American Water Works Company, Inc. (NYSE: AWK), the largest regulated water and wastewater utility in the United States, participated this week in the National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA) 2026 Utility Leadership Conference & 56th Annual Meeting in Cleveland, Ohio. The event, held from July 14th to 17th, centered on the theme "Purpose-Driven Utilities: Leading with Intention, Serving Communities."

At the conference, the company's Vice President of External Legislative and Regulatory Affairs, Christine Keck, served as a panelist. She contributed to a discussion titled "From Utility to Ecosystem: Advancing Clean Water Priorities with Unexpected Allies." This panel examined how the water sector can move beyond conventional approaches to forge partnerships with a broader range of stakeholders.

Cheryl Norton, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of American Water, stated, "At American Water, our top priority is providing our customers with safe, clean, reliable, and affordable water and wastewater services. We are committed to public-private partnerships to help address one of the biggest challenges facing the water industry—making the necessary investments to secure our water systems for the future while ensuring the services our customers and communities rely on every day remain affordable."

During the conference, NACWA also recognized high-performing clean water utilities and industry leaders nationwide. The association presented Excellence Awards to 540 treatment facilities for their compliance performance in 2025 under National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits.

American Water, with a history dating back to 1886, currently provides services to approximately 14 million people across 14 states and 18 military installations, supported by a workforce of about 7,000 employees.