The local news you need to start your week. Sign up for the free Helena This Week newsletter and stay in the loop on Helena city government, public school meetings, business news and upcoming entertainment and events. MISSOULA — Next month, the Missoula City Council will consider increases to water, sewer and stormwater utility rates proposed to keep up with inflation, replace aging infrastructure and boost savings to pay for existing loans. On Wednesday, the council set a public hearing for Oct. 21, when they will likely vote on the utility rate increases. If approved, wastewater rates would increase 9% in 2025, 2026 and 2027; water rates would increase 7% in 2025 and 8% in 2026 and 2027; and stormwater rates would increase 2% in 2025 and 3% in 2026 and 2027. The increases would apply to residential and commercial bills. The overall increase to the average residential monthly utility bill would be $4.18 in 2025, $4.92 in 2026 and $5.33 in 2027. If approved, the new rates would take effect Jan. 1, 2025. “We believe it’s preferable to ask for smaller, moderate rate increases every year,” said Logan McInnis, the city’s deputy public works director. “That way, we avoid shocking our customers while continuing to make ongoing investments in our system to improve reliability and resilience.” For the city’s water utility, money from the increased rates would help pay for replacing water mains, adding solar panels to pump facilities, hiring a utility engineer to save money on consultants and increasing some wages, McInnis said. Revenue would also go toward a program helping customers replace leaking service lines, which connect houses to the city’s water main, he said. The city is falling short of its goal to replace 1%, or 3.4 miles, of water mains per year, with about 2.5 miles replaced per year, McInnis said. Replacements will help reduce the water leakage rate by about 50%, saving money in the long run, he said. The wastewater rate increase would help create an annual sewer main replacement program and fund treatment facility repairs and other system upgrades, McInnis said. Money is also needed to design and construct a new sewer main crossing the Clark Fork River, which is currently at risk of damage during flooding, he said. Additional stormwater utility revenue would help pay for improving discharge to the Bitterroot River and provide matching funds for grants, McInnis said. The increased rates would help build up water and wastewater reserves needed to cover debt and maintain a good bond rating, according to the public works’ rate increase proposal. McInnis said the Department of Environmental Quality’s state revolving fund program, which provides loans to local governments at or below-market interest rates, expressed concern Missoula won’t be able to pay its debts without rate increases. DEQ wants “to see our rates go up because our reserves are marginal compared to what they need to be,” he said. Combined, Missoula’s 2023 utility rates were the lowest among Montana’s largest cities, McInnis said. Even with the proposed increases, Missoula’s rates should remain on the lower end, as other cities are likely to also increase rates, he said. The city council last increased utility rates in 2021, approving a rate schedule for 2022, 2023 and 2024. At the time, water rates were lower than 2011 and sewer rates had not increased since 2015, according to the rate proposal . Missoula created its stormwater utility in 2018, setting an initial low rate, followed by a rate structure in 2020. Ahead of the public hearing Oct. 21, utility customers will receive a postcard in late September outlining the proposed rate increases, McInnis said. In-depth, independent reporting on the stories impacting your community from reporters who know your town.
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