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PROJECTS The following project summaries provide a representative sample of the services offered by RUSSELL CONSULTING. Each project has been classified into one of the following categories. Follow the category links to find relevant project descriptions.
RUSSELL CONSULTING completed an electric service rate study which ensured the continued financial stability of the Merrimac Municipal Light Department. To achieve this goal, RUSSELL CONSULTING examined the relevant regulatory returns, operational records, and billing data to develop a financial model depicting the Department’s expenses and revenues over the six–year period from 2000 to 2005. Projections for the Department’s finances were then developed for three future years (2006-2008) and various rate designs were developed and tested. The study included a cost of service analysis and development of several rate design alternatives. RUSSELL CONSULTING identified several rate modifications needed to achieve the necessary balance between the revenues required to provide electric service and the rates put in place to recover system costs. The redesigned rates we proposed in this case were subsequently adopted by the Board of Commissioners. RUSSELL CONSULTING completed a User Rate Study (URS) for the Taunton Sewer Department, which serves the City’s 56,000 residents. The URS was needed to identify a rate structure and unit rates that are fair and equitable, and that encourage conservation of water resources and reduction of wastewater discharges. RUSSELL CONSULTING recommended a set of rates and charges that would produce enough revenue to pay for all system operation and maintenance (O&M) costs in the short run (two to three years), and all costs of service, including all capital costs (both renewal and replacement, and upgrade and expansion of facilities) over the medium- to long-run. The study also proposed that the City convert from a flat fee system of sewer use charges to a more equitable use-based system that reflects the actual level of use (with water consumption as the surrogate measure). All of our rate recommendations were subsequently approved by the Mayor and the Board of Selectmen for implementation. RUSSELL CONSULTING performed a study for the Department of
Public Works that included a projection of component and total revenue
requirements, an assessment of current reserves, draw-downs to prevent rate
shock over the next several years, and continuation of a rate stabilization
fund. A cost of service study was
completed to determine customer class cost responsibility and to compute
various unit rates and charges for water and sewer service. The evaluation resulted in several feasible
rate structure alternatives, so that an informed decision could be made as to
which types of charges would be most effective and preferred. The study concluded with a detailed set of
recommendations relative to future rates and charges. Mr.
Russell assisted the Boston Water and Sewer Commission in evaluating the
advantages and disadvantages of alternative water and wastewater rate
structures, including: conservation rates, low income and “life-line” rates,
service charges, seasonal rates, impact fees, storm water charges, and
industrial wastewater rates. The
objectives of each alternative were described along with the form of the rate
structures and variations that were available.
The impact on the Commission in terms of revenue enhancement, revenue
stability, and both short-term and long-term implementation costs were
presented, along with associated customer impacts. As a result of this analysis the Commission
adopted several recommendations, including the new conservation rate structure. The Town of Subsequently, RUSSELL CONSULTING
was contracted to perform a comprehensive evaluation of the Town’s application
fees. The purpose of this review and
evaluation was to assess the Rowley Water Department’s implementation and
collection of a special fee called the application fee (AF) established in
1986. Furthermore, it was the intent to
suggest modifications that could enhance the fee’s cost basis and equitability,
where appropriate. The study recommended
that the Board reinstitute impact fees to achieve its main objectives: to
insure that the level of the charge is appropriate and not discriminatory in
any way, and that proper control measures are established to manage the
collection and distribution of all impact fee revenues.
The Town of Subsequently, RUSSELL CONSULTING
was contracted to perform a comprehensive cost-of-service study (COSS) for both
the water and sewer utilities. Our
primary goal was the determination of what it cost the WPCA to provide water
and wastewater service to each customer class.
Additionally, the study and report was designed to provide the back-up
documentation needed to adjust rates and revenues to be recovered from each
customer class, if the Authority determined that such a change would be in the
best interest of the Town, its residents, and businesses. RUSSELL CONSULTING was contracted by the Town’s Utilities Department to evaluate its water and sewer rates, billing practices, special fees and assessments, and revenue recovery performance. Several recommendations for improvement were provided. Firstly, in order to encourage conservation, the Department should consider adopting a conservation rate structure based on either an increasing block structure or seasonal rates. In addition, excess funds should be used to pay for an expanded Renewal and Replacement Program and to institute a Stabilization Fund in order to cover revenue shortfalls resulting from extraordinary conditions and emergencies. As a
follow-up to the initial study, RUSSELL CONSULTING performed a
comprehensive inventory and appraisal study and established a fixed asset
accounting system in order to bring the two utilities into compliance with
GASB-34. This study included a complete
inventory and listing of all physical assets owned and utilized by the
Department in providing water and wastewater services, an appraised value of all
of these assets, and the establishment of a system of continuing property
records (fixed asset accounting system). The City of Mr.
