Central Alabama Water (successor to Birmingham Water Works Board)
Jefferson, Shelby, St. Clair, Blount, and Walker counties in central Alabama, including Birmingham and surrounding communities
Population reference
More than 770,000 customers across a five-county, approximately 759-square-mile service area; the 2025 annual water-quality report states that the system delivered an average of 112.4 million gallons per day and operates more than 4,150 miles of water mains.
Billing detail
Broad public detail found
Official destination
Open provider website ↗Provider-specific findings
Billing and account research from public material
Provider-specific research notes are displayed separately from fields that contain only an unavailable-information marker. Read qualifiers in each note and verify current account terms with the provider.
- Billing frequency
- Monthly. Central Alabama Water’s 2026 residential rate table defines the usage tiers and base charge by monthly billing cycle.
- Rate structure
- Increasing block tiers with a monthly meter-size base charge. For the typical 5/8-inch residential meter, the 2026 base service charge is $28.49. Residential consumption is priced at $2.96 per CCF for 1–3 CCF, $4.91 per CCF for 4–12 CCF, and $8.58 per CCF above 12 CCF; one CCF is 748 gallons. Commercial accounts use a uniform $4.69 per CCF rate plus the meter-size base charge.
- Residential cost reference
- Approximately $55.44 for water service alone at 5,000 gallons (about 6.68 CCF), using the typical 5/8-inch meter: $28.49 base charge, three CCF at $2.96, and approximately 3.68 CCF at $4.91. At 7,000 gallons, the water-only estimate is approximately $68.60. Central Alabama Water bills sewer charges collected for separate sewer providers, so a combined water-and-sewer total depends on the customer’s sewer jurisdiction.
- Wastewater and sewer calculation
- Central Alabama Water does not operate the sewer systems but collects sewer charges on behalf of Jefferson County Environmental Services, Hoover, Southwest Water Utility Company, Moody Governmental Utility Services Corporation, and Phoenix Water Resources. The applicable sewer calculation therefore depends on the provider identified on the account and the customer’s service area; the reviewed CAW rate page does not establish a single system-wide winter average or fixed percentage formula.
- Meter reading
- The official customer materials describe metered consumption in CCFs, with customers calculating use by subtracting the previous reading from the current reading and multiplying CCF by 748 gallons. They provide a customer-initiated re-read request through the website, automated phone options, or a representative. The reviewed 2026 pages do not identify whether the system is AMI or AMR, the transmission interval, or a fixed monthly read calendar.
- New-account deposit
- The published miscellaneous-fee schedule lists a $120 residential deposit for customers with sewer and a $60 residential deposit for customers without sewer. Commercial deposits vary and are calculated from average consumption multiplied by three plus the base service charge for the meter size. The reviewed 2026 pages do not state a credit-check waiver or an automatic refund period; the H2O Foundation may consider a restoration deposit when the customer cannot afford it and other eligibility conditions are satisfied.
- Activation or transfer fee
- $43.00 establishment-of-service fee when an existing service becomes active, and $43.00 account-transfer fee when an existing customer moves service from one point of service to another. The transfer charge covers closing the prior account, opening the new account, and the necessary meter readings.
Context, not a score
How documentation coverage compares
This profile
100%
overview fields with research notes
Alabama
35%
records with any overview detail
National index
50%
records with any overview detail
Coverage measures what this directory documented. It does not measure service quality, affordability, or regulatory compliance.
Research record
Broad public detail found
7 of 7 fields in this section contain provider-specific public detail in dataset August 1, 2026.
Documented
100%
Primary verification routes
- Central Alabama Water (successor to Birmingham Water Works Board) public website ↗
Provider-controlled destination used to confirm current customer instructions.
- EPA Safe Drinking Water Information System ↗
Federal background on public water-system records and their limitations.