Wastewater Rates
The City of Grants Pass is responsible for wastewater disposal.
The Public Works Department collects wastewater from 13,434 homes and businesses in the city and Urban Growth Boundary via 164 miles of piping, disinfects it at a treatment plant, and returns the clean water to the river.
Wastewater rates are based upon the winter quarter average water usage for residential customers, on monthly water usage for commercial customers and based upon the related averages for all customers who receive sewer only services.
Residential and Multifamily
Wastewater Base Charge |
includes first 2 units of consumption |
$20.37 |
|
|---|---|---|---|
Volume Charge |
multiplied by average winter water consumption |
$4.17 |
Commercial Normal Strength
Service Charge |
includes first 2 units of consumption |
$20.37 |
|---|---|---|
Volume Charge |
multiplied by actual water consumption |
$4.17 |
Commercial High Strength
Service Charge |
includes first 2 units of consumption |
$20.37 |
|---|---|---|
Volume Charge |
multiplied by actual water charge |
$5.85 |
Public
Service Charge |
includes first two units of consumption |
$20.37 |
|---|---|---|
Volume Charge |
multiplied by actual water usage |
$4.17 |
Pump Station
Webster Pump Station |
|
$0.42 per unit |
|---|---|---|
Redwood Pump Station |
$0.81 per unit |
Wastewater Billing
Customers that do not have City water as an integral part of their monthly utility bill are classified as wastewater only. These bills are generated on or around the 5th of the month for services provided during that month. The bills are due 21 days from generation. Wastewater only accounts are subject to a 1% interest penalty on balances delinquent 90 or more days. Delinquent wastewater only bills are subject to tax lien. Any delinquent balance dating from the previous calendar year will be assessed to the Josephine County tax rolls on July 1.
The following represents a detailed explanation as to how the City of Grants Pass bills wastewater charges for customers who do not have City water as an integral part of their City utility bill.
Every wastewater customer pays a base service charge. Included in this charge are the costs associated with wastewater collection, wastewater treatment, and customer service. This charge includes the first 2 units of wastewater (a unit is 100 cubic feet which is equivalent to approximately 748 gallons). In addition to the base service charge customers are billed a wastewater volume charge. Volume charges are assessed based upon class type and use. Billing structures and examples for those classes are detailed below.
Commercial & Public
The commercial and public class consists of all customers who do not qualify as residential or multifamily, which the city determines to contribute sewage of a strength consistent with that of domestic uses. These customers are billed wastewater volume charges based upon their actual water consumption. For every one unit of water that runs through the domestic meter a unit of wastewater is charged after the first 2 units.
Commercial and Public Wastewater Charges Example
- Service charge is $20.37 (includes first two units of consumption)
- Wastewater Volume Charge is $41.70 (charged for 10 units billed for 12)
- Total Wastewater Charges are $62.07
Commercial High Strength
All customers who do not qualify as residential or multifamily, which the city determines to contribute sewage of a strength materially higher than that of domestic uses, consisting of typical concentrations of biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) or suspended solids (SS) in excess of 400 milligrams per liter (mg/l, or parts per million). High strength commercial activities include:
- Auto steam cleaning
- Bakery
- Hotel / motel with restaurant facilities
- Industrial or commercial laundry
- Supermarket with garbage grinder or food service
- Mortuary
- Restaurant
- Any other commercial activity which the Utilities Director determines to typically contribute sewage in excess of the strength standard.
These customers are billed wastewater volume in the same manner as commercial customers but pay a higher volume rate charge.
Commercial High Strength Wastewater Charges Example
- Service charge is $20.37 (includes first two units of consumption)
- Wastewater Volume Charge is $58.50 (charged for 10 units billed for 12 units)
- Total Wastewater Charges are $78.87
Residential, Multi-family & Residential PUD
These customers are each defined individually by municipal code.
