What Fieldman, Rolapp & Associates does

Fieldman, Rolapp & Associates, Inc. (FRA) is a privately held, employee-owned (ESOP) municipal financial advisory firm founded in approximately 1965 and headquartered in Irvine, California. The firm provides independent, conflict-free advisory services to public agencies across California, Hawaii, and New Mexico, spanning debt structuring, bond issuance advisory, financial modeling, continuing disclosure compliance, rating agency strategy, and post-issuance support. Its offering is organized into seven verticals: Cities & Counties, K-14 School Districts, Transportation, Utilities, Water Agencies, Healthcare, and Land-Secured Financing (Community Facilities Districts, Assessment Districts, Public Improvement Districts, and Tax Increment Development Districts).

The firm has no disclosed proprietary technology platform; service delivery is built on human expertise, custom financial models, and deep sector knowledge rather than a software product. Documented credentials include leading California in the number and value of land-secured bond issues since 2013, acting as sole advisor on a $514.5 million Measure R sales tax bond issuance for LA Metro, advising the City of Irvine on over $326 million in lease revenue bonds, and supporting rating upgrades for the Riverside County Transportation Commission.

Fieldman generates revenue through engagement-based professional services fees tied to transaction size and complexity, often under multi-year contracts covering continuing disclosure and ongoing capital planning. Go-to-market is relationship-driven and RFP-mediated, targeting city councils, county boards, school boards, and special district executives, supported by content marketing (Municipal Market Updates newsletter, Public Finance Conversations podcast), an annual Land-Secured Finance conference, and active participation in industry associations such as CASBO, CSMFO, CDIAC, CASA, ACBO, and the League of California Cities.

Name

Fieldman, Rolapp & Associates

Legal name

Fieldman Rolapp & Associates, Inc.

Website

https://fieldman.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1965

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Fieldman, Rolapp & Associates is an employee-owned municipal financial advisory firm serving public agencies in California, Hawaii, and New Mexico with debt structuring, bond issuance, and land-secured financing expertise across seven verticals.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Municipal Financial Advisory Services

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282), Security Brokers, Dealers & Flotation Companies (6211)

akta.pro primary industry

Debt Advisory & Financing Advisory (FSAEAGAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Real Estate Capital Markets Advisory (Debt/Equity Placement, Refinancing) (BPAJANAE), Debt & Capital Advisory (Debt Raising, Refinancing, Private Credit) (BPAHAOAD)

Keywords

• Municipal financial advisory
• Public agency financing
• Land-secured financing
• Bond issuance advisory
• Debt structuring services

Headquarters

HQ city

Irvine

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Municipal Financial Advisory Services: Professional advisory fees for financial planning, bond issuance advisory, debt structuring, continuing disclosure compliance, and strategic consulting services to public agencies. Revenue is generated through engagement-based fees for municipal finance advisory work including capital planning, debt affordability analysis, and transaction support.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Fieldman, Rolapp & Associates provides independent municipal financial advisory services to public agencies, including debt structuring, bond issuance advisory, financial modeling, land-secured financing (Community Facilities Districts, Assessment Districts, Public Improvement Districts), continuing disclosure compliance, and strategic capital planning. Services are organized across seven sector verticals: Cities & Counties, School Districts (K-14), Transportation, Utilities, Water Agencies, Healthcare, and Land-Secured Financing, primarily in California, Hawaii, and New Mexico.

