Water and sewer costs exceed CPI year after year, with federal aid bridging gaps only in crises

US Consumer Price Index: rates for water and wastewater services vs. general market

1) Extrapolated from overall goods and services markets within the US,
2) Water and wastewater sector CPI is extrapolated from water, sewer, and trash collection and treatment services; the CPI for water, sewer, and trash collection and treatment services rose from ~282.7 in 2000 to ~861.8 in 2024 (base year 1997 = 100),
3) Collected fees cover debt repayments and the bulk of day-to-day costs for preventative maintenance, repairs, and upgrades (CapEx, OpEx)



Source: US Bureau of Labor Statistics