Long-term debt in water utilities: does ownership matter? Evidence from West Virginia’s utilities

Local governments provide a wide range of services and infrastructure to their residents including water, sewer, and storm water systems. In many jurisdictions, utilities are the most capital-intensive government function in addition to being the most visible one. In this paper, we examine the impact of utility ownership type on the long-term debt of water utilities in the state of West Virginia. Water utility ownership types include municipalities, public service districts, water associations and private utilities. Using a double hurdle model to examine 288 water utilities in the state, we find that public service districts and municipalities are more likely to carry long-term debt than privately owned utilities.