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The Texas Water Plan and Water Privatization <br /> <br />A Stakeholders Group convened by the Texas Water Development Board in <br />2001, as part of the State Water Plan process, discussed the role of public- <br />private partnerships with regard to large water infrastructure projects. <br />Though not all members of the Group concurred, the Stakeholders Group <br />made the following recommendations to the State Legislature: <br /> <br />1) Encourage public-private partnerships in implementing solutions to <br /> water needs, where appropriate; <br />2) Educational materials and programs should be developed and <br /> distributed on the Web site to assist water resource managers in <br /> becoming familiar with the benefits and risks of private investment in <br /> water infrastructure projects; and <br />3) Statutory changes should be considered to ensure that State financial <br /> assistance could be made available to public-private partnerships43 <br /> <br />RECOMMENDATIONS <br /> <br />While certain forms of privatization of water and wastewater services may <br />offer cost-savings and increased rehability and quality of service in some <br />areas, the legislature, the Texas Water Development Board and the Texas <br />Natural Resource Conservation Commission should take steps to ensure that <br />local governments considering privatization are fully informed of and capable <br />of evaluating both the potential benefits and, maybe more importantly, the <br />potential risks of privatization of their water or wastewater services. <br /> <br />Specifically: <br /> <br /> <br />