Water-sector organizations have planned events in Washington, D.C., in March and April, where attendees can meet with members of Congress and their staff to advocate for policies and funding to support water facilities.

The first of these events, the Water Resources Congressional Summit, will take place on March 25-26, hosted by the National Ground Water Association and the Water Quality Association. The summit will feature discussions with top regulatory officials on key water issues, with March 26 designated for attendees to visit Capitol Hill and meet with members of Congress.

Following the summit, Water Week 2025 runs April 6-12, sponsored by the National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA); the American Water Works Association (AWWA); the Water Environment Federation; the Water Research Foundation; the WateReuse Association, and the Association of Metropolitan Water Agencies (AMWA). 

Water Week events include the National Water Policy Fly-In on April 9, where water-sector officials will meet with Congress to advocate for safe, affordable, and reliable drinking water. The AMWA Water Policy Conference will also take place in D.C. from April 7-9.

Furthermore, from May 4 to 10 the AWWA is holding its “Drinking Water Week 2025” to highlight the importance of safe drinking water and recognize the efforts of water professionals who keep drinking water flowing nonstop. 

The summit and the Water Week fly-ins are designed to provide water professionals an opportunity to advocate for policies and funding that support water utilities among lawmakers and government officials, according to the sponsors. 

Advocating for sustained growth in federal infrastructure investments; water affordability challenges; water research and development and science-driven solutions; and enhancing the resilience of critical water infrastructure is a major part of the water policy fly-in, but other events are scheduled for the fly-in. 

Here are the scheduled events, their sponsors, and dates:

• The National Stormwater Policy Forum is sponsored by the Water Environment Federation (WEF) and the National Municipal Stormwater Alliance (NMSA) and is scheduled for April 7, 2025. 
  
  
• The Water Policy Conference is sponsored by the AWWA and is scheduled for April 7 to 9. 

While both Water Week events include presentations from lawmakers, government officials, and industry stakeholders on key legislative and regulatory issues, one of the primary goals of the D.C. fly-ins is to engage Congress on matters crucial to public water utilities.

To help fly-in attendees navigate their meetings, advocacy group staff—including former Capitol Hill staffers—offer guidance on engaging with Congress and conducting follow-ups. Additionally, NACWA provides a list of tips to maximize the success of meetings before, during, and after they take place.

 In Person Meetings 

Both advocacy group personnel and Congressional staffers voiced strong support for in-person meetings over meetings conducted online such as via Zoom. 

That includes Rachel Erlebacher, a staffer on the Senate Committee on Appropriations, who said, “I love in-person meetings. I definitely prefer them. It’s a much more engaging conversation from an appropriations perspective,” especially once a proposed budget has been made public. The reason for meeting after a proposed budget has been made public is because the groups impacted by a budget can engage in “a more meaty, in depth discussion” on the budget, and those groups can share their views on the proposed budget, including if “the president’s budget is ambitious, or not ambitious enough.” 

Where a virtual meeting does have a benefit is if the budget proposal has not yet been made public at the time of the meeting, said Erlebacher, who added online meetings “really do help when the timing of legislative items fall out of whack.” 

Annick Miller, staff director for the House Subcommittee on Water, Wildlife and Fisheries who has worked on Capitol Hill since 2010, has a different opinion of virtual meetings. In the post-pandemic era the committees have gotten “a lot busier,” which is why advocates should consider a virtual meeting, Miller said. 

Within the congressional committees there are currently two eras, “before COVID and after COVID,” Miller said. Now that the pandemic is over members of Congress and staffers are “way more accessible” than during COVID, but those who have the ability to conduct a virtual meeting should consider doing that because meetings are happening all the time on different subjects, Miller said. 

Whether virtual or in person, meeting with a member of Congress requires preparation, including researching their committee assignments and jurisdictions, Miller said. A legislator must be on the right committee to be effective—otherwise, the meeting may be interesting but not productive, she noted.

Before the Meeting 

NACWA provides tips to ensure successful meetings with Congress or staff.

NACWA advises advocates to schedule meetings with Congress weeks in advance and define clear goals—whether requesting action, building relationships, or serving as a resource. If making an “ask,” come prepared with data on its impact. If aiming to establish a connection, focus on providing insight into clean water issues. NACWA also offers a checklist to guide meeting preparation.

