HomeMy WebLinkAbout26-28719 - City Council - OrdinanceORDINANCE 26-28719
AN ORDINANCE AMENDING SECTION 35-56 (b), (c) and (d) and
SECTION 35-57.1(g) OF CHAPTER 35, "WATER AND SEWERS",
OF THE CODE OF THE CITY OF FORT WORTH (2015), AS
AMENDED, BY REVISING AND ADDING CERTAIN VOLUME
RATES AND CHARGES; MAKING THIS ORDINANCE
CUMULATIVE OF PRIOR ORDINANCES; REPEALING ALL
ORDINANCES AND PROVISIONS OF THE FORT WORTH CITY
CODE IN CONFLICT HEREWITH; PROVIDING A SAVINGS
CLAUSE; PROVIDING A SEVERABILITY CLAUSE; AND
PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT
WORTH, TEXAS:
SECTION 1.
That Section 35-56(b) of Chapter 35 of the Code of the City of Fort Worth (2015),
as amended, is hereby amended to read as follows:
(b) (1) The following schedule of rates per month, or fraction thereof, shall be the
charges to all residential and nonresidential customers for furnishing water to such
customers located within the city. The residential monthly volume charge for water
service shall be the charges to the residential class, as defined in this chapter, for
furnishing water to residential water customers located within the city. The
nonresidential monthly volume charge for water service shall be the charges to the
nonresidential customer classes, as defined in this chapter, for furnishing water to
nonresidential water customers located within the city.
RETAIL WATER RATES
Monthly Service Charge for Water
Meter Size (inches) Monthly charge
5/8X3/4
$14.45
3/4X3/4
$14.70
1
$30.50
1-1/2
$60.10
2
$93.80
3
$248.15
4
$425.10
6
$902.30
8
$1,576.20
10
$2,362.45
(2) The monthly volume charge for water service is as follows:
Ordinance No. 26-28719
Residential Customer Class
Cubic Feet
Rate
First 600 or less cubic feet of water used $2.28
per month, per 100 cubic feet
For the next 600 cubic feet of water used $3.19
per month, per 100 cubic feet
For the next 1,200 cubic feet of water used $4.35
per month, per 100 cubic feet
For all in excess of 2,400 cubic feet of $5.60
water used per month, per 100 cubic feet
Commercial Customer Class
All usage of water used per month, per 100 cubic feet $2.89
Industrial Customer Class
All usage of water used per month, per 100 cubic feet $2.91
Irrigation Meters
First 10,000 or less cubic feet of water used $3.19
per month, per 100 cubic feet
For all in excess of 10,000 cubic feet of $4.30
water used per month, per 100 cubic feet
Gas Well Drillers
All usage of water used per month, per 100 cubic feet $5.85
per month
(3) The service charges set out in the foregoing schedules are based upon
the amount of water used as measured by meters.
Ordinance No. 26-28719
SECTION 2.
That the monthly wastewater rates as described in Section 35-56(c) of Chapter 35
of the Code of the City of Fort Worth (2015), as amended, is hereby amended to read as
follows:
(1) Monthly Service Charge for Sewerage Service Only
Meter Size (inches)
5/8 X 3/4
3/4 X 3/4
1-1/2
2
4
6
8
10
12
Monthly charge
$8.35
$8.70
$15.40
$41.85
$67.00
$125.60
$209.35
$418.70
$669.90
$963.00
$1,800.40
(2) a. A monthly volume charge shall also be charged to residential customers in
the amount of four dollars and thirty-three cents ($4.33) per one hundred (100)
cubic feet of water used, and to nonresidential/non-monitored customers in the
amount of four dollars and thirty-eight cents ($4.38) per one hundred (100)
cubic feet of water used, or wastewater produced, as more specifically set forth
hereinafter.
b. The monthly volume charges for residential class customers will be based
on the individual customer's average monthly water use during the preceding
winter quarter months of December, January and February. The volumes used
to compute these charges are based on the amount of water used by the
residential class customer as measured by a meter. Where no preceding winter
quarter average is available from records, the director shall estimate a volume
to be used for this monthly volume charge.
c. The monthly charges to the nonresidential/non-monitored customers will be
based on total water use as measured by appropriate meters, with the provision
that if a customer can prove, to the satisfaction of the director, that a significant
portion of the metered water usage does not enter the sanitary sewers, the
customer will be charged for only that volume entering the sewers, as
determined by a method approved by the director.
SECTION 3.
