YOUR WATER AND WASTEWATER RATES

Water-service and wastewater service rates are based on the real costs of providing safe, reliable and essential services to our customers. Your water and wastewater rates are regulated by the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (the “Board” or “BPU”). To determine rates, we work with the Board and other parties to study costs of construction, maintenance, operation, administration, and financing. Once the studies are complete, the company, BPU and other parties present any differing conclusions before an administrative law judge. Based on the judge’s opinion, the Board establishes the water and wastewater rates.

Rates can vary based on the cost of providing service in each of the communities we serve. Before it reaches your home or business, water is treated through an intricate treating and testing process to help ensure it meets or surpasses rigorous drinking water quality standards.

Rates charged for service may vary based on a customer’s meter size. All customers in each service area pay the same rate per gallon for water usage. Customers are billed monthly, based on a regular monthly meter reading, for residential customers as well as for commercial and other public authority customers.

You can learn more about the rate setting process by watching this short video.

Click here for an Overview of the Rate Case Process.

Resources

State of New Jersey Board of Public Utilities
State of New Jersey Division of the Rate Counsel

New Jersey American Water Tariff

Below is a link to New Jersey American Water's water and wastewater tariff as approved by the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (NJBPU).

New Jersey Rates (effective 4/30/2024)

Environmental Disposal Corp. Service Area Tariff

Below is a link to the Environmental Disposal Corp. (EDC) wastewater service area tariff as approved by the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities.

EDC Rates (effective 7/20/2019)

Payment Assistance

Sometimes customers face circumstances that stretch their financial resources. New Jersey American Water is here to assist. Our customer service representatives will work with you on a plan to pay the balance of the bill over time. You may also be qualified to receive assistance through our customer assistance programs.

New Jersey American Water Rate Case

On January 19th, 2024, New Jersey American Water Company filed a petition requesting new rates, driven by more than $1.3 billion in capital investments in water and wastewater infrastructure. Read more about the rate case here. On December 20, 2023, in Docket No. WM23030145, the Board approved the completion of the merger of New Jersey-American Water and Environmental Disposal Corp. (“EDC”), with NJAWC as the surviving entity. Effective December 31, 2023, the companies were merged; therefore, this Petition, as well as its Exhibits and Schedules supporting the requested revenue requirement, include the former EDC wastewater service area.

The Company is seeking a total annual revenue increase of approximately $161.7 million. The impact of this Petition on the bill of an average customer using 5,640 gallons of water per month would be an increase of $11.30. The average monthly residential wastewater bill would increase about $6.16 per month. The actual increases applicable to specific customers will vary according to the applicable rate schedule and the level of each customer’s usage.

The company’s rate request undergoes extensive public scrutiny by the BPU, the New Jersey Division of Rate Counsel, and the Office of Administrative Law. This process includes numerous interrogatories, public hearings and evidentiary hearings and can take nine months or more. The BPU will make the final decision to allow some, all or none of the increase. Once a final decision has been made, customers will receive information about the new rates in the mail and on the company’s website. To increase transparency of the process, the company’s petition and its associated exhibits are available here: New Jersey-American Water Petition.

FAQs

When would the new rates go into effect?
Final rates will not occur until the BPU’s review process is completed and it has rendered its final decision, which generally takes about nine months or more.

Are water rates regulated?
New Jersey American Water is regulated by the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (BPU). As part of the pending rate case, we submitted detailed financial data documenting the request for the Company to adjust rates. The BPU, Division of Rate Counsel and other parties then scrutinize the information received from the Company in an open and thorough process. Based on this, the BPU decides whether it will grant all, some or none of the request. In the end, the BPU, with significant input from the Division of Rate Counsel and an administrative law judge, determines the final rates to be implemented by the Company.

When did New Jersey American Water request the rate change?
New Jersey American Water filed for a rate change with the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (NJBPU) on January 19, 2024.

How would this rate request affect my monthly bill?

If the company’s proposed rates are approved as requested, the water bill for the average customer using 5,640 gallons of water a month would increase from the current charge of $70.70 to $82.00, an increase of $11.30 per month, or 38 cents per day.
The average monthly residential wastewater bill would increase $6.16, or 21 cents per day depending on the service area. To find out how your rates would change, please contact our customer service center at 1-800-272-1325, Monday to Friday, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Even with these increases, the cost of high-quality, reliable, water and wastewater service would continue to be among the lowest household utility bills.
New Jersey American Water is regulated by the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (BPU). The BPU might grant all, some or none of the request. As a result, the rate charged to customers might be different than the rate requested by the company.

