Description of the TX Water Rates Dashboard

Texas's utilities use many different water rate structures. These different rates and rate structures have financial impacts on revenue stability, household expenditures, and water use behavior. Various rate strategies influence resource use differently and, conversely, efforts to curtail resource use (for example, conservation) have unique revenue impacts depending on a utility's rates, rate structure, and customer base. Information on how utilities in Texascharge for water service is important for utilities in benchmarking their current rates and financial performance. 

This Rates Dashboard is included in Smart Management for Small Water Systems nationwide project of the Environmental Finance Center Network (EFCN). The EFCN is composed of numerous Environmental Finance Centers around the country, including the Environmental Finance Center at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. Smart Management for Small Water Systems is the result of a cooperative agreement with the United States Environmental Protection Agency.

** Please CLICK HERE to open the dashboard in a new tab **

This interactive rates and financial benchmarking dashboard is designed to assist utility managers and local officials with analyzing residential water and wastewater rates against multiple characteristics, including utility finances, system characteristics, customer base socioeconomic conditions, and geography. Special thanks to the Texas Municipal League for providing the results of their water and wastewater surveys.

Comparison Groups

2016 residential rates for 650 utilities across Texas can be compared with:

• All other utilities in the dashboard
• Utilities with similar number of accounts
• Utilities with similar household income
• Utilities in the same watershed
• Utilities with the same water source type
• Utilities within 25 miles distance
• Utilities within 50 miles distance
• Utilities within 100 miles distance
• Utilities within the same Congressional district.

Key Financial Indicators

 The following measures for the selected utility are compared to key indicators or to the utilities within the selected comparison group:

• Monthly water/wastewater bills,
• Monthly bill as a percentage of Median Household Income for the service community,
• Average household water use.

You can compare the monthly bill charged for the selected monthly amount of usage. You can also raise rates by up to 100% and observe the (hypothetical) effects on the utility's rates, conservation pricing signal, operating ratio, and rate affordability.

In addition, system financial health and customer demographic profiles are provided for utilities where data are available.

Funding

This Rates Dashboard was constructed as part of the Smart Management for Small Water Systems nationwide project of the Environmental Finance Center Network (EFCN). The EFCN is composed of numerous Environmental Finance Centers around the country, including the Environmental Finance Center at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, which created this dashboard. This dashboard was created under a cooperative agreement with the United States Environmental Protection Agency.