Why does Clean Water Services regularly raise rates?
Clean Water Services (CWS) is a county service district that provides sewer and stormwater services funded by ratepayers — we do not receive property tax dollars. CWS has a history of modest and predictable annual rate increases, averaging less than 4% a year over the last decade. Our rates are among the lowest in the region despite having to treat water to a higher than usual standard due to how sensitive the Tualatin River is.
Rates help cover the costs of sewer pipes, water treatment, maintenance and construction, stormwater management, and water resource recovery facility operations. Cost increases for things like chemicals and labor affect the utilities that provide your essential services. Regular rate increases and long-term financial planning have helped us avoid large rate spikes.
We do a lot to keep costs in check, like recovering valuable resources from your used water, working in partnership to share costs and increase positive impacts, and planning ahead for the region as our population grows and our climate becomes more extreme and unpredictable.
What changes did the CWS Board approve on April 14, 2026?
Our most recent cost of service study revealed that rates have not been covering the costs of our local services — particularly for sanitary sewer services. During a public meeting on April 14, the CWS Board adopted a new methodology for setting rates based on the cost of services in various parts of our service district, as well as a contingency and reserves policy. Here is a link to the agenda, which includes links to more information on both actions.
The new methodology means we will examine the costs of services for our regional and local sewer and stormwater programs more regularly, and propose different rate increases for each based on those costs, rather than the same rate increase for all services. This is to make sure all customers are paying their fair share for the services they receive, and aren’t subsidizing or being subsidized by customers living in other parts of the county.
The updated reserves policy will reduce current reserves by approximately $100 million. The fact that we are drawing a large sum from reserve funds means that we don’t have to raise rates as much to get to the point where they are fully covering costs. We are doing that in order to protect ratepayers from larger increases.
What rate increases are you proposing this year?
The proposed rate increase for combined sewer and stormwater services in our Proposed Fiscal Year 2026-27 Budget is 6.4% — or an estimated $4.28 a month more for the average residential customer in Banks, Durham, Gaston, King City, North Plains, and unincorporated Washington County. This is a combination of the rate for regional services and for local services.
About $1.89 of that $4.28 would be from a proposed 21% increase in local sewer rates to begin correcting the fact that the rates charged for local services have not been keeping up with the costs of delivering those services.
The regional rate increase alone would be 4%. The cities of Beaverton, Cornelius, Forest Grove, Hillsboro, Sherwood, Tigard, and Tualatin set their own city rates for local services. In these cities, CWS does not provide local services and each city sets their own rates for their local services as the provider.
Your sewer and stormwater rates support a system that works to protect public health, your property, and the Tualatin River.
Is CWS proposing rates increases for multiple years?
The CWS Board of Directors only approves rates one year at a time, and we take a fresh look every year at what is actually needed to pay for services. Any rate projections beyond this coming fiscal year are based on the current financial outlook.
Under our current rate projections, the average residential customer billed directly by Clean Water Services would see monthly increases of $4.28 in fiscal year 2027, $4.79 in FY28, $5.42 in FY29, $6.05 in FY30, and $6.83 in FY31. These projections are based on the expected cost of operations, capital construction, and debt service — and will be re-evaluated year by year.
What is the difference between local and regional rates?
Our service area includes Banks, Beaverton, Cornelius, Durham, Forest Grove, Gaston, Hillsboro, King City, North Plains, Sherwood, Tigard, Tualatin, urban unincorporated areas within Washington County, small portions of Lake Oswego, small portions of Portland, and portions of Clackamas and Multnomah Counties.
The CWS Board of Directors sets the regional portion of the sanitary sewer and surface water management (SWM) rates for all customers in our service area. Regional services provided to all customers include:
- Constructing, operating, and maintaining treatment plants, sewage pump stations, and pressure lines
- Designing, building, and maintaining sewer lines 24 inches and larger
- Compliance reporting and oversight for our National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit, including municipal separate storm sewer system
- Maintaining minimum stream flows
- Service area restoration and enhancing stream corridors
The Board also sets the local portion of the sewer and SWM rates to customers we bill directly in urban unincorporated Washington County and the city limits of Banks, Durham, Gaston, King City, and North Plains.
Local services support operating and maintaining the local collection system, and 24-hour response to protect public health, the environment, and critical infrastructure. Local services include:
- Designing, building, maintaining, and repairing stormwater facilities and sewer lines 21 inches and smaller
- Cleaning and inspecting sewer pipes
- Sweeping streets
- Maintaining water quality facilities
- Cleaning catch basins and water quality manholes
Seven partner cities — Beaverton, Cornelius, Forest Grove, Hillsboro, Sherwood, Tigard, and Tualatin — provide local services in their communities, typically within city limits, and set their own local rates.
How can I participate in the budget and rates setting process?
Our Proposed Fiscal Year 2026-27 Budget is available for your review. There will be two public meetings related to the budget.
- On May 8, 2026, the CWS Budget Committee, which includes members of the Board of Directors and five community representatives, will review the budget and amend or approve it as presented.
- On June 9, 2026, The CWS Board will hold a public hearing and may revise the budget. After the public hearing, the Board adopts the budget and holds a separate public hearing to adopt the rates.
We will post details on how to participate in those meetings on our Budgets & Financial Planning page as they become available, and you can sign up for our Public Meetings e-newsletter for important meeting information delivered right to your inbox.
The adopted budget and adopted rates will go into effect on July 1, 2026 — the start of the fiscal year.
Why is my water bill so high?
CWS is not a water provider. Your city or local water provider supplies your drinking water and bills you separately for that service.
If your bill seems unusually high, you may have a leak and may be eligible for a bill adjustment once you detect and fix it. Contact the CWS billing department and your drinking water provider to discuss your bill and your options.
Your water usage from November through April every year sets your Clean Water Services usage charge. Since it is the water you use indoors that goes to our water resource recovery facilities to be treated, we don’t want you to pay more based on the water you use in the summer that does not go to our facilities.
CWS sewer charges pay for sewer pipes, maintenance and construction, and operation of the wastewater treatment plants as well as for the costs associated with the treatment. Those systems need to be in place and maintained to protect public health no matter how much used water you flush or send down the drain. CWS and partner city crews are also responsible for the public drainage system. Learn more about your rates.
Are you raising rates because of data centers?
Since Clean Water Services is not a water provider, the water that goes into data centers does not come from us. We only handle the wastewater from homes, businesses, and industries, and we manage stormwater. Data centers are required to pay to discharge wastewater into the public sanitary sewer system like any other industrial customer. Data centers do not receive subsidies or special rates from CWS.