CO Online Training | Rates and Finance for Small Water and Wastewater Systems in Colorado
by Cristen Crew
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Date and Time:
9-23-2026
@ 01:00 PM (MDT)
to
9-23-2026 @ 04:00 PM (MDT)
Location:
Online Event
Description: This three-hour workshop equips water and wastewater utility staff, board members, and managers with a practical framework for setting rates that fully recover costs and sustain the system long-term. Designed for municipal systems, the course walks through a proven five-step rate-setting process — from evaluating current financial position, to projecting operating and capital costs, to developing defensible base and volume charges, to communicating rate changes to the community. Participants leave with the vocabulary, tools, and confidence to make sound financial decisions and protect the financial health of their utility.
Learning Objectives:
Partner:
Learning Objectives:
- Explain why financial stability and sustainability are essential to safe, reliable water service. Identify the components of full cost recovery, including depreciation, reserves, and debt service.
- Estimate utility operating and capital costs using sound asset management and capital improvement planning principles.
- Apply a five-step process to gather data, develop rates, and build appropriate reserve accounts.
- Implement rate changes effectively — communicating with customers, understanding creditworthiness, and exploring ways to increase revenue without raising rates.
Trainer: John Colclazier, Program Manager, Environmental Finance Center at Wichita State University
Continuing Education Credits: This training is currently pending approval of continuing education credits, although we cannot guarantee it. Regardless, we will provide each attendee with a Certificate of Attendance for their personal record.
Who Should Attend:
Continuing Education Credits: This training is currently pending approval of continuing education credits, although we cannot guarantee it. Regardless, we will provide each attendee with a Certificate of Attendance for their personal record.
Who Should Attend:
- Managers, owners, and operators of water systems serving less than 10,000 people, or wastewater systems with an average daily flow of less than 1 million gallons
- Decision-makers for water and wastewater utilities, including mayors, finance officers, utility managers, public works directors, city councilors, board members, tribal council members, and clerks
- Consultants and technical assistance providers serving water and wastewater systems
Partner:
Organizer
Cristen Crew
Program Associate at the Syracuse University Environmental Finance Center