Corporate Water Monopolies Charge 67% More. Stop the Rate Hikes.

I am writing as your constituent regarding the growing crisis of municipal water privatization and the urgent need for federal funding to protect public utility infrastructure and local ratepayers. Across the nation, financially strained municipalities face a stark choice: sell off drinking water infrastructure to for-profit utility conglomerates or let pipes collapse. In 2017, Lake Station, Indiana sold its water system to a private provider for $20 million to cover general municipal debt after state law allowed the sale to bypass a local voter referendum. Similar "fair-market-value" statutes in 15 states now allow investor-owned utilities to pass inflated acquisition costs directly onto residents through stealth rate hikes and post-sale surcharges. When public systems are sold off to private corporations, the financial impact on working families is immediate: - A comprehensive survey of the nation's 500 largest water utilities by Food & Water Watch revealed that privately owned, corporate systems charge 67 percent more than municipal systems, costing households hundreds of dollars more annually. - Overall water and sewer bills across major systems climbed 62 percent over the past decade, far outstripping wage growth and general inflation. - As systems nationwide require an estimated $2.4 trillion in infrastructure upgrades over the next 25 years, corporate consolidation is accelerating, highlighted by a $63 billion mega-merger between the two largest investor-owned utilities, encompassing 4.7 million connections across 17 states. A municipality should not have to sell off its vital water supply to balance its budget, and residents should never lose control over their local water system without a vote. Congress must ensure essential public resources are not turned into captive corporate monopolies. I urge you to take immediate legislative action: 1. Co-sponsor and pass the WATER Act (S. 1730 / H.R. 3376) to provide local governments with a permanent, dedicated federal funding source to repair aging water and sewer systems without privatizing public assets. 2. Require that any municipal water system receiving federal infrastructure grants or state revolving funds hold public hearings and secure voter referendum approval before selling assets to a for-profit entity. 3. Direct the EPA to expand its water affordability studies to track corporate acquisitions, purchase prices, and subsequent rate hikes nationwide. 4. Convene congressional oversight hearings into state fair-market-value laws and the impact of utility consolidation on household costs. Protect public infrastructure, defend local voter control, and keep American water affordable.