Have you ever wondered how your utility’s rates compare to other utilities? If so, are you familiar with the rates dashboards from the UNC Environmental Finance Center?

Environmental Finance Centers

The EFC at UNC is one of 11 regional members of the Environmental Finance Center Network. Quoting from their website, the EFCN “is a university- and non-profit-based organization creating innovative solutions to the difficult how-to-pay issues of environmental protection and environmental infrastructure.”

I’m fortunate to live and work in close proximity to the EFC at UNC Chapel Hill. I’ve served on committees with, attended training sessions led by, and shared my Utility Fee Survey results with their staff.

Speaking of Utility Fee Surveys, the 2023 Utility Fee Survey will be closing soon, so if you haven’t yet participated in the survey, will you please take a few minutes now to do so? You can complete the survey by clicking here.

Rates Dashboards

In addition to providing research and technical assistance, the EFC at UNC has online rates dashboards for a number of states. These rates dashboards are an excellent tool for comparing rates with other utilities (although this blog post from Glenn Barnes, the Director at Water Finance Assistance and a former EFC staff member, points out the downsides to comparing rates between utilities).

The EFC at UNC website has rates dashboards for the following states (some are more up-to-date than others, so be sure to check the date of the data before comparing the dashboard to your current rates):

• Alabama
• Arizona
• Arkansas
• California
• Connecticut
• Delaware
• Florida
• Georgia
• Hawaii
• Illinois
• Iowa
• Maine
• Massachusetts
• Mississippi
• Missouri
• New Hampshire
• North Carolina
• Ohio
• South Carolina
• Texas
• Vermont
• Virginia
• West Virginia
• Wisconsin

Utility Billing Mailbag

Don’t forget the new feature I’m calling the Utility Billing Mailbag. Send me your questions and I’ll take my best shot at answering them.

You can ask your questions at the Mailbag page on my website and I’ll post the answers on my social media. So be sure to follow me on Facebook, LinkedIn, or Twitter.

Complete the 2023 Utility Fee Survey

If you haven’t already completed the 2023 Utility Fee Survey, and would like to, please click here to complete the survey. It should take less than five minutes to complete.

If you have any questions, please feel free to e-mail me at gary@utilityinformationpipeline.com or call me at 919-673-4050.

Thank you in advance for your participation in the 2023 Utility Fee Survey.

How does your business office operation compare?

Have you ever wondered how your business office compares to other utilities? If you’re interested in finding out, please give me a call at 919-673-4050 or email me at gary@utilityinformationpipeline.com to learn how a business review could help you learn the answer.