The purpose of the rural utility business advisor (ruba) program grant will assist rural alaska communities in building and maintaining management and financial capacity needed to successfully run a…

This Cooperative Agreement award from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under the Congressionally Mandated Projects (CFDA 66.202) program provides $2,442,409.00 to the Alaska Department of Commerce Community and Economic Development Division to assist rural Alaskan communities in building and maintaining the management and financial capacity needed to successfully operate water or sanitation utility systems. Key activities include on-site training for rural utility operators, classroom workshops on critical utility management skills, and one-on-one training on accounting software. The overall goal is to protect human health and the environment by ensuring proper management and operation of drinking water and wastewater infrastructure in rural Alaska, in alignment with the Clean Water Act and Safe Drinking Water Act. The award period is from October 1, 2023 to September 30, 2024.

The purpose of the rural utility business advisor (ruba) program grant will assist rural alaska communities in building and maintaining management and financial capacity needed to successfully run a water or sanitation utility in order to protect human health and the environment and promote compliance with the safe drinking water act and the clean water act. Activities:the ruba training and technical assistance activities and deliverables to rural operators and communities includes; a) on site over the shoulder job training in proper utility management for rural utility systems; b) class room training workshops on critical skills such as budget development, revenue collecting and expenses; c) one on one training and class room training on the software used statewide for accounting for rural utilities called quick books; d) facilitating regional workshops for utility managers and providing classroom instruction to prepare operators for state utility management certification. The recipient's efforts will protect the environment from the discharge of untreated wastewater to ambient waters (rivers, lakes, stream and oceans), in addition, these outcomes further the delivery of safe drinking water to the public by ensuring these systems are managed and operated correctly.subrecipient:no subawards are included in this assistance agreement.outcomes:the ruba program supports the management and continued operation of drinking water and wastewater infrastructure in rural alaskan communities, the intended beneficiaries, the intended beneficiaries. The ruba program works with communities to increase the managerial and financial capacity of the water and sanitation utilities. The objectives are in accordance with the clean water act and the safe drinking water action section 1420(c)(2) which addresses the requirements for states to develop strategies to improve the technical and managerial and financial capacity of public water systems under their jurisdiction.