Senate Joins the House in Authorizing a WaterSense Program at EPA

The U.S. Senate has joined the House in authorizing a WaterSense® program at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to identify products and services that conserve water and promote stormwater management. 

Senate approval of a broad, bipartisan energy efficiency bill included an amendment creating a WaterSense program sponsored by Sen. Tom Udall, D-NM, and five other senators. The Senate bill now must be reconciled with a House-passed energy bill that includes a similar WaterSense authorization. Agreement on a compromise bill is expected before June.

The Alliance for Water Efficiency has been a key backer of the WaterSense program since its inception in 2006. EPA has operated WaterSense under the discretionary authority of the EPA administrator, but the program has never been formally recognized by Congress. The House and Senate bills would for the first time establish a formal WaterSense program, although there is no funding authorized in either bill.

WaterSense promotes water conservation through voluntary labeling of products and services that reduce water use and the strain on water stems and wastewater or stormwater infrastructure EPA estimates that WaterSense has helped consumers save a cumulative 1.1 trillion gallons of water and more than $21.7 billion in water and energy bills since it was established 10 years ago.