Wholesale water and wastewater rates to be adjusted, solid waste rates unchanged

At their regular meeting held on Sept. 22, the North Texas Municipal Water District (NTMWD) Board of Directors adopted the fiscal year (FY) 2023 budget that prioritizes the people, products and planning needed to maintain regional, reliable essential services to more than two million North Texans. NTMWD must continue to plan for the major growth in our region, and the FY23 budget reflects those efforts.

“The new budget will help us meet our commitment to provide safe drinking water, wastewater collection and treatment, and solid waste disposal services for the growing North Texas service area,” said Jenna Covington, NTMWD Executive Director and General Manager.

The approved budget of $670.9 million includes dedicating 17 percent ($112.96M) for personnel who are critical for around the clock operations and administration of the water, wastewater, and solid waste systems. Approximately 32 percent ($234.29M) funds the District’s overall supplies and services needed, and the remaining 51 percent ($323.72M) is allocated for planning and capital improvement projects including those needed for anticipated future growth, maintenance of aging infrastructure, and regulatory requirements.

With increased inflation rates, unstable and increasing construction costs, the NTMWD capital improvement program has been impacted. The FY23 budget includes funding approximately $980 million of new or active, multi-year capital projects District-wide such as the McKinney Delivery Point No. 3 to No. 4 Pipeline ($101M), the South Mesquite Regional Wastewater Treatment Plant Peak Flow Management and Expansion ($151M), and the new Fleet Maintenance Facility ($12M). These projects and many more are needed to meet the increased demands for essential services in our growing region.

NTMWD provides clean, safe drinking water to more than two million customers, and it’s estimated that over 55,000 new residents – roughly equivalent to a city the size of Wylie, TX – move into our service area every year. The impacts of growth are reflected in the record of 117 billion gallons of water NTMWD treated and distributed last year, up 14 billion gallons from the previous year. NTMWD conveys and treats approximately 44 billion gallons of wastewater annually and manages around 1 million tons of solid waste that is disposed of each year.

The FY23 budget requires rate adjustments for wholesale water (13 percent) where approximately half of this increase can be attributed to increased chemical costs. Depending on the specific wastewater system, the wholesale wastewater rate will be adjusted between 8.4 percent and 12 percent. The rate for solid waste services remains unchanged.

“We understand and empathize with the public that we are all seeing increases in the cost of living and costs of products we use every day. NTMWD is no different,” Covington added. “NTMWD staff worked diligently to be good stewards of our budget and continually looks for ways to be more effective and efficient with our resources.”

The FY23 budget goes into effect on October 1, 2022. More details on personnel, projects, and ways we are managing costs are available online at: www.ntmwd/morethanwater.

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