Norton Files Amendment to the Fixing Emergency Management for Americans Act Requiring FEMA to Submit a Plan to Supply Emergency Drinking Water for D.C.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) filed an amendment to the FEMA Act of 2025 (H.R. 4669), which is being marked up today by the House Transportation and Infrastructure (T&I) Committee.

Norton’s amendment would direct the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to submit a plan to Congress to supply emergency drinking water to the National Capital Region (NCR) in the event the Potomac River becomes unusable as a source of drinking water. 

“The Potomac River is the only source of drinking water for the District of Columbia. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which supplies the drinking water for D.C., says it has only one day of backup water supply to use in the event of an emergency,” Norton said. “This is an existential threat to not only the District, but to some of our friends and neighbors in Northern Virginia. Most major metropolitan areas have a second source of drinking water, ours does not. It is imperative that FEMA develops a strategic plan to provide drinking water to the NCR should our single source be compromised.”

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