Portland residents will pay roughly $10.20 more per month for water, sewer, and stormwater services starting Tuesday, July 1.
The price reflects a combined 6.36 percent increase from nearly $3 billion in planned infrastructure work over the next five years, according to the Portland Water Bureau.
Water rates are climbing 8.1 percent. Sewer and stormwater rates are going up 5.15 percent. The exact hit depends on usage, property type, and account type, but for a typical single-family home the increase works out to about $120 more per year.
About 40 percent of the water rate increase will fund the Bull Run Filtration Project, a federally required treatment plant that will remove the microorganism Cryptosporidium from Portland's drinking water and protect the system against wildfires and extreme weather.
On the sewer side, major projects driving costs include the Carolina Trunk Sewer replacement beneath Interstate 5 in South Portland and the Inverness Pump Station and Force Main program, which serves around 60,000 residents and businesses.
Bills will also carry a new line item: the Flood Safety Benefit Fee. For a single-family home, that's $3.60 per quarterly bill, or about $1.20 a month. The fee funds levees, pump stations, and drainage systems along the Columbia River managed by the Urban Flood Safety and Water Quality District. The infrastructure protects Portland International Airport, Interstates 5 and 205, and the Columbia South Shore Well Field, the city's backup drinking water source.
The Oregon Legislature authorized the district to charge local governments in 2024. Portland City Council approved Ordinance 192113 in October 2025 to pass the cost to ratepayers. The city had previously covered it from the General Fund. Customers enrolled in financial assistance pay half the fee — $1.80 per quarter.
On June 25, City Council passed an emergency corrective ordinance after discovering that stormwater System Development Charge rates, which are paid by developers rather than existing ratepayers, did not match what council had publicly communicated in the original rate-setting ordinance.
A planned 9 percent maximum SDC increase had been mistakenly left out of the document. The corrective ordinance carries no new budgetary impact.
Council President Jamie Dunphy, in a statement to Axios Portland published May 28 addressing the broader package of city fee and tax increases, said the investments are necessary: "If we want a city where the parks are maintained, roads are safe, and kids have quality education, we must make those investments now before the backlog grows too large to tackle."
Income-qualified single-family customers can apply for bill discounts. The city also offers crisis assistance credits up to $500 and flexible payment plans. Contact: 503-823-7770 or [email protected].
The new rates take effect July 1. The next annual rate-setting cycle begins during the fall 2026 budget process.
