Staff presentation leads to approval of 8% water and sewer rate increases for FY27

A staff member presented proposed changes to water and sewer rates and meeting participants approved an 8% increase for both utilities for fiscal 2027, adopting the staff's option one for water and the single proposed sewer option.

The presenter told attendees that the water system currently assesses "a $60 capital charge on each account per quarter," and that the system uses a four-tier consumption model with the first tier covering 0 to 24,000 gallons per quarter and subsequent tiers in 8,000-gallon increments. The staff member said the capital charge provides a substantial share of water revenue: "for fiscal 26 it's pulling in $900,000 out of the 2 million that we take in," and that factored heavily into the rate analysis.

Staff described three water-rate approaches. Option one proposed an across-the-board 8% increase with no change to the capital charge. Option two would split the lowest tier (so the first 8,000 gallons would rise by a smaller amount, about 4%) and raise higher tiers by roughly 10% to achieve similar total revenue while reducing the burden on very low users such as elderly households living alone. The staff said both approaches target about $260,000–$272,000 in additional revenue for fiscal 2027 compared with fiscal 26.

On sewer, the presenter explained that sewer billing is based on water usage and recommended a single option: an 8% increase to sewer rates. The staff estimated that the sewer increase would yield about $200,000 more than the current budget projection.

A committee member moved to approve "water and sewer rates as presented for FY27 utilizing option one for water and the only option for sewer," and another committee member seconded the motion. The chair called for final discussion and then called the voice vote; the transcript records affirmative responses but does not include a roll-call count. The motion was recorded as approved in the meeting.

The meeting record does not specify an effective date for the new rates or implementation details such as billing timelines, customer notice procedures, or whether low-income or elderly exemptions will be pursued. Those items were not addressed in the recorded discussion and remain not specified.