The Water Department treats and distributes tap water to millions of customers daily. Water manages the city's sewer system, and handles wastewater treatment operations. The department is only responsible for billing each household and commercial account in the City, and also resolving billing questions, and meter replacement related questions.

Municipal infrastructure, urban infrastructure, and rural development usually represent the same concept but imply either large cities or developing nations' concerns respectively. The terms public infrastructure or critical infrastructure are at times used interchangeably. However, critical infrastructure includes public works (dams, waste water systems, bridges, etc.) as well as facilities like hospitals, banks, and telecommunications systems and views them from a national security viewpoint and the impact on the community that the loss of such facilities would entail.