Toledo Water Affordability Plan

The City of Toledo has prepared a water affordability plan to address the needs of the community. A Water Affordability and Consumer Protection Task Force was formed in collaboration with community-based organizations and the city administration to identify programs and policies that can help customers afford their water bills and raise awareness of water conservation.

Download the plan

About the Study

A water affordability survey was designed to help the Department of Public Utilities understand the current challenges our customers have with affordability and to re-evaluate assistance programs. The survey ran April 22 through July 20, 2021. All customers who live in the city of Toledo were encouraged to take the survey, including both homeowners and renters who pay a water bill.

The task force hired Roger Colton, a national expert on the design and implementation of water and energy affordability programs, to help prepare the Toledo water affordability plan. It is the goal of the task force to fulfill the need for clean and affordable water, while at the same time meeting the city’s obligation to operate the water and sewer utilities in a fiscally sound manner.

About Roger Colton

Roger Colton is a lawyer and an economist who lives in Belmont, Massachusetts. Roger has worked to help design, implement and fund low-income affordability programs with state and local governments; with the federal government; with natural gas, electric and water utilities; and with a variety of community-based organizations in more than 40 states and four Canadian provinces.

Roger has been awarded the lifetime achievement award by the National Low-Income Energy Consortium; the Sister Pat Kelley Achievement Award for contributions to the National Fuel Fund Network; and the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. “Continuing the Dream” award by his local community. Roger was appointed to the Blue Ribbon Panel on Water Affordability by the Detroit City Council in 2017. He was instrumental in helping the City of Philadelphia enact and implement its Income-based Water Rate Affordability Program (IWRAP). He worked with Food and Water Watch to help design and gain enactment of a water affordability program in Baltimore.

Additional Questions

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