Clean Water Current

(October 14, 2020) – In the past week, two widely read and respected media outlets with a focus on Washington, DC policymaking ran in-depth stories on two critical clean water issues.

On October 8, Congressional Quarterly, or CQ, ran a well-researched article on EPA’s recently revised Water Financial Capability Assessment (FCA) document. This proposed revision to the water FCA formula was a decades-long project undertaken by NACWA, its members, and its water sector partners.  

NACWA was successfully able to tell this story in its entirety to CQ with added help from NACWA members the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District and DC Water, who provided first-hand accounts of how this revision would impact clean water utilities. The process of pitching, reporting, and ultimately publishing this story was a lesson in teamwork between NACWA staff and member utilities’ communications departments.

On October 13, Energy and Environment News (E&E) ran a similarly in-depth and well-researched article on the ongoing Water Resource Development Act (WRDA) process. Another cornerstone of NACWA’s advocacy efforts, this story featured NACWA’s list of requests to the relevant committees of jurisdiction for the next WRDA package. Several NACWA staff provided statements about the process and this reporting will help influence Capitol Hill as legislative staff continue to negotiate a final deal.

For any questions or concerns regarding NACWA’s media presence, please contact NACWA’s Manager of Media and Communications, David Zielonka.