Washington, D.C. – Over the weekend, House Republicans released a budget for the remainder of Fiscal Year 2025 (FY25) that would reduce the International Boundary and Water Commission’s (IBWC) construction funding from $156 million to $78 million (see page 73). The IBWC operates the South Bay International Wastewater Treatment Plant (SBIWTP), which is responsible for treating raw sewage and pollutants that flow into San Diego from Mexico. The plant is undergoing major repairs and expansion funded by $650 million Representative Peters and the San Diego Congressional Delegation secured through the United States-Mexico-Canada trade agreement and congressionally approved emergency funding bills. While the $650 million is not at risk, this budget would cut in half annual funds for operations, maintenance, and future construction projects at SBIWTP and other IBWC-maintained infrastructure across the border.

“Years of underfunding got us to the point that our wastewater treatment plant was dilapidated, allowing sewage to flow through our communities and onto our beaches unabated,” said Rep. Peters. “Deferring those smaller annual upkeep costs meant we needed to spend a lot more money later on to fix all the damage that was done, not to mention the harm to community health, our local economy, and our national security. I will not vote for legislation that will put us back in this position again or delay the necessary work to fix the problem.”

Further Background:

Representative Peters has, for years, worked to address the cross-border pollution fouling San Diego’s coastal waters, including pushing for additional funding to fix and expand the dilapidated SBIWTP. The following are some recent actions:

2025

1. Last week, Rep. Peters introduced legislation to authorize the International Boundary and Water Commission (IBWC) to accept funding from federal and non-federal entities for wastewater treatment, flood control projects, or other water conservation efforts.

2024

1. In January, Rep. Peters took to the House floor to demand that the President’s requested $310 million to fix and expand the dilapidated SBIWTP be included in any upcoming spending deal.
2. In February, Rep. Peters joined members of San Diego’s Congressional delegation to ask U.S. Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro about the effects of cross-border pollution on Navy operations.
3. In March, Rep. Peters celebrated the inclusion of $156 million, at his request, for the International Boundary and Water Commission’s (IBWC) construction budget in the Fiscal Year 2024 Appropriations bill. The IBWC is the federal agency tasked with operating and maintaining the SBIWTP.
4. In May, Rep. Peters joined Rep. Veronica Escobar (TX-16) in a bipartisan request for $278 million for the IBWC’s construction budget in the Fiscal Year 2025 Appropriations bill.
5. In August, Rep. Peters hosted Deputy Secretary of State Richard Verma on a tour of the broken wastewater treatment plant.
6. In September, Rep. Peters joined members of San Diego’s Congressional delegation to reiterate their call for a federal state of emergency declaration amid high levels of toxic gases.
7. In December, Rep. Peters and the Congressional delegation successfully fought to include an additional $250 million to fully repair and expand the capacity of the SBIWTP in the government funding bill. This brought the total amount of funds secured to $650 million.

2023

1. In June, Rep. Peters led a letter with other members of the San Diego Congressional delegation to the governor of Baja California urging accountability for the Mexican government’s commitments to build wastewater treatment infrastructure.
2. In July, members of the San Diego congressional delegation requested that the Environmental Protection Agency assist with directing environmental justice funds from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and the Inflation Reduction Act to help stop the flow of pollutants and urged Secretary of State Antony Blinken to tour the broken plant.
3. Also in July, they sent a letter to President Biden and submitted an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2024, calling on the administration to declare this crisis a federal emergency.
4. In August, he led two letters to the Office of Management and Budget and to OMB and the State Department, calling for urgent additional funding to confront this crisis. 
5. In September, he proposed an amendment to the Fiscal Year 2024 Interior, Environment, and Related Programs Appropriations Bill to boost U.S.- Mexico Border Water Infrastructure Grant Program funding. Additionally, he proposed two amendments to the Fiscal Year 2024 State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Appropriations Bill to boost annual construction funding to the USIBWC to $100 million.
6. In October, Rep. Peters led a bipartisan letter to the Department of State demanding a complete account of how the SBIWTP fell into such a severe state of disrepair.
7. In December, he led a letter urging leaders of the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate to include President Biden’s $310 million supplemental budget request to repair the SBIWTP in any upcoming funding package.

In previous years, Peters and colleagues have secured funding, introduced legislation, called for investigations, and arranged a visit by EPA Administrator Regan in response to the wastewater contamination crisis. 

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