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<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"></head><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space;" class=""><h1 class="managed-node-title node__title" itemprop="headline" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-size: 2.25rem; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font-family: 'PT Serif', Arial, sans-serif; color: rgb(51, 102, 153); line-height: 1em; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; widows: 2; margin-bottom: 5px !important;"><span itemprop="mainEntityOfPage" style="box-sizing: inherit;" class="">'Inappropriate, Unjust, and Unreasonable': 300+ Groups Slam Duckworth Water Privatization Bill</span></h1><div class="field--type-text-long field--label-hidden field field--name-field-subtitle" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: 'PT Serif', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 20px; margin-bottom: 5px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; widows: 2;"><div class="field__items" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><div class="field__item even" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><div itemprop="description" style="box-sizing: inherit;" class=""><p style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px;" class="">"This bill is an egregious handout to giant water corporations which would embolden them to manipulate and fleece struggling communities—particularly communities of color."</p></div></div></div></div><div class="field-wrapper content-container clearfix inline-fields" id="field-wrapper-authors" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 20px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 10px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: 17px; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; widows: 2;"><div class="grouping-prefix" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin-left: 0px !important; margin-right: 0.21em !important; display: inline-block; vertical-align: middle; zoom: 1; margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px;">by</div><div class="profile-titles clearfix" style="box-sizing: inherit; display: inline-block; vertical-align: middle; zoom: 1;"><span class="pb-byline" itemprop="author" itemscope="" itemtype="http://schema.org/Person" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><a href="https://www.commondreams.org/author/eoin-higgins-staff-writer" target="_blank" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: rgb(51, 102, 153); text-decoration: none; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial initial;" class=""><span itemprop="name" style="box-sizing: inherit;" class="">Eoin Higgins, staff writer</span></a></span></div></div><div class="shareaholic-canvas shareaholic-ui shareaholic-resolved-canvas" data-app-id="6840204" data-app-id-name="headline_above_content" data-app="share_buttons" data-title="'Inappropriate, Unjust, and Unreasonable': 300+ Groups Slam Duckworth Water Privatization Bill" data-link="https://www.commondreams.org/news/2020/07/13/inappropriate-unjust-and-unreasonable-300-groups-slam-duckworth-water-privatization" data-summary="" id="shr_canvas1" style="box-sizing: inherit; clear: both; transition: none 0s ease 0s; -webkit-transition: none 0s ease 0s; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: 'PT Serif', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; widows: 2; visibility: visible;"><div translate="no" style="box-sizing: inherit;" class=""><div class=" shareaholic-share-buttons-container shareaholic-flat shr-no-print shareaholic-ui shareaholic-block shareaholic- shareaholic-horizontal shareaholic-mini" style="box-sizing: inherit; 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padding: 2px 4px; line-height: 17px; font-family: 'PT Serif', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; widows: 2; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;"><a href="https://commons.commondreams.org/t/inappropriate-unjust-and-unreasonable-300-groups-slam-duckworth-water-privatization-bill/80087" target="_blank" style="box-sizing: inherit; background: 0px 0px; color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-decoration: none; font-family: Arial, san-serif; font-size: 14px;" class=""><span class="fa fa-comment" style="box-sizing: inherit; display: inline-block; font-family: FontAwesome; line-height: 1; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-size: inherit; text-rendering: auto;"></span> <span class="comment-count" style="box-sizing: inherit;">69</span> Comments</a></div><div class="field--label-hidden field--type-image field field--name-field-article-img" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: 'PT Serif', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; widows: 2;"><div class="field__items" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><div class="field__item even" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><div itemscope="" itemprop="image" itemtype="http://schema.org/ImageObject" style="box-sizing: inherit;" class=""><img class="caption-processed" src="https://www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_large/public/headlines/drinking_water_1_1.jpg?itok=NvEusq8c" width="955" height="500" alt="" style="box-sizing: inherit; border: 0px; max-width: 100%; height: auto;"></div></div></div></div><div class="field--name-field-main-caption field--label-hidden field field--type-text-long" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', Arial, sans-serif; background-color: