Tacoma utility AMI rollout nearing close; forecast comes in slightly under original budget, 535 customers opted out

Corey Bediens, technology manager at Utility Technology Services and acting Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) lead, told the Government Performance Finance Committee and Audit Advisory Board on July 15 that the AMI program will be substantially complete by the end of the year and that the city’s forecasted final cost is below the originally authorized $81.7 million.

“The goal was to exchange nearly 300,000 meters, install an AMI communications network, base stations and antennas, to install create a meter data management system, integrate with SAP, transition to monthly billing, and enable a customer portal,” Bediens said. He told the committee the program’s original schedule (2017–2022) slipped to 2025 largely because of global chip shortages and COVID‑era supply‑chain disruptions.

Why it matters: AMI touches every Tacoma utility customer and enables monthly billing, automated outage detection for faster response, and water leak detection that utilities staff said is already prompting customer repairs and conservation. That can change operating and customer‑service costs across the utility.

Key facts and outcomes - Scope: replace about 300,000 electric and water meters, install communications infrastructure, and integrate meter data with the city’s SAP financial system and a customer portal. (Presenter: Corey Bediens.) - Schedule:…