On This Page
- Day One - August 26, 2024
- Day Two - August 27, 2024
- Day Three - August 28, 2024
- Day Four - August 29, 2024
- Day Five - August 30, 2024
About World Water Week
More than two million Americans live without running water and basic indoor plumbing. Without water, people cannot wash their hands, flush their toilets, or clean their homes. For too many American families and communities, this is their everyday reality. The Office of Community Services is working to address the barriers that prevent families and communities from accessing safe water and wastewater with the Low Income Household Water Assistance Program (LIHWAP), Rural Community Development (RCD) programs, and the Community Services Block Grant (CSBG).
LIHWAP
The Low Income Household Water Assistance Program (LIHWAP) is a federal program that provides funding to states, territories, and tribes to assist households with low incomes in paying arrearages (past due bills) and rates charged to the household for drinking water, wastewater services, or both. LIHWAP prioritizes assistance to households whose services have been disconnected due to non-payment or are about to be disconnected.
RCD
The Rural Community Development program (RCD) is a federal discretionary grant program that works with regional and tribal organizations to manage safe water systems by providing training and technical assistance to very small, low-income, rural communities to develop and manage affordable water and wastewater treatment facilities.
Social Media Toolkit
Spread the word about World Water Week! Access the social media toolkit (PDF) which includes X, Facebook, and LinkedIn social media images and shareable social media messages.
Day One | Kickoff Panel | August 26, 2024
To begin World Water Week, OCS is hosting a panel discussion event, “OCS World Water Week 2024 Kickoff: Understanding Water Affordability,” that will bring together partners from associations, municipalities, and agencies working in different capacities across the country to advance water affordability. The event will have panelists sharing insights on water affordability data and discussing various water affordability initiatives.
Day Two | RCD Story Map | August 27, 2024
To continue World Water Week celebrations, OCS is pleased to release RCD: Flexible Assistance for Rural Communities, an engaging and interactive article highlighting how RCD meets water needs. Read the stories, watch the videos, and click through the interactive map to discover how RCD is impacting residents in rural communities throughout the country.
Day Three | LIHWAP One-Pagers | August 28, 2024
LIHWAP has helped ensure that households with low incomes across the United States have access to water and wastewater services, with over 1.7 million households served. This World Water Week, LIHWAP is releasing national, state, territory, and tribal region one-page fact sheets describing the impact of the program.
Day Four | Tribal Highlight | August 29, 2024
For World Water Week Day 4, OCS is highlighting how tribal communities across the nation leverage OCS and HHS resources to improve well-being for tribal members. Our office is proud to release a blog featuring the work of the Tohono O’odham Utility Authority and updated LIHWAP one-page fact sheets highlighting specific ways we are helping increase access to safe and affordable water and wastewater systems in Native communities.
Day Five | LIHWAP Video Release | August 30, 2024
On the last day of World Water Week 2024, OCS recognizes one more community that has leveraged these programs through a brand-new video. LIHWAP and Atlanta: A Partnership for Affordable Water spotlights how LIHWAP, local community action agencies, and the city's water service providers worked together to quickly and broadly implement water assistance.