New Strategic Plan Optimizes ACWA’s Value to Members by Ernie Avila, P.E. Mar 21, 2025 Voices on Water Our members expect ACWA to make their voices heard in Sacramento and Washington D.C. They also want an organization that unites them, fosters collaboration, keeps them informed and creates a unique sense of community among California water professionals. It’s a big job, and we do it well, but fulfilling our value to members requires constant attention to how we can improve and transform ACWA into a true world class organization. During the next five years, ACWA leadership will utilize the association’s 2025-’29 Strategic Plan as an instrument for translating that attention, this never-ending search for ways to serve you better, into measurable action and demonstrable results. The plan updates ACWA’s first five-year Strategic Plan with a revised mission, vision and values before identifying four primary goals: Advocacy, Connections, Education and Organizational Effectiveness. Clearly defined strategies and objectives chart a path toward achieving each goal. Progress will be measured by 50 key performance indicators, or KPIs, allowing ACWA leadership at the Board and staff level to gauge progress. This plan is far more than an aspirational document. Accountability is built into it at every level, with specific responsibilities assigned to ACWA departments and association committees who will often work in tandem. Looking at the advocacy goal in particular, ACWA has functioned in the same way for quite some time, and it has produced many positive outcomes. Think of the water rights issue, where we stopped incredibly overreaching legislation. Or, take our sponsored legislation that has steadily reformed the Proposition 218 process to prevent agencies from being sandbagged with lawsuits after setting rates. These are two among numerous examples of ACWA advocacy, in collaboration with members, that have directly benefited most, if not all association members. However, if there was ever a time that we rededicate ourselves to finding new and more ways to benefit our members, that time is now. We just saw a historic surge in newly elected legislators eager to make their name in Sacramento. It is imperative that we engage and educate them about the practical realities of reliable and sustainable water management, as well as educate the communities we serve. Region 9 Vice Chair Carol Lee Gonzales-Brady and I will also lead a 10-region task force focused on how we develop and approve water policy initiatives and their implementation. This will ensure that our advocacy reflects our members’ key interests as closely as possible and improves the viability of support for these initiatives in Sacramento and Washington, D.C. Within the ACWA community itself, we are witnessing a generational transition in leadership. Now is the time to elevate networking and knowledge sharing among members to an entirely new level, and in doing so set up a blueprint for the success of the organization for this generation and those that follow. Meanwhile, our committees and workgroups, the collective brain trust we rely upon for expertise unique within California’s water industry, must be further empowered in developing specific and actionable initiatives and related implementation strategies that advance ACWA’s highest priorities. We find ourselves in very different and challenging times. Our new Strategic Plan acknowledges the shifting landscape of water policy in Sacramento and Washington, D.C., the internal evolution of ACWA itself, and the critical need to engage the next generation of water leaders. As we stand at a crossroads, this plan provides a framework to unify our collective efforts and better assert ACWA’s leadership in shaping California’s water policy.
