The call for speakers for the 2023 Water Finance Conference is now closed. The ninth annual event will be held Aug. 8-9 in Cleveland, Ohio. Details below.
The Water Finance Conference convenes executive-level utility professionals, including directors, CEOs, CFOs and city finance managers with consultants, financial advisors, legal professionals and service providers involved in financing municipal water, wastewater and stormwater systems. Since 2015 the event has been hosted annually by the journal Water Finance & Management, published by Benjamin Media, in partnership with main event sponsor, the National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA).
Presentation topics generally include:
- Rate Studies and Rate Setting
- Low-Income Affordability/CAPs
- Maximizing Traditional Sources of Water Infrastructure Finance
- IIJA Fund Implementation
- Private Financing Options/P3s/Privatization
- Applying Federal Funding Locally
- Leveraging Clean/Drinking Water State Revolving Loan Funds
- Budgeting/Short or Long-term Financial Planning
- Revenue Forecasting
- Governance Issues
- Green Bonds/Environmental Impact Bonds
- Other Federal Financing Mechanisms/WIFIA, etc.
- Cash Reserves
- Legislative/Regulatory Issues Affecting Funding
- Cost Savings through Asset Management
- Case Studies Examining Innovative Funding
- Financial Tech for Water Utilities
- Financing for Integrated Regional Water Plans/Consolidation
The Water Finance Conference has been growing in popularity since its establishment in 2015. It is the only conference in the U.S. water utility sector that exclusively covers financing.
Speakers at the Water Finance Conference generally include a mix of drinking water/clean water utility finance officers, general managers, municipal advisors, EPA officials and service providers. Presenters and panelists have also included city and county finance managers, current and former mayors and city councilmembers, and other consultants and service providers who have a vested interest in the funding of water infrastructure in the United States.
The 2023 conference will be held at the Aloft Cleveland Downtown in the Cleveland Flats on the banks of the Cuyahoga River. The Aloft is within walking distance of several restaurants and area activity, and just minutes from other Cleveland attractions like the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, Great Lakes Science Center and Progressive Field.