Ryan Graf, MBA Some signs of inflation are easing in parts of the economy. However, it is not occurring evenly and doesn’t hit all sectors consistently. Those who have projects going out for bid in the spring of 2023 may be hoping for good bid prices. That could happen, but everyone should be cautioned to temper expectations because … Read more
Uncertainty on the inflation front continues. There is probably more uncertainty now than six months ago. As of the end of August, electricity prices were still 15.8% higher than in August 2021. While month-to-month we have seen slight decreases in the Producer Price Index and Consumer Price Index, as well as slowed growth to other … Read more
News about increasing prices seem to be everywhere. When we hear about inflation in the news, we often see the Consumer Price Index (CPI). This is the measure that tracks the prices we see at the grocery store, gas pump, etc. Another significant measure is the Producer Price Index (PPI). The PPI tracks the prices … Read more
Talk about inflation seems to be happening more and more these days as we see news articles reporting anywhere from 2% to 5.4% annualized gains. These headlines, however, don’t tell the whole story as they’re often used as indicators for either the economy as a whole or more consumer focused aspects of the economy. Utility … Read more
Special assessments are a commonly used tool to finance the construction of improvements in parts of the country. The basic idea is that the cost of improvements is assigned to the individual properties that benefit and in relation to how much benefit is received. In other words, when a new water pipeline is installed along … Read more
The water and wastewater industry have taken encouraging steps to update the approach to affordability over this last year. What started as some recognition from those within the industry has grown to include a large affordability framework from the U.S. Water Alliance and formal update to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (USEPA) Financial Capability Assessment. … Read more