Alliance for Water Efficiency Nfp

“Membership shall be open to individuals and organizations that have an interest in promoting the mission and objectives of the Alliance; membership shall be effective upon payment of dues and approval of membership application. There shall be one class of members. Members shall have the right to attend the annual meeting of the Alliance and participate in policy discussions. Members shall have no right to vote on resolutions binding the Alliance. All members, voting or nonvoting, of chapters of the Alliance shall be members of the Alliance.”

“Form 990 is prepared by a firm of certified public accountants and reviewed by the President and CEO, Accountant, and Director of Operations. Subsequently, the Board of Directors is provided a copy of Form 990 for their review and approval prior to filing.”

“The organization has a Conflict of Interest Policy that requires that all Board directors disclose their conflicts of interest in any matter involving the organization or its policies. Every Board director files an annual statement attesting to their receipt of and subscription to the policy, and opportunities to declare potential conflicts of interest are provided at the beginning of every Board meeting. The minutes of the Board meetings record any such disclosures offered. Further, staff for the organization monitors all votes taken by the Board of Directors to ensure that no conflicts occur.”

“The Board of Directors meets in an Executive Session and the President and CEO's current employment contract is reviewed. Board members and officers receive no compensation other than reimbursement for travel expenses. Compensation for the President and CEO of the organization is determined by a vote of the Board of Directors. Compensation for the organization employees is determined by the President and CEO.”

“AWE's Annual Report is always posted on the AWE website and contains summary financial information from the yearly audits: www.allianceforwaterefficiency.org/impact/annual-reports. The Annual Report is usually posted by June of the following year once the audit is completed. Also posted on the AWE website is AWE's most recent Strategic Plan, along with Strategic Plans adopted in the past: www.allianceforwaterefficiency.org/about/strategic-plans. Policies and other governance documents are made freely available to the public upon request.”

“Consultant and program costs: Program service expenses 538,854. Management and general expenses 14,669. Fundraising expenses 0. Total expenses 553,523.”

“The process has not changed from the prior year.”

“2020 was the thirteenth year for the Alliance for Water Efficiency (AWE), and significant progress was made on a number of special projects and initiatives. 1. Numerous projects funded through grants and membership contributions were completed in 2020 and are as follows: (in no particular order) a. AMI Standards Project In collaboration with the California Water Efficiency Partnership (an AWE state chapter), AWE led a project to enable better purchasing and implementation of Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) by water utilities across North America. A noted nationally-recognized expert developed under contract a template Request for Proposals for bidding on AMI systems and stressing interoperability in those systems. A Guidance Manual for AMI Implementation was also published to promote best practices in the use of AMI. The project was largely completed in December of 2019, with final closeout work in 2020. Sales of the manual also continued in 2020. b. Outdoor Water Savings Studies In 2014 AWE mounted a multi-year analysis of the effectiveness of programs to reduce water waste in the outdoor irrigation sector. AWE's research in this area is now complete. Three studies have been published, with the final study in the series, Evaluating the Water Savings from Drought Outdoor Watering Restrictions, completed and released in November, 2019. Extensive publicity, a webinar, and final closeout work on this last study was completed in January 2020. c. Predictive Analytics Project AWE intended to initiate a research project on the use of predictive analytics of consumer behavior to improve the success of water utility conservation programs. Funds were solicited, but not enough funding commitments were gathered. The project was put on hold during 2019 while the necessary research funding was attempted to be secured. In 2020 the decision was made to cancel and close out the project. d. Technical Assistance AWE staff fielded 100 technical assistance requests on 12 water efficiency related issues from its members in 2020. Technical assistance remains a core function of AWE services, and an important benefit and connection to the membership. e. Educational Webinars AWE held 11 webinars on a variety of topics during 2020. These online seminars, often conducted in collaboration with our partners, provided valuable information to help water efficiency professionals do their jobs more effectively. In total, the live webinar broadcasts reached over 900 people, and the recordings on the AWE YouTube channel (A4WE) continue to garner new viewers beyond the initial video views of 759. f. Turner Foundation Net Blue Bozeman Project A team led by AWE has been working for several years with the City of Bozeman to pilot AWE's water-neutral planning and zoning ordinance (called "Net Blue"), with the goal to have the Net Blue ordinance components adopted by the Bozeman City Commission. The purpose of the Net Blue ordinance is to allow economic growth in the community without further straining finite local water resources. The project was delayed because of the pandemic, but was nonetheless completed by December, 2020 and the measures adopted by the City of Bozeman. AWE hopes that this project will set an example for other water-stressed communities to adopt the same tools. g. Kohler Low Income Communities Project Beginning in 2019, AWE started conducting research on defining low income areas in Detroit using available census tract information, in order to highlight opportunities to improve water efficiency in these neighborhoods. The work was made possible by a grant from the Kohler Company for the purpose of understanding how conservation and efficiency best practices and retrofits can assist disadvantaged water customers by reducing water waste and lowering water bills. The work was completed and published in 2020, including a webinar that was well attended. AWE believes the work will provide valuable insights for water managers, community leaders,”