Those actions are: 

• Contact the representative’s scheduler 2-3 weeks in advance to set a meeting.
• Follow up to confirm with the scheduler or staffer.
• Review advocacy materials and current initiatives.
• Research the legislator’s policy positions and relevant issues.
• Identify key points and refine your elevator pitch.
• Prepare any specific asks (e.g., bill support or funding).
• Assemble a leave-behind packet with key materials.
• Arrive 5-10 minutes early.

During the Meeting 

Advocates may get just one to five minutes with a senator or representative, says Matt Mika, VP of Advocacy for the American Horticulture Association. 

So, “get your picture taken” with the senator or representative, but more importantly, become knowledgeable about the issue and use that knowledge “to explain how it affects the business, how it affects the county, how it affects the state,” he said. 

Mika emphasizes that everything ties back to an elected official’s district—they want to know how a request impacts jobs, funding, or the environment.

“Make it personal. You have to tell that personal story,” he said. 

Furthermore, Mika added advocates also need to ensure that congressional staffers are included in the conversation, because staffers are “the ones that are put memos together. They’re the ones talking to the elected officials.” 

Simpson added the advantage water-sector officials have over “think tanks” is they are practitioners who “are licensed operators” of water systems, he said. “So it’s the real deal,” said Simpson, who added, “I would argue that” among those who want “to perfect legislation and make it good, there is nothing better than practitioner input to refine and make good legislation.” 

However, whether practitioner or lobbyist, when meeting with legislators or their staff, it is incumbent “to do the request,” and provide “the justification” for that request, he said. 

Staffers who work on appropriations can literally cut and paste a request into a bill, but the request has “to be realistic” because lawmakers and staffers “can't print money,” so they will not consider “something that’s ridiculous,” Simpson said. 

NACWA advises advocates to stay on message and present issues clearly. Arriving prepared with talking points helps establish credibility. To ensure a successful meeting, 

NACWA provides the following checklist:

• Provide materials (i.e. leave behinds including a document of not more than two pages, business cards). 
• State the reason for your visit. 
• Explain the impact of policy on a state or district. 
• Take notes on important points for questions and follow-up items. 
• Engage in dialogue and allow for questions. 
• Make the request and get a commitment. 

After the Meeting 

Even when a meeting is completed, the efforts to achieve a successful outcome continue, which include staying in touch with the lawmaker’s staffers, according to Miller. 

“Don’t let that (the meeting) be the only time you talk to either the officials or the committee staff because that’s one time in a year and my staff meets with many, many different organizations,” said Miller. “Reaching out with a good old fashioned phone call can provide a little reminder of the issue at hand and why we’re talking to you,” she said. 

However, while a phone call can help build a relationship with a legislator or their staff, advocates can do more to stay in touch with a lawmaker and staff including inviting them to visit a water facility in the representatives’ congressional district, or a senator’s state, according to Mika. Be aware that if an invitation is made in April, “they may not come out until July or August just because they set their schedules two to three months in advance,” said Mika who added “Or, they may call and say, ‘I'm in town tomorrow,’ and ask to just swing by.” 

The positive outcome of that is “once a relationship with an elected official or staffer is set, they're always like, hey, I want to come see that and then you get to have that conversation,” he said. 

In addition, as part of staying in touch, it is important to stay up to date on staff changes, according to Mika, because legislators “have a lot of staffers,” and “the person in the front office today, can be chief of staff tomorrow.” 

To help with post-meeting activities, the NACWA has provided a checklist of actions to implement after meeting with an elected official. Those actions are: 

• Provide the lawmaker’s office with any follow-up materials that were promised during the meeting. 
• Share the experience on social media. 
• If the meeting was with a member of Congress, send a handwritten thank you to the lawmaker, and thank the staff via email. 
• Schedule a follow-up meeting, or facility tour, or site visit. 
• Keep updated on the official’s actions and inform the lawmaker or staff if there are any significant changes to a utilities’ or organization’s policy issues. 
• Follow up with the congressional staff two to three weeks after the meeting to assess what actions are being taken by the legislator regarding the topics discussed. 
• Continue to engage with staff even when advocates do not have a specific issue, or request for them.