AWWA SRC57788

The Accreditation program is currently under development by AWWA. It is a form of verification of the application of standards of best practice to deliver high quality services and not an attempt to by-pass the regulatory compliance, which should result in less reporting requirements and less regulatory oversight, and an improvement of customer satisfaction with the water suppliers. It will provide a tool for primacy agencies to be used in evaluation of utilities with the real needs for oversight and assistance. It will result in a change of attitude from seeking compliance with existing regulations to seeking the best strategies to best protect the public health. The Accreditation Policy Committee provides links to the Councils and Committees of AWWA, as well as the Government Affairs office of AWWA. The Accreditation Program is set up independently of the existing quality improvement programs such as QualServe or Partnership for Safe Water. The existing utility quality improvement programs may be used by utilities in preparation for the accreditation as they contain the necessary tools, but these programs are not required for accreditation. Program components to be developed through individual efforts include: policy and procedures; accreditation standards; and, benefits and incentives. Once the program components are proposed in a draft form and representatives of regulatory agencies and professional organizations are briefed about the process, a stakeholder process, facilitated by a professional firm, will be initiated. The stakeholders will provide feedback, express concerns, indicate individual issues, and participate in building the program.