Dane County Community Will Vote On Creating Stormwater Utility Next Week

The ballot for the Nov. 4 election in one Dane County community contains a referendum on water quality.

Wisconsin law allows municipalities to create stormwater utilities to raise revenue to address flooding and pollution, something that more than 80 communities have availed themselves of.

Now Middleton, a city just west of Madison, is asking voters to create an annual fee to maintain storm sewers, detention ponds and other pollution treatment practices.

Longtime Middleton resident Don Hammes considers himself an environmentalist, but said he’s against fees for a stormwater utility. He said they will hit the elderly and others on fixed incomes especially hard.

“They don’t set up a special utility for the police department or for the fire department or the trash removal,” he said. “Those are all covered by general tax revenue.”

State law requires that property taxes have to be reduced if money is also collected for by a stormwater utility. Voters can override that levy limit through referendum.

Middleton City Council President Susan West said stormwater runoff is an issue that’s “out of sight, out mind.” She said officials have made road repair and other infrastructure improvements a bigger priority.

“We hear lots about potholes so that’s what we end up funding,” said West. “This will give the city a dedicated source of funds for this incredibly important purpose.”

Businesses might pay $150 annually if the stormwater utility is approved in the referendum. Homeowners would pay $15 a year — lower than almost all the other stormwater utility fees in the state.