What NACWA does

The National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA) is a non-profit trade association founded in 1970 and headquartered at 1130 Connecticut Avenue NW, Washington D.C. It is the only national association that exclusively represents public clean water utilities in the United States, engaging on federal legislative, regulatory, legal, and communications fronts to advance clean water policy. NACWA's membership base is composed of municipal clean water utilities, wastewater treatment agencies, water reclamation facilities, and sanitation districts, with named members including Honolulu Department of Environmental Services, Albuquerque Bernalillo County Water Utility Authority, Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District, El Paso Water, Hampton Roads Sanitation District, Fairfax County DPWES, Sacramento Area Sewer District, Alexandria Renew Enterprises, and Orange County Sanitation District.

NACWA's product surface spans four pillars: (1) advocacy campaigns and policy toolkits (e.g., PFAS, Biosolids, Stormwater, Climate Adaptation & Resiliency, Nutrients & Farm Bill, Infrastructure Funding, Integrated Planning, Tax-Exempt Municipal Bonds, CWA-SDWA Intersection, Water Resources Utility of the Future, Environmental Justice); (2) publications (Clean Water Current newsletter, Clean Water Advocate magazine, The Clean Water Voice Blog, 2025 Cost of Clean Water Index, Financial & Salary Survey Reports, Annual Report); (3) conferences and training (Utility Leadership Conference, National Clean Water Law & Enforcement Seminar, Fall Strategic Leadership Meeting, Women's Water Network Forum, Strategic Communications: H2O Workshop, Pretreatment Virtual Workshop); and (4) recognition and awards programs (Utility of the Future Today, Peak Performance Awards, National Environmental Achievement Awards, Excellence in Management, Clean Water Advocate Recognition, Hall of Fame). The member-only Engage platform and Congressional Toolbox provide ongoing peer networking and legislative engagement infrastructure.

NACWA's business model is subscription/membership-dues-driven with ancillary recurring revenue from conference registrations and publication sales. Dues follow a tiered schedule calibrated to utility size and type (public agency, supporting affiliate, corporate/legal). Conference pricing is publicly disclosed (e.g., Strategic Communications Workshop at $700–$1,100 per attendee depending on tier). Distribution is direct-to-utility, sold through membership pages, phone lines, and the website. The organization has 11–50 employees, generates no disclosed revenue (no funding rounds; non-profit), and shows no parent company, subsidiaries, mergers, or acquisitions. Strategic partners include WEF, WRF, WateReuse Association, U.S. Water Alliance, EPA, and DOE (joint recognition programs), and Brown and Caldwell (workforce development collaboration).

Name

NACWA

Legal name

National Association of Clean Water Agencies

Website

https://nacwa.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1970

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA) is a U.S. non-profit trade association founded in 1970 that solely represents public clean water utilities nationwide, delivering federal legislative, regulatory, legal, and communications advocacy, conferences, publications, and peer-networking programs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Washington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: Annual membership dues from public clean water utilities. NACWA offers a membership dues schedule with different tiers based on utility size/type. This is the primary recurring revenue stream.
2. Conference & Event Registration: Revenue from conferences and workshops including the annual Utility Leadership Conference, National Clean Water Law & Enforcement Seminar, Strategic Communications workshops, and other training events. Registration fees vary by membership status.
3. Publications & Resources: Revenue from publications including white papers, financial survey reports, and potentially the Clean Water Advocate magazine.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

NACWA is a nonprofit membership trade association that provides federal legislative, regulatory, legal, and communications advocacy on behalf of public clean water utilities. It sells tiered annual memberships, hosts paid conferences and workshops, and publishes reports such as the Cost of Clean Water Index. Members also gain access to peer networking through the NACWA Engage online community and to recognition programs such as Utility of the Future Today.

