The New York City Water Board ("Board") is responsible for establishing rates and charges and collecting user payments from customers for services provided by the water and wastewater utility systems ("System") of the City of New York ("City"). The Board is obligated by an Agreement of Lease with the City and a Financing Agreement among the Board, the City, and the New York City Municipal Water Finance Authority ("Authority") to establish rates and charges in each year at a level that will provide sufficient revenues to cover the cost of providing water and wastewater services. The Board disburses the revenues it receives from ratepayers: i) to fund debt service incurred by the Authority on bonds it issues to finance capital improvements to the System, ii) to reimburse the City for costs it incurs in operating and maintaining the system, iii) to pay a rental to the City for the lease of the system, and iv) to make any other payments and fund required reserves. The Board has adopted several rate policy goals in addition to revenue sufficiency. These include:

• rates should be fair and equitable to different classes of customers and reflect the cost of providing water and wastewater services
• the rate structure should encourage water conservation, and
• the rate structure should provide a reasonably stable and predictable flow of revenue

The Board together with the Authority was created to enhance and improve the City’s ability to obtain adequate and reliable financing in the capital markets for its water/sewer infrastructure requirements. The System is financed entirely through the revenues received from the imposition of charges on users for services provided by the System. No tax levy funding is provided. The Board does not represent any particular constituency; it seeks to fairly pursue the best interests of the City of New York and all of its residents and businesses.