City staff say sewer rate increase was included in budget assumptions but omitted from fee resolution; amendment required

A city staff presenter told the City Council Committee of the Whole on May 12 that the budget assumptions included a sewer rate increase but that the resolution provided to the council did not include those rate changes.

The staff member said the proposed increase is 5.5% for the fixed monthly fee and 5% for the commodity and other fees; historically the city has raised sewer rates about 3%–5% per year. He said the increases are intended to fund capital projects, especially combined sewer overflow work, and to cover long‑term debt service tied to ongoing infrastructure work through roughly 2038.

Nut graf: The omission matters because fee changes must be adopted by resolution; staff told council the current budget was built on an assumption of the rate increases, but the fee resolution before council omitted them. City staff and the city attorney said correcting the omission requires an amendment to the fee resolution before final budget passage.

The presenter said about half of the sewer budget — roughly $45 million in total — is devoted to capital and that CSO and other capital projects require multi‑year funding. He said the administration chose a moderate increase rather than a larger one in order to avoid a sudden large rate spike for customers. The city attorney confirmed the council could amend the resolution document prior to passage to add the intended rate increases.

Ending: City staff offered to provide a historical schedule of sewer rate changes and said they would work with the council to amend the fee resolution before finalizing the budget.