Brandon council has given the green light to higher water and sewer rates that will take effect in the new year, but the final tally still needs a stamp of approval from the province’s utility watchdog.
City council passed first reading of By-Law No. 7450 on June 15, setting new water and wastewater rates from 2027 through 2030. The rates now head to the Manitoba Public Utilities Board (PUB) for review, and residents will get a chance to weigh in before anything becomes final.
Right now, the combined water and sewer rate sits at $6.219 for every cubic metre used. Under the new schedule, that number climbs to $6.549 next year, $6.879 in 2028, $7.209 in 2029, and reaches $7.529 by 2030. For a typical family of four, it works out to roughly an extra $5.19 on the monthly bill.
The quarterly customer charge will also rise slowly, moving from $21.51 today to $23.09 over the four years. Water consumption alone goes from $2.710 per cubic metre to $3.160, while the sewer portion jumps from $2.840 to $3.700 by the decade’s end.
The increases come as the city juggles the cost of keeping pipes and plants in shape. Brandon is in the middle of a $125-million upgrade to its water treatment facility, with money coming from all three levels of government. The city has also secured a $42.8-million loan from the Canada Infrastructure Bank as part of a broader $140-million CIB commitment to water and wastewater projects across five Manitoba communities. The utility has also run deficits in recent years, and council already tacked on a rate rider in 2025 to mop up a 2023 shortfall, a charge that stays in place until 2030.
Before any new rates show up on utility bills, the PUB must sign off. Residents can watch for public input sessions as part of that review.
