Entering what one resident described as a “crisis,” St. Charles approved utility rate hikes that will result in bills rising by about 50% by 2029.

The increases will help cover $417 million in sewer and water improvements, including $84 million to replace lead pipes.

If your current monthly utility bill is $200, by 2029 it will be $298.31, according to the city. This includes a 17.3% spike on monthly bills starting this June, a 14.7% jump in year two, a 6.4% increase in year three and a 4.1% increase in June 2029.

Electricity, sewer and water costs are combined into one monthly bill for St. Charles rate payers.

The City Council approved the increases during its April 6 meeting. Alderpersons Ryan Bongard and Jayme Muenz voted against the measure.

Of the $471 million in planned improvements, $183 million is slated for sewer system upgrades over the next 10 years. The remaining $234 million is for water infrastructure work, including the $84 million lead service line replacement project, which is an unfunded mandate by the state.

Work on the lead replacement project is due to start later this year. The city must replace lead service line connections for around 3,400 water customers, and the work is expected to occur over 10 years, according to city documents.

While comments from Mayor Clint Hull and a few residents focused on the unfunded lead line replacement mandate, even without that health and safety project, the city would likely still be increasing bills to cover the remaining $333 million in infrastructure improvements.

Muenz said while she understands the necessity for the improvements, she doesn’t want the increases “entirely on the backs of our rate payers.” She said residents shouldn’t have the sole burden for infrastructure improvements “that have been not necessarily funded over the past few decades, that have been waiting for attention.”

“I think we have opportunities for alternative funding sources that really haven’t been fully explored,” Muenz said during the meeting.

She suggested looking into current city-provided services and determining if they could be “pared back, utilize those funds in a different way to ease that burden.”

Muenz requested the Council explore those options going forward and potentially alter the rate increases for future years if alternative funding sources are preferred by the community.

Alderperson Vicki Spellman echoed those sentiments, saying she prefers to see the rate increases spread out over other revenue sources besides utility bills.

“It would be helpful to our residents to have some visitors sharing in some of that burden and to reduce [it] for residents,” Spellman said.

During public comments, resident Rita Payleitner said a $100 increase on monthly bills is a big deal for many residents, especially seniors on fixed incomes. She said the city is in crisis and making affordability issues for its residents even worse.

“This crisis is wrongly set to be managed on the backs of the rate payers alone,” Payleitner said. “The city needs a crisis mindset. A crisis of this magnitude needs to be met head-on by all departments, all budgets, all citizens, all visitors, partners in pain and in solution.”

Following the vote, the mayor said the search for alternative revenue sources “starts tonight.” He said the city will continue providing transparency as the staff “keeps digging” to find more options and ensure every dollar of taxpayer money gets used responsibly.

Hull said the unfunded mandate was something the city couldn’t plan for. He said the city applied for grants to help reduce the costs but was told the city does not qualify for the grants because of its higher income levels. He said the city will continue searching for potential grants to mitigate costs.

City finance director Bill Hannah previously said the rate jumps will likely be readjusted in the future.

“A portion of this water rate increase is temporary,” Hannah said. “Once the city is finished with the lead service line unfunded mandate project, we will be able to roll back some of that increase.”

Across the city, several areas of “aging water infrastructure” are being prioritized. Of the city’s 289 miles of water mains, the city said more than 80 miles are around 75 to 100 years old, increasing the chances for costly breaks.

On residents’ monthly bills, the sewer rate – a subsection of the overall utility bill – is increasing 10% in each of the next three years. In year four, 2029, rates are increasing 8%.

Water rate increase are also helping fund future water treatment projects, cover higher operating costs and increase well capacity and other infrastructure improvements.

Water base rates will see an increased monthly base charge of $13 to $16 in year one. Year two will have $9-12 rate increases on top of the prior increase, around 35% more. Bills will see another 10% increase in the third year, and then a 5% increase concluding in year four, 2029.

Water usage rates over the same time period will increase from $6 per 1,000 gallons used to $11.70 in year one. Another jump to $16.38 per 1,000 gallons is proposed in year two, with “moderate increases” slated for 2028 and 2029.

Electric rates are actually lowering, with a 5% decrease effective in all rates June 2026. The city said no “future adjustments are planned over the upcoming four-year horizon.