Water budget balances affordability with needed investment

HAMILTON, ON – Hamilton City Council approved the 2024 water and sewer (rate) budget, which will support infrastructure renewal, regulatory compliance and community growth.

The increase to water and sewer rates in 2024 totals 10.04 per cent, including 2.39 per cent to cover the costs of replacing or rehabilitating aging infrastructure, program delivery and absorbing the impacts of inflation.

The remaining 7.65 per cent of the 2024 rate increase is attributable to changes in provincial legislation, including the More Homes Built Faster Act which transferred much of the cost of growth that helps build water and sewer infrastructure from property developers to municipalities.

For the first time, the percentage of the rate budget attributed to provincial legislation will be communicated to homeowners when they receive their water bills in early 2024.

In line with direction from Mayor Andrea Horwath, the water and sewer budget also lessens the overall burden on ratepayers by using $17.55 million from City water and sewer reserves to pay for needed investments, an amount that would have otherwise have been added to water and sewer bills.

Hamilton currently has one of the oldest water and sewer systems in Canada. Water and sewer infrastructure in the lower City dates back to the mid-1800s.

The system currently has a combined 5,266 kilometres of water and sewer pipes and more than 250 separate facilities with a total value over $14.6 billion. Approximately 146 kilometres of water and sewer pipes are identified for major repairs or replacement in the next five years.

The City has projected annual increases of approximately 10 per cent to the water and sewer (rate) budget over the next decade to support the repair and replacement of aging infrastructure, including major construction and modernization projects at the Woodward Water Treatment Plant, the Woodward Wastewater Treatment Plant, and the Dundas Wastewater Treatment Plant.

Quick facts

• The 2023 average residential water and sewer bill in Hamilton was $877 annually. The 2024 average residential water and sewer bill will increase to approximately $965 annually, which is among the lowest in Ontario.
• The City of Hamilton owns and manages $4.25 billion water, $3.14 billion stormwater and $7.25 billion wastewater assets.
• The City of Hamilton is home to the second oldest drinking water system and third oldest wastewater system in Canada.