Our shared well-being depends on everyone having access to quality, affordable housing, healthcare, food, and water and sewer service. Yet growing income inequality in the United States puts more people at risk of being unable to afford these essentials. The COVID-19 pandemic is bringing the challenge of water affordability sharply into focus. Water utilities depend on rates for system revenues, and shutoffs are commonly used to enforce bill payment. In response to the pandemic, water utilities are proactively suspending shutoffs and restoring service to people. Other economic impacts are also reducing utility revenues, which may mean rate increases are necessary over time to meet the costs of providing service. That, in turn, will worsen the affordability problem.

During this public health emergency, there should be a national moratorium on shutoffs and restoration of water service to households that have lost access. State and federal assistance should be provided to families to help pay water bills and to water utilities to offset the economic losses associated with free or below-cost service provision during the crisis.  

In the longer term, there should be a commitment at every level of government to ensure access to a basic level of water and sewer service for all, regardless of income. While there are assistance programs for other utilities, such as the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (commonly known as LIHEAP), there is no equivalent for water. And, while water assistance programs can help, rate structures designed to ensure affordability are also needed. We must work together as a nation—with co-investment by water providers and local, state, and federal government—to ensure that everyone has safe and reliable water service.

Water utilities are anchor institutions in their communities, providing an essential public health service. Water and wastewater professionals are among the nation’s critical infrastructure workforce who remain on the job—potentially putting their health at risk—during this pandemic. Maintaining safe water for cleaning and handwashing and maintaining wastewater treatment to prevent disease spread are critical tools in the fight against COVID-19. As the nation continues to grapple with the increasingly devastating effects from COVID-19, water utilities are serving their customers, protecting public health, and safeguarding their workforce.

Simultaneously, water utilities are experiencing sudden drops in revenue as economic activity precipitously declines. Tourism and convention activities are canceled, sports arenas are closed, hotels and schools are empty, and restaurants and bars are deserted. In addition to dropping revenues, water utilities are also incurring new, additional costs to staff critical operations during the pandemic. While water utilities of all sizes are struggling, small water systems are likely to need extra support since they have fewer customers capable of paying their bills and fewer workers to rely on when others fall ill. Small water systems may fail entirely without emergency action.  

Any emergency relief and recovery dollars must include resources to keep water utilities strong and go directly to the agencies operating the water systems. Funding for affected water utilities is critical to help offset lost revenue, the costs associated with moratoriums on shutoffs, and the essential public health protections being put in place by water utilities through their emergency response. All utility personnel who are classified as essential workers should be eligible for state and federal emergency support and health protections. Grant or low-interest loan funding must be made available to help utility operations at a time when revenues are dropping dramatically. A portion of funds made available should be dedicated to water systems facing the greatest public health risk. Wherever possible, funding support for water utilities should come through established programs like the State Revolving Loan Funds, WIFIA, Community Development Block Grants, and USDA Rural Water programs.

COVID-19 has made it clear that there is no public health without clean water for all. If one person or community does not have clean water, the health and well-being of everyone else is at risk. Curbing COVID-19’s spread requires people to increase handwashing, personal hygiene, and cleaning standards. But for the more than two million Americans who lack running water, indoor plumbing, or wastewater services in their homes and communities, these seemingly simple measures are out of reach. Many of those without access to water infrastructure live in rural and tribal areas, or are part of high-risk groups for COVID-19 including the elderly, disabled, homebound, people with preexisting conditions, and the homeless.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency and the US Army Corps of Engineers should partner to close the water access gap using existing natural disaster response protocols, prioritizing disadvantaged communities where local capacity may be limited. These agencies should also partner with states and municipalities to provide water deliveries and set up hand-washing stations for people without water immediately. These emergency measures should be supplemented with longer-term solutions to close the water access gap.

