Danielle Blacet-Hyden: Executive Director at California Municipal Utilities Association

Joseph Blackman welcomed Danielle Blacet, Executive Director at the California Municipal Utilities Association (CMUA), who explained that CMUA is a nonprofit trade association representing 86 water, wastewater, and publicly owned electric and gas utilities in California, primarily focusing on advocacy in legislative and regulatory arenas. Danielle highlighted CMUA’s advocacy win, securing $3 billion from the state for Californians to pay overdue water and energy utility bills, and discussed the high level of innovation among CMUA members, including advanced water recycling, AI-integrated operations, and wildfire mitigation projects. Discussions also covered the ongoing efforts by members to educate the public on essential utility operations, Danielles transition into the Executive Director role, and strategies for addressing the "silver tsunami" in the workforce through early education, internships, and highlighting the benefits of utility careers.Find more at https://www.cmua.org/