Essex Junction Council approves FY26 utility budgets, schedules June 11 public hearing on rates

The Essex Junction City Council approved the city's FY26 enterprise fund operating and capital budgets for water, wastewater, sanitation, stormwater and the EJRP program fund and voted to warn a public hearing on rates set for June 11, 2025.

City staff told the council the combined user-rate increase across water, wastewater and sanitation would be nearly 20 percent, representing about $135 on an average household bill for FY26. Jess, a city staff presenter, said that the budgets grew but that rate increases outpaced budget growth because of declining water consumption and a falling number of equivalent units used to spread fixed costs.

The gap between budget and rate changes, staff said, is driven in part by lower systemwide water consumption, which reduces the number of billed equivalent units (EUs), so fixed costs are spread over fewer units. Jess said the Water Fund budget rose about 8.5 percent while user fees for water would increase about…