Water Infrastructure & Municipal Finance Expert at Mercor

Water Infrastructure & Municipal Finance Expert | $180/hr | Remote (U.S.)

Mercor is seeking a seasoned Water Infrastructure & Municipal Finance Expert to support a leading AI research lab on a short-term, high-impact consulting engagement. You will review and validate a live Excel-based financial model projecting U.S. water and wastewater capital expenditure (capex) for CY2026–2028, ensuring its assumptions and outputs accurately reflect real-world infrastructure financing dynamics.

Key Responsibilities

• Review and validate a complex Excel model forecasting U.S. water and wastewater capex (2026–2028)
• Assess assumptions tied to federal water funding programs, including:
  • State Revolving Funds (SRF)
  • WIFIA (Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act)
  • IIJA allocations and supplemental funding
• Evaluate integration of state funding mechanisms and municipal Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) rollups
• Cross-check model logic against EPA Clean Watersheds Needs Survey (CWNS) and Drinking Water Infrastructure Needs Survey (DWINSA) extrapolations
• Provide structured feedback on policy scenario modeling, including funding changes, allocation shifts, and regulatory impacts
• Identify inconsistencies, gaps, or unrealistic assumptions in projections
• Suggest improvements to model structure, clarity, and overall robustness

Requirements

• 5+ years of experience in water infrastructure, municipal finance, or public sector capital planning
• Direct experience with municipal water/wastewater utilities, infrastructure advisory, or CIP analysis
• Strong familiarity with U.S. federal water funding programs (SRF, WIFIA, IIJA)
• Working knowledge of EPA needs surveys (CWNS, DWINSA) and state-level water financing mechanisms
• Advanced Excel skills — comfortable auditing complex formulas, linked sheets, and large-scale scenario models
• Strong analytical judgment and excellent written communication skills

Why Join

• Collaborate with a frontier AI lab on large-scale infrastructure modeling
• Apply deep domain expertise to shape data-driven public infrastructure insights
• Flexible, focused consulting engagement with meaningful real-world impact
• Contribute to next-generation economic and policy modeling systems

This is a project-based, short-term engagement expected to last a few weeks.