§2.Rural area digital infrastructure technology grant program
This section establishes a grant program within the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to provide infrastructure assistance to eligible entities—(1) owners or operators of publicly owned public water systems (as defined in the Safe Drinking Water Act) or treatment works (as defined in section 212 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act) serving rural areas (as defined in section 609(a) of the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978), (2) rural areas, or (3) states or tribes on their behalf—for digital infrastructure technology (i.e., remote sensing, real-time monitoring, supervisory control and data acquisition systems, artificial intelligence, hydraulic modeling software, and related tools to detect water loss, assess infrastructure condition, and optimize water operations).
Grants may support (1) designing, constructing, operating, and maintaining such technology for rural water infrastructure projects, including drinking water, wastewater, and stormwater facilities (e.g., supply, collection, treatment, desalination, reuse), distribution or conveyance systems, and source water protection (e.g., aquifer recharge); (2) training and workforce development for project managers and utility operators; and (3) cybersecurity training and technical assistance. Grant funds may be used for software acquisition and maintenance notwithstanding the Safe Drinking Water Act. EPA must prioritize grants to systems serving fewer than 3,300 people and communities in greatest need (e.g., publicly controlled prefabricated home communities or community-owned/controlled utilities).
The section authorizes $50 million annually for the program for FY2027 through FY2031 (to remain available until expended) and requires the Government Accountability Office to study the impacts of such technology in rural water infrastructure within five years of enactment, including identification of water loss/fire flow issues, sewer bottlenecks, and effective models, plus recommendations on resource management, infrastructure prioritization, interoperability, and cost reductions.