Product overview

The National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA) is an association organization, not a software product company. NACWA represents public clean water utilities nationwide and provides advocacy, publications, awards, conferences, and member resources. Its portfolio includes advocacy campaigns (PFAS, Biosolids, Stormwater, Climate Adaptation, Infrastructure Funding), publications (Clean Water Current, Clean Water Advocate), award programs (Utility of the Future Today, Peak Performance Awards, NEAA, Hall of Fame), conferences (Utility Leadership Conference, Women's Water Network Forum, Law Seminar, Strategic Leadership Meeting, Pretreatment Workshop), and member resources (Congressional Toolbox, Engage Platform, Membership Directory).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• NACWA Membership Tiered annual memberships for publicly owned municipal clean water utilities, sanitation districts, and supporting affiliates, providing access to advocacy resources, regulatory analysis, publications, peer networking, and discounted event pricing.
• Utility Leadership Conference NACWA's annual flagship conference for public clean water utility leaders exploring leadership, service, and innovation strategies for resilience and community impact.
• Strategic Communications: H2O Workshop Workshop focused on strategic communications skills for clean water utility executives and communications staff, covering PFAS communication, crisis response, and social media.
• National Clean Water Law & Enforcement Seminar Annual seminar focused on legal and enforcement issues affecting public clean water utilities, including regulatory compliance and litigation developments.
• Women's Water Network Forum Forum providing networking and professional development opportunities for women working in the water and wastewater utility sector.
• Pretreatment Virtual Workshop Virtual two-half-day workshop covering pretreatment program issues affecting public clean water utilities.
• Fall Strategic Leadership Meeting Strategic leadership convening for utility executives to coordinate association priorities and advocacy direction.
• Clean Water Current Newsletter Regular newsletter publication providing updates on legislative, regulatory, and advocacy matters affecting clean water agencies.
• Clean Water Advocate Magazine Publication covering association news, member spotlights, and industry developments in the clean water sector.
• Cost of Clean Water Index Annual data report providing national and regional indexes of clean water service costs for member benchmarking.
• Utility of the Future Today Recognition Program Collaborative recognition program celebrating water utilities that advance resource efficiency, build proactive stakeholder relationships, and create resilient, sustainable communities.
• Peak Performance Awards Awards program recognizing member agencies for operational excellence in clean water management.
• National Environmental Achievement Awards (NEAA) Awards honoring member agencies for environmental achievements and community impact across categories such as workforce development.
• Excellence in Management Recognition Program Recognition program for member agencies demonstrating excellence in management practices.
• Clean Water Advocate Recognition Program Recognition program honoring individuals and organizations for advocacy excellence on behalf of public clean water utilities.
• Hall of Fame Award Recognition program honoring individuals who have made significant contributions to the clean water sector.

Named customers9 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Water Environment Federation (WEF)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative partnership in the Utility of the Future Today Recognition Program, celebrating water utilities that advance resource efficiency and build resilient communities. Joint program recognizing exceptional performance since 2016.
• Water Research Foundation (WRF)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative partnership in the Utility of the Future Today Recognition Program, focusing on research-based approaches to water utility sustainability.
• WateReuse AssociationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative partnership in the Utility of the Future Today Recognition Program, promoting water reuse as a sustainable solution.
• U.S. Water AlliancecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative partnership in the Utility of the Future Today Recognition Program, advancing sustainable and resilient water management.
• U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEPA provides input and guidance to the Utility of the Future Today Recognition Program, ensuring alignment with federal clean water priorities.
• U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDOE provides input to the Utility of the Future Today Recognition Program, focusing on energy efficiency and renewable energy in water utilities.
• Brown and CaldwellcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnered with City and County of Honolulu Department of Environmental Services on the Training, Development, and Retention (TDR) Program, providing subject matter expertise for workforce development in wastewater operations.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Water Environment Federation (WEF): WEF is the global federation for water quality professionals, with deep overlap on wastewater, biosolids, and nutrient issues. NACWA's Utility of the Future Today Recognition Program is co-administered with WEF, indicating directly comparable mission and member overlap.
• National Rural Water Association (NRWA): NRWA represents rural water and wastewater systems, complementing NACWA's urban/metro focus. Competes for the same federal funding advocacy agenda and overlapping small-system members, particularly on affordability and infrastructure funding.
• U.S. Water Alliance: U.S. Water Alliance is a national nonprofit advancing sustainable water policy, sharing the clean water advocacy agenda and member ecosystem with NACWA. Also a Utility of the Future Today partner.
• WateReuse Association: WateReuse focuses on water recycling and reuse policy and practice, with heavy overlap on reclaimed water initiatives pursued by NACWA members. Co-partner on the Utility of the Future Today program.
• Water Research Foundation (WRF): WRF is a research-focused subscription organization serving water utility subscribers on applied science. Sells research-backed solutions to the same utility buyer personas as NACWA's publications and white papers.
• Association of Metropolitan Water Agencies (AMWA): AMWA represents the largest metropolitan water and wastewater agencies in the U.S., directly competing for the same large-municipality member base as NACWA (e.g., El Paso Water, Albuquerque, MMSD). Closest direct competitor on federal advocacy.

Broad incumbents

• American Water Works Association (AWWA): AWWA is the largest international water utility association representing the full drinking water sector (public and private). Overlaps with NACWA on public utility advocacy, regulatory engagement, and workforce development, but with broader scope beyond clean water/wastewater.
• American Public Works Association (APWA): APWA is a broader public works membership organization that includes water, sewer, stormwater, and other municipal infrastructure functions. Captures some of NACWA's potential members as part of a wider portfolio.

Emerging players

• National Association of Water Companies (NAWC): NAWC represents private-sector water and wastewater service providers. While not directly overlapping with NACWA's public-utility-only mission, it competes for federal advocacy mindshare and regulatory influence on shared CWA/SDWA issues.

Regional players

• National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA) international peer: EurEau: EurEau is the European federation of national water services associations, representing the European equivalent of NACWA's public water utility advocacy mandate. Useful as a thematic/regional peer for benchmarking mission and structure.

Market position

Strengths1 record

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/NACWAOfficial
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/national-association-of-clean-water-agencies-nacwa-
• Xx.com/nacwa

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about NACWA