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Access to safe, affordable water is a basic necessity, but for too many households, the process of getting help when water bills are unaffordable is burdensome or inaccessible. Cities across the U.S. are starting to change that by using data sharing and cross-agency collaboration to automatically enroll eligible residents in low-income water discount programs. These strategies help to reduce barriers, improve equity, and protect public health.

Join the Water Center at Penn, the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), the National Consumer Law Center (NCLC) and the Mayors Innovation Project for a timely webinar that highlights successful local models for using data matching to enroll eligible residents in low-income water discount programs. We will explore case studies featured in NRDC and NCLC’s forthcoming report, including:

• Philadelphia, PA – A city using data-sharing agreements across local agencies to automatically enroll low-income households in its Tiered Assistance Program (TAP) and proactively identify vulnerable households, such as seniors and renters, to protect them from water shutoffs.
• Westminster, CO – A city collaborating with the state’s LIHEAP program to identify eligible customers and apply discounts through a low-tech but effective data match process with its billing system.

Speakers

Larry Levine, Director, Urban Water Infrastructure & Senior Attorney, National Resources Defense Council (NRDC)

Larry Levine is Director, Urban Water Infrastructure and Senior Attorney at Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC). As part of NRDC’s Safe Water Initiative, he works with partners around the country—at the federal, state, and local levels—to advance policies and funding that ensure affordable access to safe and sufficient water and sanitation. His work focuses on ensuring that water and sewer service is affordable for all, even as water infrastructure investment increases to meet clean water needs. Larry draws on over 20 years as a clean water advocate and attorney at NRDC and previously worked as a clinical fellow in environmental law at the Georgetown University Law Center. He is based in Philadelphia and is a graduate of Tulane University and Yale Law School.

Olivia Wein, Senior Attorney, National Consumer Law Center

Olivia Wein is a senior attorney at the National Consumer Law Center (NCLC), where she has represented consumers for over 20 years. NCLC is a non-profit organization focused on using consumer law to promote economic security for low-income and other disadvantaged people. Ms. Wein focuses on policies and programs that protect low-income consumers’ access to essential utility services, including water, energy and telecommunications. Ms. Wein works on funding and implementation of the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), the federal Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP) and the federal Lifeline program. Ms. Wein intervenes in utility commission proceedings in matters affecting low-income utility consumer programs and protections. She is co-author of the seventh edition of NCLC’s manual, Access to Utility Service, and co-authored the Water Affordability Advocacy Toolkit and Protecting Seriously Ill Consumers from Utility Disconnection. Ms. Wein serves on the board of the Universal Service Administrative Company and the National Drinking Water Advisory Council. She also serves on the governing board for the National Energy and Utility Affordability Coalition.

Heather Sackett, Water Bill Assistance Program Coordinator, City of Westminster, Colorado

Heather Sackett is the Water Bill Assistance Program Coordinator for the City of Westminster, Colorado, where she oversees all aspects of the city's water bill assistance programs. In her role, Heather manages customer and community partner outreach, the application review and approval processes, and works on the development and revision of programs and their materials. She is also a strong advocate for program funding and expansion, helping to drive new initiatives and efficiencies.

With over six years of experience at Westminster, Heather has successfully tripled enrollment in one of the City's water assistance programs, significantly expanding outreach and improving benefits for residents. Her previous experience includes nearly a decade of service as a Community Services Officer with the Wheat Ridge Police Department in Colorado, where she honed her skills in public service and community engagement by assisting in the development and implementation of several community programs and revision of numerous city ordinances.

Heather continues to innovate within the water assistance space and her work reflects her passion
for supporting vulnerable populations and improving access to essential services for the
community.

Cassandra (Casey) Henderson, Director of Research, Analytics, and Evaluation, City of Philadelphia Office of Integrated Data and Research

Cassandra (Casey) Henderson is the Director of Research, Analytics, and Evaluation for the City of Philadelphia's Office of Integrated Data for Evidence and Action (IDEA). Casey leads the business unit of the IDEA team—which oversees and operates the City’s cross-systems data hub—to help leverage administrative data to meet a wide variety of City needs, from operational applications of data to large-scale research and evaluation efforts. In this role, she works with a variety of City stakeholders to shape broad questions and concepts into tangible queries and supports data users in interpreting and applying this information to meet their goals. Prior to joining the City, she worked as a Research Specialist at the University of Pennsylvania on applied research and development efforts focused on the use of integrated administrative data. Casey holds a Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania and a B.A. from Duke University.

Susan Crosby, Deputy Revenue Commissioner for Water, Philadelphia Water Revenue Bureau

Susan Crosby is a passionate leader in the water industry, dedicated to advancing policies that ensure equitable and affordable water access. As Deputy Revenue Commissioner for Water in Philadelphia, she oversees accounting, collections, customer assistance, and technical operations for the Water Revenue Bureau. She played a pivotal role in creating the Tiered Assistance Program (TAP), making Philadelphia the first municipal water utility to offer an income-based water affordability program, ensuring that struggling households have access to essential water services.

Previously, as Divisional Deputy City Solicitor, Susan specialized in business tax and utility services litigation, shaping policy and legal strategies to support the city's financial stability. She has a proven track record of business process innovation, legislative development, and data-driven decision-making.

A self-proclaimed "water nerd," Susan is committed to building relationships, amplifying voices, and empowering the next generation of water leaders—especially women in the industry. She believes that equitable access to water is a fundamental right and works tirelessly to ensure that utilities, communities, and policymakers collaborate to make it a reality.

Moderator

Brianne Callahan, Senior Research Manager, The Water Center at Penn

Bree joins the Water Center with over 15 years of experience in various environmental regulatory areas. She earned her JD from Villanova University School of Law, and her BA in environmental science and architecture from the University of Pennsylvania. Prior to joining the Water Center, Bree served as Stormwater Manager for New Jersey Future, where she worked on policy, legislation, financing mechanisms, and technical assistance resources for communities to affordably and effectively reduce flooding and improve water quality. In addition, she was the Executive Director and Baykeeper for Massachusetts Baykeeper, and worked as a legal and environmental consultant in both Philadelphia and Boston. At the Water Center, Bree focuses on our research portfolio. She is most interested in water equity and public health impacts of our lived environment, and finding solutions to today's water challenges.  

📢 This webinar is free and open to the public. Whether you work in local, state, or federal government, the water sector, or consumer advocacy, this conversation will offer meaningful takeaways for putting data to work in service of water justice.