Affordable Water is
a Human Right
Join the movement!
Sign-up today to receive occasional updates, including ways to take action for affordable water for all.
Access to safe and affordable water is a basic human right. Low-income communities and communities of color lack access at higher rates. Special thanks to Irlanda, Jose & Becky for speaking on behalf of the communities that we work with & PolicyLink for uplifting these voices.
FOR FAR TOO MANY CALIFORNIANS, AFFORDABLE WATER IS OUT OF REACH.
As water rates continue to rise faster than inflation due to replacing aging infrastructure, new treatment standards, and supply challenges, low-income families are increasingly unable to afford their water bills. An estimated 500,000 Californians lost drinking water access in 2019 because of water shutoffs due to failure to pay their water bills. Many more could be facing this same reality now that the COVID-19 shut-off moratorium has expired and we have not addressed the underlying affordability issue. We can’t rely on emergency fixes to our long-standing water affordability problem. We need proactive assistance for water bills now!
LOW-INCOME ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS ARE ALREADY IN PLACE FOR OTHER UTILITIES.
The water sector has long lacked a universal affordability program for low-income households. Plus, water rates consistently outpace inflation, as demonstrated by families paying 45% more per month for drinking water service in 2015 than in 2007 (State Water Board AB 401 Report). Given these dual crushing realities on families, we must quickly address this severe gap in our safety social net. A lack of water access is proven to have devastating health impacts, …. Additionally, we already have existing equivalent affordability programs for other utilities, such as gas and electricity, food, and even phone bills. Water is essential in life, not a luxury good. We should extend the proven model of utility affordability programs to water.
ACCESS TO AFFORDABLE SAFE DRINKING WATER IS A RACIAL JUSTICE AND EQUITY ISSUE.
Every Californian should have access to affordable safe drinking water, in fact, it has been California law for the last 10 years. Yet, studies consistently show that systems that serve low-income families and Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) communities are most likely to fail in providing affordable and safe water. We cannot address racial and economic injustice in California without addressing water affordability.
