California Water and Wastewater Arrearage Payment Program (CWWAPP)

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The CWWAPP is a state program to provide financial relief to eligible customers who fell behind on their water utility bill payments because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The CWWAPP relief reduces qualified customers’ eligible debt through a credit applied by the utility on customers’ accounts from funds remitted by the state on behalf of customers.   

Golden State Water Company (Golden State Water) participated in the CWWAPP by submitting an application on behalf of its qualified customers with unpaid water utility bills that were incurred between March 4, 2020 and June 15, 2021, and were over 60 days past due. The CWWAPP relief funds are provided by the state of California and are funded by the federal American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA). Customers do not have to apply to receive this assistance.

How will I know if I qualified for a CWWAPP benefit?

Golden State Water is responsible for applying the CWWAPP funds that it received on behalf of its eligible customers by crediting their accounts. The credit on their water utility bills will appear with the description “CWWAPP State Credit Funded by ARPA”.

For more information on how customers’ eligibility and bill credit amounts were determined, please see: 
https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/arrearage_payment_program/docs/2022/adopted-wastewater-guidelines.pdf

What if I still owe a remaining balance after the CWWAPP billing credit has been applied to my account?

Under the CWWAPP, Golden State Water is required to offer payment plans to customers with remaining balances after receiving their CWWAPP credits. Contact our Customer Service Center at 1-800-999-4033 to learn about payment plans and other programs that may be available to help you pay your bills. You may also set-up a payment plan by visiting https://gswater.custhelp.com/ and selecting the Request a Pay Plan option.

If you need assistance paying down any remaining water debt, you may be eligible for other State or Federal assistance programs. One of those programs is the Low Income Household Water Assistance Program (LIHWAP), which will be administered through the California Department of Community Services and Development (CSD), and is scheduled to begin May 2022. For more information on LIHWAP, and to learn about the eligibility requirements, visit their website: www.csd.ca.gov/waterbill.

Income-eligible California renters and their landlord who have been impacted by COVID-19 can also apply for assistance from the California COVID-19 Rent Relief Program

Find out more about CWWAPP at https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/arrearage_payment_program/ .