New Jersey American Water to raise rates – slightly

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New Jersey American Water customers will start seeing a small bill increase Sept. 1.  

The uptick comes following the Camden-based water utility’s Aug. 17 announcement that the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities approved a settlement between the company and the state’s Division of Rate Counsel, BPU staff and others for new water and wastewater rates.  

New Jersey American Water said the approved rates represent a total annualized revenue increase of approximately $45.5 million. 

The company filed a rate request Jan. 14 after it invested more than $985 million in infrastructure in treatment system and distribution upgrades since its last rate filing. 

The new monthly bill for an average water customer using 5,520 gallons will increase by about $2.93, and the monthly bill for an average wastewater customer will increase by approximately $3.74, the utility said. The overall cost works out to be about one penny per gallon, it added.

NJBIZ has reported on the infrastructure upgrades, including: 

• An $8.75 million investment announced earlier this summer to replace over 4 miles of aging water main in Plainfield, Roselle, Summit and Union Township. 
• Two major water main projects – one in South Plainfield and another in Cherry Hill – beginning next week and totaling $2.3 million. 
• Investing $2.8 million to replace over 2 miles of aging water main in Northfield and Pleasantville. 

The company also tallied more than $432 million in system upgrades and improvement projects across its service areas in 2021. 

“We are proud of the level of investment we are able to make into our systems to continue to provide high-quality, reliable service, even through extreme weather and other challenges including the pandemic, while maximizing efficiencies to balance the impact to customers,” New Jersey American Water President Mark McDonough said in a statement. 

New Jersey American Water will send customers information about the new rates in their next bill. They may also visit www.newjerseyamwater.com, under “Customer Service & Billing” and “Your Water and Wastewater Rates,” or call 800-272-1325 with further questions.