The Portland Water District will increase its rates by about 7% in January, bringing the average household’s bill up to about $32 a month.
The new revenue will fund repairs, infrastructure improvements and new capital projects, including water treatment equipment and a major overhaul of the system’s water meters. The utility’s board of trustees unanimously approved the increase at its meeting Monday evening.
Residential rates will go up 6.8% — amounting to roughly $1.92 more each month for the typical customer, according to the water district. The change does not impact wastewater fees, which are set by municipal governments.
For commercial and industrial customers, rates will increase by 8.4% and 9.6%, respectively. That will increase the average monthly bill by about $9.09 for commercial customers and $238.62 for industrial customers, according to the district.
All told, the updated rates are projected to bring in just under $2.5 million in new revenue, the district said, adding that it would face a $2.4 million deficit without the hike.
The district will use that money to replace aging water mains, install new treatment equipment and help replace the more than 55,000 meters in its system, said General Manager Scott Firmin.
In addition to new capital projects, Firmin said operational expenses like the cost of electricity, insurance and employee wages are putting pressure on the utility’s bottom line.
“About a third of our costs are labor: staff, including salaries and benefits,” he said. “About a third of our cost is debt service, that’s investment in facilities that we’ve made, and we’re paying that down in terms of bonds. And then the other third is everything else.”
ACCLERATING INCREASES
Though household bills will rise by only a few dollars a month, the 2026 hike represents the district’s largest rate increase in at least a decade, and it comes as Mainers already feel the pinch of rising prices across the board.
The size of annual rate hikes has ticked up for years, said water district spokesperson Michelle Clements. The district’s rates increased about 6% annually in 2023, 2024 and at the start of this year, following years of increases that were consistently less than 5%.
The Portland Water District is Maine’s largest public water utility, serving more than 57,000 customers as far north as Raymond and as far south as Scarborough. That figure includes over 50,000 residential and 3,900 commercial customers, according to the district.
Its system includes more than 1,000 miles of water mains and supplies water for more than 5,000 fire hydrants.
Firmin said the district generally aims to replace 1% of its mains, about 10 miles’ worth, each year. So far this year, it has replaced about 3 miles of water mains, and it plans to replace about 2 miles’ worth next year.
“We’re getting into some of the more difficult projects, when you’re in an urban environment,” Firmin said. “There’s a lot of water main out there to replace.”