Santaquin city staff told the City Council on Sept. 2 that a new state drinking-water user fee created by Senate Bill 80 will impose an ongoing cost on the city and its ratepayers. Norm, a city staff member, said the fee would be calculated per thousand gallons of culinary water use and estimated that if the city had paid the fee in 2024 the total would have been about $13,000.

Why it matters: The fee will be billed to municipalities based on calendar-year water use beginning in 2026 and paid the following July, which could require the city to decide whether to pass the cost on to customers or absorb it in the general fund. "We're opposed to it, but it is legislation, and it will be coming," Norm said during the meeting.

City staff described the current working estimate for the fee as roughly 3.1to3.3 cents per 1,000 gallons of water use. Norm said the state division responsible for drinking water is still in public process for implementation details and that total costs will grow as system water use grows. "If we would have paid this fee in 2024, the entirety for the city would have been about $13,000," he said.

Council members did not vote on a specific response at the meeting; Norm recommended the council consider options, including adding the cost to customer rates or absorbing it in the city budget. The city will monitor the state rule-making and bring options back to council for consideration.

For record: the staff presentation identified the law as "Senate Bill 80" and said the fee applies to culinary (drinking) water only; the city did not present a final policy decision at the Sept. 2 meeting.