FAQs
Utility Billing
No. It's free to sign up for online payments and to use the service.
The main sources of revenue for water and sewer funds are services charges (rates) and system development charges (SDCs). Oregon State Budget rules and regulations require all utility accounts operate independently from other government activities. Revenue from water and sewer rates is never used for expenditures outside of their respective utility function.
SDCs are one-time charges assessed on new development (growth) to pay for the costs of expanding public facilities. Growth creates additional infrastructure demands; SDCs provide a mechanism to allow new growth in a community to pay for its share of infrastructure costs rather than placing the burden on existing utility ratepayers. SDCs cannot be used to fund operating costs.
There are three main categories of expenditures for water and sewer rates:
- Operating expenses of each utility – personnel, materials, contract services, professional services. This is the day-to-day running of the utility.
- Capital financing – projects such as recent sewer pump station upgrades and improvements to the water and wastewater treatment plants. These projects are typically identified in facility plans years in advance of their need and can be cash funded or debt funded.
- Contingency and capital reserves. Contingency funds are set aside for unforeseen events or circumstances. Capital reserves are a savings account for future major projects that would otherwise require taking out a loan.
Each year, the utilities face increasing costs from three directions: personnel and labor costs, regulatory costs, and capital projects. Compliance costs also increase for providing our community with safe drinking water and treated waste water discharges. As infrastructure ages, the cost to maintain, upgrade, rehabilitate and replace pipes, pumps, and valves increase. When new facilities are built the ongoing costs of operations and maintenance of those new pipelines also become the responsibility of the City.
No, as described above, water and sewer accounts are self-supporting and are kept separate from the remainder of the City’s budget. Expenditures in other portions of the City’s budget do not impact water and sewer rates.
