Congress and the White House can’t agree on an infrastructure package — but for water, big cities are not waiting, says new report

Circle of Blue Annual Price of Water Survey

In the third year of the Trump administration, Congress and the White House have repeatedly discussed a multi-trillion dollar investment in the country’s roads, dams, levees, telecommunication networks, power grids, drinking water pipes, and sewage treatment plants.

Neither side has agreed on such a plan, and a deal seems out of reach. For drinking water infrastructure, Congress has preferred instead to fortify existing loan funds and grant programs. The country’s metropolitan centers, by and large, are taking advantage of those incremental measures and forging ahead on their own.

"We’re always optimistic for additional funding from Congress. But in the meantime, we have to provide for our customers here and now." - Kathryn Sorensen, director of the Phoenix Water Services Department

Circle of Blue’s water pricing annual report, published today, is a widely cited examination of financial trends that affect water bills for tens of millions of U.S. households. The strength of this report is its annual accounting of the change in prices for three scenarios in which monthly water use remains constant. It is useful for identifying financial and pricing trends that influence the water bills of tens of millions of American residents. The revenue generated from those rate increases is being put to work to prepare urban water systems for 21st century challenges.

Key Findings:

• Though the rate of increase has slowed, the rising price of water continues to raise questions about affordability for households at the bottom of the income distribution, including Detroit and Chicago, where Mayor Lori Lightfoot said she would prohibit the water department from shutting off water service to households that are late paying their bills.
• The highest price increases were clustered in Arizona and California, states in which vulnerability to drought, climate change, and other natural hazards is poised to constrain water supplies. These cities include Fresno, San Jose, Phoenix, and San Francisco.
• Data on water pricing is presented through an interactive dashboard powered by Qlik, the real-time data integration and analytics firm.

Read the full report on U.S. water pricing here.