rgb(240, 240, 240); color: rgb(51, 51, 51); position: relative; top: -4px; font-size: 12px; padding: 5px 10px; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; widows: 2; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;"><div class="field__items" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><div class="field__item even" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><p style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px;" class="">"As communities across the country search for relief from the ongoing pandemic, it would be short sighted and misguided to pass a bill that encourages the privatization of water systems." (Photo: <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/werkman/7376267628/" style="box-sizing: inherit; background: 0px 0px; color: rgb(51, 102, 153); text-decoration: none;" class="">Peter Werkman</a>/Flickr/cc)</p></div></div></div><div class="field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field field--name-body" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: 'PT Serif', Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 17px; font-variant-ligatures: normal; orphans: 2; widows: 2;"><div class="field__items" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><div class="field__item even" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><div itemprop="articleBody" style="box-sizing: inherit;" class=""><p style="box-sizing: inherit;" class="">Over 300 groups on Monday urged Senate leadership to reject a bill currently under consideration that would incentivize communities to sell off their public water supplies to private companies for pennies on the dollar.</p><p style="box-sizing: inherit;" class="">"This bill is an egregious handout to giant water corporations which would embolden them to manipulate and fleece struggling communities—particularly communities of color," said Food & Water Action executive director Wenonah Hauter. "The fact that this bill is being touted as an 'environmental justice' measure makes it all the more nefarious."</p><p style="box-sizing: inherit;" class="">Food & Water Action led the demand in a <a href="https://www.foodandwaterwatch.org/sites/default/files/opposition_to_the_voluntary_water_partnerships_for_distressed_communities_act.pdf" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: rgb(51, 102, 153); text-decoration: none; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial initial;" class="">letter</a> (pdf) taking aim at the "Voluntary Water Partnership for Distressed Communities Act," described in the document as "inappropriate, unjust, and unreasonable."</p><p style="box-sizing: inherit;" class="">"From California to Montana to New Jersey, we've seen how privatizing water harms communities, whether it's higher bills or dirtier water," Donald Cohen, executive director of In the Public Interest, said in a statement. "It's simple: water is a basic human right, which means let's keep it in public hands."</p><p style="box-sizing: inherit;" class="">The bill was introduced by Sens. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) and Mike Braun (R-Ind.) and acts as an amendment to the America's Water Infrastructure Act of 2020. Critics charge the legislation induces poor communities to sell off their water rights. </p><p style="box-sizing: inherit;" class=""></p><div class="clearfix" style="box-sizing: inherit;"></div><p style="box-sizing: inherit;" class="">As the <em style="box-sizing: inherit;" class="">American Prospect</em>'s Robert Kuttner <a href="https://prospect.org/environment/privatizing-our-public-water-supply/" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: rgb(51, 102, 153); text-decoration: none; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial initial;" class="">explained</a>, doing so would likely spell disaster for affected communities:</p><blockquote style="box-sizing: inherit;" class=""><p style="box-sizing: inherit;" class="">Privatized systems are typically less reliable, far more expensive, and prone to corrupt deal-making. The average community with privatized water paid 59% more than those with government supplied water. In New Jersey, which has more private water than most, private systems charged 79% more. In Illinois, they charged 95% more. Private water corporations have also been implicated in environmental disasters. The French multinational, Veolia, issued a report in 2015 certifying that Flint, Michigan's water system met EPA standards, but neglected to mention high lead concentrations.</p></blockquote><p style="box-sizing: inherit;" class="">"We know that Wall Street actors target Black and brown communities in moments of crisis to enrich themselves and Wall Street-backed water companies see opportunity in this moment," Maurice BP-Weeks, co-executive director of letter signatory Action Center on Race and the Economy, said in a statement.</p><p style="box-sizing: inherit;" class="">BP-Weeks added that incentivizing water privatization at such a vulnerable moment for poor communities in the country is exactly the wrong move for what the crisis demands. </p><p style="box-sizing: inherit;" class="">"As communities across the country search for relief from the ongoing pandemic, it would be short sighted and misguided to pass a bill that encourages the privatization of water systems," said BP-Weeks. "It is our government's job to protect our most vulnerable communities, not put them up for sale."</p></div></div></div></div></body></html>