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MSD director outlines 2026 budget, urges county vote on rate changes; advocates and residents push impervious-surface charge
Summary
Diana Christie, director of the Metropolitan Sewer District, told the Budget & Finance Committee that MSD seeks approval of a $256M operating budget and a $153.6M 5-year capital program for 2026, proposed a rate-structure change to raise 4.5% in revenue without raising base charges, and described a targeted pilot to measure impervious runoff after public commenters urged a broader stormwater fee.
Diana Christie, director of the Metropolitan Sewer District, told CincinnatiCity CouncilBudget & Finance Committee on Dec. 8 that MSD is seeking approval for its 2026 operating and capital budgets and is recommending a rate-structure adjustment that would generate about a 4.5% revenue increase without increasing base or minimum charges.
Christie said MSDtreats about 160,000,000 gallons of wastewater on a dry day, operates seven major treatment plants and more than 3,000 miles of sewer and must balance debt and operating pressures while meeting consent-decree work. "We are seeking approval for 2026 operating budget and capital budgets," Christie said in the presentation and described personnel-cost increases driven by negotiated, union cost-of-living adjustments and sharply higher power costs. She said MSDfaces rising maintenance and emergency costs from aging infrastructure, including expensive bypass pumping.
Why it matters: MSD is a county sewer district; the Hamilton County Commissioners set rates. Christie said her recommendation and the countyadministrationwill be considered at a county public hearing in Norwood the evening after the committee hearing, and that county commissioners will vote on the budget and rate at their next meeting.
Christie explained MSDwill shift how inflow-and-infiltration (INI) costs are allocated and remove the declining-block second tier so all usage above 3 CCF would be charged at a single commodity rate (6.277 per CCF under the proposal). "Changing that assumption is allowing us to eliminate that second tier," Christie said, adding that residential customers should see little or no increase while some commercial and industrial customers could see increases—"maybe up to about 15%" in one year depending on volume and circumstances.
Public input: During public comment, multiple environmental and neighborhood advocates urged a more comprehensive impervious-surface or stormwater charge. "Stormwater dischargers pay absolutely nothing," said Larry Falcon, a Pleasant Ridge resident speaking for the Sierra Club Miami Group, who asked the city and county to pursue a charge to make large landowners pay their share of runoff-management costs.
Christie said MSD and the county studied an impervious-surface charge but the stakeholder group lacked consensus on an across-the-board approach. She described alternatives: the rate-allocation change described above, and a targeted pilot that would inspect the largest impervious parcels in the combined system (the top ~500 parcels, in cohorts of ~100) to measure stormwater actually reaching the combined sewer and work case-by-case with large property owners.
Capital and consent-decree work: MSDasked for a 5-year capital improvement program of $153.6 million, with about $84 million appropriated for 2026 to continue repairs, planning and design for larger consent-decree projects. Christie said Phase 2b of the consent decree has begun and the suite of projects at Mill Creek and Little Miami will reduce annual overflow by about 1.5 billion gallons. She warned that larger "mega" projects will concentrate in 2030, including dewatering and a high-rate treatment facility that together carry large price tags.
What's next: The county will hold a public hearing in Norwood; Christie said MSD has shared the proposal with county staff and stakeholders and expects the county commissioners to vote within one to two weeks. Council members asked for MSD to return with a detailed sewer-backup presentation in the spring and to provide more detail about pilot design and equitable treatment of schools and nonprofits in any impervious-surface approach.
Sources: Presentation and Q&A with Diana Christie (MSD director); public-comment remarks by Larry Falcon and Sierra Club representatives.
Ending note: MSD representatives said they will continue stakeholder work and field additional council questions while the county considers the final rate action.
