Community Stakeholder meetings were held May 24, with the first meeting at 3:00 P.M. and another at 7:00 P.M., at Bismarck Public Works, 601 S. 26th St., Bismarck, North Dakota. The Community Stakeholder meetings began with a presentation and followed with a question and answer period and discussion. The purpose of the Community Stakeholder meetings was to seek public input from community stakeholders about the water, sewer, and stormwater rates included on the City of Bismarck Utility bill.

The presentation included the following:

•Background information regarding water and sewer utilities including common challenges and opportunities facing the industry
•Overview of foundational concepts related to utility financial management and establishment of rates, including characteristics of an enterprise fund, user fees, and initial capital cost recovery mechanisms
•Overview of the industry standard approach to establishing utility rates including identification of system revenue requirements, cost allocation, and user fee design
•Presentation of current rate and fee structures of local utilities and discussion of community objectives
•Question and answer period seeking questions, ideas, objectives and concerns from attendees

Bismarck City Utility Operations staff were available to address questions.

The public is invited to attend the Community Stakeholder meeting, or submit written comments by June 7, 2018, by email to bispublicwks@bismarcknd.gov with the title “Rate Study” in the e-mail subject line. The information presented will be made available for viewing after the meetings.