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Council holds public hearing on utility franchise fees, opts to delay any rate increase
Summary
After a public hearing and extensive council discussion, Bloomington voted July 14 to make no changes to CenterPoint and Xcel franchise fees for 2026 and directed staff to return in spring 2026 for further consideration.
Bloomington council members on July 14 held a public hearing on proposed changes to Chapter 20 franchise fees for CenterPoint Energy and Xcel Energy and then voted to hold rates at current levels for 2026.
Why it matters: The franchise fee is a monthly line item on utility bills that the city has used since 2016 to fund street and trail pavement management and related capital work. Staff presented three options: no change, a modest increase to fund retaining-wall work, or a larger increase to fund retaining walls plus a sustainability loan/grant program for home energy upgrades.
City engineer Julie Long and senior civil engineer Bob Simons led the technical presentation and CFO Laurie Economy Schroeder discussed the revenue options. Schroeder explained three staff options: (1) add $0.23 per utility account per month…
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