Water and sewer bills in Leander

Water and sewer bills in Leander (DRAFT – not published)

In short

The city did not raise water or sewer rates in its 2026-27 budget.¹ But it plans a water rate study in the coming year to check if rates cover the pipes and plants it needs.¹ Water and sewer are paid for by your bills, not by property tax.²

The 30-second version

• No rate increase for 2026-27.¹
• Rate study coming. A study is how cities decide if rates should change. We do not know the result yet.¹
• Tiered rates since January 2022. The more water you use, the higher the price per gallon. Prices for the first 15,000 gallons fell and prices above that rose.² By our math, homes using up to about 21,000 gallons a month pay less than under the old flat rate, and homes using more pay more.³
• Money in: water sales were $34.8 million in 2024-25. The city plans $36.3 million in 2026-27. Sewer sales: $11.1 million and $11.7 million.¹

Today’s home water rates

Inside the city, for a typical home meter (5/8 inch):⁴⁵

Charge	Amount	In effect since
Monthly base charge	$37.35	2018 or earlier, unchanged in Oct. 2021
Water reserve charge	$4.00 a month	in place in 2021
First 15,000 gallons	$4.55 per 1,000 gallons	Oct. 2021
15,001 to 25,000 gallons	$5.80 per 1,000 gallons	Oct. 2021
Above 25,000 gallons	$7.00 per 1,000 gallons	Oct. 2021

Before October 2021 every gallon cost the same: $4.91 per 1,000.⁴ Homes outside the city pay 10% more.⁴ Seniors 65 and older and people with disabilities get 20% off the monthly base charge for both water and sewer, as of Jan. 1, 2022. Usage charges are not discounted. You must show proof of age or disability.⁶ The city’s 2026-27 budget says there is no rate increase this year.¹

Sample monthly water bill (our calculation, not a city figure). Base charge plus reserve charge plus usage, inside the city, no discount, no tax or trash:³

Water used in a month	Water bill	Under the old flat rate
5,000 gallons	$64.10	$65.90
10,000 gallons	$86.85	$90.45
15,000 gallons	$109.60	$115.00

So what: for homes using up to about 20,000 gallons a month, the 2021 change lowered the water bill a little (about 3% to 5% at these amounts). At 20,000 gallons the two are about even ($138.60 now, $139.55 under the old rate). Above about 21,000 gallons a month, homes pay more than before; at 30,000 gallons it is $202.60 instead of $188.65.³

Sewer is not settled. The 2021 rate study planned yearly sewer increases: a base charge of $15.31 (Oct. 2021), $16.07 (Oct. 2022) and $17.20 (Oct. 2023), with usage at $2.98, $3.13 and $3.35 per 1,000 gallons. It started from $14.58 and $2.84.⁵ We have not seen proof the council adopted these sewer steps. Two records point the other way: the city’s business utilities page today still lists the pre-2021 commercial sewer charge ($15.94 a month plus $3.10 per 1,000 gallons), not the study’s higher steps, and at an April 2026 council budget retreat the minutes record that the “current wastewater rate is low” and mention a wastewater rate study.⁷⁸ Neither shows the home rate directly. At a 5,000-gallon winter average, a home’s sewer would be about $28.78 a month at the old rate and up to about $38.89 if every planned step through October 2025 took effect (our calculation).³ Sewer is billed on your average winter water use.⁵ Example only: if the October 2023 step is in effect and your winter average is 5,000 gallons, sewer would be about $33.95 a month (our calculation).³

Nearby cities (2021, dated). The 2021 study compared bills for 10,000 gallons of water and 10,000 of sewer: Leander $129.43, Cedar Park $100.43, Round Rock $89.29. These are 2021 figures from the city’s consultant, before the tier change, and do not include Leander’s $4 reserve charge.⁵

Nearby cities today (water only). Cedar Park, Round Rock and Georgetown post current home rates on their city websites.⁹ The table shows the base charge plus the price per gallon for a standard home meter, inside city limits. It leaves out trash, drainage and other fees in every city. Our calculation:¹⁰

Water used in a month	Leander*	Cedar Park	Round Rock	Georgetown
5,000 gallons	$60.10	$33.37	$32.45	$50.60
10,000 gallons	$82.85	$55.82	$45.30	$71.40
15,000 gallons	$105.60	$82.82	$65.10	$95.40

*Leander also adds a $4 water reserve charge to every account (our earlier table includes it). The peer sites list no similar charge. These Leander figures assume the 2021 rates are still in effect (see below).