The residential class consists of customers with a single or a duplex residence intended for single family occupancy in each unit, which contain separate kitchen, bedroom, and bathroom facilities.
The multifamily and residential PUD classes consist of residential customers served by a single meter with three or more residential units except where the units are defined as commercial occupancies under the Uniform Building Code.
All 3 of these customer types are billed wastewater based upon their average winter water consumption.
Averaging Water Consumption
The average winter water consumption is determined for customers during the months of November to April.
Average water use during these months is used as the wastewater use charge for a year from April to March. This practice is meant to eliminate any outdoor watering in the calculation of wastewater volume charges.
Averaging Normal Water Consumption
- Month 1 = 7 units
- Month 2 = 5 units
- Month 3 = 6 units
- Month 4 = 7 units
- Month 5 = 7 units
5 month average =6 units
Calculating Volume Charge When Unusual Consumption Exists
If customers experience a leak or unusual water consumption for a month during the calculation then that month is excluded from the average.
Averaging Unusual Water Consumption
- Month 1 = 7 units
- Month 2 = 5 units
- Month 3 = 6 units
- Month 4 = 13 units
- Month 5 = 7 units
Month 4 removed, remaining 4 months averaged = 6 units
Once a customer’s average has been established that average is billed to them for a full year.
Customers must have water use for a full three months during the calculation period in order to be assigned an individual wastewater volume charge.
Customers that do not have an established history are assigned the class average until such time as they establish their own. Class average is calculated during the months of November, December, January, February, and March.
The calculation consists of total units of water used by the class during that period divided by the number of households associated with the class:
261,099 total consumption divided by 39,802 households equals 6.56 hundred cubic feet (hcf) per account.
Customers who have not established their own average, who have 0 consumption for 3 or more months during the calculation period, or who have no history with the city are given the class average for wastewater volume.
Example Bill for Customers Without an Established Average
- Service charge is $20.37 (includes first two units of consumption)
- Wastewater Volume Charge is $16.68 (charged for 4 units billed for 6)
- Total Wastewater Charges are $37.05
Wastewater Only Billing
Customers that do not have City water as an integral part of their monthly utility bill are classified as wastewater only. These bills are generated on or around the 5th of the month for services provided during that month. The bills are due 21 days from generation. Wastewater only accounts are subject to a 1% interest penalty on balances delinquent 90 or more days. Delinquent wastewater only bills are subject to tax lien. Any delinquent balance dating from the previous calendar year will be assessed to the Josephine County tax rolls on July 1.
The following represents a detailed explanation as to how the City of Grants Pass bills wastewater charges for customers who do not have an associated water account.
Every wastewater customer pays a base service charge. Included in this charge are the costs associated with wastewater collection, wastewater treatment, and customer service. This charge includes the first 2 units of wastewater (a unit is 100 cubic feet which is equivalent to approximately 748 gallons). In addition to the base service charge customers are billed a wastewater volume charge. Volume charges are assessed based upon class type and use. Billing structures and examples for those classes are detailed below.
Residential, Multi-family & Residential PUD
These customers are each defined individually by municipal code.
The residential class consists of customers with a single or a duplex residence intended for single family occupancy in each unit, which contain separate kitchen, bedroom, and bathroom facilities.
The multi-family and residential PUD classes consist of residential customers served by a sewer connection with three or more residential units except where the units are defined as commercial occupancies under the Uniform Building Code.
All three of these customer types are billed wastewater based upon their average winter water consumption for the class. These customers do not utilize city water which means there is no way to calculate individual class average. Each year when the class average is established these customers are assigned the costs associated with the average.
Example of Residential Wastewater Only Bill
- Service charge is $18.85 (includes first 2 units of consumption)
- Wastewater Volume Charge is $19.30 (charged for 5 units billed for 7 units)
- Totals Wastewater Charges are $38.15
Commercial & Public
The commercial and public class consists of all customers who do not qualify as residential, multifamily, which the city determines to contribute sewage of a strength consistent with that of domestic uses. These customers are billed wastewater volume charges based upon individual business type averages.