Russell was part of a team of consultants that evaluated a rate increase
proposed by the City’s Water Board. This
analysis focused on the issues of capital improvements program, financial
planning, determination of revenue requirements, cost of service allocations,
rate design, and extension policies. The
Water Board is an operating entity of the City, responsible for providing
retail and wholesale water service to the City and surrounding
communities. A series of interim reports
addressing each of these issues in an objective manner was prepared and
presented to the City. After review and
input from City officials, a final report was presented containing a summary of
key findings and conclusions along with several recommendations for adjustments
and preferred alternatives. Jamaica Water Supply Company ( Mr.
Russell was instrumental in completing 4 innovative financial/rate studies for
this large water utility. These included
an inventory and appraisal of all assets on both an original cost and
replacement cost basis (including depreciation rates, annual expenses and
accumulated reserves), a cost separation study which allocated all
costs-of-service between that portion of the system in Queens County and the
remainder in Nassau County, a cost-of-service/rate design filing and testimony
before the New York Public Service Commission, and a severance study in
anticipation of a public takeover of the Queens portion of the system. Mr. Russell was a
member of the team of advisors
to the City of Mr. Russell provided technical assistance
to the Government of Egypt as part of a wastewater service charge study for the
Greater Cairo Wastewater Project. He
developed a comprehensive cost of service and tariff design model which was
used to estimate component and total costs of providing wastewater services,
and resulting tariff levels needed to satisfy social and economic goals. Customer impacts, willingness to pay
evaluations, and related institutional factors were also a critical part of the
analysis. The final report presented
estimates of required service charge levels (as a percentage of the water
supply tariff) necessary to recover 100% (and several partial recovery levels)
of the O&M costs for the Greater Cairo Wastewater System covering the five
year period ending in 1997.
RUSSELL CONSULTING was asked by the
City of Mr. Russell managed an inventory and
appraisal study used to establish an enterprise fund for the City’s water
utility. This study involved the
cataloguing of all depreciable assets, the determination of the original cost
value of each asset, the determination of depreciation rates for each type of
asset, and determination of the accumulated depreciation reserve. Mr.
Russell assisted in the determination of the water utility’s net asset value
and accumulated depreciation (rate base) plus annual depreciation expenses in
order to update their wholesale water rates.
The City did not maintain complete asset records, so it was necessary to
determine original cost values, depreciation rates, and accumulated
depreciation reserves from partial historic records and newer construction
projects. Erickson Retirement
Communities RUSSELL
CONSULTING
represented Erickson Retirement Communities in negotiations with the Hingham
Municipal Light Plant (HMLP) to secure electricity service to their Linden
Ponds Retirement Community in Sea Chain, LLC turned to RUSSELL
CONSULTING for help in their effort to secure and maintain electric
power service from the local electric power utility for the Hingham Shipyard
mixed-use development. Three firms will partner to build the 120-acre
mixed-use community on the site of the Hingham Shipyard in Law Firm of McLane,
Graf, Raulerson & Middleton PA RUSSELL
CONSULTING was contracted
to review and evaluate the Demand and Benefit Assessments (DBAs) put in place
by a town in southern Schacht & McElroy,
Attorneys at Law RUSSELL
CONSULTING was
retained by the law firm of Schacht & McElroy on behalf of the Town of
Cumberland, Rhode Island to provide expert witness services in the areas of
utility costs of service, methods of recovering expenses, and rates and charges
in general. This rate case was brought
by the Pawtucket Water Supply Board (PWSB) before the Rhode Island Public
Utilities Commission (RIPUC). Mr.
