City of Billings Public Works Water Utility
Billings and approved areas outside the city limits
Population reference
Billings is Montana’s largest city and its metropolitan trade area exceeds 185,000 residents; the municipal utility reports more than 32,000 water meters and serves residential and commercial customers inside the city and approved outside-city areas.
Billing detail
Partial 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. Billings restored a regular monthly cycle after the 2024 billing-system conversion; the City states that customers receive a bill on the same date each month, subject to weekends and holidays, generally covering a 30-day service period.
- Rate structure
- Increasing-block conservation rate with a fixed monthly meter-size charge and volumetric charges per 1,000 gallons. Effective July 1, 2026 inside-city residential tiers are $4.97 per kGal for 0–10,000 gallons, $5.94 for 11,000–32,000, $7.72 for 33,000–75,000, and $11.60 above 75,000; outside-city residential tiers are $5.13, $6.16, $8.03, and $12.03. The FY2026 3/4-inch base charge is $8.75 inside city and $9.75 outside city.
- Residential cost reference
- At 5,000 gallons for an inside-city 3/4-inch residential meter, the water component is approximately $8.75 base plus $24.85 volumetric, or $33.60 before wastewater, stormwater, garbage, taxes, and other charges. The City’s FY2026 operating budget separately reports an average monthly residential water charge of $47.71 and wastewater charge of $30.85 for its representative median-home utility bill.
- Wastewater and sewer calculation
- Wastewater uses a fixed monthly meter-size service charge plus a volume charge based on wastewater created, with the metric reflecting the water utility’s four-tier structure. Effective July 1, 2026, the published residential wastewater volume charge is $5.95 per 1,000 gallons for customers inside and outside the city; the applicable wastewater base charge is determined by meter and customer class.
- Meter reading
- Billings uses a Neptune Advanced Metering System. The City’s billing-system audit documentation identifies more than 32,000 water meters and provides the audit team access to the Neptune system; the City also states that the meter hardware did not change during the software conversion. Meters are read on a rotating monthly schedule, with the time of day varying between cycles to prevent overlap, and the online system provides consumption summaries and alerts.
Context, not a score
How documentation coverage compares
This profile
71%
overview fields with research notes
Montana
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
Partial public detail found
5 of 7 fields in this section contain provider-specific public detail in dataset August 1, 2026.
Documented
71%
Details not confirmed in the reviewed public material
- New-account deposit
- Activation or transfer fee
“Not confirmed” means the directory did not identify a dependable public statement. It does not mean the provider has no policy or option.
Primary verification routes
- City of Billings Public Works Water Utility 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.