What Is The Cost to Small Businesses?
THE STEP SYSTEM PLACES AN ENORMOUS BURDEN ON SMALL, FAMILY-OWNED BUSINESSES
While individual families are projected to pay $108,379.20[1] over forty years based on the Wade Trim estimate, many businesses will pay far more.
Individual shares of the project’s cost will be determined per “assessment” and “residential equivalent unit” (“REU”).[2] A single family will likely be classified as a single assessment and REU, but many businesses will be classified as multiple assessments and REUs.
In Bear Lake, for example, some businesses will be assessed at more than 4 REUs, with one even assessed at 15 REUs.[3] While a single family might pay $92.36 monthly, a business assessed at 15 REUs would pay $1,385.40 per month and $664,992 over forty years, just for ongoing monthly fees.
As for construction costs, the TLCSA plans to assess on a “parcel” or “assessment” basis.[4] Thus, businesses occupying multiple parcels would also bear dramatically higher construction costs than single-family residences. Considering construction costs and ongoing monthly fees combined, a small business could easily face more than $1 million in new costs over the next forty years.
Businesses in the sewer district are typically family-owned, operate on small profit margins, and do not have the means to absorb substantial new costs. Small businesses will be left with little option but to pass the cost on to customers, cut staff, or close their doors. The following table illustrates costs over forty years with and without a USDA grant at various REU levels:
[1] “Two Lakes Collaborative Sewer Authority Preliminary Engineering Report,” Wade Trim, February 3, 2023, pp. 23-24. Total cost is per-user over 40 years based on Wade Trim’s estimate, calculated at $225.79 x 480 months. Cost does not include increases in ongoing monthly fees.
[2] “Questions from the Public,” TLCSA, No. 112
[3] “Two Lakes Collaborative Sewer Authority Preliminary Engineering Report,” Wade Trim, February 3, 2023
[4] “Questions from the Public,” TLCSA, No. 112