Commercial High Strength
All customers who do not qualify as residential, multifamily, which the city determines to contribute sewage of a strength materially higher than that of domestic uses, consisting of typical concentrations of biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) or suspended solids (SS) in excess of 400 milligrams per liter (mg/l, or parts per million).
High strength commercial activities include: auto steam cleaning; bakery; hotel/motel with restaurant facilities; industrial or commercial laundry; supermarket with garbage grinder or food service; mortuary; restaurant; or any other commercial activity which the Utilities Director determines to typically contribute sewage in excess of the strength standard. These customers are billed wastewater volume in the same manner as commercial customers but pay a higher volume rate charge.
Rates for the aforementioned commercial or public customer classes are determined by type of business. These rates typically coincide with the transportation utility rates billed to that customer.
Details of those rates are as follows:
Customer Types
Customer Description |
Charge Description |
Charge Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Medical / Dental clinic | MOSO | $250.08 |
| Minor traffic retail commercial consisting of furniture stores, toy stores, nursery, and recreation facilities | MRSO | $8.34 |
| General retail consists of shopping center, home improvement, electronics, clothing, pharmacy, lumber, specialty retail, paint stores | GRSO | $50.02 |
| Moderate traffic retail consisting of banks, video, convenience stores, movie theaters, gas stations | MDSO | $125.04 |
| High traffic retail, drive through beverage | HTSO | $95.86 |
| Automobile sales consisting of new, used, and recreational vehicle sales | ASSO | $133.37 |
| Small restaurant regular strength | SRRS | $108.37 |
| Small market regular strength | SMRS | $83.36 |
| Medium to large restaurant - consisting of restaurants that have moderate to high traffic and may include rooms for specialty parties and occasions or may cater serving only 2 meals per day. | HSSO | $350.76 |
| Industrial - consisting of heavy, light, industrial park, manufacturing, warehouse, mini-warehouse | ISO | $158.22 |
| Small restaurant high strength | SRHS |
$151.99 |
| Small market high strength | SMHS | $116.92 |
| School - elementary | PSSO | $404.29 |
A sewer only commercial bill would look like this:
- Basic service charge of $20.37 (includes first 2 units of consumption)
- Wastewater volume charge or $50.02 for customer type GRSO
- Total Wastewater Charges are $70.39
Summary
Wastewater customers are billed monthly by the City of Grants Pass Customer service department.
As detailed above users are billed based upon what can reasonably be determined as wastewater use when examining their water use or the average use for the customer class in which they belong.
It is important to note that commercial customers are not billed wastewater charges for outdoor irrigation water use if they have a separate irrigation service meter. At the same time residential wastewater charges are not calculated during periods when outdoor watering would occur.
Pump Station Charges
Customers who live in a service area where wastewater is not fed to the wastewater plant via gravity are required to pay a per unit pumping charge based upon the pump station that serves their property.
Customers whose property is south of G street and east of Lincoln Road are served by the Webster Pump Station and pay $0.34 per unit of wastewater volume assessed to their bill.
Examples of Bills with Pump Station Charges
Webster Pump Station (South of G Street and East of Leonard Street to the River)
- Basic service charge of $20.37 (includes first 2 units of consumption)
- Wastewater volume charge of $16.68 (for 4 units billed for 6 units)
- Webster Pump Station charge of $2.52 (for 6 units as pump charges are not included in base)
- Total Wastewater Charges are $39.57
Redwood Pump Station (Properties South of the River, North of Redwood highway, and West of the Josephine County Fairgrounds)
- Basic service charge of $20.37 (includes first 2 units of consumption)
- Wastewater volume charge of $16.68 (for 4 units billed for 6 units)
- Redwood Pump Station charge of $4.86 for 6 units
- Total Wastewater Charges are $41.91