To weather this global pandemic, we need immediate and sustained intervention to protect people’s health and well-being. But we must also begin planning for an economic recovery that leaves our communities and economy stronger and more resilient. If water infrastructure fails, it creates a domino effect across the economy and threatens our environment and public health. One-fifth of the US economy—agriculture, healthcare, manufacturing, and electricity—would grind to a halt without a reliable and clean supply of water. Yet, we have chronically underinvested in water for too long. As a result, a water main breaks every two minutes in the United States. The American Society of Civil Engineers estimates the country must spend at least $1.2 trillion over the next 20 years on our drinking water and wastewater systems.

One of the smartest ways to jumpstart economic recovery is investing in our nation’s water and wastewater infrastructure. Closing the water infrastructure investment gap would create more than 1.5 million American jobs, more than the entire employed workforce in 20 states. It would generate over $260 billion in economic activity annually, which exceeds the gross domestic product generated by 28 states. Major investment in water systems is a smart and sustainable way to bring our economy back and build up communities so they can all thrive.

Agua Sana Wua
Albuquerque Bernalillo County Water Utility Authority
Alexandria Renew Enterprises
Alliance for the Great Lakes
Alliance for Water Efficiency
Alliance of Indiana Rural Water
American Public Health Association
American Public Works Association
American Rainwater Catchment Systems Association
American Rivers
American Society of Civil Engineers
American Society of Plumbing Engineers
American Water
American Water Chemicals
American Water Resources Association
American Water Works Association
Aspen Institute Energy and Environment Program
Association for Farmers Rights Defense
Association of Boards of Certification
Association of Idaho Cities
Association of Metropolitan Water Agencies
Atlanta Department of Watershed Management
Atlantic County Utilities Authority
Audubon California
Bay Area Council
Black & Veatch
Black Hills Clean Water Alliance
blueW
Boston Water and Sewer Commission
Brown and Caldwell
Buckman Direct Diversion Water Treatment Facility
Buffalo Sewer Authority
Cadiz Inc.
California Association of Sanitation Agencies
California Coastkeeper Alliance
California Institute of Environmental Design & Management (CIEDM)
California League of Conservation Voters
California Municipal Utilities Association
Carollo Engineers
Cascade Water Alliance
Center for Community Progress
Center for Neighborhood Technology
Ceres
Chamita Mutual Domestic Water Consumer's Association
Charles Stewart Mott Foundation
Chattahoochee Riverkeeper
Chemtex Environmental Laboratory Inc.
Cimino Backflow Testing & Inspection
City of Des Moines
City of Roseville
City of Sacramento
City of Santa Cruz Water Department
City of Santa Fe Water System
Clean Water Action/Clean Water Fund
Clean Water Services
Cleveland Neighborhood Progress
Cleveland Water Alliance
Common-Unity PGH
Community Foundation for Greater Buffalo
Community Water Center
Congressional Black Caucus Foundation
Contra Costa Water District
Cooper's Ferry Partnership
Cotton Research Institute
The Conservation Fund
Cream City Conservation
Creative New Jersey
Crescent Heights Water Supply Corporation
Current
Cynthia & George Mitchell Foundation
DayZero Products Co.
DC Water
Denver Water
The Dew Water Corporation
DigDeep
Dream In Green
Drink Local Drink Tap
Duke University, Nicholas School for the Environment
Earth Economics
Eco-Engineering International, Inc.
EcoWorks
Elevate Energy
EJ Water Cooperative, Inc.
EMA, Inc.
Engineers Without Borders USA
Environmental Community Action (ECO-Action)
Environmental Defense Fund
Environmental Policy Innovation Center
Environmental Resolutions, Inc.
EPCOR USA
Evoqua
Faiths for Safe Water
FLOW (For Love of Water)
Freshwater Future
GA Industries
Garney Construction
Geosearch Limited
Global Water Alliance
GlobeWater & Solar
Global Water 2020
Greater Cincinnati Water Works
Greater Edwards Aquifer Alliance
Greeley and Hansen
Green Infrastructure Leadership Exchange
