A. Annual Transfer: Subject to the approval of the final annual budget by the City Council, there shall be, each fiscal year, an operational transfer from the City’s Stormwater Fund operating revenue to the City’s General Fund as used and defined in the Uniform Fiscal Procedures Act. The City Council may, at any time, modify the operational transfer. The operational transfers shall not prohibit acts and other services being rendered to other departments of the City.
B. Transfer For Administrative Services: Transfer for administrative services to the General Fund shall be in an amount not to exceed the value of the actual services rendered. Such amount shall be set not less than every five (5) years by the City Council after the performance of an independent audit to determine the value of the service performed.
C. Investments, Cash And Cash Equivalents Reserves (Reserve): The minimum reserve level for the Stormwater Utility Enterprise Fund (the “fund”) is thirty percent (30%) of the amount of revenue from the immediately preceding fiscal year (“reserve level”). This level of reserves provides the minimum cash liquidity and operational stability in case of natural disasters, equipment failure, economic uncertainty, and weather variations. As a result of one-time expenses, the reserve level may fluctuate, provided however that the reserve level should not be drawn upon for ongoing operational expenses. If reserves are drawn below the minimum reserve level, the fund will replenish reserves to the reserve level within five (5) years.
D. Stormwater Utility Master Plan; Updates: The Stormwater Division shall prepare, and the City Council shall adopt a stormwater utility master plan (“Plan”) that includes a comprehensive assessment of the City’s roads, drainage infrastructure, and water management features to identify improvements needed to address capacity and flooding issues and will be used to guide future stormwater utility decisions. The Plan serves to evaluate the existing stormwater utility and provide recommendations regarding how the city should prepare for the future. The Plan shall include a review of applicable laws and regulations, finances, planning assumptions, organizational structure, and workforce. The Plan should recommend design standards for new development, re-development, transportation, water quality, floodplain mitigation, and inadequacies in the storm sewer system. The Plan shall be updated not less than every 5 years.
E. Rate Studies and Impact Fee Studies: Stormwater utility rate studies and impact fee studies shall be conducted not less than every five years to update assumptions and ensure the long-term solvency and viability of the City’s stormwater system.
F. Annual Review: Utility rates and impact fees shall be reviewed annually as part of the budget process and necessary adjustments made to avoid major rate increases. (Ord. 23-10: Ord. 23-06: Ord. 17-40)