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,VIIVIW Position Statement <br /> Improve Tax-Exempt Financing to <br /> Facilitate Infrastructure Development <br /> • Congress needs to do more to encourage and help power systems, and other key infrastructure. This <br /> fund investments in infrastructure. follows the $2.3 trillion in such tax-exempt bond <br /> financed investments made in the previous 10 <br /> • Tax-exempt bonds are an essential tool for years. Public power utilities alone are making $5 <br /> financing much needed public infrastructure billion a year in investments in their generation, <br /> maintenance, repair, and replacement. transmission, and distribution systems using tax- <br /> exempt bonds. <br /> • Congress needs to restore the authority for <br /> municipalities to use advance refunding of bonds Despite these massive investments, U.S. invest- <br /> to further the value of investments made in public ment in infrastructure is still lagging. Based on <br /> infrastructure. research conducted by the Minnesota Pollution <br /> Control Agency (MPCA), Minnesota Department <br /> • Congress should also revise 30-year old of Health, and the U.S. Environmental Protection <br /> private use rules, increase the $10 million small Agency, Minnesota's drinking water infrastructure <br /> issuer "bank-qualified"exception, and end the needs exceed $7 billion over the coming 20 years, <br /> sequestration of tax credit payments to Build and our wastewater infrastructure needs total <br /> America Bond issuers. nearly $5 billion over the same period. <br /> Background Federal lawmakers are considering new ways to <br /> Over the next decade, state and local governments encourage additional infrastructure investments. <br /> are on track to make more than $3 trillion in While Congress discusses such proposals, it should <br /> tax-exempt bond financed investments in roads, also focus on improving already powerful tools in <br /> bridges, water systems, schools, hospitals, public hand, including tax-exempt financing of public <br /> { <br /> The City of Willmar <br /> ' ! +,,;. wastewater treatment <br /> , �, plant(left)went into <br /> � ; n service in 2010. Cost <br /> '" - a _ moo of the facility was$86 <br /> fir_tmillion. In 2018,Willmar <br /> approved an$8.5 million <br /> -» � t j <br /> w <br /> � 7';41-161/4:illiwr".--"L"---- <br /> thecityect'stodrinkinbettergfilterwa , <br /> # ., -. as <br /> pro there wasn't a cost- <br /> ter <br /> R effective way remove <br /> '` certain eleme'nots in the <br /> rya' " �, _� �... „ � ,� mw011t <br /> ,. wastewater process. <br /> 2019 Federal Position Statements/4 <br /> 130 <br />