Stormwater Utility Billing and Collections

1. Stormwater Utility Billing and Collections Keith Readling, PE Vice President AMEC Earth & Environmental 101 W. Friendly Avenue, Suite 603 Greensboro, NC 27401 (336) 691-5398

2. Public Program Finance Database DEFINE PUBLIC DATABASE PROBLEMS, NEEDS FUNDING INFO & ED PLAN POLICY ISSUES AND GOALS LEGAL ISSUES PROGRAM STAKEHOLDERS DATA, MATERIALS FUNDING PRIORITIES & & GEN EDUCATION & INFORMATION POLICY ISSUES OBJECTIVES MASTER RATE STRUCTURE COST OF SERVICE ACCOUNT FILE & ANALYSIS ANALYSIS BILLING DATA RATE STUDY & ORGANIZATIONAL BILLING SYSTEM CASH FLOW ISSUES DEVELOPMENT ANALYSIS UTILITY INQUIRY AND IMPLEMENTATION RATE IMPLEMENTATION COMPLAINT CAMPAIGN ORDINANCE STEPS RESPONSE UTILITY IMPLEMENTATION & CUSTOMER SERVICE

3. Stormwater Utility DataInvolves Many Departments Within a Local Government • GIS (data directly forming the basis for billing) • Tax Assessor (info for classifying parcels, potential billing mechanism) • Utility Billing System (potential billing mechanism) • Photography • Parcels

4. Billing for Stormwater – The Basic Premise • The basis for billing is often the amount of Impervious Area per Parcel • Digital parcels and impervious data layers are the key components in this type of stormwater fee calculation • The Simple Impervious rate method is based solely on impervious area • Other rate methods exist that involve the Gross Area of a parcel, estimation of development of a parcel, etc.

5. Cadastral (Parcel) Data • Probably the single most important data element within the Data Track of the utility…can make or break the utility…errors in this data piece will have a ripple effect across the utility • Parcel boundary represents the absolute area for potential stormwater billing • Horizontal Accuracy?…evolved from tax maps, COGO? • Accurate Parcel Identification Numbers (PINs)? • Current? • How are attached residential structures such as condos or townhouses mapped?

6. Parcel Accuracy Issues - Spatial

7. Parcel Accuracy Issues – PIN errors

8. Impervious Data Layer • Typically comprised partially of various planimetric data layers, or generated solely by “heads up” digitizing of aerial imagery • Usually includes: building footprints, parking lots, driveways, runways, taxiways, aprons, sidewalks, patios, athletic courts, storage tanks, other hardened surfaces • Simple Impervious rate methodology does not differentiate levels of imperviousness

9. Aerial Imagery (1.0’ resolution)

10. Impervious Data Layer

11. Parcel Classification –Single-Family Residential and Non Single-Family Residential • Often, impervious area per parcel is only calculated for non single-family residential (NSFR) properties • Single-family residential (SFR) properties are often all assigned a flat rate • NSFR properties usually represent only 10-20% of total parcels

12. Sample Percentages of NSFR Parcels forother Stormwater Utilities

13. Flat Rate for SFR Parcels?(one of many Policy Decisions made early in the process) • Flat Rate for SFR Parcels is common…relatively little variation in impervious area when compared to NSFR Parcels • Entity must have complete impervious data for all parcels if a flat rate for SFR is not employed…significant costs to generate impervious data layer if it doesn’t already exist • If impervious data for all parcels is available, SFR parcels are billed in tiers Ex. Tier 1 = < 2,500 Tier 2 = >= 2,500 and < 4,000 Tier 3 = >= 4,000

14. Stormwater Fee Calculation –The Equivalent Residential Unit (ERU) • Represents the average amount of impervious area found on an SFR parcel • Represents the billing unit for stormwater • Derived by finding the MEDIAN impervious area in a sample of SFR parcels or a complete census of SFR parcels • ERU values across the country typically range from 1,800 to nearly 4,000

15. Fee Calculation ERU = 2,500 Rate = $3.00 Impervious Area = 54,256 sq.ft. 54,256 / 2,500 = 21.706 round up to 22 (billing units or ERUs) 22 x ($3.00) = $66.00 / month or $792.00 / year

16. Complex Fee Calculations ERU = 2,500 Rate = $3.00 Total Impervious Area = 96,950 sq.ft. for 10 Units within Common Parcel 96,950 / 2,500 = 38.78 round up to 39 (billing units or ERUs) 39 x ($3.00) / 10 (units) = $11.70 / month or $140.40 / year per Unit

17. Billing Mechanism – Pros and Cons • Tax Bill • Stormwater utility is parcel-based • Annual billing relieves pressure for daily account maintenance • Stormwater fee resembles a tax • Less desirable cash flow • Decreased ability to enforce non payment of stormwater fee • Tax-exempt parcels • Utility Billing • Stormwater fee is billed with other utility fees • Utility System can enforce non-payment • Good cash flow • Utility Billing System is not parcel-based…technically complex initial translation • Demands daily attention

18. Utility Billing Challenges –Many to 1 Situations 4 Parcels associated with 1 utility service location

19. Utility Billing Challenges –1 to Many Situations 1 parcel associated with 22 utility service locations

20. Utility Billing Challenges –Many to Many Situations 263 Parcels and over 50 associated utility service locations with multiple owners

21. Stormwater Billing and CollectionsLessons Learned on Account Setup • Flat rates for residential single family detached • Tiered residential rates • Owners vs. tenants • Duplexes, triplexes, quads • Condominiums and townhouses • Tax-exempt properties • Many:1 situations • Government properties • Credits

22. Stormwater Billing and CollectionsLessons Learned on Account Maintenance • Building permits and planimetric features • New photography • Tiered residential rates • Customer service by phone • Customer service maps • Credits

23. Questions