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PRIVATIZATION OF WATER AND WASTEWATER SERVICES In the 1980s, the Reagan Administration began a concerted effort to make the case that selling off many government assets and "outsourcing" government services would reduce government costs and help balance the budget. This push for "privatization", which continues today in many quarters, is based on the premise that government does not necessarily have to produce public goods or services---roads, hospitals, public safety--but is only obligated to guarantee that public services are provided. Philosophically and practically, privatization encourages the public sector to "engage[s] the private sector to provide services that are usually regarded as public sector alternatives." ~ Privatization can take a variety of forms, including "outsourcing" certain activities--such as bill collecting, utility meter reading, auditing and compliance services, landscape maintenance--contracting with a private entity to build and operate a community facility, such as a hospital or convention center or water treatment plant. An example of the most extreme form of privatization of a public service would be the "outright divestiture of both management responsibilities and capital assets to private companies...-2 Privatization, also referred to as public- private partnerships, in any of these forms has probably not proceeded as unconditionally as its supporters would want, but it has taken hold. A survey conducted by the Council of State Governments in 1997 indicated that more that 58.6% of the states had increased privatization during the previous five years, and 55.2% were planning to increase privatization initiatives during the next five years. 3 Examples are abundant, school districts, including the Dallas School District, have hired private companies to manage and operate some of their schools; city councils have hired private companies to operate city convention centers, manage hospital emergency rooms, collect garbage, read electric utility meters. Perhaps the most widely publicized privatization involves state and local governments contracting with private entities to operate prison facilities. The justification for privatization of public sector tasks seems straightforward enough for its advocates: the private sector offers better service in a more cost-effective manner than the public sector. It is not, however, universally accepted that all public sector functions can or should be provided by the private sector. In fact, to date the record does not reflect that the private sector consistently delivers more cost-effective, dependable, and efficient product or services. Privatization also raises unresolved questions about public accountability, resource management, long-term costs,