In January, the Washington, D.C., area experienced one of the worst sewage spills in U.S. history, as a pipe failure sent more than 200 million gallons of raw sewage into the Potomac River. But this isn’t just a one-off incident — the Potomac spill is the tip of the iceberg of our nation’s water infrastructure crisis. And the crisis will only worsen if Congress fails to resist Trump’s dangerous cuts. 

This environmental disaster is a warning for lawmakers about the urgency of safeguarding the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), federal funding, and environmental protections from Trump’s attacks. 

Everyone needs clean water, and voters care about clean water. For example, our latest polling from Iowa shows that four out of five voters there want representatives who prioritize clean water. In key swing Congressional districts, that margin is even higher. 

The Potomac Spill emphasizes what we’ve long known: Congress must take action to defend clean water protections and funding from Trump’s dirty water agenda.

Trump Lies About the Potomac Spill for Political Points

Clean water should be a nonpartisan issue, but Trump is not above weaponizing it for his own political gain. The pipe collapsed on federal land owned by the National Park Service; it’s owned and maintained by the utility DC Water, an independent authority of Washington, D.C.; and it’s regulated by the federal EPA. Yet, that didn’t stop Trump from immediately blaming the spill on a political foe. 

After raising concerns that the sewage spill would stink up his events in D.C. this summer, Trump pointed the finger at Maryland Democratic Governor Wes Moore. To be clear, Maryland does not regulate DC Water, and it does not own the land where the spill occurred — the federal government does.

So far, DC Water has largely contained the spill and continues to work on a permanent repair. And while officials don’t yet know what exactly caused the spill, what is clear is that this disaster was avoidable.

The federal government recognized the danger years ago. In 2022, the National Park Service wrote a plan to address the issue, highlighting the risk of a sewage spill. DC Water was even scheduled to begin updating the segment of pipe that collapsed later this summer. 

The public deserves a real investigation into why repairs were scheduled too late to prevent the spill. And the Potomac needs a larger, longer-term restoration plan. 

The Potomac Spill Emphasizes the Need for Clean Water Funding 

Federal officials shouldn’t wait until sewage contaminates their own backyard before taking action. They can’t just react after this type of disaster occurs. 

Our wastewater systems need at least $630 billion over the next two decades to prevent spills and protect public and environmental health. These costs are skyrocketing, as climate change increases the frequency and intensity of storms that overload aging, outdated systems. 

However, federal support has fallen 77% since the late 1970s. Federal funding for wastewater systems peaked 50 years ago. While the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law provided a boost, that money runs out this year. The cost of inaction is even higher — to our health and our environment. 

The federal government must support proactive upgrades to the nation’s aging water and sewer systems to prevent future disasters. But that can’t happen when Trump is gutting the EPA and erasing key pieces of our basic environmental protection laws. 

Trump’s Policies Will Drive More Sewage Spills 

And this gets at the frightening reality behind Trump’s deceptions. While he tries to blame his opponents for the Potomac spill, his own administration is creating the circumstances that will allow more sewage spills to occur.  

The Trump administration is weakening major environmental laws and removing pollution protections for millions of acres of small streams and wetlands.

Meanwhile, as Trump eliminates federal regulations on climate pollution, our new climate reality is already here. Climate change is fueling extreme storms that are overwhelming outdated sewer systems and causing sewage spills. 

Trump is also seeking to dismantle our main federal environmental regulator, the EPA. By the end of 2025, Trump slashed 3,200 EPA jobs. That’s almost 1 in 5 (18%) of all EPA workers. Such a dramatic gutting of the agency will only curtail its capacity to respond to and prevent environmental disasters. 

Trump has sought even deeper cuts. Last year, he proposed a budget that would cut the EPA by more than half — by 54%. Fortunately, in January, Congress rejected most of his cuts. It passed a spending bill that cut the EPA by 4% for fiscal year 2026. Unfortunately, this legislation did not undo the EPA layoffs. 

And perhaps most tellingly of all, Trump’s own budget proposed to take a hatchet to the main federal program that helps prevent sewage spills. It sought a nearly 90% cut to the main source of federal funding for wastewater systems (called the Clean Water State Revolving Fund) with the goal of eliminating the program outright. 

Congress Needs to Fund the Fight Against Sewage Spills 

Fortunately, Congress rejected these extreme cuts, keeping support for wastewater systems level this year. But the fight for clean water is far from over. Trump has stood by his dirty water agenda and all its threats to our public health. Congress members must safeguard our water from further attacks. 

They can take the first step by cosponsoring the WATER Act. This legislation would create a permanent pool of funding to shield our water and sewer systems from the whims of this reckless and dangerous administration. 

The major sewage spill in the Potomac is a call to action for all of us. Congress must protect and restore federal funding to prevent another environmental disaster and defend our clean water. Voters demand nothing less.