Water Use Efficiency Legislation in the 114th Congress

April 27, 2016 (R44482)
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Contents

Summary

More than two dozen legislative proposals in the 114th Congress include provisions concerning water use efficiency, or water conservation, in nonagricultural sectors. These legislative proposals do not seek to set specific enforceable water use efficiency standards or goals. Rather, most seek to encourage or provide incentives for adoption of practices, technologies, and measures to achieve improved water use efficiency.

The 114th Congress legislation can be broadly grouped in five categories of proposals.

Some of the policy approaches described in this report are included in bills that address multiple aspects of water use efficiency alone, such as WaterSense and financial assistance. In other proposals, water use efficiency is one of a number of issues, but not the main issue, contained in a comprehensive policy proposal on topics such as energy policy, water policy generally, or solutions to the western U.S. drought. Many of the current proposals also have been introduced in previous Congresses, but have not advanced.


Water Use Efficiency Legislation in the 114th Congress

More than two dozen legislative proposals in the 114th Congress include provisions concerning water use efficiency, or water conservation. The current legislative proposals do not seek to set specific enforceable water use efficiency standards or goals. Rather, most seek to encourage or provide incentives for practices, technologies, and measures to achieve improved water use efficiency.

Some of the current proposals are standalone bills that solely address water use and conservation. Some are components of bills that address western U.S. drought; critical water resource conditions in western states are contributing to national policy proposals that include water use efficiency. Some of the current water use efficiency proposals are included in comprehensive energy policy bills. That is, water efficiency and energy efficiency are linked in some legislation, although water use efficiency is often the secondary policy consideration in such bills. Many of the current water use efficiency proposals also have been introduced in previous Congresses, but have not advanced.

The 114th Congress legislation can be broadly grouped in five categories of proposals, which are described in this report.1

Codifying the WaterSense Program

WaterSense is a voluntary labeling and recognition program created by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 2006 as a companion to Energy Star, which is a similar program administered by EPA and the Department of Energy (DOE). Energy Star is authorized in law (Energy Policy Act of 2005, P.L. 109-58, 42 U.S.C. §6294a), while WaterSense is not. Both programs involve partnerships between government, manufacturers, and others that seek to help consumers and businesses easily identify highly efficient products, homes, and buildings, with Energy Star focusing on energy efficiency and WaterSense focusing on water efficiency. While the latter program's central focus is on reducing water use, EPA recognizes that water efficiency also results in energy savings.2

The program's overall goal is to identify and certify through labeling products that are at least 20% more efficient than standard products available in the market. Through WaterSense, EPA has so far issued performance-based water-use specifications for seven product categories and has others under development. EPA also has issued a New Home Specification that incorporates existing criteria for indoor products and outdoor uses. Once a specification for a product category is established, in order to obtain a WaterSense label, manufacturers submit their products for testing by third-party laboratories or certifying bodies that have been licensed by EPA.3

Legislative proposals to formally establish the program in law have been introduced a number of times since the 111th Congress. One of the arguments in support of codifying the WaterSense program legislatively has been that, because the program is an EPA administrative initiative, it is difficult for EPA program managers and supporters to call on resources to expand its activities; establishing the program in law, especially with authorization of appropriations, would give the program status to address this problem, proponents say. The program is funded through regular appropriations to EPA that have been less than $5 million annually, or less than 10% of amounts appropriated for the Energy Star program.4 A number of bills have been introduced to codify in law a WaterSense program at EPA, direct the EPA Administrator to establish and maintain water-efficiency performance standards, promote the WaterSense label, review and update WaterSense specifications, and provide information to the public.

Bills in the 114th Congress to establish WaterSense in law include the following.

Research and Development Proposals

Bills in the 114th Congress include varied approaches to research and development of technologies to achieve improved water use efficiency.

Water Use Efficiency in Buildings

Buildings are estimated to account for approximately 13% of total water consumed in the United States per day. Of that total, 26% is estimated to be used by commercial building occupants, and 74% by homeowners.5 EPA's WaterSense program focuses primarily on water use efficiency of products used inside and outside residential buildings, but some of its specifications (e.g., for bathroom fixtures) also apply to products used in commercial buildings such as hotels, motels, restaurants, schools, and office buildings.

It is sometimes argued that, on matters of policy, the federal government should lead by example. In that regard several existing policy requirements direct federal agencies to use water-efficient products and services.

Several bills in the 114th Congress address aspects of water use efficiency in federal buildings.

One enacted bill, S. 535, the Energy Efficiency Improvement Act of 2015, in part addresses energy and water use efficiency in commercial buildings. It became P.L. 114-11 in April 2015. Among its provisions, the bill would require the General Services Administration (GSA) to develop and publish model leasing provisions to encourage building owners and tenants to use cost-effective energy efficiency and water efficiency measures in commercial buildings. It also would require GSA to develop policies and best practices to implement the measures for the realty services provided by the GSA to federal agencies and to make these policies and practices available to state, county, and municipal governments for their use in managing owned and leased buildings.9

Financial and Technical Assistance

The largest number of water use efficiency bills in the 114th Congress would provide technical and financial assistance for adopting or demonstrating practices or measures that conserve water. A number of the bills would assist owners and operators of public water systems and water utilities in adopting or installing water-efficient systems, while a few would help provide incentives for consumers to purchase and install water-efficient products or services.

