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by Harmony Bouley In the wake of the declining textile, tobacco, and furniture industries, North Carolina’s agricultural sector has remained robust. North Carolina’s agricultural sector, which has production levels that have historically ranked among the…

As a society, we expect a lot from our schools. In addition to teaching basic skills, we hope our educational institutions will prepare students to be 21st century leaders. Part of preparing future leaders includes…

“Are our water utility’s rates right?” This is an often difficult question that arises at our  workshops and webinars for small water systems, through our direct technical assistance, and which many of our readers may be interested…

As this blog is being written, water and community managers from across the country are talking about the water crisis that is occurring in Flint, Michigan. The City made a decision several years ago to…

How do unpaid bills affect utilities’ finances? Is customer debt similar to debt incurred investing in infrastructure, such as building new facilities? These are inquiries the EFC received a few weeks ago, related to recent…

Last week, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency released a survey showing that $271 billion is needed to maintain and improve the nation’s wastewater infrastructure, including the pipes that carry wastewater to treatment plants, the technology that…

On-bill financing is receiving a lot of attention as an innovative strategy to improve energy efficiency make people’s homes more comfortable. One of the major advantages of on-bill financing is that it can be offered to…

A central tenet of community economic development is the belief that in fostering a healthy economy, we are working towards building healthy, vibrant communities. But many would contend that a healthy economy is only one…