SECURE WATER ACT Introduced:
Promotes Data Collection
Senator Jeff Bingaman (D-New Mexico) introduced the SECURE Water Act, S. 2156,
in early October. Among other provisions, the bill would support streamflow and
ground water monitoring. The bill also specifically requires collaboration with
the Advisory Committee on Water Information, of which the Subcommittee on Ground
Water (SOGW) is a subgroup. NGWA promoted formation of the SOGW and currently
holds a membership as well as serving as executive secretary.
In a letter to Sen. Bingaman, NGWA expressed support for the bill’s goals of
developing and implementing systematic data-gathering in order to optimize the
use of the ground water resource. NGWA also reiterated its long-held position
that the "states bear the primary responsibility and authority for managing
water resources of the United States,” but “the federal government should
support the states, as well as regional, local, and tribal governments…”.