York Region residents will dish out another $21 on average in 2022 and will face price hikes through 2028 after Council approved a 3.3 per cent annual increase to water and wastewater user rates.
Council also approved transfers of more than $28 million from the stabilization reserves to water and wastewater asset management reserves to offset the impact of 2020 and 2021 deferred rates increases.
“Our proactive water and wastewater rate freeze in 2020 and 2021 gave immediate financial relief to residents and businesses experiencing financial challenges related to COVID-19,” Chairman and CEO Wayne Emmerson says. “The new rate increase is below previous years to maintain affordability while still providing safe, reliable and clean water.”
The region acts as a wholesale provider of water and wastewater services to its local municipalities, which in turn set retail rates and provide services to local resident and businesses. Full cost recovery for water and wastewater services means rates cover the costs of operating the region’s water and wastewater services, reducing its reliance on debt to pay for those services.
Annual wholesale rates for water and wastewater are reviewed and set periodically. Proposed rates are developed through a rate study. Between 2009 and 2019, York implemented annual rate increases of nine to 10 per cent. For more information, including principles for rate structures, see York’s Water and Wastewater Financial Sustainability Plan.
York’s average water bill remains the lowest among Ontario regional municipalities with a two-tier delivery system. One litre of municipally-supplied tap water costs about $0.001, it reports. To learn more about your water, visit york.ca/drinkingwater.