Each year as part of the Annual Water and Sewer Retail Rate Survey, we compile data from 26 select U.S. cities to compare residential water and sewer rates to the MWRA Service Area. For a standardized comparison, 120 hundred cubic feet (HCF) is used and applied to the various rate structures of each municipality. Including Boston, MA and the MWRA Service Area, the average combined water and sewer retail rate is $1,643.28, with $710.01 for water and $933.28 for sewer. This is a 4.01% change in the combined rate from the previous year.
The largest change was Houston, Texas which experienced a combined water and sewer increase of 14.3%, with Philadelphia, Pennsylvania experiencing an increase of 14.1%. In contrast, San Antonio, Texas experienced a combined decrease of 4.4%. San Francisco, California has both the highest water and sewer rates at 120 HCF, coming in at a combined $3,608.76. For comparison, the MWRA Service Area averaged a combined $1,919.52. The lowest combined water and sewer amount was Milwaukee, Wisconsin at $769.76.
Stay tuned for the next portion of the 2023 Annual Water and Sewer Retail Rate Survey which will cover all non-MWRA Massachusetts communities.
