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One-time enrollment · 12-month access

THIS COURSE INCLUDES

12 lessons · self-paced video
Downloadable course materials
Water rate design case study
NASBA-compliant final exam (5 questions)
Certificate of completion (1.00 CPE)

A Practical Guide to Water Pricing Strategies

Cost-of-Service Studies and Rate Design for Water Utilities

Understand how water utilities develop revenue requirements, allocate costs across customer classes, and design rates that are defensible, equitable, and recoverable. Built for utility finance and accounting professionals.

★★★★★ 5.0

CPE Hours

| Self-Paced Video

| Basic Level

| NASBA Registered

▶ Watch Free Course Preview

Water utilities face unique rate-setting challenges — seasonal demand, infrastructure costs, conservation goals, and regulatory requirements all compete in the revenue requirement. This course gives you a practical, step-by-step understanding of how water utilities develop cost-of-service studies and build rate structures that work.

Whether you're a utility finance professional expanding into water rates, a municipal accountant supporting rate proceedings, or a manager who needs to understand the rate-making process, this course gives you the foundation to participate confidently.

Apply Water Rate Design with Confidence

About This Course

Who This Course Is For

Municipal utility finance and accounting staff
Water utility managers and directors
Electric utility professionals expanding to water
Rate analysts and consultants
City and county finance officers
Board and council members overseeing water utilities

Your Instructor

Taught by a Nationally Recognized Utility Accounting Expert

Russ Hissom, CPA

Principal, UtilityEducation.com · 35+ Years of Industry Experience

Russ Hissom is a national utility accounting and rate expert with 35+ years of hands-on experience helping electric cooperatives and utilities improve accounting processes, strengthen financial performance, and design fair, sustainable rates. He has provided expert witness testimony before FERC, state commissions, and in arbitration proceedings — and has trained 1,000+ utility and cooperative finance professionals nationwide.

Learning Objectives

This Course Will Provide You With the Knowledge To

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Explain the components of a water utility revenue requirement

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Identify and allocate costs across customer classes

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Understand conservation pricing and its financial implications

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Communicate rate changes effectively to stakeholders and governing boards

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Apply cost-of-service study methodology to water utilities

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Evaluate common water rate structures — flat, tiered, and inclining block

The Learning Experience

How You'll Learn

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Short Lessons, Not Long Lectures - Focused video lessons you can fit around your workday.

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Interactive Videos - Questions, activities and interactive content inside each video keep you engaged.

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Hands-On Practice - Exercises let you test your judgment and reinforce key points.

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Job-Ready Toolkits - Downloadable tools and guides for future reference or on the job.

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Practical Applications - Apply concepts to realistic situations.

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Built-In Reinforcement - Review questions throughout the course support retention of the material.

Student Feedback

What Our Students Say

"Very good overview of the introduction to the electricity business. I just recently started a job with a utility and am taking some courses to learn as much as possible. Will definitely be taking another course!"

— Jennifer

"This was an incredible overview! I cannot wait to share this with others. I LOVED how you explained things. You have great speaking and explanation skills."

— Nicole

"I came looking for an introduction to utilities course and I'm glad I took this one. Russ explained everything really well. I will be taking more courses!"

— Kritant

Course Curriculum

What You'll Learn

Course Accreditation

Course #

FT-7

Area of Study

Finance-Technical

Delivery

QAS Self Study

Prerequisites

None

Last Reviewed

4/1/26

Passing Grade

70%

Adv. Preparation

None

Program Level

Basic

NASBA CPE Credits

Course materials are provided for informational and educational purposes only. They do not constitute legal, accounting, or professional advice. Users should consult their own qualified legal, accounting, or other professional advisors regarding their specific circumstances.

Water Utility Fundamentals & Revenue Requirements

How water utilities are structured, regulated, and financed — and how the revenue requirement is built from operating and capital cost components. | 1.1 Welcome & Course OverviewFree Preview | 1.2 How Water Utilities Are Structured and Regulated | 1.3 Developing the Revenue Requirement | 1.4 Operating and Capital Cost Components

Cost-of-Service Study & Rate Design

Cost allocation methodology, customer class allocation, rate structure options including flat, tiered, and inclining block rates, and conservation pricing strategies. | 2.1 Cost Allocation Methodology for Water Utilities | 2.2 Allocating Costs to Customer Classes | 2.3 Rate Structure Options: Flat, Tiered, and Inclining Block | 2.4 Conservation Pricing Strategies

Application, Case Study & Assessment

Apply the concepts to a practical case study, learn to communicate rate changes to stakeholders, and complete the NASBA-compliant final exam. | 3.1 Practical Case Study: Building a Water Rate Structure | 3.2 Communicating Rate Changes to Stakeholders | 3.3 Review & Key Takeaways | 3.4 Final Exam

Inside the Course

See the Course in Action

A Practical Guide to Water Pricing Strategies

Common Questions

Questions You May Have

How is this different from a general utility rates course?

This course is built specifically around water utility economics — volumetric and tiered pricing, conservation-oriented rate design, and the AWWA-based cost-of-service framework water systems actually use. If you've taken our electric rate courses, the underlying revenue-requirement logic will feel familiar, but the rate structures and affordability considerations here are water-specific.

How is CPE credit handled?

The course includes a NASBA-compliant final exam. Pass it and your CPE certificate is issued immediately and stored in your account. You're responsible for reporting the credit to your own state board.

What if I have more questions?

Just call 608 628 4020 or email russ.hissom@utilityeducation.com. We welcome your questions!

Do I need a rates or engineering background to take this course?

No. The course builds from the ground up — what drives the revenue requirement, who caused which costs, and how that translates into a rate structure. It's designed for finance and accounting staff who need to understand water pricing well enough to work with consultants and explain rates to a board, not just engineers.

Does this apply to municipal water systems, or only larger utilities?

The principles apply regardless of system size. The course walks through the same cost-causation and rate-design approaches AWWA-based rate studies use industry-wide, so whether you're a small town sanitary district adding water service for the first time or a municipal system reviewing an existing rate structure, the framework transfers directly.

What rate structures does the course cover?

You'll cover the main approaches used in water rate-setting today — flat and volumetric rates, tiered/inclining-block pricing, and how affordability and conservation goals factor into choosing between them — along with how to evaluate the tradeoffs of each for your system.

Utility Accounting and Rates Specialists, LLC is registered with the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) as a sponsor of continuing professional education on the National Registry of CPE Sponsors. State boards of accountancy have final authority on the acceptance of individual courses for CPE credit. Complaints regarding registered sponsors may be submitted to the National Registry of CPE Sponsors through its website: NASBAregistry.org.

Refund & Cancellation Policy

Requests for refunds must be made in writing within 30 days of purchasing the course. No refunds will be granted after the qualified assessment has been completed. For any concerns, please contact us at 608-628-4020 or at russ.hissom@utilityeducation.com.

Legal Note

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A Practical Guide to Water Pricing Strategies