A/HRC/36/45/Add.1 Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, which indicates that States should take additional steps to protect against human rights abuses by business enterprises that are owned or controlled by the State by requiring human rights due diligence. 26. Another model is where bulk and retail level services are directly managed at the municipal level. The Setúbal Region Intermunicipal Water Association, a regional association with eight municipalities as members, 14 coordinates and promotes projects relating to water abstraction and transportation and distribution of bulk water in the Setúbal peninsula. One of its main aims is to create the Intermunicipal Bulk Water System for the region. The situation in that region is emblematic of the relationship between the various institutional actors in the water sector in Portugal. For instance, the Setúbal Region, through the Intermunicipal Water Association, has refused to join the model in which Águas de Portugal is in charge of the water provision at the bulk level. The Special Rapporteur noted that the municipalities of the region were not comfortable with the decision-making process of the bulk-level management, the lack of transparency in some decisions of the national Government and also the share of revenues in the bulk-level companies. At the same time, the Special Rapporteur expresses concern that those municipalities that opt out from the above-mentioned model are discriminated against when it comes to receiving funds from the central Government and the European Union. The Special Rapporteur notes that only one municipality in the region, that of Almada, obtained funds from the European Union. 27. There is an additional model in which both bulk and retail level water service provisions are operated under the delegated management model. For instance, the Empresa Portuguesa das Águas Livres, a State-owned service provider, operates at the bulk level in the greater Lisbon area and both at the bulk and retail levels in the city of Lisbon. 15 2. Regulation 28. In continental Portugal, the Water and Waste Services Regulation Authority was established in 2009, aiming to regulate the provision of services in terms of quality and economic performance, as well as addressing consumer complaints. The regulatory responsibilities of the Authority were extended to include defining the principles of tariff regulation, notably demanding economic and financial cost recovery, maintaining affordability of services, including through social tariffs, promoting equity in tariff structures and promoting transparent tariff setting procedures. 16 29. In Azores, the Water and Waste Services Regulation Authority for Azores is operational and is in charge of drinking water quality surveillance and other activities relating to water, sanitation and solid waste management. 30. Throughout his visit, the Special Rapporteur learned about the work of the Water and Waste Services Regulation Authority in relation to standard-setting, periodic monitoring of the quality of water and sanitation services, and recommendations for water and sanitation providers. The Special Rapporteur acknowledges the work of the Regulation Authority as a good practice and a reference model for regulation within and outside of Europe. However, in his opinion, there is room for improvement by introducing some elements of the human rights to water and sanitation in regulation in a more appropriate way. In particular, affordability is a normative content that requires more attention from the Regulation Authority. On the one hand, it is necessary to establish an adequate indicator for monitoring and reporting the actual status of affordability in the access of services. The current indicator, which considers the average income in the municipalities, is far from capturing the economic burden on the poorest in the population and those in vulnerable situations. On the other hand, with a view to protecting those who are economically unable to pay for water and sanitation services, guidance for the water and sanitation service providers should be issued and mechanisms for the protection of those groups should be implemented. Furthermore, the Special Rapporteur finds that a closer look at policies concerning disconnection of water and sanitation services is necessary. 14 15 16 8 Alcochete, Almada, Barreiro, Moita, Palmela, Seixal, Sesimbra and Setúbal. See www.esgra.pt/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/RASARP2016_Volume_1.pdf, p. 45. See Decree-Law No. 277/2009, which was subsequently replaced by Law No. 10/2014.