Jackson Spent $600M on Its Water Crisis—Now the Money’s Gone and the Problems Aren’t

Three years after Jackson, Mississippi’s water system collapsed during a 2022 state of emergency, residents are still facing unsafe conditions and growing distrust in the federally appointed manager meant to fix it. When flooding left the city without drinkable or flushing water, the federal government stepped in, assigning Ted Henifin to lead a temporary fix through a new utility company, JXN Water. Initially welcomed, Henifin quickly exhausted $600 million in federal funds, raising rates twice and proposing another hike. At a recent public hearing, longtime resident Brooke Floyd pushed back: “The residents have already paid this debt 50 times over through buying bottled water, enduring boil water notices, paying repeated plumbing costs.”

Tensions have escalated as city leaders and residents feel sidelined under the court-ordered receivership, with no power to influence major decisions. “You’ve got a federal judge running the show,” Henifin said. “I think [the council] took the easy way out.” In response, Floyd’s People’s Advocacy Institute and the Mississippi Poor People’s Campaign requested a revision to the court order, demanding public accountability and a return of local control. Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba also raised alarms over JXN Water’s spending, no-bid contracts, and Henifin’s endorsement of a bill that would strip Jackson’s ability to govern its own water system.

Henifin defended his approach, arguing the city lacked technical expertise and had long delayed rate hikes due to political pressure. “Jackson,” he said, “was not unlike a lot of other water utilities...run by elected officials who tended to kick the ball down the road.” But critics like former Mayor Harvey Johnson Jr. and Floyd believe the state’s chronic neglect of Jackson—where 82% of residents are Black—reflects a broader pattern of racialized power grabs. “We’re going to have a great water system finally,” Floyd said, “but then we’re going to share the revenue that we need.”

Judge Wingate has delayed a decision on the latest rate increase to allow the city’s newly elected mayor, John Horhn, time to respond. But for many residents, the fight remains the same: clean water, democratic oversight, and dignity. “Water is not political,” Floyd said. “Fighting for children to have a bright and beautiful future… is not political to me.”

Link: New Republic