How the bases differ: Leander’s and Round Rock’s base charges include no water. Cedar Park’s includes the first 2,000 gallons. Georgetown’s base is $34.60 for a 5/8-inch meter. Leander’s $37.35 applies to both 5/8- and 3/4-inch meters. Round Rock’s rates are for a 5/8-inch meter. Cedar Park’s page does not say which meter size its home rate assumes.⁹⁵

How sure are we? We are sure of the peer rates as posted on Nov. 1, 2026. We are less sure about Leander’s. The state’s 2025 order confirms the October 2021 rates.⁴ The 2026-27 budget says it adopted no increase that year.¹ We did not find a city rate table or a newer rate ordinance on the city’s own pages. The city’s business utilities page still lists the same commercial water charge ($43.11 a month for a standard meter) as before the 2021 study, which points to no broad base-charge change.⁷ The city’s 2025 bond document has no rate table. But we found no current home rate table, so we cannot fully rule out a change between 2022 and 2025. If Leander’s rates did change, these gaps would also change. Read the gap as roughly 10% to 85% higher than nearby cities at these amounts, not as an exact figure.

Sewer, our calculation: Cedar Park about $36.20 and Round Rock about $32.60, each at a 5,000-gallon winter average. Georgetown charges homes a flat $68.15.¹⁰ We cannot give Leander’s current sewer charge, so we do not total the bills.

Before comparing, keep in mind:

• Different water and contracts. Each city has its own water sources, supply contracts and plants, and pays different costs for them. Leander buys raw water from the LCRA (see below). It also helps pay for the regional treatment plant it shares with Cedar Park and Round Rock (BCRUA). Leander alone owed $146.95 million on its share of BCRUA bonds in 2024, and those payments come out of the utility system.¹¹
• Growth costs. All four cities are growing and building, and each pays for that differently. Georgetown raised rates on Oct. 1, 2026. Round Rock’s rates took effect Nov. 1, 2026 and are set to rise in 2027 and 2028.⁹ Leander plans a new rate study.¹
• Tiers. Each city sets its own tiers, so the ranking can shift at higher use. Georgetown’s price rises steeply above 15,000 gallons.⁹

Where the money goes

The water and sewer system has its own fund, the Utility Fund. It is meant to pay for itself from bills and fees.¹ So what: if the system needs more money, it usually shows up in your water bill, not your tax bill.

	2025-26 budget	2026-27 budget
Utility Fund spending	$49.1 million	$55.2 million

Source: FY2027 adopted budget, fund summary.¹

New one-time items in 2026-27 include a water master plan ($400,000) and $2.9 million for Brushy Creek wastewater work. The city is also taking over the Sandy Creek water plant from the Brazos River Authority. Six plant workers become city staff.¹

Where the water comes from

Leander buys raw water from Lake Travis through the Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA). In 2022 the city said it paid LCRA about $2.6 million a year, and expected $3.4 million by 2030.¹² The city also shares a regional water plant with Cedar Park and Round Rock (the Brushy Creek Regional Utility Authority, BCRUA).¹²

The other side

• Rates held steady. The city did not raise rates in 2021 or 2026-27.¹³¹
• Homes that use less water pay less under tiers. The 2022 change cut the price for lower water use. We do not know how many homes use less than about 21,000 gallons a month.²³
• Growth helps share costs. The city had 27,616 water accounts in 2022, up 7.6% in one year.² Builders also pay impact fees for new pipes.¹
• But growth also costs. New plants and pipes are why the city wants a rate study.¹

Questions to ask

• When will the city post a current home sewer rate table?
• When will the city post the rate study and its findings?

Changes to this page

• Nov. 2, 2026: We confirmed the senior and disability discount on the city’s billing page and removed the caution about it.
• Nov. 2, 2026: Reworded two cautions so they state what we know without guessing.
• Nov. 2, 2026: Added questions to ask.
• Nov. 2, 2026: We checked every figure against its source. We reworded the other-side points so they stick to what the sources show.

What you can do or watch next

• Check your water bill for the base charge and the price per 1,000 gallons.
• Watch for any water-rate change, which the council must vote on in public.
• See council 2026 10 15 for the water plant expansion.

For the fund’s income, cash and debt, see water and sewer fund health.

