On Oct. 23, 2018, America's Water Infrastructure Act (AWIA) was signed into law. AWIA Section 2013 requires that community water systems serving more than 3,300 people develop or update:

1. A risk and resilience assessment will assess the water system's risk and resilience to malevolent acts and natural hazards. Risk to critical infrastructure, including water systems, is a function of threat likelihood, vulnerability, and consequence. Resilience is the capability of a water system to maintain operations or recover when a malevolent act or a natural hazard occurs.
2. An emergency response plan incorporates the findings of the water system’s risk and resilience assessment and describes strategies, resources, plans and procedures utilities can use to prepare for and respond to an incident, natural or man-made, that threatens life, property or the environment. 

The law specifies the components that the risk assessments and emergency response plans must address and establishes deadlines by which water systems must certify completion to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Risk Assessments and Recertification

The EPA required water systems to conduct risk assessments no later than July 2021. Additionally, they were required to develop or update their emergency response plan no later than six months after their risk and resilience assessment certification.

Moving forward, utilities must review the risk and resilience assessment every five years and submit a recertification to the EPA that the assessment has been reviewed and, if necessary, revised.

Within six months of submitting the recertification for the risk and resilience assessment, utilities must certify that they have reviewed and, if necessary, revised, the emergency response plan.