Tax Incentives

The final category of bills in the 114th Congress would use the federal tax code to provide incentives for improved water use efficiency.

Conclusion

This report has identified five categories of bills in the 114th Congress that address water use efficiency, or water conservation, approaches and policy. A significant number of bills—often more than two dozen—have similarly been introduced in prior Congresses. Many of the proposals in the current Congress have been introduced multiple times. For example, five bills to establish the WaterSense program in law were introduced in the 111th Congress, and eight measures to do so have been introduced in 2015 and 2016. The number of bills that would authorize grants or similar financial assistance has increased—5 bills were proposed in the 111th Congress, while 19 have been introduced in 2015 and 2016.

Some of the policy approaches described in this report are included in bills that address multiple aspects of water use efficiency. One such bill is H.R. 3720, which has provisions that touch on four aspects of the issue—WaterSense, water use in buildings, financial assistance, and tax incentives. In other proposals, water use efficiency is one of a number of issues, but not the main issue, contained in comprehensive policy proposals on topics such as energy policy (e.g., H.R. 8, S. 2012, and S. 2089), water policy generally (H.R. 291 and S. 176), or solutions to the western U.S. drought (S. 1837, S. 1894, S. 2533, and H.R. 2983).

In the area of energy policy, including energy efficiency considerations, a body of legislation exists that broadly defines a federal role in research, technical and financial assistance, and information. Currently, no similar statement of federal policy exists regarding water use efficiency or conservation. At the same time, interest is increasing in addressing the pressures on water resources—pressures of access, scarcity, and quality due to population and economic growth, pollution, and other challenges—which some analysts believe is equally important as a national issue as is energy.

Author Contact Information

[author name scrubbed], Specialist in Resources and Environmental Policy ([email address scrubbed], [phone number scrubbed])

Footnotes

1.

Legislation or policy proposals concerning agricultural water use or water use efficiency and conservation by the agriculture sector are beyond the scope of this report.

2.

For discussion of the relationship between water use and energy, see CRS Report R43200, Energy-Water Nexus: The Water Sector's Energy Use, by [author name scrubbed], and CRS Report R43199, Energy-Water Nexus: The Energy Sector's Water Use, by [author name scrubbed]. EPA estimates that to date, WaterSense has helped consumers save a cumulative 1.1 trillion gallons of water and over $21.7 billion in water and energy savings. See https://www3.epa.gov/watersense/about_us/milestones.html.

3.

See http://www.epa.gov/watersense for general information.

4.

U.S. Government Accountability Office, Energy Star: Providing Additional Opportunities for Additional Review of EPA's Decisions Could Strengthen the Program, GAO-11-888, September 2011, p. 9.

5.

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Buildings and their Impact on the Environment: A Statistical Summary, April 22, 2009.

6.

E.O. 13693 revoked and replaced E.O. 13514 (2009), which had extended until FY2020 the schedule in E.O. 13423 that federal buildings reduce water consumption intensity by 2% annually, or 26% total by the end of FY2020. These Executive Orders address a wide range of topics and sustainability practices of federal agencies, including but not limited to water use efficiency.

7.

FEMP provides resources and tools to help agencies purchase energy- and water-efficient products. FEMP has issued acquisition guidance for 67 product categories; two of these address water efficiency and 65 address energy efficiency. FEMP's designation of water-efficient products (for faucets, showerheads, toilets, and urinals; and pre-rinse spray valves) adopts and defers to EPA's WaterSense specifications for the same products, to avoid duplication. FEMP has developed water efficiency best management practices (BMPs) to help agencies increase water efficiency.

8.

Some say that it is unnecessary for Congress to codify elements of an Executive Order that is directed at government agencies, while others believe that codification provides certainty and greater permanence than do Executive Orders, which have the force and effect of law only if the presidential action is based on power vested in the President by the U.S. Constitution or delegated to the President by the Congress. For discussion, see CRS Report RS20846, Executive Orders: Issuance, Modification, and Revocation, by [author name scrubbed] and [author name scrubbed].

9.

A predecessor bill in the 114th Congress, S. 128, contained similar provisions that addressed energy and water efficiency measures in federal and commercial buildings. A House bill with similar provisions is H.R. 873. Further, Congress included similar provisions in separate legislation (S. 1), which the House and Senate approved early in 2015. However, President Obama vetoed S. 1 over concerns with other parts of the bill, which would have authorized the Keystone XL pipeline, and the Senate failed to override the President's veto.

10.

For information, see CRS Report R43131, Green Infrastructure and Issues in Managing Urban Stormwater, by [author name scrubbed].

11.

For information, see CRS Report R43315, Water Infrastructure Financing: The Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) Program, by [author name scrubbed].

12.

In the Senate, an amendment with a similar purpose was submitted to H.R. 636 (S.Amdt. 3552), but it was not debated in connection with the underlying bill, which the Senate passed on April 19, 2016.