Green Water-Infrastructure Academy
Greenbelt Alliance
Greenprint Partners
Greer Commission of Public Works
GRW Engineers, Inc.
Gulf Coast Center for Law & Policy
Hampton Roads Sanitation District
Harris & Associates
Harris County Utility District 15
Hazen and Sawyer
Houston Water
Illinois Environmental Council
Innovyze
INTERA
The International Association of Plumbing and Mechanical Officials (IAPMO Group)
International Union of Painters & Allied Trades
Isle Utilities
Jacobs
Jersey Water Works
KC Water
Kiewit Water
Laborers' International Union of North America
Lancaster Area Sewer Authority
Leadership Counsel for Justice and Accountability
Louisville Water
Louisville/Jefferson County Metropolitan Sewer District
Madison Metropolitan Sewerage District
Madison Water Utility
Maine Water Utilities Association
Metropolitan Council
Metropolitan Planning Council
Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago
Mi Familia Vota
Michigan Environmental Council
Michigan League of Conservation Voters
Michigan Welfare Rights Organization
Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District
Milwaukee Water Commons
Milwaukee Water Works
Moonshot Missions
Monte Vista Water District
Mount Laurel Municipal Utilities Authority
Mount Pleasant Waterworks
National Association of Clean Water Agencies
National Black Worker Centers Project
National Rural Water Association
National Wildlife Federation
Natural Resources Defense Council
Nevada Department of Environmental Protection (NDEP)
New England Water Environment Association (NEWEA)
New Jersey Future
NEW Water
New York State Backflow Testers Association
Nia Solutions
Northeast Biosolids & Residuals Association
Northeast-Midwest Institute
Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District
ONG ASSAUVET
Oregon Citizens' Utility Board
Oregon Environmental Council
Oregon Freshwater
Pacific Institute
Palouse Basin Water Summit, Inc.
Partnership for Southern Equity
PCAIRO Management Consulting LLC
Philadelphia Water Department
Phoenix Water
Pittsburgh Water and Sewer Authority
Plumbing Manufacturers International
PolicyLink
PRR
PUSH Buffalo
Raleigh Water
Raybern Utility Solutions
Regional Water Authority
Recode
Regional Water Authority
River Network
Robert Redford Conservancy for Southern California Sustainability at Pitzer College
Rural Community Assistance Partnership
S. D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation
San Francisco Public Utilities Commission
San Jerardo Cooperative, Inc.
Scott Miller Strategies
Scotts Valley Water District
Seattle Public Utilities
Separation Processes, Inc.
Sewerage and Water Board of New Orleans
Signal Group
Sisters of Mercy of the Americas Justice Team
Slavic Village Development
Smart Growth America
Southeast Rural Community Assistance Partnership
Southwest Environmental Finance Center
Stantec
Superior Water Management of Texas
Sustainable Business Network of Greater Philadelphia
Sustainable Conservation
Sustainable Silicon Valley
Sustainable Synthesis Limited, PBC
Svanda & Coy Consulting
Swiftwater Solutions, LLC
Tetra Tech
Texas Rural Water Association
Texas Water Infrastructure Network (TXWIN)
Training Research Education for Empowerment (TREE)
Tucson Water
Union of Concerned Scientists
United for Infrastructure
United Methodist Committee on Relief
The University of Pittsburgh, School of Public Health, Center for Health Equity
University of Wollongong
UrbanKind Institute
Urban Water Works
US Water Alliance
U.S. Water Partnership
Valley Water
Value of Water Campaign
Vermont Rural Water Association
Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission (WSSC Water)
Water Design-Build Council
Water and Wastewater Equipment Manufacturers Association
Water Environment Federation
Water For People
Water Foundation
Water Hub
WaterNow Alliance
Water Systems Consulting, Inc.
Water Pigeon
The Water Research Foundation
Water.Org
West Atlanta Watershed Alliance
West Big Data Innovation Hub
We the People of Detroit
Willamette Partnership
Woodard & Curran
Xylem
York Sewer District
Zephyr Mangata

To learn more about these guiding principles, share ideas, or ask questions, please contact the US Water Alliance: info@uswateralliance.org. Endorse these principles by adding your information below.

List updated 12:00 PM ET May 18, 2020