What we still don’t know

• Today’s sewer rates. The city’s rate pages we could read do not print a current home sewer table (a business page lists only the old commercial sewer charge).⁷ We do not know if the 2021 study’s sewer steps were adopted.⁵ The 2026-27 budget says no water or wastewater rate increase was adopted for that year, but it prints no sewer rates.¹
• A current city rate table. Our water table comes from a 2025 state order and the 2021 study, plus the budget’s “no increase” statements. We did not find a current rate table on the city’s website.⁴¹
• How a full water-and-sewer bill compares with nearby cities today (we compare water only, because Leander’s current sewer rate is not confirmed).
• What the rate study will find, and when.

Numbers marked “our math” are our estimates, not official figures. The notes show the inputs and the steps.

Footnotes

1. City of Leander FY2027 Adopted Budget, budget message (Utility Fund, p. viii) and Utility Fund revenue detail (saved copy). (Saved budget copy only: no public mirror found.) ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹ ↩¹² ↩¹³ ↩¹⁴ ↩¹⁵ ↩¹⁶

2. City of Leander FY2022 annual financial report (draft), in the Feb. 16, 2023 City Council packet on CivicClerk (saved copy). Public copy of the final FY2022 report: https://emma.msrb.org/P21717438.pdf (MSRB EMMA). ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴

3. Our calculation from the rates above: $37.35 base + $4.00 reserve + gallons x tier price. Old flat rate: $37.35 + $4.00 + $4.91 per 1,000. Sewer examples: $17.20 + 5 x $3.35; old rate $14.58 + 5 x $2.84; October 2025 step $19.69 + 5 x $3.84. Real bills also depend on tax, trash, discounts, meter size and the outside-city surcharge. ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶

4. Public Utility Commission of Texas, Docket 53063, final order of Jan. 31, 2025, page 4 (PUC copy; saved copy). The order found the rates just and reasonable. Sewer rates are not in this order. ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵

5. City of Leander, 2021 Water and Wastewater Cost of Service Rate Study (consultant report), current rates table, wastewater rate plan and rate comparison table. https://www.leandertx.gov/DocumentCenter/View/1504/2021-Water-and-Wastewater-Rate-Study-PDF ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶

6. City of Leander, Utilities Billing page (discounts), read Nov. 2, 2026. https://www.leandertx.gov/515/Billing ↩

7. City of Leander, “Infrastructure & Utilities” page (business information; commercial water and wastewater charges by meter size), https://www.leandertx.gov/189/Infrastructure-Utilities , read Nov. 1 and Nov. 2, 2026. The page is not dated and lists no home rates. ↩ ↩² ↩³

8. City of Leander, City Council budget retreat minutes, April 24, 2026 (in a council meeting packet; saved copy). ↩

9. City of Georgetown, Utility Rates page (effective Oct. 1, 2026), https://georgetowntexas.gov/utilities/customer_care/utility_rates/ ; City of Cedar Park, Water Rates page, https://www.cedarparktexas.gov/1186/Water-Rates ; City of Round Rock, Water, Sewer and Garbage Rates page (effective Nov. 1, 2026), https://www.roundrocktexas.gov/city-departments/utility-billing/water-sewer-and-garbage-rates/ . Both read Nov. 1, 2026. ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴

10. Our calculation, standard home meter, inside city limits, base charge plus price per gallon only. Leander: $37.35 + $4.55 per 1,000 gallons up to 15,000 (the $4 reserve is not included). Cedar Park: $19.90 for the first 2,000 gallons, then its tier prices. Round Rock: $19.60 + its tier prices. Georgetown: $34.60 + $3.20 per 1,000 up to 7,000, then $4.80. Sewer: Cedar Park $23.00 + 3 x $4.40; Round Rock $16.20 + 5 x $3.28; Georgetown flat $68.15. Real bills may differ. ↩ ↩²

11. City of Leander 2025 bond offering document, FY2024 annual financial report appendix (management discussion and notes; (BCRUA contract revenue bonds, $146,950,000 outstanding at year-end). Saved copy from MSRB EMMA. ↩

12. City Manager goals memo, April 21, 2022 City Council packet on CivicClerk (saved copy). ↩ ↩²

13. City of Leander FY2021 annual financial report, in the Feb. 17, 2022 City Council packet on CivicClerk (saved copy). Public copy of the final report: https://emma.msrb.org/P11646005.pdf (MSRB EMMA; same sentence in the management discussion). ↩