The political argument over the best way to remove lead lines in Superior took more than a year to unfold but ended in compromise and renewed partnerships. Parties that spent months as public adversaries are now working together to protect public health without passing costs to residents. This doesn’t usually happen. We achieved this remarkable partnership by putting the people first, working hard and demonstrating the humility necessary to compromise.
Lead pipes are as old as the plumbing industry. In fact the word “plumbing” comes from the latin word “plumbum,” meaning lead. Public officials dating back to the Roman Empire warned about the danger of lead pipes in public water systems but because their low cost and malleable nature made them ideal for plumbing, engineers and utilities continued to deploy them in public water systems well into the 20th century.
The use of lead for water infrastructure became a national policy issue when the city of Flint, Mich., switched their water source from Lake Huron to the Flint River. A combination of different chemistry in the water and a lack of appropriate treatment by the utility caused corrosion in the lead pipes and exposed thousands of residents to lead poisoning. The health crisis in Flint was caused by a criminal level of negligence and triggered a nationwide outcry to remove lead from all of our public water systems.
Last fall, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) finalized a rule requiring all public water systems to inventory and then remove lead water lines within the next decade. To support this rule, the federal government prioritized the replacement of lead water lines in the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF), which grants money to the states, who administer it according to state and federal rules.
Superior does not own our own water system. Our water is supplied by the last remaining private water utility in the state: Superior Water, Light, and Power (SWLP). As the EPA finalized the lead lines rule and SWLP conducted the inventory, the City of Superior and the utility began working together on a plan to apply for DWSRF funds to replace lead lines. This was especially vital for property owners, who otherwise would have been responsible for the full cost of replacing their potentially dangerous pipes.
In its early stages, we mutually agreed to run a lead line replacement program similar to the publicly owned utilities throughout Wisconsin. The utility would perform the work but the city would apply for the money and oversee the administration of the program to ensure the lowest possible costs. We could then be in a position to absorb all remaining costs, reducing the resident obligation to $0. This partnership was easy for us to build because it’s how nearly all other state grants to private companies work: The city applies for the money and passes it along to the private company in exchange for local public oversight.
In this case, however, we ran into a major hurdle. State law prevented the award of these types of public funds to private companies on the principle that only public entities should receive public funds. As the only private water utility in the state, we felt it should be a simple law change and brought the issue to Superior Days in the spring of 2024.
As our conversations solidified into more detailed discussions, cracks emerged in the partnership and disagreements grew. The legislation that was ultimately proposed contained no provision for public oversight or any clear mechanism to control costs, which the city felt was imperative.
Furthermore, the city had begun exploring a more permanent solution to the high costs associated with private ownership of the water utility: we could acquire it and manage our own water the same as every other Wisconsin city. If that happened, we’d have to pay SWLP for the value of their infrastructure, which could rise precipitously if they used federal funds to quickly replace many of their water lines.
Finally, the law would award the money directly to SWLP, who would run the program themselves, and any costs over and above the grant funding would be passed directly to homeowners, putting them on the hook for thousands of dollars.
Many of us thought these issues could be easily solved through compromise and slight changes to the legislation, which is common in politics. As the legislation progressed, however, the bill’s authors refused to entertain any changes at all, causing the city to oppose a bill that would unfairly increase costs to Superior residents in the short and long term.
As the legislation moved through the capitol, dissension and discord grew. While the bill ultimately passed both houses, it drew bipartisan opposition and faced a likely veto by the governor, who was inclined to support the city’s position. In the final weeks before the deadline, Superior’s representative, Angela Stroud, approached me about a possible compromise from the city. Instead of amending the bill, which seemed politically impossible at that point, could we simply agree to a partnership that resembled our original plan and cement the terms in a contract?
Over the course of multiple meetings, the city and the utility gradually moved from suspicion to cautious trust before, with just hours remaining, coming to terms on a deal that would allow the utility to access the funds, but protected the city’s ability to oversee the program, control costs and eliminate any bills for residents.
In many ways, the final deal resembled the original positions of both parties. SWLP gained the ability to apply for federal funds available to other water utilities. The City of Superior gained the right to oversee public infrastructure that impacts our residents. The people of Superior get their lead lines replaced at no cost to them.
Progress requires hard work and compromise. I am grateful to Angela Stroud and SWLP for coming to the table with me. By focusing on our duty to the public, we managed to build a deal that works for everyone.
