Eugene plans stormwater, wastewater fee hikes, public meeting set for May 14
Eugene is asking residents to weigh two fee hikes, with a May 14 Zoom hearing and a typical bill set to rise by about $2.75 a month.
Eugene will hold a virtual public meeting at noon May 14 on Zoom to take comments on proposed stormwater and wastewater fee hikes that would start showing up on bills July 1. For a medium residential stormwater account, the 5% increase would add about $1.15 a month, and a typical wastewater bill of $31.91 would rise by about $1.60, putting the combined hit at roughly $2.75 a month for many households. Written and email comments are due by 5 p.m. May 14.
The city says the wastewater fee authority comes from Eugene Code Section 6.411, which lets the city manager set fees for wastewater, regional wastewater and stormwater service. Eugene says all properties tied to the public wastewater system pay the charge, while the Metropolitan Wastewater Management Commission runs the regional collection and treatment system for Eugene, Springfield and Lane County. Stormwater fees, meanwhile, pay for work that keeps runoff out of Amazon Creek and the Willamette River through street sweeping, catch-basin cleaning, sediment removal, rain gardens and education, and the program must meet federal National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System requirements.
The proposals land in the middle of a broader budget squeeze that has already pushed Eugene to treat stormwater revenue as a way to shift parks and open space costs off the General Fund. In June 2024, the council adopted Ordinance No. 20710 to allow stormwater user fees to help pay for parks and open space operations, and in May 2025 it directed the city manager to seek about $4.7 million a year in new stormwater revenue through July 1, 2031. City documents said about $4.7 million in parks and open space spending was still sitting in the General Fund, while the city’s budget gap was pegged at $11.5 million amid plateauing property taxes, higher pension costs and inflation.
Residents heading into the May 14 hearing should press for three things: how much of the city’s infrastructure backlog these hikes actually cover, whether Eugene can keep wastewater service at the same level if rates stay flat, and what relief, if any, exists for lower-income households. The city already has one built-in stormwater credit for people who reduce runoff or treat water on-site, but that will matter less if rising utility bills push more cost onto renters and homeowners who have the least room to absorb it. The hearing closes the public comment window on a decision that will shape bills and service levels well beyond this budget cycle.
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