January eNews: CA budget, New Website and more
Para español, haz clic aqui
It’s a new year, and with that comes a new California state budget. Governor Newsom presented a 2022-23 budget which includes $750 million for emergency drought assistance, as well as key commitments to climate resilience. While providing support for drought impacts is critical, another barrier to accessible water — affordability — wasn’t addressed in the budget. View our press statement on the California state budget here.
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. This puts them at increased risk for shut-offs -a popular bill collection method - and additional “reconnection fees” which can put poor families deeper in debt.
Funding to help low-income people pay their water bills, like the new program proposed in SB 222 (Dodd), is urgently needed in the revised state budget released in May.
We will keep you updated this year as we work toward passing SB 222 and taking an important step towards affordable drinking water for all.
Adelante,
Susana De Anda
Co-Founder and Executive Director
Merecemos Agua Sin Nitratos | We Deserve Clean Water, Without Nitrates
According to a recent government action, nitrate polluters in the Central Valley are responsible for providing safe water to the communities they’ve polluted. However, these polluters have been slow to deliver solutions to impacted communities. Under the CV-SALTS Program at the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board, nitrate polluters are organized into “management zones” by region, and are required to provide free well testing in at-risk communities so they know if their water is safe to drink. In the management zones we’re tracking in the southern San Joaquin Valley, only 1-3% of at-risk wells have been tested and outreach efforts have been abysmal. If unsafe levels of nitrates are found, the management zone must provide free monthly bottled water deliveries to impacted households.
We’ll be tracking their progress on our new, bilingual website CleanWaterNotNitrates.org | MerecemosAguaSinNitratos.org
If you get your water from a private well and live in one of the nitrate management zones (view maps on our site), you are eligible for these free services. Underneath the management zone name, you will find a link to the application form for these free services as well as a number you can call for more information.
If you would like help completing the form or have any additional questions, please contact Bryan Osorio at bryan.osorio@communitywatercenter.org or (559) 733-0219.
Jonathan Nelson Appointed to U.S. EPA by Biden Administration
Jonathan Nelson (center) with CWC Co-Founders Susana De Anda and Laurel Firestone
After five years with Community Water Center, Jonathan Nelson will be continuing the fight for water justice at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Office of Water. Jonathan was appointed by the Biden administration as Senior Advisor for Technical Assistance and Community Engagement where he will oversee funding for communities throughout the country lacking access to safe and affordable water. It’s bittersweet news, but we’re excited to see what this next chapter brings for water justice and Jonathan!
In Case You Missed It
Many Californians fear having their water shut off in the new year. That’s unacceptable
“If California leaders are serious about the promise of water as a human right, they’ll enact a long-term solution that allows every Californian to live without fear of having their water shut off.”
- Nydia Medina, AGUA member and East Orosi resident
- Uriel Salvidar, Sr. Policy Advocate for CWC
We Cannot Build Back Better Without Ensuring Water Security for All
“Congress should allocate funding for a pilot low-income water assistance program within EPA, an essential complement to water infrastructure investments that were missing from the previous bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.
…Ensuring everyone has access to safe, affordable water is not simply the ‘right thing to do’, but essential to navigating resource scarcity and our overdue dedication to racial justice.”
- Susana De Anda, Executive Director and Co-Founder
Do you have a passion for environmental and social justice? Are you looking for an opportunity to work alongside those on the frontlines of the safe and affordable drinking water movement in California?
Community Water Center is hiring for multiple positions across all three of our offices:
Communications and Data Associate — Sacramento, Visalia or Watsonville Office
Manage a compelling content strategy on CWC’s digital channels and help create CWC’s new contact management system.Fund Development Coordinator — Sacramento, Visalia or Watsonville Office
Help build relationships and raise funds to keep our water justice movement going strong.Community Solutions Advocate - Watsonville Office
Partner with Central Coast communities to help secure access to safe and affordable drinking water.Community Solutions Coordinator — Watsonville Office
Coordinate technical assistance projects and work with communities to develop and implement drinking water solutions.Community Solutions Manager — Watsonville Office
Apply technical and project management skills to develop and implement community-driven drinking water solutions and policy advocacy.Public Relations Manager — Sacramento Office
Lead earned media strategy by centering community voices to shape the narrative for safe and affordable water.
Safe Water Resources
Thank you to our Generous Donors!
Huge thank you to our sustaining monthly donors, whose continual contributions help to sustain our long-term work toward achieving safe, clean, and affordable drinking water!
Arden Wells, Benigna Hernandez, Bessma Mourad, Bob Simone, Carly Yoshida, Claire Wilkens, Denise Heitzenroder, Frank Lukacs, Jose Pablo Ortiz Partida, Julia Emerson, Kathryn Gilje, Kathryn Wuelfing, Kelsey Hinton, Klara East, Kristin Dobbin, Lara Cushing, Max Meyer, Paul Pierce, Sandra Hocker, Sandra Rose, Stephen Gasteyer, Vicki Woods, Victoria Klug and Yara Pasner
And thank you to our generous donors through the end of December and January!
Amy Panek, Anne Rempel, Caitlin Stanton, Casey Jensen, Charlie Firestone, D. Eifler & R. Morello-Frosch, Daniel Serrano, David Weinsoff, Diane Merrill, Don Friesen, Donald Zimmerman, Eduardo Antunez, Elissa Callman, Ellen Hanak Valletta, Glen Low, Iris Biblowitz, Jean Linder, Jennifer Rosner, Justin White, Karen Socher, Kathleen Grazier, Kathryn Gilje, Kevin Mori, Khalouk Mourad, Kristie Eglsaer, Laura Schewel, Lauren Ahkiam, Margo Schueler, Mark Eliot, Mark Tapio Kines, Matthew Zinn, Lisa Honig, Paula Cizmar, Peter Felber, Richard Rayburn, Robert Finkelstein, Siddharth Nag, Stefanie Kaku, Stephen Gasteyer, Sylvia Lee
Be a water champion and support safe water for all.
