House bill seeks to grant emergency funding for imperiled water systems

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – A new bill that has been put forward in the State Legislature seeks to grant improvement pathways and emergency funding for municipal water systems that need improvement.

Recent incidents in Edmonson and Clinton counties have disrupted service and seen the water supply be tainted, causing emergencies and boil water advisories. House Bill 563 seeks to allow state funding for emergencies like these to allow counties to fund expenses incurred.

The main portion of the bill seeks to put counties on a pathway to get their total system leaks under 20% and to ensure that they are able to adequately meter and bill for the amount of water they are selling.

Rep. Josh Bray says that the bill would be perfectly tailored to issues like those in Edmonson County.

“In Edmonson County, they’re in a lot better financial shape than most other rural districts because they’ve done a very good job fiscally of, you know, maintaining rights. And but they’ve just got so many needs across a broad spectrum of issues. This program would absolutely help them target to target their needs,” Bray said.

The bill has yet to be voted on, but that process should start soon.