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Council advances ordinance to raise electric rates 5% in first year of multi‑year plan
Summary
Wadsworth officials moved Ordinance 25-218 to third reading after staff presented a rate study recommending a 5% electric increase in year one (part of a 5%/5%/3%/3% track), estimated to generate about $1.625 million and raise an average residential bill roughly $5.53 per month.
Wadsworth’s Committee of the Whole — Finance moved forward an ordinance (No. 25-218) implementing the first year of a new electric rate schedule after staff presented a cost-of-service study.
Assistant Public Service Director Mike Testa said the study recommended a multi-year rate track and that the first-year 5% increase would generate roughly $1,625,000 in additional revenue. “The recommendation was for a 5% increase,” Testa said, and he estimated the change would add about $5.53 per month to a typical residential bill (about 875 kilowatt-hours). Testa said the rates are designed to cover operations, capital replacement and to ensure the utility meets debt covenants.
Council members asked how the additional revenue would be used. Testa said the funds are intended both for near-term operating needs and to build an appropriate cash reserve; he identified a roughly $9 million target reserve for the electric fund. Service Director Matt Hiscock cautioned that larger transmission projects, such as a second delivery point, would require partnerships and multiple future studies to allocate costs appropriately.
Council Member Tom Stugmyer moved the ordinance to third reading; the committee did not take a final vote on adoption at this meeting. If adopted as presented, the ordinance would authorize the first-year 5% rate increase that is reflected in the city’s 2026 budget.
