<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<rss version="2.0"
	xmlns:content="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/"
	xmlns:wfw="http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/"
	xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/"
	xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom"
	xmlns:sy="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/syndication/"
	xmlns:slash="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/"
	>

<channel>
	<title>Stepwise &#187; Rates</title>
	<atom:link href="http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/category/rates/feed" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml" />
	<link>http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com</link>
	<description>Sound financial guidance that makes a difference</description>
	<lastBuildDate>Fri, 27 Aug 2010 02:32:09 +0000</lastBuildDate>
	<language>en</language>
	<sy:updatePeriod>hourly</sy:updatePeriod>
	<sy:updateFrequency>1</sy:updateFrequency>
	<generator>http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.1</generator>
		<item>
		<title>Reader Question: How do I Update Our Impact Fee for a Plant Expansion?</title>
		<link>http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/reader-question-how-do-i-update-our-impact-fee-for-a-plant-expansion</link>
		<comments>http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/reader-question-how-do-i-update-our-impact-fee-for-a-plant-expansion#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 27 Aug 2010 02:29:16 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>jgmumm</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Rates]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[impact fees]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sewer rates]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[water rates]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/?p=1047</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The following is a Q/A with one of our blog readers: Question: Jason, If we were to have debt for an expansion at the treatment plant, would we use the value of the expansion plus the total value of the debt in our SIF [impact fee/system development fee] calculation?  Or would we do something different?  [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/reader-question-how-do-i-update-our-impact-fee-for-a-plant-expansion/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Water Utility Revenue Projections, Top-Down vs. Bottom-Up Approach</title>
		<link>http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/water-utility-revenue-projections-top-down-vs-bottom-up-approach</link>
		<comments>http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/water-utility-revenue-projections-top-down-vs-bottom-up-approach#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 04 Aug 2010 22:01:20 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>jgmumm</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Financial Management]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Rates]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[financial planning]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[water rates]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/?p=1039</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Water utility rate consultants are in the business of helping their clients figure out how much the rates need to be adjusted.  Once that first determination is made, the consultant is able to address other issues, like how to allocate costs to customers and develop equitable rates, but the first step is to know where [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/water-utility-revenue-projections-top-down-vs-bottom-up-approach/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Why Affordability is the New Challenge for Water and Sewer Utility Owners</title>
		<link>http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/why-affordability-is-the-new-challenge-for-water-and-sewer-utility-owners</link>
		<comments>http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/why-affordability-is-the-new-challenge-for-water-and-sewer-utility-owners#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 20 Jul 2010 23:45:16 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>jgmumm</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Aging Infrastructure]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Rates]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[affordability]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[infrastructure replacement]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[rate structure]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sewer rates]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[water rates]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/?p=1028</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[It&#8217;s not that affordability hasn&#8217;t always been a concern, but a recent look at some important data now suggests that affordability has become a major concern for providers of water and sewer utility services in the US.  For the first time since the 1950&#8242;s, personal income in the United States has experienced negative annual growth [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/why-affordability-is-the-new-challenge-for-water-and-sewer-utility-owners/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Are You Recovering Your Water and Sewer Utility&#8217;s Capital Costs?</title>
		<link>http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/are-you-recovering-your-water-and-sewer-utilitys-capital-costs</link>
		<comments>http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/are-you-recovering-your-water-and-sewer-utilitys-capital-costs#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 18 Jun 2010 03:37:25 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>jgmumm</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Financial Management]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Rates]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cost of capital]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[financial planning]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[infrastructure replacement]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[return]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sewer rates]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[water rates]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/?p=1016</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[In the water and sewer utility, costs tend to pile up quick and they are seemingly endless if not formidable.  As an industry, water and sewer utility services are among the most capital intensive anywhere.  There are very few industries in the world where one has to invest so much capital to produce even the [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/are-you-recovering-your-water-and-sewer-utilitys-capital-costs/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>How Customers Understand Utility Rates</title>
		<link>http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/how-customers-understand-utility-rates</link>
