President Trump Signs America’s Water Infrastructure Act of 2018

WASHINGTON, D.C. – President Donald Trump signed the America’s Water Infrastructure Act of 2018 into law yesterday, authorizing the successful Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) WaterSense program, as well as key investments in critical infrastructure for the nation’s ports, harbors, inland waterways, and drinking water systems.

“PMI applauds the efforts of the bipartisan group of lawmakers in both the House and Senate who worked to codify the vital WaterSense program in the infrastructure package,” said Plumbing Manufacturers International (PMI) CEO/Executive Director Kerry Stackpole. “Gaining congressional approval for WaterSense authorization is an achievement PMI, our members and coalition partners have steadfastly worked toward for many years.”

Along with its members and other valuable industry partners, PMI actively engaged with key lawmakers and staff on the language formally authorizing and codifying the WaterSense program, a focused, public-private partnership that identifies water-efficient and high-performing plumbing products. Having a statutorily authorized program is key to maintaining this important initiative, providing certainty to the program and its participants.  

The WaterSense program is an example of an effective collaboration between industry and the government in determining voluntary water-efficient performance measures that can be used by industry and consumers, as well as by states and public and private agencies charged with supplying water to American households and businesses. Not only does WaterSense save water and money, it continues to drive innovation by U.S. plumbing manufacturers to deliver water-saving plumbing products, Stackpole stated.

Under the WaterSense program, plumbing manufacturers have developed more than 27,000 models of WaterSense-labeled products, including showerheads, toilets, urinals, faucets, faucet accessories, and commercial pre-rinse sprays. Today, 1,900 WaterSense partners – including manufacturers, water utilities, building groups, retailers, associations and communities – collaborate on the program.

Products earning the WaterSense label have been certified as meeting high performance standards while being at least 20 percent more water efficient than other products meeting federal standards in the same category. Over the past decade, WaterSense products have helped consumers save more than 2.1 trillion gallons of water and over $63.8 billion in water and energy bills.