City of Columbus issued the following announcement on March 28.
The City of Columbus urges residents to take the time to vote on April 5th on the Stormwater Fee Referendum. The city has a history of flooding and stormwater concerns. The Cities current stormwater infrastructure needs routine maintenance and additional infrastructure is needed to further alleviate current stormwater issues. The City’s stormwater issues can no longer be deferred.
The Mayor, the Council and the city administration has made it a priority to find a solution that will provide a dependable and dedicated mechanism to fund these needs. The city hopes the residents make the stormwater referendum a priority as well. The City of Columbus needs to be proactive in its efforts to alleviate current stormwater issues but cannot act on a solution without a dedicated funding source that will not lower the tax levy.
Currently, the City of Columbus funds stormwater improvements with property tax revenue. Because these efforts are funded with tax dollars, stormwater needs must compete with other projects and services, such as street and road maintenance or public safety commitments like police, fire, and emergency medical services.
In 2013, the State of Wisconsin passed Act 20, which required municipalities to reduce the tax levy by the amount of fees collected by Stormwater Utilities. Act 20 also included tools for municipalities to avoid the levy reduction; allowing local voters to approve a referendum authorizing the city to collect service fees and not reduce the levy by the amount of fees collected. In short, this means that funds can be collected specifically for stormwater maintenance and improvement projects without effecting the budgets to other services.
The next step is to have the residents of the city approve a stormwater fee at the April 5th, 2022, referendum. The city would like to have the Columbus Stormwater Utility charge a stormwater fee in the amount of $5 per month per Equivalent Runoff Unit. An equivalent runoff unit means the statistical average horizontal impervious area of “single family homes.” The horizontal impervious area includes, but is not limited to, all areas covered by structures, roof extensions, patios, porches, driveways, and sidewalks. The average residential property in the City of Columbus is equivalent to one ERU. Meaning, the property owner of a residential property would pay a stormwater fee of $5 per month or $60 annually.
Ultimately, it is up to the residents of the City of Columbus to help create a funding solution by passing the proposed stormwater utility fee referendum on April 5th. The proposed referendum question is:
“Shall the City of Columbus Stormwater Utility be permitted to charge its customers for maintenance and operation of stormwater management facilities and infrastructure without reducing the levy limit for fees collected?”
All City residents and businesses contribute to stormwater. The flooding affects all residents and businesses when roads are closed, parks are closed, or other public areas are flooded and/or closed. By passing the referendum, you are voting to create a dedicated funding source that will allow the city to fund need maintenance and repairs to the cities stormwater infrastructure.
Original source can be found here.
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