Alex Padilla U.S. Senator for California

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senators Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), and Cory Booker (D-N.J.), along with Representatives Juan Vargas (D-Calif.-52) and Scott Peters (D-Calif.-50), introduced bicameral legislation to help combat the ongoing Tijuana River sewage pollution crisis across the U.S.-Mexico border.

The Border Water Quality Restoration and Protection Act of 2025 would designate the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as the lead agency to coordinate all federal, state, Tribal, and local agencies to build and maintain critical infrastructure projects to address long-standing, systemic water infrastructure and pollution issues in the Tijuana River and New River watersheds. The bill would create a new Geographic Program within EPA to manage each watershed through a comprehensive water quality management plan. These provisions and other key components of the bill follow the findings and recommendations of the Government Accountability Office’s February 2020 Report, “International Boundary and Water Commission: Opportunities Exist to Address Water Quality Problems.” The bill also directs EPA to consider projects based on new research examining how wastewater pollutants get into the air, harming air quality and public health.

“Raw sewage and toxic waste from the Tijuana River are still shutting down public beaches, threatening the health of our families, and jeopardizing the readiness of our military and border personnel,” said Senator Padilla. “By assigning the Environmental Protection Agency with the clear role of coordinating with federal, state, local, and tribal leaders to maintain the health of the watershed, we’re bringing the full weight and commitment of the federal government to address the Tijuana River pollution crisis.”

“The Tijuana River pollution crisis is one of the worst ongoing ecological crises in this country, posing serious environmental and public health risks to Californians living and working near the U.S.-Mexico border and nearby beaches. We must work quickly on a resolution, and this bill would provide clear direction and authority to EPA to work with state and local partners on a plan to give this crisis the focused attention it demands,” said Senator Schiff.

“For too long, communities along both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border have suffered the consequences of untreated sewage and toxic waste flowing into the Tijuana River,” said Senator Booker. “What I observed during my visit to Imperial Beach in May was unacceptable. This public health crisis, with growing economic and environmental impacts, would never be tolerated in Malibu or Mar-a-Lago and it shouldn’t be tolerated here. This bicameral legislation will ensure the EPA leads a comprehensive effort in coordination with local, state, and federal officials to clean up the Tijuana River and New River watersheds, and finally deliver clean air and water to the San Diego community.”

“This horrible pollution has harmed the health of our communities, our local businesses, and our environment,” said Representative Vargas. “It’s absolutely critical that we have a streamlined response from the federal government. But right now, there is no one agency in charge of addressing the pollution. There are too many cooks in the kitchen. Our legislation would finally change that and charge the EPA with coordinating the whole-of-government effort needed to combat this pollution.”

“This is an environmental crisis, a public health crisis, and an economic crisis for San Diegans. The federal government should treat it as such,” said Representative Peters. “Our legislation institutes a whole-of-government approach for resolving this disaster. This is the same type of program you see in the San Francisco Bay, Chesapeake Bay, and Great Lakes; San Diego is no less deserving.”

Since 2018, more than 200 billion gallons of toxic sewage, trash, and unmanaged stormwater have flowed across the United States-Mexico border into the Tijuana River Valley and neighboring communities, forcing long-lasting beach closures and causing harmful impacts on public health, the environment, and water quality. U.S. military personnel, border patrol agents, and the local economy have also suffered harmful impacts from airborne and waterborne transboundary sewage flows. In 2023, sewage flowed across the border at the highest volume in a quarter century, exceeding 44 billion gallons.

The Tijuana River pollution crisis has disproportionately harmed underserved communities along San Diego’s southern border for decades. U.S. military personnel, border patrol agents, and the local environment and economy have also suffered harmful impacts from waterborne and airborne transboundary sewage flows.

To address these long-standing issues, the Border Water Quality Restoration and Protection Act of 2025 would:

• Direct EPA, in coordination with relevant federal, state, Tribal, and local governments, to implement a comprehensive water quality management program for the Tijuana River and New River watersheds within 180 days;

• Require EPA and its partners to identify a consensus list of priority projects, including incorporating a comprehensive suite of water quality projects identified by EPA and IBWC in the 2022 United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement implementation plan, as well as the construction and operations and maintenance costs associated with them;

• Provide transfer authority to EPA to accept and distribute funds to federal, state, Tribal, and local partners to construct, operate, and maintain the identified priority projects;

• Provide technical assistance for restoration and protection activities to federal, state, Tribal, and local stakeholders;

• Codify the U.S.-Mexico Border Water Infrastructure Program (BWIP) to fund water infrastructure projects that benefit U.S. communities;

• Require the IBWC Commissioner to participate in the construction of projects identified in the Tijuana and New River comprehensive plans; and

• Authorize the IBWC to address stormwater quality and accept funding made available by the bill.

EPA currently administers 12 Geographic Programs that help protect local ecosystems through water quality improvement, ecosystem and habitat restoration, environmental education, and local capacity building. Establishing such a program for the Tijuana River and New River is important for the long-term improvement and monitoring of the watersheds during and after the expansion of the South Bay International Wastewater Treatment Plant (SBIWTP).

Representatives Sara Jacobs (D-Calif.-51), Mike Levin (D-Calif.-49), and Raul Ruiz (D-Calif.-25) are cosponsoring the bill in the House of Representatives.

The legislation is endorsed by the City of San Diego, City of Coronado, County of Imperial, Imperial Beach Mayor Paloma Aguirre, Rural Community Assistance Corporation, SANDAG, San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, and Surfrider.

Senator Padilla has prioritized addressing the Tijuana River pollution crisis since he first came to the Senate, working with the San Diego Congressional delegation to secure $250 million in the federal disaster relief package last year to clean up the Tijuana River. This marked the final tranche of funding required to complete the SBIWTP upgrade project. The SBIWTP project broke ground in October 2024, and over the coming years, the SBIWTP will double in capacity, reducing transboundary flows by 90 percent. Crucially, Mexico’s rehabilitated San Antonio de los Buenos wastewater treatment plant is now operational, which will help further reduce flows to California communities.

In response to a request from Padilla and the San Diego Congressional delegation, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently opened an investigation into the public health impacts of air pollution caused by the ongoing Tijuana River transboundary pollution crisis. Senator Padilla and the delegation also secured a $200 million authorization for the Tijuana River Valley Watershed and San Diego County through the Water Resources Development Act of 2024 to help address the ongoing transboundary sewage crisis through stormwater conveyance, environmental and ecosystem restoration, and water quality protection projects. They also delivered over $103 million in additional funding for the International Boundary and Water Commission (IBWC) in the bipartisan FY 2024 appropriations package. Padilla previously successfully secured language in the FY 2023 appropriations package to allow the EPA to unlock $300 million previously secured in the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement to the IBWC for water infrastructure projects.

A one-pager on the bill is available here.

Full text of the bill is available here.

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