Financial Planning

Strategic Plan  

In 2017, the Southeastern Colorado Water Conservancy District (District) revised its Strategic Plan to align with the programs, projects and financial structure of the District.

The Strategic Plan looks at a 15-year planning horizon that coincides with the Fryingpan-Arkansas Project (Project) repayment contract, executed in 1982. The contract provides a 50-year repayment period for the District’s share of Project debt.

The strategic has four initiatives:

  •       

    Core Business

  •      

    Water Supply, Storage and Power

  •       

    Water Supply Protection and Water Efficiency

  •       

    Future Water Supplies and Storage

Action plans for each area provide goals, objectives and responsibility for each of the initiatives.

Business Plan 

The Business Plan is a three-year road map that ties together the District and Water Activity Enterprise programs, projects and activities within the financial framework of the District.

There are two funds:

  •       

    The District or General Fund, which includes the Fryingpan-Arkansas Project subfund and the District Operations subfund.

  •       

    The Enterprise or Proprietary Fund, which includes the Water fund and Hydroelectric Fund

 The Business Plan is updated annually to reflect all activities of the District and Enterprise, while providing a three-year forecast of the level of resources needed to sustain those activities.

 

Financial Strategy and Sustainability Study

 In 2019, the District completed its first comprehensive financial study.

The study was the result of a discussion that began in 2017 called Framing the Future. That study led to Amendment 11 of the Project Repayment Contract, which established a fixed repayment schedule and created the structure for a reserve fund to deal with catastrophic or extraordinary Project expenses.

In addition, the District hired Jacobs Engineering to develop the Financial Strategy and Sustainability Study, which included a Financial Plan, Capital improvement Plan, Cost of Service Study, and a Rate Recommendation.

In November 2019, the District Board implemented a rate increase for the first time in more than 20 years.

In 2020, Jacobs is studying District surcharges, at the Board’s direction.

One recommendation of the study is to conduct another financial study in three years.