Proposed Stormwater Utility

The City of Reno proposes to amend the Reno Municipal Code, Title 12, Chapter 12.17, a Stormwater Utility fee. Feedback from businesses is provided through a Business Impact Statement (BIS) process.

Since July 2018, the city has worked with its consultant to evaluate an alternative rate structure and program elements for the establishment of a Stormwater Utility.

The general components of the proposed program are as follows:

  • A stormwater utility monthly fee of $9.80/ERU per month beginning January 1, 2025. (Please see the parcel viewer section below for details for property ERUs)
  • The rate would be tied to the Western Region Urban Consumer Price Index (CPI-U) to maintain a consistent funding source that will not degrade or require repeated council ordinance changes to keep up with inflation.
  • A crediting program will allow for an education credit and a community Stormwater Management Credit for regional stormwater benefits. Airport runways, taxiways, and aprons associated with the National Transportation System would be excluded from fees. The program would also include a Low-Income Assistance program.
  • The resulting rate would allow the City to meet its stormwater program goals, fund stormwater M&O, and provide the funding necessary to complete the $470.6 million CIP within 32 years.

The Raftelis Feasibility Study, revised December 2023 proposed ordinance, Raftelis Rate Structure and Financial Plan Implementation Update, and December 2023 Business Impact Statement are available for viewing at:

 

Listen: "We Are Community" radio show - July 14, 2022 

Welcome to the City of Reno’s stormwater utility webpage. The City of Reno is progressing with our Stormwater Utility implementation project. The proposed Stormwater Utility would collect fees to provide a dedicated funding source committed exclusively to maintaining and improving stormwater and flood reduction infrastructure. The main reasons so many cities across the country implement stormwater utilities are to:

  • prevent flooding
  • protect water quality
  • maintain, replace or repair aging infrastructure
  • avoid costly emergency responses

Many structures that protect our city from these stormwater threats are non-existent, aging, or damaged, and we need a long term solution. The solution is a more dependable source of funding to improve our system of storm drains, culverts, flood control and water-quality structures that would improve the overall health and safety of Reno residents. This funding source will enable a proactive approach that will save money in the long run, compared to reactive emergency responses.

We are proposing a stormwater utility fee that, if approved, would provide dedicated funding for repairs and improvements to our stormwater system that have been identified over the last 30 years, but have not been implemented due to lack of funding sources. View our Capital Projects List.

The City evaluated the 2022 funding utilized for our current stormwater program that includes maintenance and operations, staffing and minor capital improvement projects. Currently, only 8%, or approximately $3.65 per month for multi-family residence and $4.46 per month per single-family residence of the sewer fee is used to support our current stormwater program. This amount is insufficient to ensure the City does not continue to increase its backlog of deferred improvements and instead can make targeted investments to prevent future flooding and maintain water quality in our streams and rivers. 

If the City continues with its current funding plan, this problem will only get worse given continual aging of infrastructure along with the increased intensity and frequency of storms our region is experiencing. During a recent storm event in October, 2021, nearly three inches of rain fell in Reno over a two-day period — shattering the previous record by over an inch! In fact, Reno has a long history of flooding.

Residents who live in and businesses who own property in Reno would contribute to the utility. The amount would depend on whether you are a resident or business and on the amount of impervious surfaces on your property and its impact on the stormwater system. In other words, the more hard surfaces on a parcel that does not absorb water, the more stormwater runoff a property contributes. 

But before we determine how to pay for the needed infrastructure, we want to hear from you! For residents, please provide feedback under the General Feedback link.

Parcel Viewer 

The Reno Stormwater Parcel Viewer is a tool to help residents and businesses determine how many stormwater billing units are associated with the impervious surface area, or hard surfaces on their property. 

Single-family residential customers will be charged a standard rate fee, regardless of the size of the parcel and property. See link below for details. 

Businesses, apartments, and properties other than single-family residences will be able to see the measured amount of impervious area on their properties, and from this determine how many Equivalent Residential Units* the property consists of.  

*One Equivalent Residential Unit = 3500 sqft of impervious surface.

What is Stormwater?
What is a stormwater utility?
How is stormwater management currently funded by the city?
How much will this cost?
Timeline of implementing a stormwater utility
How does the fee related to the Truckee River Flood Project?
Previous Reno City Council actions

What we're saying

News

Our news


Archived News

Related web pages