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Customer rates to increase July 2025
In July 2025, residential sewer, stormwater, and water bills will increase by 6.34%. A typical residential customer will pay an average of $9.55 more per month.
This rate increase is necessary due to:
- Investments in critical system improvements and aging infrastructure
- Increased costs to operate our sewer, stormwater, and water systems
- The need to comply with increasingly complex regulations
The Water Bureau and the Bureau of Environmental Services recognize that everyone is facing higher costs of living. Any increase in utility rates adds to that burden, and we don’t take that lightly.
We’re working to manage costs and help those who need it. We offer a broad range of support to customers who need help paying their bills. Learn more about our financial assistance programs, ways to use less water, and other ways to lower your bill.
Where does the money from my bill go?
Water systems are complex. Our drinking water system includes two water sources, three treatment facilities, over 2,250 miles of pipe, and much more. Our stormwater and wastewater systems require another 2,500 miles of pipe, thousands of green streets, nearly 100 pump stations, two treatment plants, and many acres of wetlands and waterways.
Rates pay for our work to operate, maintain, and improve these water systems.
It takes over 1,300 employees to operate and maintain all that infrastructure. We work 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, all year round to make sure that our city’s water utilities are safe and reliable.
Many pieces of our systems are aging. We need to invest in their repair or replacement so our systems can continue to serve us—and future generations of Portlanders—well.
The graphic above shows how your bill dollars support these complex systems. (Numbers rounded for clarity.)
- 25.5% of your bill goes to providing drinking water. This includes keeping your drinking water safe and maintaining pipes, tanks, and hydrants.
- 33.8% of your bill pays for the sewer and wastewater treatment system. This includes the pipes, pumps, and wastewater treatment facilities.
- 24.9% of your bill supports the stormwater system, which manages water runoff from hard surfaces like streets, roofs, and parking lots. This system prevents pollution and mitigates flooding.
- 15.4% of your bill represents the base charge. This allows us to provide customer service, billing, and water meter reading.
- 0.5% of your bill goes to the Portland Harbor Superfund. This contributes to the cleanup of the Portland Harbor area in the Willamette River.
Each dollar of your sewer, stormwater, and water charges pays for the following:
Operations and maintenance: $0.42
Running the drinking water, sewer, and stormwater systems requires constant, year-round work. Rates and charges help fund the operations and maintenance of these systems. This includes proactive maintenance, protecting water quality, complying with regulations, and controlling pollution.
This essential work:
- Keeps safe drinking water flowing to your tap
- Keeps the wastewater treatment process running smoothly
- Manages stormwater to reduce flooding risks and improve the health of our waterways
System improvement projects: $0.20
System improvement projects replace, upgrade, or expand our infrastructure.
Many of these projects replace older parts of our systems. For example, about one-third of Portland’s public sewer and stormwater pipes are over 80 years old. Almost one-quarter of our water mains (pipes) were installed before 1930.
Other projects are larger investments that upgrade and expand key parts of our systems.
Learn more about how your dollars support system improvement projects.
Debt service loan repayment: $0.29
Debt service is payments on current and completed projects. One example is the Big Pipe Project, which has improved the water quality of the Willamette River and made it safe for recreation most days. We borrow money to help pay for system improvements projects like the Big Pipe Project. This spreads out the costs of these large projects over longer time periods.
Other expenditures: $0.09
Other expenditures that are necessary for service functions include:
- Transfers to the Rate Stabilization Account, which we use to help pay for improvement projects to limit future rate increases
- Payments to the General Fund for City of Portland services
- Utility license fees
- Pension obligation bond payments
- Portland Harbor Superfund
Will rates continue to go up?
We expect combined sewer, stormwater, and water rates to increase about 5–6% per year through 2030.
The “Average monthly single-family bill” values (shown in blue) are calculated based on the historical average water use of 5ccf (about 3,740 gallons) a month.
The Water Bureau and the Bureau of Environmental Services both create long-term financial plans. Those plans include forecasting the rates needed to pay for our current and planned work. This planning helps us avoid sudden spikes in rates by spreading out necessary increases over time.
We only raise rates as much as is necessary to pay for our essential work. As public utilities, we set rates to cover the cost of providing drinking water, stormwater, and sewer services, not to generate profit.
Steady and predictable rate increases ensure we can complete critical system upgrades. If we delay those investments, system failures become more likely in the future. Emergency repairs cost more, disrupt services, and lead to higher bills down the line. Consistent investment in our infrastructure is one way we manage long-term costs.
Our planned rate increases are needed to:
- Keep up with increased costs for the supplies and people we need to operate our systems
- Avoid drastic, sudden rate increases by spreading out cost increases over time
- Invest in aging infrastructure now to avoid even higher costs later
- Complete important system improvements, including the Bull Run filtration facility and Secondary Treatment Expansion Program.
