Is your community concerned about looming infrastructure needs, encroaching property tax limits, rising utility rates, or tightening regulations? Are you meeting the high expectations for service quality and reliability?

Ruekert & Mielke, Inc. (R/M) partners with municipalities and companies to find and solve financial challenges. Our extensive knowledge and expert analysis help our clients succeed in spite of increasingly difficult financial constraints.

Services

Impact fee and Special Assessment Studies
Utility Acquisitions and Consolidations
Wholesale Water and Sanitary Sewer Contracts and Inter-municipal Negotiations
Water, Sanitary Sewer, and Storm Water Cost of Service and Rate Design
Expert Witness and Strategy
Grant Applications and Funding Strategies
Water Loss Management and Conservation Planning
Utility Demand and Revenue Forecasting
Asset Management and Capital Improvement Plans

Financial Services Successes

Park Impact Fee Study

The City of Sheboygan, Wisconsin, wanted to provide amenities to attract development to the City, while shielding current residents from the cost of new development. Ruekert & Mielke recommended impact fees to fund park facilities and prepared an impact fee study. Sheboygan implemented its first impact fees to fund $760,000 of capital costs for the park and recreation trail.

Water Rate Study

The Racine Water Utility needed to increase water rates to meet increasing operation and maintenance costs, depreciation, and property tax equivalent payments. Ruekert & Mielke applied to the Wisconsin Public Service Commission and prepared a water rate study, supported by the PSC. Submitting its own rate study allowed Racine more control over the new water rate agreements, allowing it to increase revenue by $1.5 million, while keeping water rates competitive, and reducing fees to the City of Racine for water utilized for fire protection.

Consolidation Feasibility Study

The City of Hudson and Village of North Hudson share their water and sanitary sewer systems. The Village and City own different parts of both systems. Bogged down with unclear and outdated intermunicipal agreements, they needed a way to resolve questions over the funding, repair, and operation of the water and sanitary sewer systems.

Park Impact Fee Study

The City of Franklin, Wisconsin, had a $13 million-dollar goal to supply new growth to parks and trails through 2030. Ruekert & Mielke prepared an impact fee study for Franklin including: updating service-level standards, development, and capital cost forecasts. The revised impact fees will allow Franklin to acquire and develop 252 acres of new parks, and five miles of new trails.

Learn More About Financial Services

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Storm Water Utilities Likely to Fall Outside Tax Levy Limits Soon

Municipalities may soon be allowed to create storm water utilities without storm water fees counting against their tax levy limits. Pending legislation would declassify storm water management as a covered service, meaning that any new or increased storm water fees would no longer require an offsetting levy deduction. Municipalities that would like to take advantage of the change should prepare themselves to create storm water utilities as soon as possible.

Is a Wheel Tax the Right Option for Your Community?

Municipalities are constantly looking for ways to fund improvements in local infrastructure. Wheel taxes have been around for more than 50 years, but not many Wisconsin municipalities currently take advantage of them. Could a wheel tax be the right funding option for your community?

How to Explain Water Rate Increases to Customers

The EPA estimates that the US will spend $655 billion to meet our water needs in the next twenty years. More than ever, gaining public buy-in for infrastructure projects is a major concern of water-utility managers. How can your water utility secure your community’s support to properly fund necessary infrastructure projects? Keep reading to learn more.

How to Earn Public Buy-in for Funding Infrastructure

Financially Smart Water Conservation: An Oxymoron for Utilities?

While improving your utility’s finances through water conservation may seem daunting, in truth it can be as simple as taking proper care of your distribution system. Investing in the inspection, maintenance, and repair of your system can yield great net cost savings, all without reducing sales. Read more to learn how.

Using Water Rate Revenue to Replace Lead Laterals

Although Wisconsin banned lead in drinking water pipes in 1984, the US Environmental Protection Agency estimates that 176,000 Wisconsin homes receive water through lead pipes. Wisconsin water utilities can now use water rate revenue to replace the customer-owned portion of a lead service line. Allowing utility funding to contribute to these upgrades will improve public health, increase public acceptance of rate increases, and improve compliance with lead limits for drinking water. Continue reading to learn more.

New Restrictions on Impact Fees

Recently, the state legislature made sweeping changes to impact fees that will likely impact your municipality and could require you to update your ordinances and/or update your impact-fee studies.

Six Ways Local Communities Expedited Working with the PSC

Working with the Public Service Commission (PSC) for water rates can be slow and labor-intensive. But don’t worry – there’s still hope. Learn how local communities like yours applied these six best practices to expedite the process and reduce effort.

Best Practices for Working with the PSC

The Wisconsin Public Service Commission (PSC) regulates Wisconsin water utilities. You can’t avoid it. PSC approval is required before utilities can change rates. Navigating PSC regulation requires preparation, planning, and a lot of patience. But sometimes the PSC can be a valuable tool in your toolbox to solve problems.

Finding the Best Way to Recover Sewerage Costs

Many communities discharge sanitary wastewater to treatment plants in other communities. The communities receiving wastewater from neighbors need to find the best way of recovering, and even reducing, the costs of this service.

“With assistance from R/M’s financial team, water rate applications to the Public Service Commission have never been easier. R/M’s experts have extensive financial knowledge and know how to apply it. R/M’s relationships and location in Madison make working with state agencies a breeze. They successfully navigate the bureaucracy in Madison and deliver results.”

— City of Racine, WI