Philadelphia City Council passed a legislation to provide affordable income-based water bills for low-income families in Philadelphia.

Through the legislation introduced by Councilwoman María Quiñones-Sánchez, the Income-Based Water Revenue Assistance Program (IWRAP) will ensure that low-income residents who can prove financial hardship will see water bills that are affordable in relation to their household income. It will also encourage increased collections and water conservation measures.

The Philadelphia Water Department stated that it worked with Councilwoman Quiñones to identify a transparent rates structure that is easily accessible to eligible customer and that can be integrated into its current billing system architecture.

Quiñones-Sánchez told The Philadelphia Tribune she expects a quick enactment.

“We expect the Nutter Administration to sign the bill immediately, and we look forward to working with Mayor–elect Jim Kenney in its implementation,” Quiñones-Sánchez said. “As we still have a year–plus more of work to do in education and internal systems changes needed to do this bill at its capacity,” The Philadelphia Tribune reported.