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Farmers Branch officials are reconsidering a wastewater billing change that increased charges for some residents last year, raising questions about whether the city can provide relief without delaying improvements to its aging water and sewer system.
The City Council discussed restoring a cap on residential wastewater charges during an Oct. 20 study session, less than two weeks before another 12% increase in water and wastewater rates is scheduled to take effect Nov. 1.
The city eliminated its 10,000-gallon monthly wastewater billing cap in November 2025, when a 15% rate increase also took effect. Previously, residents paid wastewater charges on no more than 10,000 gallons of water each month. Now, customers without separate irrigation meters pay wastewater charges on all water they use, including water used on lawns that never enters the sewer system.
City staff presented examples showing a 41% increase in combined water and wastewater bills for a household using 20,000 gallons a month compared with the previous billing structure. At 40,000 gallons, the increase would reach 60%. Those figures reflect specific usage examples, not increases for all customers.
Average residential consumption in Farmers Branch is approximately 8,500 gallons per month, according to staff.
Councilmember Elizabeth Villafranca urged the city to restore the cap, saying residents need relief from rising utility costs.
"Our residents are suffering and they need relief," Villafranca said.
She also proposed extending the city's water and sewer infrastructure replacement plan from 20 to 30 years, spreading the cost of improvements over a longer period.
Finance Director Jay Patel said Farmers Branch has approximately $71.5 million in water and sewer infrastructure needs over the first five years of its current replacement plan, an average of $14.3 million annually.
Councilmember Tina Bennett-Burton questioned extending the schedule when the city is already behind on replacing aging water and sewer lines.
"We're never going to get ahead because we're so far behind," she said.
Patel said extending the replacement schedule to 25 or 30 years could spread infrastructure costs over more years but could also increase maintenance expenses and unexpected repairs.
The city also faces rising charges from Dallas Water Utilities, which supplies its drinking water, and the Trinity River Authority, which treats its wastewater.
Staff said approximately 73% to 74% of utility revenue goes toward operations and maintenance, including payments to those providers. Farmers Branch absorbed increases in wholesale costs for years before raising its own rates, according to staff.
Restoring the wastewater cap would reduce the amount collected from customers who use more than 10,000 gallons a month. The city would need to consider ways to offset that loss, including other rate adjustments or changes to infrastructure spending.
Councilmember Roger Neal said he was open to restoring the cap but wanted to know how much revenue the city would lose before deciding whether to support it.
Rather than restoring the cap, the city could change how it calculates wastewater use.
Under winter-quarter averaging, a method used by other North Texas cities, the city would use a household's average water consumption during winter months to calculate wastewater charges for the rest of the year. Because households typically use less water for irrigation during colder months, the method can provide a closer estimate of water entering the sewer system.
Mayor Pro Tem David Reid expressed interest in the option and asked how much it might save residents. Staff did not have those figures available.
Mayor Terry Lynne suggested exploring average monthly billing to help residents avoid large seasonal swings in their utility payments.
The council took no action on the proposals during the study session. Before considering changes, staff must determine how much residents could save under each option, how much revenue the city would lose and what it would take to cover the difference.
According to the city's agenda report, any change to the current rate structure would take effect no earlier than fiscal 2028.
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