MMSD Ad Hoc Committee Issues Recommendation for Next 10-Year Operations and Maintenance Contract

(Milwaukee) – Following a comprehensive two-year public procurement process, the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District’s (“MMSD”) Ad Hoc Operations and Maintenance Contract Selection Committee (“Ad Hoc Committee”) today provided its recommendation for the next private company to operate and maintain Milwaukee’s regional wastewater facilities. Based on the publicly disclosed scoring matrix, the provider recommended is Jacobs Solutions.

The Ad Hoc Committee responsible for reviewing and scoring the provided proposals is comprised of five former MMSD commissioners. No member of current MMSD leadership served on the committee. The recommendation will be presented to the MMSD Commission, which will take the recommendation under advisement as it makes its final contract decision in September.

A Request for Qualifications was issued in June 2024 to identify firms with the experience and capacity to perform plant operations and maintenance across MMSD’s regional wastewater facilities. A Request for Proposals was issued on September 30, 2025. Veolia North America and Jacobs Solutions were the two providers who submitted proposals by the January 31, 2026, deadline. The Request for Proposal documents can be viewed at www.mmsd.com.

As has been publicly communicated, the Ad Hoc Committee followed a defined scoring matrix to evaluate the proposals submitted by each provider. That scoring matrix was:

• Price: 60% of total score
• Approach: 25% of total score
• Staffing, training, corporate culture, and workforce development: 10% of total score
• Regional partnership: 5% of total score

The committee summarized its recommendation in a 7-page document, evaluating these four key criteria. Jacobs Solutions’ proposal received a score of 96.8; Veolia’s proposal received a score of 84.9. The Committee noted that Jacobs Solutions’ proposal was $54 million lower over the life of the new contract.

“Effective wastewater management is an essential service for people in our region, and we thank both Veolia and Jacobs for their detailed and thoughtful proposals,” said Dennis Grzezinski, Chair of the Ad Hoc Committee and former MMSD commissioner. “While our fact-based scoring system ultimately led to our recommendation in favor of the bid submitted by Jacobs, it also should be noted that Veolia has delivered strong results for residents of the Milwaukee area since 2008. Our recommendation and supporting documentation have been shared with the MMSD Commission to inform their final decision to award the next operating contract.”

All documents related to this procurement process can be found on MMSD’s website.

Separately from the bid evaluation process, the MMSD Commission recently authorized an independent, third-party audit of recent claims regarding the performance of wastewater management in Milwaukee. The Ad Hoc Committee’s recommendation is based only on the specific criteria established at the beginning of the bid process two years ago and the proposals provided by each participant. Findings from the audit, which are not expected until this Fall, will inform the final contract between MMSD and the company the Commission ultimately selects as its next operator.

NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.

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