Several interesting bills came out of North Dakota’s special session in November. One of particular note is Senate Bill 2371, which includes funding for several programs that are critical to flood disaster recovery and energy-impacted western North Dakota. Here are some of the highlights of SB 2371. The Land Department has been appropriated $30 million … Read more
North Dakota bond issuers only have a couple more weeks to push any general obligation bond deals through before the first of the year. As of January 1, 2012 GOs will be on hold until voters decide whether they want to abolish property taxes during the June election. The North Dakota Public Finance Authority will … Read more
A major adjustment to a federal rule aims to ensure bond issuers have access to the most competitive bond structure. Until now, financial advisors could serve double duty as underwriters on the same bonding issue. The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board (MSRB) Rule G-23 went into effect in late November. The change prohibits municipal securities dealers … Read more
The June/July issue of The Source included an overview of the results of the 2011 North Central Region Utility Rate Survey. The survey for systems serving more than 5,000 people has been printed and is in the distribution process. The survey for systems serving fewer than 5,000, and for regional water systems, is currently at … Read more
The operation of municipal water and sewer systems is funded by charging fees to users based upon how much they use the system. In some communities, this approach has been taken to fund the repair and maintenance of streets, as well. Although not a widespread practice, the approach is popular in the states of Oregon … Read more
One measure of a utility’s capacity to bring in enough revenue to cover operating costs is the Operating Ratio. Calculated as the total operating revenue divided by total operating expense (excluding depreciation and debt service principal), the minimum target for the Operating Ratio is 1.0. The two graphics shown below illustrate the 2010 operating ratios … Read more