Establishment of the Water Authority

In January 2003, the New Mexico Legislature approved Senate Bill 887 which transferred the municipal Water and Wastewater Utility to the Albuquerque Bernalillo County Water Utility Authority (Water Authority).  Senate Bill 887 became law in June 2003 (NMSA 1978 § 72-1-10).  In December 2003, the Water Authority, the City and County of Bernalillo entered into an operations and maintenance agreement to continue the day-to-day management of the water utility under the City.  The Water Authority completed full transition of administering the water and wastewater utility in July 2007.  During the 2005 New Mexico Legislative Session, Senate Bill 879 was passed which provided the Water Authority the statutory powers provided to all public water and wastewater utilities in the state.

Vision and Mission Statements

The Water Authority’s Vision is to go beyond our customer's expectations.  We value high quality and reliable service to our customers at a reasonable cost, supporting the regional community, the environment and our employees.

The Water Authority’s Mission is to:

• Assure responsive Customer Service
• Provide reliable, high quality, affordable and sustainable water supply, wastewater collection treatment, and reuse systems
• Support healthy, environmentally-sustainable, and economically-viable community

Five Year Goals

The Water Authority established Five-Year Goals and One-Year Objectives in 2005 to help guide the Water Authority’s budget process and address priority issues.  The Water Authority’s Budget Ordinance specifies that the Water Authority shall annually review and adopt one-year objectives related to the five year goals for the Water Authority.  The Five-Year Goals are based on the American Water Works Association’s QualServe business model.  The QualServe framework is modeled on using fifteen successful quality achievement programs, including the Malcolm Baldridge National Quality Award Program, the Deming Award, and the International Standards Organization series of quality standards.  The model characterizes the work of the typical water and wastewater utility around five business systems.  The Water Authority’s Five-Year Goals parallel the QualServe model.  In addition, the Water Authority has developed guiding goal statements for each goal area which explains the long-term desired result for that goal.  Below are the Five-Year Goals and guiding goal statements.

Water Supply and Operations Goal

Provide a reliable, safe, affordable, and sustainable water supply by transitioning to renewable supplies and minimizing long term environmental impacts on the community and natural resources while ensuring the ability of the community to grow in a responsible manner.

Wastewater Collection and Operations Goal

Provide reliable, safe and affordable wastewater collection, treatment and reuse systems to protect the health of the Middle Rio Grande Valley by safeguarding the regional watershed, minimizing environmental impacts, and returning quality water to the Rio Grande for downstream users.

Customer Services Goal

Provide quality customer services by communicating effectively, billing accurately, and delivering water and wastewater services efficiently based on understanding the needs and perceptions of our customers and the community at large.

Business Planning and Management Goal

Maintain a well planned, managed, coordinated, and financially stable utility by continuously evaluating and improving the means, methods, and models used to deliver services.

Organizational Development Goal

Sustain a well informed, trained, motivated, safe, organized, and competitive work force to effectively meet the expectations of the customers, community, and Board in accordance with adopted policies and mandates.