“h. TWF Website Resource Hub AWE created resource collections on the website of the Texas Water Foundation (TWF) on the topics of water conservation and efficiency, water and energy, and water reuse, including PDFs or web links to each resource. Resources produced in 2020 included academic research papers, white papers, government and water agency publications, and public education materials. The resources gathered are Texas-specific, and AWE wrote short narratives to introduce and/or explain the topics and/or subtopics created online. The project was finished in 2020. i. UC Davis Energy Model This multi-year project undertaken in 2019 in collaboration with the University of California at Davis is developing an Excel model to help water utilities manage and optimize their energy demands in their drinking water and wastewater systems. During 2020 AWE provided technical advice and support for this Energy Demand Management System (EDMS). Beta testing with water utilities will occur in 2021 to demonstrate how the model can reduce and/or shift peak energy loads, account for different energy tariff structures and programs (e.g. time of use rates and demand response programs), and balance the grid's intermittent renewable load generation. The project will be completed in late 2021. j. CalWEP Irrigation Guidebook This "Lessons Learned" Guidebook was written by AWE staff in collaboration with the California Water Efficiency Partnership, AWE's California chapter. The Guidebook provides urban water conservation program managers in California a summary of the experience of water suppliers in designing and managing dedicated irrigation meters for commercial customers. AWE surveyed 55 existing programs and wrote the text of the Guidebook on its findings and recommendations. The Guidebook was published by the chapter in early 2020. k. Texas State University Tracking Tool AWE is providing assistance to the Meadows Center for Water and the Environment of Texas State University on the use of the AWE Water Conservation Tracking Tool. The Tracking Tool is being used to evaluate water conservation strategies for the City of Houston, Texas. The project will end in July 2021. l. Scott's Miracle Gro Sustainable Landscapes Program In this two-year project, AWE developed the Sustainable Landscapes: A Utility Program Guide to distill the extensive findings of the earlier released Landscape Transformation Study into actionable information that utilities can use to improve their outdoor water efficiency programs. The second phase of this two-year program included the development of three grade school lessons and the issuance of grants in 2020 to build "learning landscapes" that use the lessons. All the AWE work is now complete, and AWE is waiting for the grantees to finish their learning landscapes projects. Official project completion is scheduled for October 2021. m. Tracking Tool Revision v4 The AWE Water Conservation Tracking Tool is an Excel-based planning model that water suppliers can use to evaluate the water savings, costs, and benefits of conservation programs. Using information entered into the Tracking Tool from a utility's system, it provides a standardized methodology for water savings and benefit-cost accounting, and includes a library of pre-defined conservation activities from which users can build conservation program scenarios. The Tracking Tool is widely used and has over 450 registered users. This revision project, begun in 2019 in collaboration with AWE's California chapter, will revise the Tracking Tool to analyze water utility conservation programs under the new California regulatory water conservation targets. Funding has been provided by the users of the Tracking Tool. Work began in 2019 and is expected to be completed in 2021. n. Texas Planning Assistance Begun in late 2019, this project funded by the Mitchell Foundation intended to fund virtual and in-person technical assistance to strategically selected small to medium-sized Te”