In Detroit and Flint, one in 10 households spend more than a quarter of their income, outside of other essential expenseslike food and utilities, on water services. 

That's according to a wide-ranging report released earlier this month by a team of researchers at the University of Michigan, Michigan State University and consulting firm Safe Water Engineering. The report finds that a lack of water and sewer service affordability is a widespread problem across the state, especially for those with the lowest incomes. 

Like the rest of the country, over the last 40 years Michigan has seen rising water costs. Other than health care, the cost of water service in the U.S. has, on average, increased at a faster rate than other essential goods and services, the report notes.