Clean Water Council

The Clean Water Council was created to advise the Legislature and the Governor on the administration and implementation of the 2006 Clean Water Legacy Act (Minn. Stat. 114D).

The 28-member council represents organizations with a major role in achieving clean water, enabling consensus building and coordination on a wide array of issues critical to the people of Minnesota.

Global: Clean Water Legacy project

Your dollars at work

Funding for this initiative comes from the Clean Water Fund, part of the Clean Water, Land and Legacy Amendment that Minnesotans approved in 2008. The MPCA uses Clean Water Fund dollars to protect, enhance, and restore water quality in lakes, rivers, streams, and groundwater.

Council recommendations

The Clean Water Council’s biennial report includes Clean Water Fund and policy recommendations, and a progress report on Clean Water Fund activities, for the Legislature and the Governor.

• FY26-27 Clean Water Fund biennial report (lr-cwc-1sy25)
• Clean Water Council: Past biennial reports

FY28-29 budget development

The Clean Water Fund was created to improve water quality in ways that were beyond the state’s funding capacity in 2008. The result has been the development of programmatic, systems-level approaches to securing a clean water future for Minnesota. 

The next round of budget development began in January 2026. New this year is a scoring rubric, designed by council members and approved at the October 2025 council meeting. 

• Scoring rubric (wq-cwc1-36)

Current status and public input

Council members spent February-May reviewing the 60+ individual programs seeking Clean Water Funds for FY28-29, and are preparing to make their first draft recommendations for funding priorities. Public input, while welcome at all times, is specifically being sought now to help inform criteria the Council will use to draft those recommendations. Here are the current opportunities to provide input:

1. Submit written input in advance of the June 15 council meeting. These comments do not need to be program-specific or formal. If you would like to make comments regarding specific programs, that is also welcome. Review this list of all programs; proposals and presentations for those programs can be found in past CWC meeting packets. Comments are due to Jen Kader by 9 a.m. on Tuesday, June 9.
2. Participate in the June 15 meeting (9 a.m.-3 p.m.), including a workshop where participants work alongside Council members in identifying key considerations or criteria that should be used in determining budget priorities. If you would like to participate, please let Jen Kader know by 9am on Tuesday, June 9 so that she can plan accordingly and include you in any communications. Lunch is provided for those who RSVP.
3. Provide feedback on June 15 meeting outcomes via survey. Results will be given to members of the Budget and Outcomes Committee as they develop the first draft of funding priorities. 

People are also welcome to continue to submit emails or provide feedback on draft recommendations as they are developed later this summer and early fall. Council members truly appreciate hearing from members of the public as they prepare their biennial recommendations to the Governor and Legislature. 

FY28-29 policy development

The Policy committee engages throughout the two-year cycle in the development of policy statements to guide action on emerging or pressing water challenges. Input for what to consider is shared by council members and is collected through all public input and engagement efforts of the council.

• Large-volume water users (wq-cwc1-37)

  (2026)

Global: Caring for our water storymap

Caring for our water

This new story map illustrates how programs supported by the Clean Water Fund fit together into a cohesive strategy to protect, enhance, and restore water quality for Minnesotans.

Use the story map

• Clean Water Fund protects Minnesota’s drinking water sources (wq-cwc1-32)
• How the Clean Water Fund protects groundwater from degradation (wq-cwc1-33)
• How the Clean Water Fund protects, enhances, and restores Minnesota’s lakes, rivers, and streams (wq-cwc1-34)

Meetings of the full council

The Clean Water Council meets monthly. Meetings are held on the third Monday of the month (January and February are held on the fourth Monday due to holidays) and typically run from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. All are invited to attend.

Upcoming meetings

• June 15, 2026
• July 20, 2026
• Aug. 24, 2026
• Sept. 28, 2026
• Oct. 19, 2026
• Nov. 16, 2026
• Dec. 14, 2026

Recent meetings

• May 2026 meeting
• April 2026 meeting
• March 2026 meeting

Contact the Clean Water Council administrator for older meeting materials.

13056: CWC GovDelivery signup

Stay connected

Sign up for the Clean Water Council newsletter to keep up with the work and water-related news and activity.

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Council members

Members serve until their successors are appointed by the appointing authority.

Member resources

• Clean Water Legacy Act (Minn. Stat. Ch 114D)
• Minnesota Constitution Article XI, Section 15​
• Clean Water Council: Public participation plan (wq-cwc1-35)

Policies and procedures

• Bylaws (wq-cwc1-04)
• Expense form (wq-cwc7-03b)
• Per diem and expense policy (wq-cwc7-03a)
• Conflict of interest disclosure form (wq-cwc7-02a)