I heard about Brigham City’s pledge to back the UTOPIA network in the news. What is the purpose of those pledges?
The 11 founding members of the UTOPIA network issued bonds to pay for the first portion of the network. In 2008, those bonds were refinanced in conjunction with a change in UTOPIA’s management. Brigham City and the other pledging cities are now responsible for a portion of the network’s expenses (based on their percentage of the total UTOPIA population) until the network becomes profitable. So far, the UTOPIA cities haven’t had to pay anything on their bonds, but UTOPIA will likely have to call on a portion of the tax pledges early in 2010. The first year of bond payments from each city is held in a reserve fund. Brigham City has also budgeted an individual reserve to replenish the larger reserve, so city funds won’t be required until Brigham City’s reserve needs to be replenished in several years. UTOPIA will treat any money received from the cities’ pledges as a loan, and the funds will be repaid once the network is self-sufficient.
