it's unclear whether the waiver applies to preventative care like PrEP. According to a February 6 press release from the action's organizers — Housing Works, Health GAP, and TAG — the waiver has been locked in 'bureaucratic limbo' and currently excludes large portions of PEPFAR's preventative care programming, including PrEP, for 2.8 million people. Meanwhile, 270,000 health workers funded by PEPFAR have been told not to report to work or serve patients. 'The recent freeze on [PEPFAR's] funding is not just a bureaucratic decision; it is a death sentence for millions who rely on these life-saving treatments,' Charles King, the CEO of Housing Works, said in a statement. 'We cannot allow decades of progress to be undone. The U.S. must immediately reaffirm its commitment to global health and human dignity by restoring PEPFAR funding.' The United Nations AIDS Agency previously stated that more than six million people could die from HIV and AIDS in the next four years if the Trump administration pulls its global funding for PEPFAR, per Reuters. 'We've been fighting this pandemic since the '80s when Reagan was president when it was a very homophobic administration. It was doing a lot of the same things the Trump administration is doing today, anti-abortion, anti-trans, anti-gay, et cetera,' Mark Harrington, Executive Director of TAG, said in a separate statement. 'But it's a long game, and we have to stick together, and we have to fight for those people who are being endangered right now. And that means both people domestically and the people internationally in the PEPFAR programs.' AIDS activists have called on fellow advocates to demand that the Trump administration fully restore PEPFAR funding by joining their own protests, urging elected officials to defend PEPFAR, and spreading awareness on social media using the hashtag #SavePEPFAR. Get the best of what's queer. Sign up for Them's weekly newsletter here. Originally Appeared on them.
