City of Santa Monica Water Resources Division

Provider briefing

How this utility’s billing works

City of Santa Monica Water Resources Division operates as a municipal department serving Santa Monica. 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 Conservation-oriented increasing three-tier water rates, with a bi-monthly fixed charge by meter size. The official rate study lists FY2026/27 proposed/adopted framework values for a single-family 3/4-inch meter of $50.06 fixed per bi-month and commodity rates of $6.78 per HCF for Tier 1, $7.89 for Tier 2, and $12.36 for Tier 3. Drought-rate scenarios are separately modeled and may be activated by conservation or declared drought conditions.. Bills are generated bi-monthly. santa monica bills water, sewer, and refuse on a two-month statement; the rate study's fixed and volumetric charges are stated per bi-monthly billing period., and a typical residential cost reference is Using the FY2026/27 single-family 3/4-inch framework, a 7,000-gallon month is approximately 9.36 HCF. Without the unpublished tier breakpoints, a precise household total cannot be reconstructed safely; a first-tier-only illustration is $50.06 bi-monthly fixed plus 9.36 x $6.78, or about $113.40 per two months before sewer/refuse. The actual bill depends on tier allocation and the adopted sewer rate, so not publicly stated is retained for a definitive 7,000-gallon total.. 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

Santa Monica's rate study uses a bi-monthly fixed wastewater charge per dwelling unit plus a volumetric charge per HCF based on average winter water consumption. For a single-family dwelling, the FY2026/27 study lists a $22.20 bi-monthly fixed charge and $4.92 per HCF; the study applies an 85% residential discharge factor when estimating sewage volume. The final statement also includes refuse and other utility charges.

Meter and infrastructure notes

Santa Monica has an advanced-metering infrastructure and EyeOnWater customer portal that provides water-use visibility and possible leak alerts. The reviewed handout does not promise a specific transmission interval for every account; the portal allows customers to view usage and receive alerts after registration.