MADISON, Wis. —Following months of negotiation and collaboration, Rep. Stroud has helped secure an agreement between Superior Water, Light & Power (SWL&P) and the City of Superior that will allow customer-side lead service lines to be replaced at no cost to homeowners. The agreement was signed by both the president of SWL&P and the mayor of Superior and was unanimously approved by the Superior City Council last night. With support from Rep. Stroud and Mayor Jim Paine, Governor Tony Evers signed SB 56 (AB 59) into law earlier today.
The agreement allows SWL&P to access federal Safe Drinking Water Loan Program (SDWLP) funds. Under the terms, the City of Superior will oversee the bidding process and cover the 25 percent of project costs that are not forgiven by the federal program. The remaining 75 percent will be covered by federal funds, meaning the over 800 residents who need customer-side lead line replacements will have them completed at no cost, a highlight of the agreement for Stroud: “I’m very happy that we’re saving customers who need their pipes replaced an average of $2,500 each.”
Stroud cited significant local resistance to the legislation as it was originally introduced as one of the issues that had to be addressed for the Governor to be willing to sign the bill into law. She said that without the support of local officials and without controlling costs for residents, the bill was likely headed for a veto. “The Governor agreed with our position that without a good deal for the residents of the Superior, this bill was not good enough.” The agreement that she brokered between the city and the company brought down costs for residents and hinged on a compromise position that local officials could support. “We’re here today after months of hard work, extensive research, countless conversations, and a lot of cooperation and trust between the city and the utility. I’ve spent the better part of this year focused on this issue because I knew it was critical to get it right.”
“I want to thank Mayor Jim Paine and SWL&P President Rob Sandstrom for negotiating in good faith and putting the community first. Their partnership, alongside the support of local officials and residents, made this agreement possible. This is what collaborative, community-driven problem solving looks like, and I could not be more grateful for everyone’s commitment to seeing this deal through.”
“This is a big win for public health, for public trust, and for the people of Superior.”
