Background
More than 300 communities and one million Californians are exposed to unsafe drinking water from the taps in their homes, schools, and communities each year. This crisis has gone on for too long. For our health and our children's safety, California needs to create a Safe and Affordable Drinking Water Fund.
Governor Brown and lawmakers have introduced bipartisan consensus
legislation (SB 844 and SB 845) to solve California’s long-standing drinking water crisis. The legislation builds upon the original proposal for a Safe and Affordable Drinking Water Fund, with changes made to ensure broad support and effective implementation – because California families with toxic water cannot afford to wait any longer.
This Fund would provide an ongoing source of funding to ensure all Californians have access to safe and affordable drinking water. More than 140 organizations support this solution, including:
Polling shows that more than two-thirds of Californians support this type of solution to our drinking water crisis. Editorial boards at the Los Angeles Times and San Francisco Chronicle also urge legislators to support!
Take action now to join the effort to ensure safe and affordable water for all Californians.
Resources
- SB 844 and SB 845 Fact Sheet - August 16, 2018
- SADWF Supporters Press Statement - August 17, 2018
- Safe and Affordable Drinking Water Fund Fact Sheet - Last updated May 24, 2018
- Fondo para tener Agua sana, limpia y económica en Español - Actualizado el 24/05/2018
- Los Angeles County Drinking Water Challenges Fact Sheet - Last Updated April 28, 2018
- Letter of Support to Assembly Subcommittee #3: Resources and Transportation - March 11, 2018
- Letter of Support from Agriculture Coalition - September 11, 2017
- Letter of Support from Business - August 23, 2017
- Statewide Poll - California Voter Attitudes Toward a Safe and Affordable Drinking Water Fund
Media
Featured:
- "Safe Drinking Water for All" The New York Times - August 21, 2018
- "California, the world's fifth-largest economy, has a Third World drinking water problem" The Los Angeles Times - June 14, 2018
- "This is California. We should be able to drink the water. Lawmakers, fix this disgrace" The Sacramento Bee - June 4, 2018
- "360,000 Californians have unsafe drinking water. Are you one of them?" The Sacramento Bee - June 1, 2018
- "California can't wait any longer for clean water" The Sacramento Bee - January 22, 2018
- "Editorial: California requiere una inversión en agua potable" La Opinión - August 30, 2017
- "Editorial: Fund a public good — clean water for all" The San Francisco Chronicle - August 22, 2017
- "Hundreds of thousands of Californians lack access to safe drinking water. Let's fix that once and for all" The Los Angeles Times - August 18, 2017
- Safe and Affordable Drinking Water in the Coachella Valley (video)
Other:
- "This Is What It's Like To Live With Toxic Tap Water In California" Buzzfeed - February 12, 2018
- "Small Communities Can't Solve Toxic Water Problems Without Help" NBC Bay Area - October 19, 2017
- "Opinion: Tax water to provide clean water to Californians whose supply is contaminated" The Mercury News - August 24, 2017
- "First-ever water tax proposed to tackle unsafe drinking water in California" The Mercury News - August 23, 2017
- "Ag industry is stepping up for safe drinking water" The Sacramento Bee - August 18, 2017
- "SB 623: Legislación histórica que aborda el agua segura y económica para los californianos" El Observador - August 18, 2017
- "California water bill 'a huge deal' to combat dirty water" The Visalia Times Delta - August 16, 2017
- "Unlikely Allies Push Bill to Solve California Drinking Water Crisis" Water Deeply - July 27, 2017
- "California has its own Flint, needs funding for safe drinking water" The Sacramento Bee - February 17, 2017
- "Clean water advocates have a solution that involves your water bill" The Fresno Bee - February 7, 2017
Contact
Media inquiries should be directed to Community Water Center's Communications Manager Kelsey Hinton at (916) 706-3346 or kelsey.hinton@communitywatercenter.org.
For questions about the Safe and Affordable Drinking Water Fund, please contact Community Water Center's Policy Director Jonathan Nelson at (916) 706-3346 or jonathan.nelson@communitywatercenter.org.