Rural Water - Quarter 1, 2009 - (Page 45)

NRWA has recently launched our 2009 As crystallized in Fred’s comments, you may feel Legislative Agenda (www.ruralwater.org/ news/grassroots/agenda2009.htm), which that your voice is not important and you can’t lists a number of our It Matters grassroots make a difference with all the competition for your initiatives, including our Congressional support letters, Congressional testimony, a tuto- Congressman’s or Senators’ time. However, by rial on how to conduct a state association DC organizing your peer rural water communities in a team Fly-in, etc. All of these activities culminate at the Rural Water Rally in April. effort, we can be heard. It does matter. This homepage resource provides backtheir elected ofﬁcials ground on all the initiatives state associations participate in each ch in Washington, we can year. For example, it details the “how-to” of making Congressional nal Wa be heard. Our success is presentations made during the Rally by answering the following ng hea directly related to our ﬁve questions: 1. how your association is organized, 2. why your organ ur direct local v volunteer’s ability technical assistance eftechni to persuade their Confort is truly unique, 3. per gressmen and Senators. what is the need for this i his gressm What IS important is assistance, 4. what you assista ou the m message you bring accomplished last year, accom ar, to your elected ofﬁcials. and 5. that it is essential ial you They need to see, ﬁ rstthat C Congressmen press ess hand, how your rural for Ru Water funding Rural ng water association works this year. Presentations y ns best for your commushould include exammf nity (and all the other ples and anecdotes of a ( small communities in particular assistance partic ce the st state) and how you given in their district or state t that illustrate the rely on Rural Water’s technical assistance in providing safe wahe p results and uniqueness ter and a clean environment. Whether you know your Congressresults t dl i t Wh th k of the initiatives. Pre- man or not should not deter you from asking for their support sentations should result and meeting with them. The core of the inﬂuence and persuasentat in your Congressmen/ sion that allows us to accomplish our agenda in Washington can yo Senator committing to start back home. The It Matters homepage contains a link to our Senato pressing for rural wa- “It Begins at Home” pamphlet that details what activities your pressi ter fu funding and hav- comrades in other state associations are doing in their states ing yo representative to further the Rural Water mission. This grand enterprise was your understand the truly conceived by New Mexico’s Jim Dunlap and then nurtured into under unique nature of rural a core pillar of our mission by former NRWA President Rodney uniqu water’s initiatives and Tart in 2007. water’ Our grassroots relationship with Congressmen and Senahow essential they are e p g tors is our strength. Our Rally in April in DC is the one time to rur communities. rural One recent example we gather together to On of our grassroots success make a maximum immwas when Atlantic States pact. It is also a time w me Rural Water Association (Connecticut and Rhode Island) made a suc- for us to lend support ort cessful presentation to U.S. Representative Rosa DeLauro’s ofﬁce to and fraternity to each US ch educate the Congresswoman (who is the chair of the House of Repre- other as we utilize our sentatives’ Appropriations Subcommittee for the U.S. Department of country’s democracy cy Agriculture) on the need and effectiveness of Rural Water’s source to ensure that rural ral water protection efforts. Due to our grassroots advocacy and the and small communiniﬁne work of Atlantic States Rural Water Association, we have the ties are best reprerebest chance ever to expand our source water initiative to every state sented at the highest est in the country. The ﬁnal decision on how many states will be funded levels of our governrnment. Every year, ALL in 2009 should be announced by Congress in early January. LL Our strength is our ability to organize at the grassroots level; of Rural Water’s sucucby having thousands of small community representatives or- cess depends on you! ou! ganize together with a common message and each petitioning See you there! First Quarter 2009 • 45 http://www.ruralwater.org/news/grassroots/agenda2009.htm http://www.ruralwater.org/news/grassroots/agenda2009.htm

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Rural Water - Quarter 1, 2009

Rural Water - Quarter 1, 2009 Contents From the President Question & Answer: Water Conservation in the Home Avoiding the Humpty Dumpty Approach to Data Backup From the CEO What the Future Holds Asset Management for Small Communities Understanding Your Surface Water Source: The Rivers Hydraulic Models Expeditionary Water Packaging System Graces Delta The Rural Water Rally in April Training in Hawaii Regulatory Update Rural Water Releases Report on Water Infrastructure Projects and Economic Stimulus Legislation Throwing My Loop Advertisers.com Index to Advertisers

Rural Water - Quarter 1, 2009

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