		<comments>http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/how-customers-understand-utility-rates#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 02 Jun 2010 23:26:39 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>jgmumm</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Financial Management]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Rates]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[financial planning]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sewer rates]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[water rates]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/?p=1013</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I recently participated in a brief discussion about potential rate impacts in Gary, IN. The gist of the story is that Gary, IN is facing some very large capital costs to separate its sewer system into two parts: one for sanitary sewer needs, and the other for storm water drainage. Currently, like many older cities [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/how-customers-understand-utility-rates/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Should Cities Sell Water &amp; Sewer Utilities as Defense vs. Recession?</title>
		<link>http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/should-cities-sell-water-sewer-utilities-as-defense-vs-recession</link>
		<comments>http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/should-cities-sell-water-sewer-utilities-as-defense-vs-recession#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 22 Apr 2010 18:01:54 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>jgmumm</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Privatization]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Rates]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sewer rates]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[water rates]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/?p=937</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[In these tough times, some cities and local governments are considering selling their water and sewer utilities to private concerns.  USA Today ran a story on this recently: &#8220;Cities consider selling water, sewer systems for cash&#8220;.  The issues raised in the USA Today story are interesting.  As noted on this blog, we&#8217;ve seen at least [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/should-cities-sell-water-sewer-utilities-as-defense-vs-recession/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>US Conference of Mayors Foresees Major Spending on Water and Sewer Utilities</title>
		<link>http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/us-conference-of-mayors-foresees-major-spending-on-water-and-sewer-utilities</link>
		<comments>http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/us-conference-of-mayors-foresees-major-spending-on-water-and-sewer-utilities#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 19 Mar 2010 14:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>jgmumm</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Aging Infrastructure]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Financial Management]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Rates]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[elected officials]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[financial planning]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[infrastructure replacement]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sewer rates]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[water rates]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/?p=926</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[In a report published in February, the US Conference of Mayors is predicting that spending on water and wastewater systems will increase by by as much as four times.  Depending on how fast the country&#8217;s population grows, spending could double, triple, or quadruple, according to the report.  We&#8217;ve posted the full report here, which is [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/us-conference-of-mayors-foresees-major-spending-on-water-and-sewer-utilities/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Kentucky American Latest in Big Water Rates</title>
		<link>http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/kentucky-american-latest-in-big-water-rates</link>
		<comments>http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/kentucky-american-latest-in-big-water-rates#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 28 Feb 2010 21:24:50 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>jgmumm</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Privatization]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Rates]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[water rates]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/?p=899</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Illinois, Indiana, Missouri, Arizona and now Kentucky.  We&#8217;ve been tracking American Water Co. all year and reporting on the large increases that the company has requested in each of these states.  Kentucky is the latest.  The increase requested there is 37%.   The Kentucky American water rate increase contains very similar elements to all the others [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/kentucky-american-latest-in-big-water-rates/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>A Good Example of Financial Planning</title>
		<link>http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/a-good-example-of-financial-planning</link>
		<comments>http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/a-good-example-of-financial-planning#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 11 Jan 2010 22:14:28 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>jgmumm</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Aging Infrastructure]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Rates]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[infrastructure replacement]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sewer rates]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[water rates]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/?p=812</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[We came across this news article last night and thought it was a good example of strong financial planning by the community of Laurel, Mississippi. In this community, despite an identified need of over $11 million in line replacement costs, the city leaders used a five and ten-year financial plan to determine that they could [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/a-good-example-of-financial-planning/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Are Sewer Rates the Next Battleground?</title>
		<link>http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/are-sewer-rates-the-next-battleground</link>
		<comments>http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/are-sewer-rates-the-next-battleground#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 08 Jan 2010 14:35:54 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>jgmumm</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Rates]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sewer rates]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/?p=805</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Sewer utilities and their operations, including their rates, tend to get less press than their more glamorous water utility cousins.  Perhaps this is because there are just 16,000 sewer utilities in the US as compared to some 52,000 drinking water systems, or perhaps it is because the topic of sewer treatment and collection is, well, [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.stepwiseadvisors.com/are-sewer-rates-the-next-battleground/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
	</channel>
</rss>
