NC tap & impact fees (2005); GA rates surveys;
EFC presents in Beijing, China
Project Description
Every year, the Environmental Finance Center (EFC)
and the North Carolina
League of Municipalities (NCLM) collect rate schedules from
hundreds of local government and not-for-profit utilities across
the state. The sampled utilities serve approximately 95 percent
of all customers who are served by public owned utilities in North
Carolina. The rate schedules are used to determine what residential
and commercial customers of these utilities are billed for their
water and wastewater service, at various consumption levels. Information
on rates and rate structures across the state are compiled into
annual reports and tables and shared among utility managers. This
information can assist elected officials and staff as they make
decisions related to water and wastewater services during budget
preparations.
For more information:
Please contact Jeff Hughes or Shadi Eskaf at the Environmental
Finance Center (contact page), or
Karl Knapp at the North Carolina League of Municipalities.
Annual
Reports and Tables of Rates and Rate Structures
Every year, the EFC and the NCLM publish a short report summarizing
the rates, rate structures and trends currently in use across
the state of North Carolina. Tables list each surveyed utility's
residential and commercial rate structures and billing totals
for various consumption levels.
Note: Please compare different utility
rates with caution. High rates may be justified and necessary
to protect public health.
FY07-08 Rates (March
2008)443 utilities participated
in the survey
To view your utility's rate sheet for Fiscal Year
2007-08, please select from the drop down menu. A pdf file of
2-9 pages will appear (requires Adobe Reader). Please note that
some utilities may have more than one rate sheet. For example:
Beaufort County has one rate sheet per district, Raleigh has different
rate sheets for different service areas, Moore County and East
Moore Water District are on separate rate sheets, etc.
Rates as of February 2008. Contact the utilities
directly for the latest, most accurate information.
Publications, Presentations and Additional Analyses
on Rates, Rate Structures, Systems Characteristics and Policies
Publications
NCLM and EFC (2006). How
Much Does Clean Water Cost? 2006: The Story Behind the Revenue
- An Analysis of the Rates & Rate-Setting Practices that Fund
Water and Sewer Services in North Carolina. NCLM, Raleigh,
NC.
A comprehensive report identifying some of the most important factors influencing water and sewer rate setting practices. The report summarizes statewide rates and rate structures, highlights popular practices in utility administration and the interactions between rates and policies including cost-recovery, conservation, affordability, regionalization, economic development and growth management. The intended readers are utility managers, financial directors and local government officials. Includes a 35 page report, summary of responses on a 12-page survey, and 145 pages of utility level data tables.
Hughes, Jeff (2005). "The Painful Art of Setting Water and Sewer Rates". Popular Government, 70: 3, p. 4-14.
The cover article for the Spring/Summer 2005 issue of the UNC School of Government's Popular Government journal. The article looks at the fundamental principles behind water and sewer revenues, focusing on high-priority financial decisions that water and sewer boards face.
Coming soon:
Thorsten, Rich, Shadi Eskaf and Jeff Hughes. "Cost Plus - Estimating Real Determinants of Water and Sewer Bills".
An academic article examining the relationships between various inputs and the bills being charged to customers for water and sewer service. This article is under review.
If you represent a local government or not-for-profit water/wastewater
utility in North Carolina, and directly charge residential customers
for water and wastewater services based on consumption, you
may participate in our annual rates and rate structures survey.
Members of the North Carolina League of Municipalities are especially
encouraged to participate. Please send us a complete copy of
your current water and wastewater rate schedule, including rates
for residential and commercial customers, "inside"
and "outside" rates, and rates in different service
districts. Please also indicate the billing period applicable
for the rates shown in your rate schedule (monthly, bi-monthly,
etc).
NOTE: We have finished
collecting the rate schedules for the 2008 survey. The next
phase of rate schedule collection will begin in November/December
2008 - at that time we will be looking for the FY08-09 rate
shcedule (rates as of January 1, 2009).
Please e-mail, fax or mail your rate schedule to:
1)
(be sure to put "NC Rates Collection" in the subject
heading)
2) Fax: (919) 843-2528 with "Attn: NC Rates Collection"
3) Mail:
Environmental Finance Center
Attn: NC Rates Collection
School of Government
Knapp-Sanders Building
CB #3330, UNC
Chapel Hill, NC 27599-3330