Ordinance No. 26-28719
That the monthly volume rates for the monitored class as described in Section 35-
56(d) of Chapter 35 of the Code of the City of Fort Worth (2015), as amended, is hereby
amended to read as follows:
(1) The director shall establish a monitored group class, consisting of those
customers whose wastewater strength is, in his or her judgment, abnormally
high or whose wastewater contains limited substances or materials, and charges
to customers in this class shall be computed in accord with the following five -
part rate schedule:
Monitored Group
Volume charge, per 100 cubic feet $2.97
Biochemical Oxygen Demand strength $0.2825
charge, per pound of BOD
Suspended solids strength charge
per pound of suspended solids $0.1978
Dissolved solids strength charge, per pound of
dissolved solids (applicable to gas well drillers) $0.0420
Monitoring and pretreatment charge = Total actual cost
(2) The monitoring charge shall consist of all cost for personnel, material and
equipment used to collect and analyze samples from the customer's wastewater
to determine the strength of the wastewater produced and, when appropriate, to
inspect pretreatment facilities, to administer pretreatment permit systems and
to enforce ordinance requirements. Pretreatment requirements primarily affect
industries that are subject to 40 CFR, Part 403, General Pretreatment
Regulations.
(3) This schedule shall replace all other charges previously made for industrial
waste strength.
SECTION 4.
That Section 35-57.1(g) of Chapter 35 of the Code of the City of Fort Worth (2015), as
amended, is hereby amended to read as follows:
(g) (1) The monthly charges for connection to unmetered, automatic sprinklers, or
other fire lines installed and used for fire protection shall be as follows:
Connection Size (Inches)
Monthly Charge
Ordinance No. 26-28719
2
$4.95
3
$9.90
4
$19.75
6
$49.40
8
$79.00
10
$118.50
12
$158.00
(2) Charges for connection sizes larger than 12 inches shall be determined by the
director.
SECTION 5.
This ordinance shall be cumulative of all provisions of ordinances and of the Code
of the City of Fort Worth, Texas (2015), as amended, except where the provisions of this
ordinance are in direct conflict with the provisions of such ordinances and such Code, in
which event conflicting provisions of such ordinances and such Code are hereby repealed.
SECTION 6.
It is hereby declared to be the intention of the City Council that the sections,
paragraphs, sentences, clauses and phrases of this ordinance are severable, and, if any
phrase, clause, sentence, paragraph or section of this ordinance shall be declared
unconstitutional by the valid judgment or decree of any court of competent jurisdiction,
such unconstitutionality shall not affect any of the remaining phrases, clauses, sentences,
paragraphs and sections of this ordinance, since the same would have been enacted by the
City Council without the incorporation in this ordinance of any such unconstitutional
phrase, clause, sentence, paragraph or section.
SECTION 7.
This ordinance shall take effect on January 1, 2027.
APPROVED AS TO FORM AND LEGALITY:
By: Stephen�(Sep 16:00:26 CDT) crML
Stephen Hines,
Assistant City Attorney
ADOPTED: August 25, 2026
EFFECTIVE: August 25, 2026
Jannette S. Goodall,
City Secretary
Ordinance No. 26-28719
FORT WORTH„
MAYOR AND COUNCIL COMMUNICATION
7.1.13 ORDINANCE ADOPTING 2027 RETAIL WATER AND WASTEWATER RATES
DATE: 08/25/26 M&C FILE NUMBER: M&C 26-0836
DEPARTMENT: WATER
SUBJECT
(ALL) Adopt Ordinance Revising Retail Water, Fire Line and Wastewater Rates and Charges and
Amending Sections 35-56(b), (c) and (d) and Section 35-57.1(g) of Article III - Charges, of
Chapter 35 - Water and Sewers of the City Code, Effective January 1, 2027
RECOMMENDATION
It is recommended that the City Council adopt the attached ordinance revising retail water,
fire line and wastewater rates and charges and amending Sections 35-56(b), (c) and (d) and
Section 35-57.1(g) of Article III - Charges, of Chapter 35 - Water and Sewers of the City Code,
effective January 1, 2027.
DISCUSSION
Each year the Water Utility staff conducts cost -of -service studies to establish annual
operating revenue requirements for retail water and wastewater services. As part of the cost -
of -service studies, staff prepares the budget for the ensuing Fiscal Year (FY) and determines
the cost responsibility and revenue requirements to recover the costs of providing service to
each of the five water and three wastewater customer classes. Staff also reviews meter
growth, as well as volume usage and sewer flows contributed by class and makes
adjustments based on both recent and long-term trends. This process provides cost -of -
service rates.
The 2027 cost -of -service studies identify a need for an increase in retail revenue requirements
of 3.60 percent for the water system and 2.85 percent for the wastewater system. The primary
drivers of the system revenue requirement increases are additional pay -go cash financing and
debt service payments to support the Capital Improvement Plan and keep pace with growth;
increased payments to the Tarrant Regional Water District for raw water purchases and to the
Trinity River Authority for outside wastewater treatment services; and increases in required
transfers to the General Fund and allocations to other funds.
The recommended rate adjustments impact consumption and flow rates as well as monthly
fixed service fees, applied based on meter size. The small increases in the water and sewer
monthly service charge for all meter sizes maintains the balance between the fixed and
1 of 5
FORT WORTH.
variable charges, enabling the utility to reduce its reliance on more volatile, volume -based
revenues impacted by weather variations. This is a best practice to promote stability in
revenue collection and cash flow.
