By Rachael Olson Water utilities are rightly concerned about managing their business through the course of winter 2021 and into the hot summer months. This is especially true as the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic keep some of their customers’ finances suspended, just as many consumer prices continue to rise,Read More

Last week at an address to water associations, utilities and their workers as part of Water Week, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Michael S. Regan announced the 2021 notice of funding availability under the agency’s Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) program and state infrastructure financing authority WIFIARead More

Organizers of the 2021 Water Finance Conference are looking for speakers for its seventh annual event to be held virtually, August 10, 12 17 & 19. Please email your 200-word abstract to Andrew Farr by May 21. The Water Finance Conference convenes executive-level utility professionals, including directors, superintendents, CEOs, CFOs and financeRead More

By Scott Haskins Over the last several years, 22 water utilities and more than 100 utility participants have been engaged in a major collaboration to improve utility capabilities and performance. As part of the Water Research Foundation (WRF) project, entitled Utility Analysis and Improvement Methodology (UAIM), the scope has includedRead More

Managing Finances & Cost of Service By JP Joly 1. Every water and sewer utility needs a financial plan. Every water and sewer utility are unique with their operational costs, maintenance routines, timing of repairs and prioritization of asset replacements. 2. Remote work and access to financial planning are hereRead More

The American Water Works Association (AWWA) has announced the availability of a new document entitled “Improving the Evaluation of Household-Level Affordability in SDWA Rulemaking: New Approaches,” to help facilitate discussion of U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) analysis of household-level affordability when making regulatory decisions. AWWA convened a panel of experts ledRead More

& How Economically Distressed Communities Are Impacted By Andy Kricun Economically distressed communities face many challenges, especially — and most obviously — the challenges of lack of funding and lack of resources. In addition, their funding and resource deficits can also lead to an additional challenge – being unable toRead More

The Water Finance Conference is again shifting to a virtual format for 2021. The seventh annual event, which exclusively covers financing in the U.S. water utility sector, was originally scheduled for Aug. 18-19 in Washington, D.C. With lockdowns and restrictions beginning to ease, conference organizers had been hoping to returnRead More

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Michael S. Regan has announced a $156 million Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) loan to the District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority (DC Water). The loan will help finance water infrastructure improvements throughout the city, including new water mains to improveRead More

By John Ryan In its 2020 annual report, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) loan program describes itself as a “government bank with unique flexibilities.” Can those flexibilities be useful for Clean and Drinking Water State Revolving Funds (SRFs) considering leverage to expand theirRead More