The California Department of Public Health released its plan today on how it intends to use some $455 million in unspent federal funds that are supposed to go to pay to clean drinking water programs.
The agency was the subject of a highly critical report from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in April over the failure to spend the federal funds.
The Department of Public Health plans to distribute $84 million from that fund to local water agencies by the end of the week, and nearly $200 million in the next fiscal year.
The state says it has changed some of the program’s requirements, and will now fund planning, not just construction of water infrastructure projects. It will also provide more grant opportunities for disadvantaged communities.