Sara M. Katz is a Strategic Advisor, Principal in Charge, and Partner at the Bodewell Group (formerly Southwest Strategies Group), where she provides senior-level strategic counsel on communications, public engagement, and stakeholder trust for complex infrastructure and public policy initiatives. She is widely recognized for her expertise in helping public agencies navigate politically sensitive, high-cost water, wastewater, and environmental programs that require sustained public understanding and confidence.
For more than 35 years, Sara served as the founder and CEO of Katz & Associates, a strategic communications and public engagement firm she grew to over 40 professionals before its acquisition by Bodewell Group. Throughout her career, she has advised local, state, and federal agencies on some of the nation’s most complex and visible capital improvement programs, bringing together issues management, coalition building, facilitation, media strategy, and crisis communications to support long-term project delivery.
Sara has provided strategic communications counsel for more than $30 billion in water and wastewater infrastructure investments nationwide. Her experience includes the City of San Diego’s $2 billion Clean Water Program and $5 billion Pure Water Program; the San Diego County Water Authority’s $1.5 billion Capital Improvement and Emergency Storage Program; the Southern Nevada Water Authority’s multi-year $2 billion Capital Improvement Program; the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission’s $4.9 billion Water System Improvement Program and multi-billion-dollar Sewer System Improvement Program; and the nearly $2 billion Greater Houston Wastewater Program. She also led consultant communications for SFPUC’s Rain Ready stormwater program, including the nationally recognized Adopt-A-Drain campaign, and supported the City of Los Angeles’ multi-year community engagement process to advance its One Water Program.
Currently, Sara remains actively engaged in major water and infrastructure initiatives across the western and southwestern United States. She serves as a senior communications advisor to Los Angeles County Public Works, including its Water for LA initiative; continues to support the City of San Diego’s Pure Water and Think Blue stormwater programs; and advises numerous potable reuse and One Water projects in California, Arizona, Utah, and Texas (partial list). She also serves as a lead communications advisor to the Sites Reservoir Authority, advancing a proposed 1.5-million-acre-foot, multi-billion-dollar surface water reservoir in Colusa County, California. Her professional experience additionally includes water and wastewater project work in Australia and Iraq.
A frequent conference speaker and published author, Sara is known nationally for her thought leadership on public trust, stakeholder engagement, and the communications challenges associated with major infrastructure investment. She previously served as Chair of the American Water Works Association’s Public Involvement Committee and was honored with the Otto Bos Lifetime Achievement Award by the Public Relations Society of America. Sara holds a bachelor’s degree in Economics with a minor in Political Science from San Diego State University and has completed formal training in public participation, including the IAP2 Foundations in Public Participation certification.