What are the primary reasons for New Jersey American Water’s rate request?
The rate increase is primarily because New Jersey American Water invested or will invest more than $1.3 billion in infrastructure improvements to continue to provide safe, reliable water and wastewater service. Not only are these investments critical to the public’s health and safety, but they also support the economic health of the communities we serve.

These improvements included:

replacement and rehabilitation of nearly 176 miles of water and wastewater pipeline
source of supply and capacity projects
improvements to surface water treatment facilities and groundwater well stations
investments in treatment facilities to comply with regulations for PFAS
updated storage facilities to enhance reliability of service
upgrading and rehabbing wastewater lift stations
pump stations to improve water pressure
new or replaced fire hydrants to enhance fire protection
new meters and services
technology equipment and software, computer systems

What has New Jersey American Water done to control costs?
New Jersey American Water employs best management practices and cost containment techniques, while taking advantage of economies of scale to enhance efficiencies and manage operational costs. Many of these enhancements have been in place for years, such as:

Computer monitoring control systems in most of our treatment facilities, which minimize both operating costs and personnel needs.
Centralized bulk purchasing of chemicals, supplies, materials, insurance and employee benefits.
Centralized financial accounting, payroll and cash management systems.
Customer service programs to better manage workload for field service reps. For example, laptops were installed in service vehicles, moving us from a paper-based to a real-time work distribution system. Information is communicated to and from the field using wireless technology, which has enabled our field representatives to better manage their workload.
Installation of automated meter reading systems, which increase efficiency and reduce labor costs.
Investment in leak detection equipment/programs to minimize water lost through water mains.
Sharing costs with other American Water companies to take advantage of American Water’s Central Laboratory in Belleville, Illinois, which conducts sophisticated drinking water testing and analysis. American Water scientists refine testing procedures and innovate new methods for detecting potentially new contaminants—even before regulations are in place.

I’m on a fixed income. Do you have any programs that assist low-income customers?

For nearly a decade, New Jersey American Water has been assisting residential customers who qualify through its H2O Help to Others Program™ with grants and service charge discounts.
- Grants: Under the company’s H2O assistance program, customers who qualify may receive a grant of up to $500 to help pay their water bill. To qualify for this program, customers must be at or below 300% of the Federal Poverty Income Guidelines.

Universal Affordability Program: If approved by the BPU, this proposed program will replace the current service charge discount program.
- AVAILABILITY: Available to all residential water & wastewater customers served by the Company in all service areas who meet the income eligible criteria of 200% or less than the Federal Poverty Level (“FPL”). This is a tiered discount program; therefore your discount amount is dependent upon your income level. This program will be administered by New Jersey SHARES.
- APPLICABILITY: The discount will be applied to the water & wastewater Fixed Service Charge and Usage Charge (volumetric) portions of the bill. The discount will not apply to BPU approved surcharges.

	Household Income	Water & Wastewater Fixed Service Charge Discount	Water & Wastewater Usage Charge Discount
Tier 1	0% - 50% of FPL	80%	80%
Tier 2	51% - 100% of FPL	60%	60%
Tier 3	101% - 150% of FPL	40%	40%
Tier 4	151% - 200% of FPL	20%	20%

For more information about our current H2O Help to Others program, visit the Customer Service and Billing, Bill Paying Assistance page on the company’s website, or call the company’s program partner, New Jersey Shares, toll-free at 1-877-NJAWH2O (1-877-652-9426) or visit their website at www.njshares.org.

Other utilities provide incentives for businesses to move into the area. Does New Jersey American Water?
With a prior rate filing, the BPU approved a provision to provide incentives for new businesses to come to our state or existing businesses to expand, both creating jobs and stimulating the economy. The Economic Development Rate allows us to offer lower rates for a set period of time to new commercial or industrial customers who establish their business within our service territory. This concept is not new and is in fact similar to economic development tariffs used by other New Jersey utilities. Businesses must meet specific criteria to be eligible. More information can be found in New Jersey American Water’s tariff on Rate Schedule Rider A.

Lead Service Line Replacement Charge

On January 14, 2022, New Jersey American Water filed a Petition with the Board of Public Utilities (BPU) seeking approval of its plan for the replacement of, and cost recovery for, customer-side lead service lines in its service territory (LSLR Plan) over the next 10 years. Under the LSLR Plan, the Company submits semi-annual LSLR Charge filings to the BPU every six months with the resulting surcharge (based on a fixed charge per customer, or volume of water used) effective semi-annually. The average monthly bill impact to replace customer-owned lead service lines will vary depending on the actual amount of expense incurred during each recovery period.

