With the 2025-2026 biennium budget being adopted at the end of the year, utilities and property taxes could increase in Renton.
Renton public works administrator Martin Pastucha presented the public works preliminary departmental budget proposal at the Oct. 14 Committee of the Whole meeting, hitting on various endeavors related to public works, but also sharing that utility increases are imminent:
• Water increase: 2% in 2025 and 0% in 2026.
• Wastewater increase: o% increase in 2025 and 2% increase in 2026.
• Surface water increase: 3.5% increase in 2025 and 3.5% increase in 2026.
Pastucha said that the total cost of these three bills together will increase by about 1.53% per month or about $1.35 more monthly in 2025, and will increase by about 1.44% per month or by about $1.29 more monthly in 2026. The total utility bill will go from an average of $88.28 per month in 2024 to $89.62 in 2025 and $90.91 in 2026, he said.
“We ran this through our model, our computer model that we have our rate consultant on, and look at all the capital components and all the investments we need to make in our city from the capital side as well operating costs, and while it didn’t necessarily warrant a 2% increase in our water or our wastewater, we suggested we need to do that in order to keep up with inflation,” Pastucha said.
The budget has not been adopted yet, so these rates are unofficial, according to a city spokesperson.
Preliminary solid waste, recycling, and composting increase proposal
2025 Single-Family: 6%
2026 Single-Family: 6%
2025 Commercial and Multifamily: 3.9%
2026 Commercial and Multifamily: 3.9%
2025 Roll-off: 2.3%
2026 Roll-off: 2.3%
2025 Overall: 4.7%
2026 Overall: 4.7%
Preliminary property tax increase proposal
2025 levy rate: $26,336,260
Estimated Levy Rate per $1,000 of assessed value: $0.92
Median residential assessed value: $652,770
Estimated annual tax: $598
Average annual tax bill increase to household: $13.73
The budget has not yet been adopted, so these rates are unofficial.
