Rep. Gillen secures more than $1 million in federal funding to upgrade Long Beach’s aging water treatment system

Long Beach, New York – More than $1 million in new federal funding is headed to the City of Long Beach to help replace aging equipment in its water treatment system, Congresswoman Laura Gillen announced.

Gillen said she secured $1,092,000 for the project through the Fiscal Year 2026 appropriations process. The money will be used to replace the city’s water supply sand filters, a key part of the system that has been operating since 1969.

The filters have served Long Beach for more than five decades and are now approaching the end of their useful lives. Their replacement is expected to help the city maintain the quality and reliability of its drinking water system.

The filtration tanks are an important part of the city’s broader water treatment process. They remove contaminants, including iron, from the public water supply. The system also produces filtered drinking water without relying on chemicals during the filtration process.

“I’m proud to have secured more than $1 million of new federal funding for clean drinking water infrastructure for Long Beach,” said Rep. Gillen. “The City of Long Beach relies on water filtration tanks that are nearing the end of their useful life and require replacement to ensure that public drinking water is safe and free from contamination. I’ll keep fighting to strengthen our infrastructure and deliver results for Long Island residents.”

For residents, the condition of the water system has become a matter of growing concern. Megan McNamara, a longtime Long Beach resident, said she has noticed changes in water quality over the years and believes additional improvements are needed.

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“The water quality has declined as I’ve grown up here and we need extra filters for our sinks and showers as well as bottled water options for drinking right now, not to mention stress on people’s water heaters and other appliances,” said Megan McNamara, long-time Long Beach resident. “The funding secured by Rep. Gillen for this project will be great for Long Beach.”

The federal award is part of a larger effort by Gillen to bring federal resources back to New York’s Fourth Congressional District. During the Fiscal Year 2026 appropriations process, she secured more than $13 million in Community Project Funding for projects across the district.

The Long Beach water project also received bipartisan support. Gillen worked across the aisle to build backing for the funding, which was supported by several local and state leaders.

Among those supporting the project were State Sen. Patricia Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, Assemblyman Ari Brown, Nassau County Legislator Patrick Mullaney and the Long Beach Chamber of Commerce.

The investment comes as communities across the country continue to face the challenge of replacing aging water infrastructure. In Long Beach, the sand filtration equipment has been in operation since the late 1960s, making the federal funding particularly significant for the city’s long-term water system.

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Replacing the aging filters will give Long Beach an opportunity to modernize an essential part of its drinking water infrastructure while addressing equipment that has been in service for generations.

City officials and residents will now look toward the next steps for the project as the federal funding moves forward. For Gillen, the investment represents both an infrastructure upgrade and an effort to protect access to reliable, clean drinking water for residents of Long Beach.

The congresswoman said she plans to continue pursuing federal funding for infrastructure projects throughout Long Island, with clean water and other basic public services remaining among the priorities she wants to address.