Russell provided rebuttal testimony on behalf of the Town of A Group of Interveners
(3 Towns in RUSSELL
CONSULTING provided
expert witness services to a group of interveners (3 Towns in Citizens Utility Board
(CUB) of RUSSELL CONSULTING successfully completed a project
assisting in their intervention in a rate case for the Illinois-American Water
Company before the Illinois Commerce Commission. Areas investigated included: capital
improvement planning process, needs assessment, least-cost integrated resource
planning, current and alternative conservation programs and related system
impacts, excess capacity, and renewal and replacement/depreciation expenses. Pittsfield
Aqueduct Company ( RUSSELL
CONSULTING prepared
a cost of service study (COSS) for presentation to the New Hampshire Public
Utilities Commission as part of a pending rate case. This project included pre-filed testimony,
expert witness services during the hearing phase, rebuttal testimony, and
assistance in preparing technical arguments as part of the legal briefs submitted
to the Commission. RUSSELL
CONSULTING assisted
the New Hampshire Office of the Consumer Advocate in their intervention in a
rate case for the Consumers of New Hampshire Water Company (CNHWC), as their
expert witness for the issues of used and useful plant investments and
depreciation. Part of this project
involved a comprehensive evaluation of the Company’s planning process, its
capital improvement programs, conservation and demand management programs, and
associated rate impacts. RUSSELL CONSULTING performed an evaluation of capital
improvement programs and alternative funding options for the Groton Water
Department. The report contained a
summary and assessment of the Department’s planned capital improvement programs
and an evaluation of financial feasibility and funding options, including
various rate increase alternatives over a five year period. The final report included a compromise plan
that allowed for biennial rate increases and a responsible draw-down of the
Department’s fiscal surplus. The plan
called for three annual rate increases (of approximately 13% each) in the
fiscal years 2005, 2007, and 2009. This
allowed for a balance between the need to keep rate increases low and
infrequent and the need to both collect sufficient annual revenues and maintain
a reasonably sized surplus balance throughout the rate/forecast period. Mr. Russell provided economic and
financial assistance to the BWSC in their efforts to secure a technical
assistance loan from the World Bank.
This loan was needed for a $40 million capital improvement program,
which was eligible for 25% funding through the World Bank. These services included preparation of
technical documents for review by the World Bank and assistance throughout the
negotiation process. Almost all of the
capital improvement program and funding analysis was adopted by the BWSC and
later approved by the World Bank, including their $10 million loan share. The Government of the Mr. Russell managed a comprehensive
evaluation of the Town's municipal electric utility, focusing on the financial
and institutional benefits associated with public ownership. This study focused on several key areas of
concern to the Town as well as its relationship with the Electric
Division. These included: payments to
the Town for services it provided to the Division, compensation for the risks
incurred by the Town as owner of the system, reserve requirements of the
Division, an assessment of the Division’s total costs, and a forecast of rates
over the subsequent 5-year period. RUSSELL
CONSULTING was part
of a team of consultants that completed a comprehensive financial evaluation of
the City’s Water and Wastewater Enterprise Fund. The purpose of the study was to assess the
City’s financial management strategies and to identify opportunities for
improvement in the capital improvement program, utility rate changes, and
fiscal planning process. Particular
emphasis was placed on the City’s recently enacted aggressive water
conservation program and related impacts.
This work also included the development of a generalized cost-benefit
spreadsheet model that can be used to evaluate alternative capital improvement
projects as well as conservation and other demand management programs.
RUSSELL
CONSULTING conducted
a management study for the Town’s Water and Sewer Department, including: an
evaluation of key staff, employee surveys, and updates to the Department’s
position descriptions and salary ranges.
New position descriptions were adopted for 3 key positions along with
recommended salary ranges. The Town also
asked RUSSELL CONSULTING to evaluate the applicability of legislation
to establish a water and sewer enterprise fund.
Additionally, the Town requested a review of new legislation with the
objective of highlighting key issues, preferred options, implementation
procedures, and schedule requirements.
Government of As
part of an international consulting team, RUSSELL CONSULTING helped the
Government of Egypt to institute a series of plans and programs to improve the
management and operation of the water and wastewater systems in six communities
along the The project
is known as the “Institutional Development Services for Secondary Cities
Project in For the Reading Department of Public Works, RUSSELL CONSULTING was asked to perform a comparison of the Town’s current costs and resultant water and sewer rates with those of 5 other systems. The purpose of this study will be to identify, explain and quantify the reasons for rate differences. Comparing water and sewer rates among communities can provide insight into pricing policies of water and sewer utilities, relative system costs, and the overall level of operating efficiency. However, care must be taken in drawing conclusions from this comparison. High rates do not necessarily mean that a particular utility is operated or managed inefficiently. Many factors affect the costs of providing water and
sewer services, and the rates and charges for those services. Of the fourteen commonly occurring factors
described in this report, eight were identified as leading to most (80% to 90%)
of the total variance between ·
Level
of Cost Recovery ·
Artificially
High Rates ·
General
Fund Contributions ·
Use
of Reserve Funds ·
System
Conditions/Losses ·
Class
Cross-Subsidies ·
Customer
Base (Residential and Commercial/Industrial mix) ·
Type
and Level of Treatment Having identified the primary factors leading to
divergent costs and rates in the six-community sample, the only task that
remained was to estimate the portion of the difference attributed to each. This was accomplished by increasing or
decreasing each community’s rates by the adjustment attributed to each
factor. The total adjusted rate is the
rate that can be compared with For the
Department of Public Utilities, RUSSELL CONSULTING, as part of a
consulting team, helped the City to identify and evaluate its strategic options
relative to the ownership and operation of the four utilities (electric, gas,
water, and wastewater) owned by the City.
