The BlueGreen Alliance joined more than 150 undersigned water associations, environmental, low-income, other public interest advocates, and labor unions to urge Congress to provide FY24 funding for the Department of Health and Human Services’ Low Income Household Water Assistance Program (LIHWAP). Without action to continue this critical program, hundreds of thousands of low-income households could lose access to essential water service.

Today, the cost of basic water service poses a challenge to many low-income households, particularly for those in vulnerable communities. The largest national water rate survey found that between 1996 and 2018, water and sewer charges increased about 2.5 times as fast as inflation; another study concluded that household water and sewer bills more than doubled between 2000 and 2016, while household incomes idled. And a national poll earlier this year found that 36% of respondents struggle to pay their water bill on time.

Water bills are expected to continue to rise as communities make billions of dollars in needed water infrastructure investments to protect public health, comply with state and federal water quality standards, and
ensure water supply reliability.

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