Water bonds

A draft environmental report released by a federal agency could threaten California and Arizona's water supply, if the states don't reach an agreement on their own to protect the Colorado River.

Voters in several Vermont cities approved capital proposals backing wastewater system improvements.

A California conduit will price private activity bonds to replace the intakes for a San Diego County water desalination plant.

California's bond ratings are likely to escape unscathed from the atmospheric rivers that caused an estimated $646 million in damage to the state's infrastructure.

York County priced a $24.6 million deal to help recoup costs of the purchase of a private water utility that wasn't "up to par," according to county officials.

Improved disclosure is likely to have a cost, though analysts have long maintained the benefits outweight that.

The newly stand-alone Water Infrastructure Finance Authority can sell water augmentation bonds as part of the state's quest for new water sources.

S&P upgraded the bonds to AA-plus and Fitch revised the outlook on the AA-rated debt to positive from stable.

The authority maintained positive rating momentum by drawing outlook changes from Moody's on both its water and sewer bonds and from Fitch on its sewer debt.

Since 2011, the city has issued about $5.6 billion of debt, with the most issuance occurring in 2021 when it sold $785 million.

Easing federal wetland standards could spark a “race to the bottom” as newly polluted water would flow into downstream states, a group of largely Democrat-led states argued in a Supreme Court brief.

More big cuts will be needed to keep supplies from reaching perilously low levels, the Bureau of Reclamation's leader told a Senate committee this week.

The bulk of the first tranches of the $15 billion of IIJA funds will likely be used to figure out where lead lines are located, so states and water systems can determine the scope of the problem.

Gov. Gavin Newsom's focus on voluntary water conservation has not brought much in the way of water conservation — consumption grew 19% year-over-year.

The Sites Reservoir received two doses of good news on its financing last week — a federal loan and an increased allocation from a 2014 statewide bond.

The legislation would allow tax-exempt financing for the replacement of privately owned lead service lines.

After a signature drive failed to put a water funding measure on the statewide ballot, a state Assembly member is trying to get his fellow lawmakers to do so.

“To date, there haven’t been any rating actions taken as a result of the drought,” said Fitch's Audra Dickinson. “But it could pressure issuers acutely."

Supporters of a ballot measure for projects to increase California’s water supply put out a call for donations to help get the measure on the 2022 ballot.

The new water resources act comes as the Army Corps of Engineers' civil works program is set to see the largest influx of funding in its history.