This guide is designed to educate and empower advocates focused on shaping the infrastructure and resource management decisions of drinking water providers. This guide is intended to acquaint advocates with the financing practices and imperatives that define drinking water management today. It can be used to prepare for engagement with drinking water utilities, the city councils that set water rates and the State Revolving Fund administrators that help to finance water infrastructure. And it can be used by advocates of all different stripes—environmental, community affordability and taxpayer advocates—to strategize collaboration with each other and with water utilities.

This guide should help advocates understand not only how to be more effective opponents of destructive and bloated infrastructure projects, but also how to be more effective proponents of sustainable drinking water systems. This means advocating for water supply planning that is rooted in conservation and efficiency and optimizing existing infrastructure, all to secure water supplies for communities while keeping our rivers, lakes and streams healthy.