US President Barack Obama speaks during an event with city mayors from around the country in the East Room of the White House January 21, 2016 in Washington, DC. / AFP / Brendan Smialowski (Photo credit should read BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama tells the nation’s mayors that the federal government is investing more money this year to help local governments improve their water systems, and about $80 million will go to Michigan.
The city of Flint in that state has generated national attention because of high levels of lead in the water supply. The city’s water source had been changed in a cost-cutting move and the water was not properly treated to keep lead from leaching into the supply.
Obama says children “should not have to be worried about the water that they’re drinking in American cities.”
Obama also says the federal government will spend about $1 billion to help cities deal with global warming.
Obama spoke to the mayors at the White House Thursday.
