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Bellingham · Fund #411 · Enterprise

Watershed Fund

The Watershed Fund finances the City of Bellingham's drinking-water source protection, including the Lake Whatcom watershed. Revenue comes from a Watershed Protection charge on every water utility bill (a dedicated line ...

Active Enterprise Bellingham
Latest end balance
Revenue (latest year)
Spent (latest year)
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About this fund

The Watershed Fund finances the City of Bellingham's drinking-water source protection, including the Lake Whatcom watershed. Revenue comes from a Watershed Protection charge on every water utility bill (a dedicated line item; ratepayers cannot opt out). The fund's principal use over the past several years has been acquiring private property in the watershed area.

Multi-year balance ledger

Year-by-year revenue, spending, and ending balance from the city's budget and CAFRs.
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Where the money goes

Top spending categories from documented budget line items.
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Revenue mix

Every documented inflow into this fund. By default the mix uses each source's most recent year (which means percentages mix years). Pick a single year to see strictly comparable percentages.
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Discussed in meetings

Real Briefings that mention this fund.
Apr 13, 2026
The Public Works and Natural Resources Committee approved three significant infrastructure items that will advance sustainable forest management, reduce development costs, and improve downtown accessibility. The ...
Apr 01, 2026
The 18th Annual Lake Whatcom Joint Councils and Commissioners Meeting brought together officials from Whatcom County, Bellingham, and Lake Whatcom Water & Sewer District to review 2025 progress and discuss 2026 ...
Apr 01, 2026
The 18th annual Lake Whatcom joint meeting brought together all three governing bodies responsible for managing the region's primary drinking water source, serving over 120,000 residents. This year's meeting marked a ...
Mar 10, 2026
The Whatcom County Council Committee of the Whole advanced significant portions of the County's Comprehensive Plan update on March 10, 2026, approving multiple chapters with important amendments while continuing their ...
Mar 09, 2026
The Bellingham City Council's March 9, 2026 meeting was highlighted by a comprehensive presentation on the results of a 2025 survey of landlords and property managers regarding the city's rental fee regulations ...
Feb 24, 2026
The City of Bellingham Water Resources Advisory Board (WRAB) held a facilitated workshop session focused on designing the city's first-ever annual utility report. The meeting centered around a collaborative exercise led ...
Feb 09, 2026
The Bellingham City Council conducted a busy regular meeting covering infrastructure investment, affordable housing preservation, and committee appointments. The most significant financial action was approving a $12.8 ...
Jan 27, 2026
The Water Resources Advisory Board convened for its annual January meeting, where members elected new leadership and received a comprehensive overview of planned activities for 2026. Rick Eggerth was elected Chair and ...
Jan 13, 2026
The Whatcom County Council Climate Action and Natural Resources Committee held a brief 18-minute organizational meeting to select new leadership and receive an annual report from Washington State University Extension's ...
Jan 05, 2026
The Bellingham City Council held its annual reorganization meeting on January 5, 2026, marking the beginning of a new year with new leadership and committee assignments. Hannah Stone was elected Council President, with ...

Methodology note

Real Record tracks Fund 411 as the City of Bellingham's Watershed Fund. The City categorizes most Watershed Fund spending as Capital — Land. Real Record's investigation documents that $24,469,800.90 was spent on 55 parcel purchases between 2020 and 2025 with no individual public discussion or council vote on any specific acquisition. See related investigation.

Sources: Bellingham adopted budgets and Comprehensive Annual Financial Reports (CAFRs); Chart of Accounts; Real Briefings meeting coverage. Real Record renders the published fund data in plain language; we don't change the numbers. Where the source publishes a different classification than ours, both are shown.