Rising costs could mean water rate increases in Prairie City

By on Wednesday, January 17th, 2024 in Eastern/Southeast Oregon News More Top Stories

PRAIRIE CITY – Prairie City Mayor Scott Officer was on KJDY’s Coffee Time Wednesday, and mentioned that their cost of operation with the water system is going up. Officer said beginning in fiscal year 2025, at the current rates, Prairie City would take a $5 loss per water meter every month. The council is has written a draft proposal that would potentially increase residents’ water bills by $5 per month, and Mayor Officer hopes it will go to a vote in February:

“I’m pulling really hard for the council to keep any increase to start July 1 with the fiscal year. [That would] just cover our costs. We’re okay this year. We know we’re going to lose $5 a month starting fiscal [year] ’25—insurance rates, fuel costs, and all of our costs have gone up.”

The mayor said there may be a town hall in the near future to discuss the matter. Stay posted for updates.

Listen to the podcast with Scott Officer here: