The City of Reno is proposing a Stormwater Utility that would require residents, businesses, and schools to pay a “fee”, otherwise known as a tax, to maintain and improve stormwater infrastructure. According to the City of Reno website, the average fee per homeowner would be an initial $13.49 per month starting July 1, 2023. The tax is subject to automatic, annual increases based on the Consumer Price Index.

The City of Reno outlines the Stormwater Utility funding and necessity on their webpage claiming that city infrastructure is “non-existent, aging, or damaged”– leaving this Reno homeowner to wonder why precious tax dollars are being spent on rusty whale statues, an estimated $70 million dollar rehabilitation project located in a flood zone, and city murals. The City also claims that these repairs and improvements have been “identified over the last thirty years but have not been implemented due to lack of funding”.

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. A proactive approach 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 to support 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.

The Washoe County School District has voiced their concern in a letter (see below) which outlines the significant tax burden the financially-strapped school district would realize. WCSD operates 54 facilities and would be subject to an additional, annual tax of $575,000 or the “annual salary of approximately 10 school teachers.” The annual tax increases tied to CPI would cost the district $6.3 million over 10 years. (emphasis added).

Additionally, the district points out that this tax has been discussed for years and has increased by 60 percent over two years without proper explanation and will automatically and indefinitely increase without public input or council oversight:

Home owners in Damonte Ranch, a planned community of over 5,000 homes would be taxed twice for stormwater and flood mitigation. According to a letter sent to the City by the developers, they note that homeowners already pay a monthly fee to the Damonte Ranch Drainage District and should therefore be exempt as “Damonte Ranch is the only neighborhood in the City of Reno that not only paid for the construction of regional stormwater facilities, but privately funds their operation and maintenance in perpetuity.  The City of Reno provides no funding to the Damonte Ranch Drainage District for the regional stormwater benefits it provides.”

The city is expected to have upcoming meetings in regards to this indefinite tax sometime this month.  The Globe will continue to provide updates to this story and residents are encouraged to provide comment on the City of Reno’s website.