WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, announced that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, through the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund, awarded $242,864,000 to the state of Ohio to help upgrade aging water infrastructure, including lead pipes, and address emerging contaminants to provide safe drinking water to communities throughout Ohio.

This investment in clean drinking water infrastructure will be made available through the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency and was allocated as part of the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, also known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which Brown helped to write and pass.

“Families shouldn’t have to worry about whether or not the water coming out of the faucet is safe for their children to drink,” Brown said. “Because of the investments we made in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, Ohio communities will be able to replace old pipes, using American-made materials and installed by American workers, and will ensure that these investments reach even more Ohioans.”

In February, Brown announced that the USEPA awarded $46,488,000 to communities across Ohio to address emerging contaminants, like per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in drinking water. 

This investment was also made possible through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. In March, Brown also introduced the Financing Lead Out of Water (FLOW) Act, which would reduce the potential for Americans to be exposed to lead in their drinking water by making it easier for cities and utilities to issue bonds to finance old water pipe replacement projects.