Funding Major Infrastructure Improvements. Atlanta is halfway through a massive $4 billion overhaul of its water infrastructure, which began after two federal and two state consent orders dictated improvements because of major sewage overflow violations. The project is expected to be completed by 2014. Mayor Franklin says that the project is such a hallmark of her tenure that she has become known as the “Sewer Mayor.”

•    Federal Help is Missing. Atlanta spent about $3 million lobbying for federal assistance and they got nothing. Even though the federal government required these massive improvements, it is not helping to fund them.

•    Major Rate Increases. Without federal assistance, the city must hike rates to pay for these infrastructure projects.
-    In 2003, when Atlanta began its federally mandated sewer repairs, residents paid about $30 a month for sewer service;  now, they pay more than $100, and sewer bills of $200 a month are likely within five years.
-    Planned: 27.5 percent increase in 2009, 12.5 percent in 2010, 12.0 percent in 2012

•    Municipal Option Sales Tax. Without it, rate hike would have been 50 percent in 2008
-    Accounts for one-quarter of funding, about $120 million a year

•    Debt. Payments on loans and bonds account for 34 percent of the department’s expenses

•    Cut Backs. Without adequate funding and fearing the effect of high rate increases on residents, the water department has also had to cut back its workforce by eliminating 148 positions, reducing the overall budget by 1.3 percent
Water Quality. Atlanta’s water and sewage infrastructure is aging, some of it dating to the late 1880s. While repairs have helped, more is needed to comply with federal and state regulations.

•    Sewage Overflows. For years, Atlanta’s collapsing water systems were polluting the environment. The city was fined for excessive pollution of the Chattahoochee River.
-    Penalties totaled $38 million, the city was paying more than $10,000 a day in fines

•    Water Quality. EPA’s most recent assessment of Atlanta’s watersheds found 302 individual impairments to water quality, including fecal coliform bacteria, other pathogens and solid trash.

•    Quality Improvements. Although expensive, the infrastructure projects have yielded considerable improvements in water quality and customer service.
-    Sewage Overflows. 60 percent reduction in sewage overflows as a result of the Nancy Creek Tunnel; 1,000 miles of sewer pipe inspected, 250 miles cleaned; 24 miles of streambanks protected in perpetuity after 1,800 acres of greenways acquired
-    Customer Service. Call center puts customers on hold for less than 1 minute, down from 43 minutes

The First Major U.S. Privatization Failure. In 1999, the city awarded United Water, a subsidiary of French multinational Suez, a 20-year, $428 million contract. By 2002, Atlanta was so fed up with poor service that it canceled the deal.

•    Terrible Service. Downsized the workforce by 400 jobs, resulting in terrible service
-    Maintenance backlog of 14,000 work orders, delayed repairs, repaired fire hydrants at half the required speed and inadequately responded to emergencies.

•    Expensive. Failure to collect enough late bills and to read, install and maintain water meters cost the city millions of dollars. In total, only half of the expected cost savings were realized

•    Corruption. The company was linked to questionable payments to Mayor Bill Campbell, who was sentenced to 30 months in prison for federal tax evasion.