Water Is a Racial and Economic Justice Issue
“On a per capita basis, federal funding has declined 82 percent since its peak in 1977. The federal government spent $76.27 per person on water services in 1977, but by 2014 that support had fallen to $13.68 per person. Water utilities must spend at least $697 billion over the next twenty years to provide safe water and keep waterways clean. Without this support, communities must compensate by raising service rates. But water rates are already unaffordable for nearly 12 percent of households in the U.S., according to one study. In the next five years, one in three households could be unable to afford their water bills.”