State Required Water Asset Management Plans: Lessons Learned from Hundreds of AMPs from Michigan

The U.S. lacks an overall infrastructure renewal strategy. As a result, many states are forced to develop specific initiatives involving infrastructure asset management practices. For critical water infrastructure systems, states are mitigating the risk and burden of aging water infrastructure and declining water quality concerns by requiring water utilities to develop asset management plans and programs. Michigan was the first state to pass a law requiring that a Water Asset Management Program be implemented by January 1, 2018, and an asset management plan (AMP) is completed and submitted by water systems serving a population greater than 1,000. So what happened when over 500 water systems all needed to submit AMPs following various guidelines? This paper reviews the process and findings and identifies improvements for water utility engineering firms to better support utilities as well as recommendations to improve data and water pipe condition assessment results to better support capital planning needs and affordability concerns.