2a-finance - Manny Teodoro

Towels, not tuxedos 💻

How much assistance should each customer get? When things get hot, coverage matters more than fit Customer assistance programs (CAPs) form the fourth pillar of affordability strategy. Previous posts described the first three pillars

Bill Assistance on Walden Pond 💻

The fourth pillar of affordability is income-qualified assistance Utility bills were very affordable in Thoreau's day! But then, he also died from tuberculosis. ...in which I lay out a framework for water utilities that

Of Bills and Balance Sheets 💻

The third pillar of affordability is Rate Design “Affordable” means different things in different contexts This post is the third in a series outlining five pillars of affordability strategy for water and sewer utilities.

The Donut Budget 💻

The second pillar of affordability is Efficiency One of these matters more than the other This post is the second in a series outlining five pillars of affordability strategy for water and sewer utilities. Together,

Defensive Spending 💻

The first pillar of affordability is Quality Gotta count the bottles and the bills So long as water and sewer services operate on a fee-for-service basis, ensuring that these critical services are affordable will

Frame Game 2: Back to the Data 💻

Gendered and partisan responses to proposed rate increases [An absurdly busy couple of months has kept me away from the blogosphere—sorry. Will try to get back into a regular groove now] Winning public support

Issue framing and public willingness to pay water & sewer rate increases 🎓

AWWA Water Science, March 2022 This study uses an embedded survey experiment to evaluate the effects of issue framing on willingness to pay water and sewer rate increases. Government-owned utilities require public support for

And Water for All 🎦

Ramiro Berardo, Director ...And Water For All is an educational documentary about water affordability in Ohio. The film aims to amplify the voices of those who work toward providing clean, affordable water for all.

The Frame Game 💻

The science of talking about water rate increases It’s not about the water tower—it’s about what’s inside Strictly from a value standpoint, it’s hard to imagine anything that provides more bang for the buck

The Revolution Will Not be Legislated 💻

Notes on the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, Part III Water professionals of America, unite! Late last year Congress passed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), also known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, authorizing

Reading the Tea Leaves 💻

Notes on the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, Part II* The Infrastructure Investment & Jobs Act is 1,039 pages long. That’s a lot of tea. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA, better known as

Half a Cadillac 💻

Notes on the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, Part I No need for air conditioning In November President Biden signed the long-awaited $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) better known as the Bipartisan

SNAP H2O 💻

Better federal water bill assistance with this one weird trick Click here to read my op-ed on this topic in Newsweek. When Congress created a new $638 million federal Low Income Household Water Assistance

(Un)taxing the Tap 💻

How to stop taxing water It’s hard to know exactly how much money Americans are paying in taxes at the tap, but it’s a lot. Last time I described the variety of ways that

Stop Taxing Tap Water 💻

Collecting tax revenue through water bills hurts affordability & turns utilities into coercive agents of government Can you find the tax? They may not realize it, but tens of millions of Americans pay taxes

Game Changer 💻

California utility regulators lead the way with comprehensive affordability assessment Wonderboy was the star of the movie, but Savoy Special won the game Between a global pandemic and a presidential election, you might have missed

Batting .400 💻

On the limits of means-tested assistance programs for water & sewer Red Sox legend Ted Williams was the last player to bat over .400... in 1941 **Warning: sports metaphor ahead** Like hitting a baseball,

Echoes of Vizzini 💻

No, EPA did not propose affordability guidelines for municipal utilities Late last week the EPA published in the Federal Register some proposed new guidelines for evaluating sewer utilities’ financial strength. In press releases and

Misoverestimickated 💻

About that water affordability study in The Guardian... Water is a ZILLION PERCENT unaffordable! Also, aliens. The Guardian recently published a big story on water utility affordability in the United States. The headline was shocking:

Graphic Realism 💻

Organization of U.S. drinking water utilities in a few simple figures Here are some graphs that convey a few key things about the organization of drinking water utilities in the United States.* Sources: Energy

40 Degree Day 💻

The congressional COVID cavalry isn’t coming to save the water sector "Nobody got nothing to say about a 40-degree day." The ink was barely dry on a $2 trillion coronavirus response law when Congress

Defense Against the Dark Arts 💻

During a public health crisis, getting the research right is paramount It started with a tweet. beware the confundus charm (Image: Julio Oliviera) A new peer-reviewed Utilities Policy article on water utility ownership, low-income

Two Cheers… or maybe just one 💻

for a federal low-income water bill assistance program All watery eyes are fixed on Washington The ink is barely dry on the $2 trillion coronavirus response law, but there are rumblings that a another

Rapid Relief 💻

How the federal government might end shutoffs & keep water flowing during the COVID-19 crisis Can’t do this if your water has been shut off. The COVID-19 crisis has escalated America’s water and sewer

Water and Sewer Affordability in the United States, 2019 🎓

AWWA Water Science Manuel P. Teodoro and Robin Rose Saywitz This study uses contemporary metrics and data from an original, representative sample of water and sewer utilities in the United States to calculate the

Introducing the Amy Poehler Index 💻

Understanding progressive & regressive water pricing By J. Antonio Teodoro & Manny Teodoro maybe she runs a dialysis clinic in the basement? How do utilities distribute the costs of drinking water systems to their

Squeeze Play 💻

U.S. water utilities are shifting costs to low-volume customers—good for revenue stability, but bad for affordability The squeeze bunt puts more pressure on the hitter than any other play in baseball. Utility financial managers

Water & Sewer Affordability in America, 2019 💻

An update on what low-income U.S. households must pay for essential service It's hard to come up with amusing images for this topic About a year ago I also published the results of a

The Plan 💻

A five-point proposal to transform the U.S. water sector As daunting as the challenges in the U.S. water sector are, solutions are possible and within our grasp. Thanks to legions of smart, creative scientists

The Bundle 💻

Important developments in California for utility affordability You probably need all three California’s Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) is working on establishing methods to measure affordability for utility service. The CPUC governs ratemaking for the