Say NO to The Privatization of Water:

Water is a Right, Not a Way for Special Interests to Make Money

We need to protect our most valuable resource and stop the privatization of water. Currently, over 43% of New Jersey water systems are privatized. [https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/towns-sell-their-public-water-systems--and-come-to-regret-it/2017/07/07/6ec5b8d6-4bc6-11e7-bc1b-fddbd8359dee_story.html?noredirect=on&utm_term=.7edf5526a6a8]These communities have given up the right to receive potable water at an affordable price. They have sold their most important asset to special interests who care less about the safety and health of their customers than profits to their shareholders and high salaries to their executives. In 2000 the American Water Work’s CEO’s compensation exceeded $2 million. Read the article by Food and Water Watch (https://www.foodandwaterwatch.org/insight/water-privatization-facts-and-figures).

Neglected water infrastructure is a national problem. It is estimated that necessary replacement of the nation’s water infrastructure will cost $250 billion over the next 30 years. In New Jersey alone, it is estimated that the state will need to invest $27 billion over the next 20 years to update outdated treatment plants and make vital repairs to broken or leaking pipes. The high cost of overhauling our water infrastructure can be daunting for municipalities who may not be able to afford to make such upgrades.

Since 1977, the federal government has slashed its water infrastructure investment by over 80 percent, leaving many municipalities struggling to pay the cost of upkeep. The Christie administration has also done its best to make privatization inevitable. The governor’s 2014 budget cut more than $80 million from the NJ Department of Environmental Protection — money the agency could have spent on much-needed water infrastructure enhancement projects.

In 2015, Governor Christie made it easier for municipalities to sell their water systems to private companies with the signing of the Water Infrastructure Protection Act (WIPA). This act allowed municipalities to sell their water utilities to private companies without a public vote.

With few other options, numerous New Jersey municipalities have turned to the private sector for assistance — and revenue. State law requires that all money the communities receive from selling a system must go first to paying off that water system’s debt, and then towards paying off the municipality’s general debt. Therefore, in one fell swoop, the municipality gets the promise of an upgraded system and a boost to their balance sheets. But municipalities must be wary of signing long-term contracts.

The privatization of water has many negative consequences, including the loss of jobs. Private industry is not held to the same level of accountability as public officials. Read the article by Public Citizen (https://www.citizen.org/sites/default/files/top_10_pdf.pdf).

Once the ownership of a water system has been taken out of the hands of a municipality, residents no longer have input into how the water system is managed and they lose effective control over the setting of water rates. Reliance on public utility commissions is not an effective check and balance. In 2012 Bayonne signed a 40 year contract with a private water company. Over the next five years, water rates rose nearly twenty-eight percent. Many residents, particularly seniors, were trapped into making payments they could not afford. (https://www.njtvonline.org/news/video/bayonne-water-rates-spike-privatization/)

We must protect our residents from special interests that compete with our most basic need: clean water at an affordable price. If elected, I will fight for federal oversight, specifically the creation of a Consumer Water Protection Bureau (CWPB). We need to protect municipalities that have already committed to decades long contractual obligations. We need to regulate the private water industry, requiring these companies to meet and satisfy strict water quality and health safety concerns. The CWPB will play a vital role in regulating the price of water to avoid price gouging.

I will work with every New Jersey Congressperson, Republican and Democrat, to form a CWPB and secure the $27 billion funding that New Jersey needs to repair and modernize its water infrastructure. I will be a strong advocate for alternatives to the privatization of water by promoting cooperation between municipalities (public-public partnerships). We need Common Ground, Common Sense solutions to this critical issue.