photo by: Journal-World illustration

A City of Lawrence utility bill is pictured in a photo illustration.

Lawrence city leaders will soon consider increasing all three city utility rates, bringing the average monthly bill to approximately $115.

As part of its meeting Tuesday, the Lawrence City Commission will consider an approximately 6% overall increase to the average household’s utility costs, which comprise the city’s rates for water and sewer, storm water and solid waste service. The rate increases represent an approximate $75 annual increase to the average utility bill for a household using 4,000 gallons of water per month, or about $6 more per month, according to data in a city staff memo to the commission.

More specifically, city staff are proposing a 7.5% rate increase for water and sewer, a 4.5% rate increase for storm water, and an overall 9.5% rate increase for solid waste service. The rate increases for solid waste service vary for different customer types. Single-family homes would see a 3% increase in rates as part of the proposal, while the varying rates now in place for multifamily homes would be replaced by a new multidwelling rate of $16 per month. Rates for commercial solid waste collection — such as the rates for businesses or dumpsters — would also increase. Collectively, the proposed increases will bring the average household’s utility bill from about $109 per month to about $115 per month, based on city data.

The city’s three utility funds are enterprise funds, meaning the rates charged to residents are set to cover the personnel, maintenance and other costs of operating the utility service. City staff state in the memo that key variables in the rates are infrastructure costs, personnel costs, weather for water and sewer rates, and recycling markets for solid waste rates.

Some residents have expressed concerns about the impact of the utility rate increases. As part of the budget process, the city collected public feedback on the budget through an online survey, and a majority of the 28 comments received expressed concerns about rising costs for Lawrence residents, including rising city utility bills.

When the utility rate increases were first proposed as part of the 2022 budget process this summer, City Manager Craig Owens said the city had to confront the realities of its infrastructure needs and what it costs to address them. He said deferring needed infrastructure repairs would only make repairs more expensive in the future.

If the city moves forward with the proposed increases, it would continue the rate increases of recent years. From 2015 to 2021, the typical utility bill has increased from about $77 per month to about $109 per month, according to past city budget documents. That equates to about a 42% increase in city utility rates since 2015, or an average of about 7% per year over that time period.

As part of the presentation materials for Tuesday’s meeting, the city also compared Lawrence’s water and sewer rates with 10 other communities in the area, including Manhattan, Topeka, Johnson County and Kansas City, Mo. When compared with those cities, Lawrence’s rates are approximately in the mid to upper range, or seventh highest among the 11 cities included in the comparison.

Though the commission has previously discussed the utility rates, the rates have not been finalized. The commission approved the additional spending that gives the city the authority to increase the rates as part of the 2022 budget process, but the last couple years the city has brought the actual rate proposals to the commission later for consideration. The commission could elect not to increase the rates at this point or approve smaller increases than what is proposed by making equivalent reductions in spending.

The Lawrence City Commission will meet virtually at 5:45 p.m. Tuesday, and some staff will be in place at City Hall, 6 E. Sixth St. The public may attend the meeting in person at City Hall or participate virtually by following directions included in the commission’s meeting agenda, which is available on the city’s website, lawrenceks.org.