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NACWA’s Board of Directors met on April 21, 2010 and acted to adopt preliminary budgets for both the General Fund and Targeted Action Fund (TAF) for Fiscal Year (FY) 2011.  This Member Update describes key aspects of the budgets and provides a report to the membership on key initiatives.  Member comments on the budgets are invited and should be provided by June 11, 2010.

FY 2011 Preliminary Budgets Adopted

This Member Update presents the Association’s preliminary FY 2011 General Fund Budget (Attachment A).  Ever mindful of the current economic climate, the budget development process included a thorough review of revenues and expenditures, as well as an assessment of NACWA’s ability to maintain and enhance its delivery of essential services to its members.  The preliminary FY 2011 General Fund budget reflects $3.69 million in revenues, $3.82 million in expenses and $126,000 in transfers from other funds resulting in a break-even net income after transfers for FY 2011.  It assumes no increase in dues for all membership categories (Public Member Agencies, Legal Affiliates, Corporate Affiliates and Supporting Affiliates).  For your information and planning purposes, this Member Update also provides the current NACWA dues schedule, which remains unchanged for the second consecutive year (Attachment B).

Also presented for your review is the preliminary FY 2011 Targeted Action Fund (TAF) Budget (Attachment C) which supports engagement in both ongoing and evolving legislative, regulatory and judicial issues.  For the past 15 years the TAF has strengthened the Association’s capability to achieve its short and long-term strategic objectives.   Approximately 12% of FY 2011 dues revenue will support the TAF allocation of $400,000 in the coming year.  We anticipate that NACWA’s TAF will continue to consistently prove its value by protecting Member Agency interests and ensuring both cost savings and avoided costs in the coming year.  In addition to the preliminary Targeted Action Fund Budget for FY 2011, an analysis of continuing TAF projects for FY 2011 (Attachment D) and an overview and status report of TAF projects currently underway (Attachment E) are included for your review.

The FY 2011 budget anticipates that the TAF will receive support through voluntary contributions to Money Matters initiatives.  Similar in construct to the FY 2009 Critical Issues Action Initiative (which generated $186,750 in member support) and the FY 2010 Wet Weather Advocacy Project (which generated $109,350 in member support), the FY 2011 budget envisions a multi-year Money Matters affordability campaign.  NACWA’s members have called upon the Association to aggressively address the issues of affordability/financial capability as they relate to the federal government’s approach to the Clean Water Act.  In FY 2011, voluntary contributions would be solicited from NACWA members to directly support the implementation of a Money Matters campaign strategy that contains tiered approaches for achieving success with the spectrum of key audiences.  This proposed member-supported campaign has been preceded by a Board-approved FY 2010 TAF project that will result in both the development of a multi-year campaign strategy encompassing a diverse array of wet weather issues including combined sewer overflows (CSOs), sanitary sewer overflows (SSOs) and enforcement – and a “leave-behind” to make the case for affordability reform.  The completion of these two documents in FY 2010 will set in motion the ambitious and long-term outreach and advocacy campaign — Money Matters.  Acceleration in the scheduled development of key tools, to take full advantage of the outreach opportunities provided by the November elections, will be supported by utilizing Wet Weather Advocacy Project (WWAP) funds to facilitate a more aggressive approach.

WWAP Supports Heightened NACWA Role on CSO, SSO & Stormwater Issues in FY 2010

This year the TAF budget was bolstered by a Board-endorsed, and member-supported Wet Weather Advocacy Project (WWAP) focused on positioning the Association and its members for an active and aggressive public policy debate on wet weather issues such as CSOs, SSOs, and enforcement.  Even in these tough economic times, voluntary Member contributions in support of this initiative totaled nearly $110,000.  These funds have been utilized to support a web seminar series, The Flow Series, focusing on critical wet weather issues; a monthly electronic newsletter, the Stormwater Advocacy Outlook; and a heightened role for NACWA in the advocacy and outreach arena that included engagement in a number of stormwater and wet weather initiatives.  On the stormwater front, WWAP funds have supported NACWA’s extensive work on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) proposed national stormwater rule.  The WWAP has also provided resources to bolster NACWA’s ongoing efforts in the wet weather arena in the areas of affordability and financial capability, and continued work to promote green infrastructure as an important solution to stormwater and wet weather challenges.  Clearly member support of the WWAP has helped reinforce NACWA’s position as the premier advocacy organization for wet weather and stormwater issues.

Board Strives to Ensure Quality Service, Meet Challenges through FY 2011 Budgets

NACWA plans an active and diverse agenda of actions and initiatives for FY 2011 in legislative, regulatory and judicial advocacy, ensuring that valid science is the foundation of environmental policy, enhancing utility management, expanding strategic partnerships and applying effective membership development and retention strategies.  Challenging economic times call upon NACWA to be especially focused on the delivery of exceptional service and the National Office staff is keenly aware of the impact the economic downturn has had on the Association’s Member Agencies.  Energies and efforts are being focused on raising the bar on the quality of our analysis of evolving and emerging issues and our outreach to our members.  With enhancing our service to our members as the cornerstone, NACWA’s management team will be exceedingly attentive to ensuring sustainable support to both the Association’s General Fund and Targeted Action Fund through budgeting practices and oversight.

Member Comment Invited on FY 2011 Budgets

Consistent with NACWA’s budget cycle, the Board of Directors encourages all members to review the FY 2011 preliminary budgets for both the General Fund and the Targeted Action Fund.  Please direct any comments you may have to David Williams, NACWA Treasurer and Chair of the Association’s Finance Committee (510/287-1496 or via e-mail at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it and NACWA’s Executive Director, Ken Kirk (202/833-4653 or via e-mail at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ).  Please provide your comments and recommendations prior to Friday, June 11, 2010.  All comments received will be carefully considered and final budgets will be adopted when NACWA’s Board of Directors meets on July 21, 2010.As the Association enters its fifth decade of advocacy and service, initiatives throughout the year will support the objective of maintaining NACWA’s strategic position as the driving force in national clean water policy.  As always, our primary focus is on advocacy on behalf of our member’s interests.  We look forward to sharing additional information on our advocacy work, and associated initiatives, in our annual NACWA Year in Review.

This past year we have accomplished many things.  Playing a pivotal role in these accomplishments were NACWA’s leadership and members, whose firm decisions and substantial participation lent unquestioned credibility to the Association’s positions and increased attention to its policy goals.  Many thanks for your continuing participation and support.

ATTACHMENTS:

• Attachment A - Preliminary FY 2011 General Fund Budget
• Attachment B - FY 2011 Membership Dues
• Attachment C - Preliminary FY 2011 Targeted Action Fund Budget
• Attachment D - Targeted Action Fund FY 2011 Continuing Project Analysis
• Attachment E - Targeted Action Fund Project Overview & Status Report