Product overview

Fieldman, Rolapp & Associates is a municipal bond financial advisory firm providing comprehensive financing advisory services to public agencies. The firm offers sector-specific advisory services across seven core areas: Cities & Counties, School Districts (K-14), Transportation, Utilities, Water Agencies, Healthcare, and Land-Secured Financing. Each service vertical provides debt structuring, issuance advisory, financial modeling, and ongoing compliance support. The firm operates as an employee-owned firm (ESOP) and positions itself as an independent municipal advisor acting in clients' best interest.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Cities & Counties Advisory Financial advisory services for municipal city and county governments including debt structuring, bond issuance support, land-secured financing, financial modeling, and continuing disclosure compliance for Certificates of Participation, Lease Revenue Bonds, General Obligation Bonds, Utility Revenue Bonds, and TRANs.
• School Districts Advisory (K-14) Comprehensive financing advisory for K-14 school districts including voter-approved bond measures, General Obligation Bonds, Community Facilities Districts, PID bond formations, refundings, and state matching fund solutions to bridge facility-funding gaps.
• Transportation Advisory Full-service financial advisory for transportation agencies including debt structuring, bond issuance support, strategic funding planning, financial modeling, rating agency coordination, and policy development for transit and highway infrastructure projects.
• Utilities Advisory Financial advisory for water, wastewater, and power utilities including capital funding strategies, credit rating advisory, debt structuring, bank negotiations, pension funding, and post-issuance compliance services.
• Water Agencies Advisory Financial guidance for water agencies on new development projects including supply analysis, credit rating monitoring, ecological milestone monitoring, and stress-tested financial modeling for water treatment and delivery infrastructure.
• Healthcare Advisory Strategic financial advisory for healthcare organizations including capital planning, debt structuring, revenue bond issuance, healthcare equipment financing, and support for seismic upgrades required under California SB 1953.
• Land-Secured Financing Specialized financing advisory for Community Facilities Districts, Assessment Districts, Public Improvement Districts, Tax Increment Development Districts, and Successor Agencies, combining municipal finance and real estate expertise across California, Hawaii, and New Mexico.

Quantifiable outcome

• Led California in land-secured financing by number and value of issues since 2013
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Hilltop Securities: Public finance arm of Hilltop Holdings providing municipal advisory, underwriting, and fixed-income services to state and local governments. Comparable business model and vertical coverage including transportation, K-12, and utilities advisory.
• Acacia Financial Group: Independent municipal financial advisory firm serving public agencies across the Western U.S. Direct comparable in core debt structuring, K-14/CFD expertise, and California public finance relationships.
• CSG Advisors: Independent municipal financial advisor specializing in healthcare and higher education. Direct overlap with Fieldman's healthcare vertical practice (revenue bond issuance, capital planning, SB 1953 seismic).
• Public Financial Management (PFM): Largest U.S. independent financial advisor to state and local governments. Directly comparable to Fieldman in core municipal advisory services (debt issuance, refundings, continuing disclosure) and competitor for many of the same California/Western public agency mandates.
• Kaufman Hall & Associates: Independent advisory firm focused on healthcare and public sector financial advisory, performance improvement, and capital planning. Direct overlap on healthcare organizations, capital planning, and debt structuring mandates that Fieldman also pursues.

Broad incumbents

• Stifel Financial Corp. Diversified investment bank with a meaningful Public Finance practice that advises and underwrites for state, local, and nonprofit issuers. Compares as a broader-omnibus incumbent offering both advisory and underwriting where Fieldman is purely advisory.
• RBC Capital Markets: Global investment bank with a dedicated Public Finance practice providing underwriting, remarketing, and municipal advisory for state and local issuers. Compares as a broader incumbent that competes on larger municipal transactions.
• Piper Sandler & Co. Mid-market investment bank with a Public Finance/Not-for-Profit practice competing for municipal advisory and underwriting engagements across K-12, healthcare, and transportation issuers. Comparable as a broader-omnibus incumbent.
• Jefferies Financial Group: Global investment bank with a Public Finance group providing underwriting and municipal advisory services across state, local, and not-for-profit sectors. Competitor for larger-sized issuances in Fieldman's target verticals.
• Robert W. Baird & Co. Mid-market investment bank with a dedicated Public Finance group providing underwriting and financial advisory to state and local governments. Compares as a broader incumbent with overlapping municipal advisory work plus capital markets distribution.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Fieldman, Rolapp & Associates