Wastewater Utility

The Racine Wastewater Commission oversees the operationsThe fact or condition of functioning or being active. of the Racine Wastewater Utility. The Commission consists of eleven members. The City of Racine appoints seven of these members, including the Mayor, two alderpersons, and four citizen representatives. CommissionersA person appointed to a role on or by a commission. from Racine are selected by the Mayor and approved by the Common Council. The Village of Mt. Pleasant currently has two commissionersA person appointed to a role on or by a commission., the Village of Caledonia has one, and the Village of Sturtevant has one commissioner as well. Each of these communities also has alternate commissionersA person appointed to a role on or by a commission. who can step in when regular commissionersA person appointed to a role on or by a commission. are unavailable.

The structure and role of the Commission are outlined in the Intergovernmental Sanitary Sewer and Revenue Sharing Agreement established in April 2002. This agreement designates the Commission and the Racine Wastewater Utility as the Sewer Service Provider (SSP) Party. It also allows local municipalities to participate as Sewer Service Recipient (SSR) Parties. The SSR Parties currently include Racine, Mt. Pleasant, Caledonia, Sturtevant, Wind Point, and Somers. At this time, Elmwood Park, North Bay, Yorkville, and Raymond are not SSR Parties to the agreement. Additional details about the Commission’s composition and responsibilities can be found in Chapter 98 of the Racine Municipal Code.

The Racine Wastewater Commission is responsible for enforcing the policies established in the sewer agreement. Reporting to the Commission is the Executive Director of the Wastewater Utility. The Commission, through the Executive Director is also responsible for preparing the annual budget, setting rates, and conducting audits, all of which are coordinated with the City of Racine Common Council as part of its budgetary process.

The sewer agreement provides special provisions whereby the commission, through the Utility shall make payments to support county-wide amenities that are located in the City of Racine but enjoyed but all in Racine County. These funds are transferred to the Racine Zoo, Wustum Museum and the Racine Public Library from Utility reserves, provided there are sufficient funds to do so.

There is also a community revenue-sharing provision included in the sewer agreement. In return for supporting the incorporation of the Towns of Mt. Pleasant and Caledonia into Villages, the City of Racine and other SSR Parties to the agreement committed to a 30-year revenue-sharing plan. Under this arrangement, as some Parties experience economic growth and an expanded tax base, a portion of those increased revenues is shared with other Parties to the agreement that may not see the same level of new business or development.