Utility bills for Salt Lakers could jump up starting this summer, as the city’s Department of Public Utilities plans to overhaul its fee structure while also dealing with a much smaller budget for Fiscal Year 2026.
A typical single family residential home could see their utility rates increase by roughly $120 per year, according to Laura Briefer, Salt Lake City’s Director of Public Utilities.
Briefer addressed the Salt Lake City Council on Tuesday as part of ongoing budget discussions for the next fiscal year.
Meeting materials provided to the city council estimated heavy utility users could see their yearly bill increase by as much as $650, and the bulk of that bill — around $548 — would come from water usage.
The water rate increases would not only impact Salt Lake City residents, as the city’s public utilities also provide water for residents in Cottonwood Heights, Holladay and Millcreek, as well as parts of Midvale, Murray and South Salt Lake.
Despite the steep proposed increase, the proposed Public Utilities budget would be 26.7% less than the previous year.
Briefer told the council that much of that decline is due to far fewer public funds going toward capital improvement projects.
The projects make up around 40% of the department’s projected expenditures for FY26, which Briefer said is a good thing.
“It shows that we are investing in our aging infrastructure at a pretty healthy rate,” she said.
Briefer added that Salt Lake’s water infrastructure is about 178 years old, and it needs consistent upkeep to stay in line with state and federal clean water regulations.
Council members were less concerned about why the city’s utility rates are expected to increase, as they were more focused on making sure residents knew what was coming.
Council Member Sarah Young said it’s easy to overlook this type of complicated water infrastructure that needs to be replaced, but she stressed the importance of telling residents about the rate hikes.
“It is a really difficult economic time, as I’m sure I don’t need to restate for anyone here,” Young said.
“I just want to make sure that we’re doing our due diligence, and it sounds like we are, but everything that we can do to make sure that our residents aren’t surprised when they open up a bill later this year.”
Briefer told Building Salt Lake that it’s common for public utilities to reexamine their rates every few years, and a rapidly changing Salt Lake City means the Department of Public Utilities must change as well.
“No rate design or rate structure is perfect,” Briefer said Tuesday.
“There are a lot of conflicts in the values that are built into a rate design, but I feel very good about this rate design and that it reflects a lot of different community values.”
Briefer added that Public Utilities is currently working on a calculator function within its billing website that will allow customers to see what their future rates would be.
The department is also holding a virtual townhall meeting Thursday where residents can ask questions and get a better understanding of the proposed rate changes.
It’s all part of a public outreach program to make sure Salt Lakers know what to expect on their bills later this year.
“We want these rates to be fair and equitable,” Briefer said.
“We want them to reflect efficiency and how we run our organization, and we also have a strong need to make sure that we are taking care of this critical infrastructure.
It’s lifeline infrastructure, and so we’re balancing a lot of different aspects of how we pay for water.
image source from：https://buildingsaltlake.com/salt-lakers-your-utility-rates-are-likely-going-to-go-up-later-this-year/
