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Statement by Stacey Folsom, Corporate Accountability International in Response to Passage of the Economic Recovery Act of 2009

Posted on: Tuesday, 17 February 2009, 13:20 CST

BOSTON, Feb. 17 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The following is a statement by Stacy Folsom of Corporate Accountability International:

The Economic Recovery Act of 2009 is an important first step in repairing, improving and protecting our nation's public water systems and resources. The reported $6 billion allocated for public water systems is long overdue.

However, much more needs to be done to make immediate and ongoing national investment in public water systems a bigger priority in Congress and the White House. The U.S. faces a $22 billion annual funding gap for our nation's water infrastructure or well over $400 billion over the next 20 years. The amount of funding in the Recovery Act represents a fraction of that annual need.

Access to safe and affordable drinking water and sanitation is essential for our health and well-being, and investments in local water systems will create jobs and spur economic development and activity that our battered economy and communities sorely need. Yet despite this two-for-one deal, other parts of our nation's infrastructure are getting much more attention. Allocations for road repair alone constitute more than three times the amount devoted to water.

The Obama Administration and Congress should include more funding for water in the upcoming national budget, and in any future rounds of recovery funding and infrastructure investment. This additional funding could include the full renewal of existing programs that support water systems, such as the Drinking Water and Clean Water State Revolving Funds; direct grants to cities and states; and the establishment of long-term, lasting sources of protected funding for water infrastructure, such as a Clean Water Trust Fund.

It is imperative that we spend these public dollars on public water systems. Some of the same players - corporations, private equity firms and Wall Street financiers - who got us into the financial crisis are now saying they are part of the solution, looking for opportunities to profit from the crisis by cashing in on the anticipated water infrastructure spending increase. Our country has learned a big lesson when it comes to leaving the building blocks of our economy and society in the hands of these corporations, whose push for profits has created hardship for so many.

Our elected officials should resist the temptation of easy promises made by Big Business and Wall Street when it comes to public water. Water is just too important to be left to profit driven corporations. Now is the time to restore and renew our public sector and public institutions that are the foundation of our democracy.

We are calling on mayors and governors to support investment in public water systems at the federal level and to do their part to ensure that public water systems get the resources they need. We're also calling on our members and people around the country to ask their elected officials to make sure investments in our public water systems are a big part of our response to the economic crisis, and that Big Business not be allowed to profit from the economic stimulus package by buying up or gaining control of our public water systems.

Doing this will ensure our nation will be able to maintain strong public water systems that protect and promote public health, spur economic development and job creation, and reestablish our country as a place where water is truly valued as a public service and part of the public trust.

Let's close the massive funding gap in water infrastructure, make sure our public water systems stay public, and that the good, green jobs generated by our public water systems stick around.

SOURCE Corporate Accountability International

Source: PR Newswire

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