The Columbus City Council has approved water and sewer rate hikes that will raise annual residential bills in the city and the suburbs by more than $100 in 2026.
The council voted 9-0 at its meeting on Nov. 24 to approve the increases. After a late amendment, the council also ordered Columbus Water & Power to study whether water-guzzling businesses are paying their fair share for water infrastructure.
To soften the blow of rate hikes, the council voted to increase the discount for lower income customers from 25% to 30%, a program that is underutilized by eligible residents, according to city officials.
City Council also voted to approve a proposed 13% increase for the city’s residential electric customers. Although most Columbus-area homes get electricity from AEP Ohio, the city’s Division of Power has about 19,000 residential and commercial electricity customers.
Columbus Water & Power, which provides water and sewer services for most of Franklin County, is raising rates about double the increase customers have seen in recent years: a 11.7% composite increase for Columbus residential customers and a 12.9% composite increase for residential customers outside the city.
This could be the first of several years of higher annual rate increases as the city builds a fourth water plant, a $2.3-billion project, to keep up with population growth, and invests in other big infrastructure projects like replacing the city’s remaining lead service lines.
The original proposal asked the City Council to approve an even higher rate increase. Councilmember Christopher Wyche, chair of the Public Utilities & Sustainability committee, said he worked with the city department to lower the ask before bringing it to the rest of the council.
Wyche said during the meeting that the city can no longer delay raising rates and making water infrastructure investments.
“We do not want to find ourselves in a position where we are unable to serve the population with fresh water,” Wyche said.
Wyche introduced an amendment at the meeting that Council President Shannon Hardin said helped convince him to vote for the legislation.
The amendment gives Columbus Water & Power until June 30, 2026, to present a report on several items, including:
As far as commercial water customers, the council’s vote increases capacity fees for new construction to get hooked up to water and sewer systems.
The city is also changing to a uniform rate for commercial customers. This will raise prices for industrial high-water users next year while lowering prices for smaller commercial businesses, but ultimately bring in a similar amount of revenue.
How much will this cost Columbus water customers?
Columbus Water & Power provides water, sewer and stormwater services in the city and provides water and sewer services to most of the rest of Franklin County, except Westerville.
An average household of three people in Columbus will see its annual bill rise from $1,073 to $1,199 in 2026, an increase of $126, according to Columbus Water & Power estimates. The average three-person suburban household will see its annual bill rise $1,163 to $1,312, an increase of $149.
Even with those increases, Columbus’ rates will stay lower than other water providers in the region like Westerville.
How to sign up for a discount on water, power in Columbus
There is assistance available from Columbus Water & Power, although few eligible water or power customers use it. Currently, under 9,000 households are signed up for the discount program, although over 100,000 households are likely eligible, according to the city.
Households earning 200% of the federal poverty level or less can sign up for a discount. Seniors age 60 and over can also qualify for an additional discount.
The council voted Monday to rename the Low Income Discount Program to the Income-Qualified Discount Program as the city seeks to educate residents and get more people signed up.
And the benefit will likely get better. Columbus Water & Power wants to increase the bill discount for qualifying households from 30% in 2026 to 35% in 2027 and 40% in 2028.
To sign up for the discount programs for water and power, you can go to columbus.gov/payassist or call (614)-645-8276 during business hours on weekdays.
Government and politics reporter Jordan Laird can be reached at jlaird@dispatch.com. Follow her on X, Instagram and Bluesky at @LairdWrites.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus City Council approves big water rate hikes for city and suburbs
Reporting by Jordan Laird, Columbus Dispatch / The Columbus Dispatch
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