How your dollars support critical water system improvements
The projects we invest in ensure Portland’s sewer, stormwater, and water systems stay safe and reliable for generations to come. System improvement projects:
- Address aging infrastructure and deferred maintenance
- Reduce the risks of emergency failures that are more expensive and disruptive to fix
- Prepare our systems for emergencies like earthquakes, wildfires, and climate change
- Ensure we comply with regulations
System improvement projects come in a variety of forms. One example is the Secondary Treatment Expansion Program, led by Environmental Services. This is the largest improvement to our wastewater treatment facility since the 1970s. This project will increase the plant’s reliability and resilience.
The Bull Run Filtration Project is another massive project, led by the Water Bureau. We need this new water treatment facility to comply with regulations and to remove Cryptosporidium from our water. It will also protect our drinking water system from things like wildfires, earthquakes, and extreme weather.
Projects like these will allow future generations to enjoy our amazing water resources the same way that we have.
How the Bull Run Filtration Project will impact rates
The Bull Run Filtration Project is an investment in our health and our future. The current cost estimate for the new filtration facility and pipelines is $2.114 billion.
When completed, this investment will:
- Remove sediment (dirt) and microorganisms like Cryptosporidium from our drinking water
- Protect public health
- Better prepare our water system for climate change, earthquakes, wildfires, and extreme weather
The project is funded by the water part of your bill, selling water revenue bonds, and federal loans.
The revenue bonds and federal loans allow us to spread out the cost of the project over time. This means we can increase rates more slowly over a longer period. However, rate increases are necessary to support this generational investment.
About one-third of the planned increases to the water portion of your bill will pay for the filtration project.
Learn more about how we’re managing costs for the filtration project.
Camp Creek Fire shows importance of system investments
System improvements like the Bull Run Filtration facility are more urgent than ever. Climate change is adding more challenges and risks we must address. This includes the potential for more frequent, more severe wildfires that could disrupt water service.
In August 2023, lightning started the Camp Creek Fire in the Bull Run Watershed. (The Bull Run is Portland’s primary drinking water source.) The fire burned 2,055 acres near our water supply. Fortunately, it was mostly a low-severity fire and hasn’t caused any water quality issues to date.
This fire didn’t affect our ability to safely serve Bull Run water—but it could have. After a major fire, rains could wash large amounts of dirt, plant debris, and ash into our reservoirs. Currently, we cannot safely serve Bull Run water if that happens. Instead, we would have to use water from our secondary source, the Columbia South Shore Well Field. However, the well field has limited capacity, so we can’t use it as our only water source for long periods of time.
The future filtration facility will be able to remove dirt or ash from our water. Filtration will prepare us to continue delivering Bull Run water after a major wildfire or natural disaster.
What we’re doing to manage costs
Most of our costs each year are fixed because our work is not optional. We have to deliver safe drinking water, treat wastewater, and manage stormwater. All the money from your bill goes directly toward supporting those services.
It takes 1,300 people to keep our systems running. We have to buy materials to treat your water and maintain our infrastructure. Over the past few years, the costs of many of those materials have risen even faster than the rate of inflation.
We seek to balance the long-term needs of our water systems with short-term effects on our community. While there are many costs we cannot control, we know that every dollar matters. We do everything we can to keep costs as manageable as possible for customers.
- We plan major infrastructure projects strategically. We shift resources as needed to keep our rate increases predictable year over year.
- When investing in critical projects, we look for cost-saving measures and financing options. The Water Bureau secured federal loans for the Bull Run Filtration Project. We estimate these will save customers about $387 million on the project.
- We’re investing where and when it matters most. We prioritize repairing and replacing assets that are most likely to break. This helps avoid the need for more costly emergency repairs in the future.
- We engage in proactive, routine maintenance of our systems. This extends the life of our infrastructure. It also helps us to catch issues before they require more expensive repairs.
- We invest in customer support programs to help those who need it most. We offer a range of programs to help customers manage their bills. If you’re struggling to pay your bill, please reach out to our Customer Service team to explore options.
Investing in customer support
We never want to see anyone struggling to afford basic and essential services. We’re committed to limiting cost increases while delivering safe and reliable services.
Besides investing in our infrastructure, we’re investing in support for our customers. We offer a variety of programs to help our customers afford and control their bills.
Here’s how you can access these programs:
- Apply for financial assistance. If you qualify, you’ll receive a discount on your bill. You’ll also get access to other help like home water leak repair assistance and crisis vouchers.
- Sign up for the Clean River Rewards discount program. If you qualify, you can save up to 35% on the stormwater portion of your bill.
- If you need more time to pay your bill, request a payment arrangement.
- Our water efficiency program can help you reduce the amount of water you use, which can save on your bill. Learn about more ways to save water.