This strategic planning study assessed a wide range of potential
opportunities; ranging from continued public ownership of each utility to a
sell-off of one or more of these utilities to private companies. The evaluation process was based on several
closely related elements and principles, including the following steps: (1) an
objective evaluation of the current situation, (2) establishment of a logical,
fact-based framework for strategic decision making, (3) identification of
significant new strategic opportunities and threats in light of emerging
competitive markets, (4) a screening of partnering opportunities, (5)
development of preliminary implementation plans for new strategic initiatives,
and (6) establishment of an ongoing planning process. Concord Electric Company ( Mr. Russell
was responsible for preparation of the Company’s demand-side management (DSM)
program. The development included filing
and approval before the New Hampshire Public Utilities Commission, system
implementation and follow-up reporting.
Mr. Russell completed an evaluation of several expanded and new
residential load management programs.
The evaluation looked at numerous factors: program design, expectations
of customer participation, estimated savings in energy (kWh) and demand (kW),
effects on revenue recovery, design of associated rates, customer impacts for
participants and non-participants, implementation plans, and ongoing program
review. Unitil Service Corporation Mr.
Russell was responsible for preparing short- and long-range forecasts of energy
(kWh) and demand (kW) requirements for each retail affiliate company. This also included design and evaluation of
requisite load research studies and customer surveys. Econometric and time series models were used
for forecasting in combination with end use engineering analysis where
appropriate. These forecasts were used
to drive corporate financial models in the development of capital expansion
programs and to satisfy regulatory reporting requirements.
RUSSELL CONSULTING completed a feasibility
study to determine the potential cost savings and related advantages and
disadvantages associated with the Town’s proposed acquisition of a private
water company within the Town’s borders.
This included a financial feasibility evaluation based on estimates of
the purchase price for all of the water company’s assets and a five-year
projection of the cost of municipal operations.
Also included were the costs of all capital improvements and debt
service payments on funds borrowed to purchase the system and additional
improvements, a five-year projection of associated rates, and a comparison of
these charges with several comparably sized communities in In anticipation of buying the system, RUSSELL CONSULTING performed a comprehensive inventory and appraisal of all system assets. Our appraisal of the market value represented our best estimate of full compensation due to the private utility, if the Town decided to purchase the water system. This appraisal formed the basis for a negotiated purchase price between the private company and the Town. RUSSELL CONSULTING was instrumental in the entire negotiation process and in persuading the seller to settle on a price closely approximating the value determined in the appraisal study. Mr. Russell also assisted the Town in the final negotiations before the Massachusetts Department of Telecommunications and Energy, the transition process, and the initial operation of the system.
AvalonBay Communities,
Inc. RUSSELL
CONSULTING provided technical,
regulatory and financial consulting services to AvalonBay Communities, owners
of a mixed-use (commercial/residential) development in Government of Mr. Russell was part of a consulting team
that was contracted by the Government of Mexico to develop a training program
for water and wastewater utilities. The
purpose of this program was to train the managers of water and wastewater
utilities on alternative methods of recovering revenues through user charges. This work included a summary of ratemaking
principles that would apply to small and medium size utilities operating in As a member of the NEWWA Rates Committee,
Mr. Russell prepared and presented a course of instruction to a group of
industry professionals, entitled “Cost of Service Studies.” The presentation was given at a Water Utility
Ratemaking Seminar and Workshop sponsored by the NEWWA through its Water Rates
Committee held in General Public Utilities
(GPU) Mr.
Russell played a key role in designing component programs and preparation of
the Corporation’s Conservation and Load Management Plan, which was one of the
first comprehensive demand-side management (DSM) programs for a major private
utility. He also prepared a report for
senior management summarizing the benefits and disadvantages of a public power
takeover by the New York Power Authority (NYPA) of certain nuclear facilities
owned by the Corporation. Mr.
Russell was responsible for preparing the Company’s first Least Cost Integrated
Gas Resource Plan, filing and approval before the Massachusetts Department of
Public Utilities, implementation and follow-up reporting. This plan accounted for significant changes
which had taken place in the gas industry and demonstrated the Company’s
commitment to planning, analyzing and operating a reliable, least-cost gas
resource portfolio in the new competitive business environment. Mr. Russell was the Project Manager for a study to prepare an Energy Conservation and Utilization Handbook and associated software. This publication provides a blueprint for member agencies, identifying and evaluating all cost effective measures to minimize total energy costs. This handbook applies to wastewater treatment plants, but is also very useful for water treatment plants and any industrial facilities using pumps and motors to drive machinery. Primary topics included: conservation and utilization improvements, identification of optimal utility rate options, and procurement of least cost suppliers. |