For water volume rates, staff recommends no changes to the Residential tiers 1 and 2 rates and
increasing the rates for Residential tiers 3 and 4 to further encourage conservation in water use
and to lessen the impact on tier 1 usage, which is primarily used for domestic purposes such
as bathing, cleaning, and cooking. For the Commercial, Industrial, and Irrigation classes, the
cost of service for 2027 results in small increases in the volume rates. Staff recommends no
changes in the volume rate for the Gas Well class, which is already at its cost of service.
Staff recommends small rate increases for sewer fixed monthly service charges for all meter
sizes as well as volume -based rates for all customer classes in line with their cost of service.
Monitored customers are assessed a separate surcharge based on their wastewater strengths
and staff recommends an increase in the Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD), with no increase
to the Total Suspended Solids (TSS), or the Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) surcharges.
These water and sewer rate adjustments result in an increase of $1.32 on the average monthly
residential bill based on FY2025 average usage of 7,069 gallons (9.45 CCF) of water and 4,450
gallons (5.95 CCF) of sewer flow per month.
RETAIL WATER RATES
Meter Size Current Proposed
5/8" & 3/4" $13.75 $14.45
3/4" x 3/4" $14.00 $14.70
1" $29.05 $30.50
11/2" $ 57.25 $ 60.10
2" $89.35 $93.80
3" $236.35 $248.15
4" $404.85 $425.10
6" $859.35 $902.30
8" $1,501.15 $1,576.20
10" $2,249.95 $2,362.45
2 of 5
FORT WORTH.
Customer Volume Charge Per 100 Cubic Current Proposed
Feet (CCF)
Residential
First 6.00 CCF
$2.28
$2.28
More than 6.00 to 12.00 CCF
$3.19
$3.19
More than 12.00 to 24.00 CCF
$4.29
$4.35
More than 24.00 CCF
$5.37
$5.60
Commercial
All Usage
$2.78
$2.89
Industrial
All Usage
$2.80
$2.91
Irrigation
0 to 100.00 CCF
$3.08
$3.19
More than 100.00 CCF
$4.13
$4.30
Gas Wells
All Usage
$ 5.85
$ 5.85
RETAIL WASTEWATER RATES
Meter Size
Current
Proposed
5/8" & 3/4"
$7.90
$8.35
3/4" x 3/4"
$8.20
$8.70
1"
$14.55
$15.40
11/2"
$39.50
$41.85
2"
$63.20
$67.00
3"
$118.50
$125.60
4"
$197.50
$209.35
6"
$395.00
$418.70
8"
$632.00
$669.90
3 of 5
FORT WORTH.
10" $908.50 $963.00
12" $1,698.50 $1,800.40
Residential Current Proposed
Volume Charge (per 100
$ 4.30 $ 4.33
Cubic Feet)
Non -Monitored Current Proposed
Volume Charge (per 100
Cubic $4.25 $4.38
Feet)
Monitored Group Current Proposed
Volume Charge (per 100
Cubic Feet) $2.78 $2.97
BOD Charge (per Pound) $0.2697 $0.2825
TSS Charge (per Pound) $0.1978 $0.1978
TDS Charge (per Pound)
$0.0420 $0.0420
for Gas Well Drillers
FIRE LINES
The Water utility charges a monthly fixed fee based on connection size to customers with a
dedicated fire line for fire protection. To address water loss from fire lines, the utility is
implementing a new inspection program to identify leaks in these lines. The utility is also
allocating a small portion of treatment and distribution costs to fire lines to reflect the true
cost of providing this service. As a result, fire lines are now included in the annual retail cost
of service study and the fees will be adjusted annually to recover their cost of service. Based
on the FY27 study, the fees are recommended for update as follows:
4 of 5
FORT WORTH.
Connection Size
Current
Proposed
2 inches
$16.95
$4.95
3 inches
$16.95
$9.90
4 inches
$16.95
$19.75
6 inches
$25.50
$49.40
8 inches
$33.95
$79.00
10 inches
$56.40
$118.50
12 inches
$105.10
$158.00
This project is located in ALL COUNCIL DISTRICTS.
This M&C does not request approval of a contract with a business entity.
FISCAL INFORMATION/CERTIFICATION
The Director of Finance certifies that upon approval of the above recommendation and
adoption of the attached ordinance, funds will be deposited into the Water & Sewer Fund. The
Water Department (and Financial Management Services) is responsible for the collection and
deposit of funds due to the City.
SUBMITTED FOR CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE BY: Jesica L. McEachern, # 5804
ORIGINATING BUSINESS UNIT HEAD: Chris Harder, # 5020
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION CONTACT: Brian Brown, # 8820
ATTACHMENTS
1. Ordinance Adopting 2027 Retail Water and Wastewater Rates (1) [7.1.13.1 - 6 pages]
5 of 5