City of Gilroy Utilities Department – Utility Billing
Gilroy
Population reference
59,203 people and 15,701 active connections (14,179 residential, 1,403 commercial, and 119 institutional), based on the active California Drinking Water Watch record for PWS CA4310004.
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. The City’s rate schedule lists monthly fixed and volumetric charges, the FAQ states the bill is due upon receipt and must be paid by the last working day of the month, and the stop-service form says service orders are processed on weekday mornings. Customers can use monthly AutoPay on the 15th.
- Rate structure
- Meter-size monthly base charge plus residential volumetric rates by pressure zone. The July 1, 2026 residential service form lists a 3/4-inch base of $22.80 per month and Tier 1 rates of $4.41, $4.82, or $5.23 per 1,000 gallons for Zones 1, 2, and 3. The adopted multi-year schedule explains that the older two-tier design above 30,000 gallons was replaced by a uniform residential tier in the approved schedule; groundwater passthrough charges can be added after notice if Valley Water imposes new pumping charges.
- Residential cost reference
- For a 3/4-inch residential account using 5,000–7,000 gallons (about 5–7 thousand gallons), July 2026 water charges are approximately $45–$59 per month depending on pressure zone: $22.80 base plus $4.41–$5.23 per 1,000 gallons. The current single-family wastewater charge is $55.24 per month, producing an estimated combined water-and-wastewater total of approximately $100–$114 before other charges. Zone-specific and exact usage determine the actual statement.
- Wastewater and sewer calculation
- Residential wastewater is a fixed monthly charge rather than a separate water-consumption calculation: the July 1, 2026 service form lists $55.24 for a single-family residence and $37.20 for a multifamily residence. Non-residential wastewater uses fixed monitoring/pretreatment charges plus volumetric rates by strength category. The City’s rate resolution explains that wastewater revenues fund collection, pump stations, administrative/regulatory costs, and payments to the South County Regional Wastewater Authority, a joint powers authority operated by Gilroy and Morgan Hill.
- Meter reading
- Gilroy is completing conversion of radio-read meters to Advanced Metering Infrastructure. The City’s capital program reports that all meters were radio-read, approximately 85% had been upgraded by 2023, and the remaining roughly 2,250 meters were targeted for AMI conversion; AMI enables real-time access, faster leak identification, billing verification, and record updates. In May 2026 the City launched AquaTrax, which exposes near-real-time water use by hour, day, or billing cycle and sends leak alerts. The public pages do not publish a fixed physical read route schedule, but AMI/AquaTrax provides automated data rather than a stated monthly walk-by schedule.
- New-account deposit
- The current comprehensive fee schedule lists a $200 residential water deposit and a $160 deposit per apartment unit; commercial deposits are listed as $175, $3,500, or an amount determined by Finance depending on account type. The 2026 service form confirms the deposit requirement in the application materials and states that a deposit is credited after one full year of service or to the closing bill if the customer moves earlier. The current public materials do not describe a credit-check waiver beyond Finance’s account-specific rules.
- Activation or transfer fee
- A $73.00 non-refundable service charge is billed on the first statement for all new and reactivating accounts. Start service requires an authorized signature, photo ID, proof of ownership or a lease, and submission to Finance by email or mail; the City allows one business day to process a request. The current fee schedule separately lists a $70 water-service initiation fee, but the current July 2026 service page explicitly states the $73 account service charge, so customers should confirm which fee line applies to their request. Stop requests must be submitted by 4:30 p.m. at least one business day in advance and are processed weekday mornings.
Context, not a score
How documentation coverage compares
This profile
100%
overview fields with research notes
California
67%
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
- City of Gilroy Utilities Department – Utility Billing public website ↗
Provider-controlled destination used to confirm current customer instructions.
- csd.ca.gov reference ↗
Public URL preserved in the compiled record. Confirm its publisher, date, and applicability before relying on it.
- EPA SDWIS / ECHO lookup (CA4310004) ↗
Search the federal drinking-water database using public water system ID CA4310004.