Municipal Department
City of Tuscaloosa Water & Sewer Department
Serving Tuscaloosa and the City of Tuscaloosa Water & Sewer Department service area
Population served
The municipal water and sewer department serves the City of Tuscaloosa and its connected customers; the city’s population and university-centered service base place this system well above the 3,300-person threshold. The reviewed 2026 public pages do not provide a separate current population-served or connection-count figure.
State system code
FIPS 01
Billing frequency
Approximately every 30 days. If a meter reading cannot be obtained, the city issues an estimated-consumption bill; failure to receive the bill does not remove the obligation to pay by the delinquent date.
Provider briefing
How this utility’s billing works
City of Tuscaloosa Water & Sewer Department operates as a municipal department serving Tuscaloosa and the City of Tuscaloosa Water & Sewer Department service area. Customers should use the provider’s current account-specific bill and official customer-service instructions as the final authority for deadlines, balances, and service requests.
The published water-rate framework is described as Monthly administration charge by meter size plus consumption billed in units of 100 cubic feet (10 cubic feet equals 74.8 gallons). The FY 2026 schedule effective October 1, 2025 lists a 5/8-inch or 3/4-inch minimum water administration charge of $14.78 and a residential metered-water charge of $4.450 per 100 cubic feet; the schedule separately lists sewer at $3.609 per 100 cubic feet and applies a residential sewer maximum of 2,500 cubic feet. A 4% tax applies to water and rural-water-authority administration charges.. Bills are generated approximately every 30 days. if a meter reading cannot be obtained, the city issues an estimated-consumption bill; failure to receive the bill does not remove the obligation to pay by the delinquent date., and a typical residential cost reference is Using the FY 2026 5/8-inch or 3/4-inch minimums and 5,000 gallons (about 6.68 units of 100 cubic feet), the illustrative water charge is approximately $14.78 + (6.68 × $4.450) = $44.53, and the sewer component is approximately $17.14 + (6.68 × $3.609) = $41.25 before the residential sewer cap and any tax or account-specific adjustments. The minimum combined water/sewer administration charges alone are $31.92 for the smallest listed meter; customers should verify the final calculation against the current rate sheet and bill.. These descriptions are useful planning benchmarks; actual charges can change with meter size, usage, sewer averaging, local taxes, drought stages, or account-specific fees.
Wastewater and sewer calculation
The City states that sewer charges are based on the customer’s water consumption. The FY 2026 schedule bills metered sewer per 100 cubic feet at $3.609 and limits residential billed sewer consumption to a maximum of 2,500 cubic feet; the same schedule lists a $17.14 minimum sewer administration charge for the smallest meter. The sewer charge is therefore tied to metered intake rather than a flat percentage of the water bill.
Meter and infrastructure notes
The normal billing cycle is approximately 30 days, and the city issues an estimated bill when a reading cannot be obtained. The reviewed official pages do not identify an AMI/AMR vendor, hourly transmission interval, or specific route schedule. The supported description is periodic meter reading with estimation fallback and online account-usage history through Paymentus.
Emergency water support
Report a leak or water emergency
Call Tuscaloosa 311 within city limits or (205) 248-5311 outside city limits for urgent water-service trouble. Water Distribution can be reached at (205) 248-5952 for line breaks or leaks; the Ed Love Plant’s after-hours number is (205) 248-5630. Sewer emergencies are directed to Wastewater at (205) 248-5900.
Official starting point
Choose the right next step
Reading this profile
A practical reference for Tuscaloosa and the City of Tuscaloosa Water & Sewer Department service area
City of Tuscaloosa Water & Sewer Department is listed here as a municipal department. The profile separates account actions—such as paying a bill or requesting service—from explanatory material about rates, meters, wastewater, leaks, and delinquency.
Because utility rules can vary by account class, meter size, service address, billing date, and local ordinance, treat the published bill and current provider website as the final authority. Use this profile to locate the correct channel and prepare better questions for customer service.
If your issue is urgent, start with the provider’s emergency number or official payment route rather than waiting for an email response. Keep a written record of calls, confirmation numbers, notice dates, and documents you submit.