Wastewater System Improvement Charge

On March 27, 2024, New Jersey-American Water Company, Inc. filed a petition with the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (BPU) seeking approval of a Foundational Filing to implement a Wastewater System Improvement Charge (“WSIC”) for the renewal of wastewater distribution system assets for the period 2024 through 2027.

Under the WSIC program, the Company submits WSIC surcharge filings to the BPU every six months, with the resulting surcharge to customers (a fixed charge based on meter size or meter equivalent) effective semi-annually. The WSIC surcharge for the 2024 through 2027 period will be capped at about $26 million, or 5% of the Company’s total wastewater revenues established in the Company’s base rate case under BPU Docket No. WR24010056.

Distribution System Improvement Charge

On March 31, 2022, New Jersey-American Water Company, Inc. filed a Petition with the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (BPU) seeking approval of a Foundational Filing to implement a Distribution System Improvement Charge (“DSIC”) for the renewal of water distribution system assets for the period 2022 through 2025. On August 17, 2022, the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities approved the Company’s 2022 DSIC Foundational Filing.

Under the DSIC program, the Company submits DSIC surcharge filings to the BPU every six months with the resulting surcharge to customers (a fixed charge based on meter size or meter equivalent) effective semi-annually. The DSIC surcharge for the 2022 through 2025 period cannot generate more than $42.6 million, or 5% of the Company’s total water revenues established in the Company’s base rate case under BPU Docket No. WR22010019.

The third semi-annual DSIC surcharge filing occurred on March 15, 2024. As a result, the DSIC surcharge, a fixed charge based on meter size, will increase effective April 30, 2024.

On March 18, 2024, New Jersey-American Water Company, Inc. filed a Petition with the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (BPU) seeking approval of a Foundational Filing to implement a Distribution System Improvement Charge ("DSIC" for the renewal of water distribution system assets for the period 2024 through 2027. A copy of the filing can be viewed here.

For more information, read our Distribution System Improvement Charge Fact Sheet.

Resiliency and Environmental System Investment Charge

On January 16, 2024, Governor Phil Murphy signed into law P.L. 2023, c.315, an Act establishing the Resiliency and Environmental System Investment Charge (or “RESIC”) Program for cost recovery of certain investments made by certain utilities and supplementing Title 48 of the Revised Statutes. The Act allows for recovery of costs related to compliance with requirements addressing both existing and emerging chemical elements or compounds; installation of new plant or equipment or replacement of existing plant or equipment to further, maintain, enhance or improve resiliency, health, safety, or environmental protection for customers or employees, or the public; treatment media and related equipment for both existing and emerging chemical elements and compounds.

On April 19, 2024, New Jersey American Water Company, Inc. filed a petition with the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities ("BPU") seeking approval of its first Foundational Filing to implement the RESIC through an automatic adjustment clause tariff for investments during the period of 2024 through 2027.

Under the RESIC program, the Company submits RESIC surcharge filings to the BPU every six months with the resulting surcharge to customers (a fixed charge based on meter size or meter equivalent) effective semi-annually. The RESIC surcharge, if approved, for the 2024 through 2027 period cannot generate more than $28.9 million, or 2.5% of the Company’s total annual revenues established in the Company’s base rate case under BPU Docket No. WR2401056 and Purchased Water Adjustment Clause and Purchased Wastewater Adjustment Clause proceeding, BPU Docket No. WR23110791.

A copy of the filing can be viewed here.

New Jersey-American Water's request for Recovery of Covid-19 Expenses Reg Asset and Establishment of Uncollectible Adjustment Clause

On July 2, 2020, the Board authorized each of the state’s regulated utilities to create a COVID-19 related regulatory asset by deferring their prudently incurred incremental costs related to COVID-19. Since March 2020, the Company has experienced increased costs attributable to COVID-19, including increased uncollectible expense, incremental operations and maintenance expenses, and costs related to financing activity to ensure adequate liquidity during the public health emergency.

On April 28, 2023, New Jersey-American Water Company, Inc. filed a petition with the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities seeking authorization to recover its COVID-19-related net deferred costs over a three-year period through an annual Special Program Charge. By the Petition, NJAWC also requested approval to establish an Uncollectible Adjustment Clause in response to effects of uncollectible expenses created by the COVID-19 moratorium.

On June 21, 2023, in accordance with the June 7, 2023 Board Order, NJAWC filed an amended petition, proposing to collect COVID-19-related net deferred costs over a three-year period, through an annual Special Program Charge of $5,406,028, from all water and wastewater customers through a volumetric charge for General Metered Service (“GMS”) of $0.37 per month and a fixed, per-customer, charge for non-GMS customers of $1.23 per month, to be reconciled annually.