City of Columbia implements new rate changes effective Oct. 1

City of Columbia Utilities implemented a new rate structure for the Water Utility and new rates for the Electric Utility beginning Oct. 1.

While the City strives to keep costs affordable for the community, City of Columbia Utilities is affected by the same factors driving up costs for other products and services.

Each year, City staff performs a five-year forecast based on historic and current expenses and revenues.

The intent is to meet three major criteria:

1. Cover increased operation and maintenance expenses, including employee compensation
2. Maintain cash reserve levels
3. Ensure adequate debt coverage

To ensure Utilities can maintain and upgrade aging infrastructure while meeting its financial obligations, it is necessary to increase revenues. It remains the objective for the City to target smaller incremental increases that are more manageable for our customers.

Water Utility

Based on Stantec Consulting's cost of service study - and backed by the Water & Light Advisory Board and the City Council - the Water Utility is implementing a new rate structure that will increase revenue 12% in FY26. However, the City expects water bills to decrease for residential customers with consistent monthly usage (an estimated 65% of residential customers).

The customer base charge for residential customers will be $14.32, an increase of 25 cents per month. For FY26, the customer base charge and fire flow charge have been combined into a single customer base charge.

For consumption charges, the Water Utility is making three changes:

• The Tier 1 charge is decreasing, while charges on Tiers 2 and 3 are increasing.
• The Tiers will be applied year-round rather than only during the summer months.
• Tier 1 has been updated to 100% of the customers' winter average consumption. It was previously 70%.

The updated water rate structure is designed to increase revenue while recovering costs from users more closely with how their use impacts the system. Peak day and peak hour demands on the system incur more costs for the utility; therefore, usage that is greater than the customer's winter quarter average will be charged at the higher tiers.

A more detailed breakdown of the changes can be found at BeHeard.CoMo.gov.

Electric Utility

The Electric Utility is implementing a 2% increase in the customer charge and energy charge (cost per kilowatt hour). The residential customer charge will go from $22 per month to $22.44 per month. Usage rates are dependent on the customer's rate class.

A more detailed breakdown of the changes can be found at BeHeard.CoMo.gov.

For a full explanation of electric rates, please refer to the Utility Rates page.

Assistance programs

The City's utility billing portal (MyUtilityBill.CoMo.gov) includes an interactive dashboard that allows customers to track their historic water and electric usage, which will allow you to understand how weather and other factors impact your bills. You can also donate to the Utility Assistance program on this site to help your neighbors in need.

To encourage and promote water and energy conservation, City of Columbia Utilities has a suite of programs ranging from free home assessments to rebates for installing efficient appliances. You can find low-cost water and energy saving tips, information about efficiency programs and available rebates at ColumbiaPowerPartners.com.

The City continues to fund the Utility Assistance Program for customers seeking assistance to pay utility bills. Columbia/Boone County Public Health & Human Services offers the Utility Assistance Program for eligible electric and water customers. For more information, call 573.817.6430. If you want to support your neighbors with utility bill assistance, you can donate at CoMo.gov/donations.

Utility assistance and home weatherization are also available through Central Missouri Community Action (CMCA). CMCA can be contacted at 573.443.3500.