The City of Fredericton is proposing a 5% increase to water and sewer rates in 2026 to help address aging infrastructure, inflationary pressures, and to meet the demands of a growing population.
The proposed budget, presented during Monday night’s public budget meeting outlines a total of $25.6 million in revenue, with $13.9 million allocated for operations and $11.6 million for capital investments. These investments are critical to maintaining the City’s safe, efficient, and reliable water and sewer systems, and follow recommendations outlined in the City’s long-term financial plan.
“Fredericton’s water and sewer utility is limited to revenue earned from its rate payers and is completely separate from property tax revenue,” said Councillor Greg Ericson, Chair of the Municipal Finance and Corporate Administration Standing Committee. “This modest rate increase is necessary for the City as we continue to renew aging infrastructure in order to deliver clean and safe drinking water to residents while ensuring our system can meet future growth.”
What’s Driving the Increase?
- Aging Infrastructure: Within Fredericton there are underground pipes that are over 100 years old, despite these challenges, the City’s water and sewer system remains safe and well maintained. The City routinely makes investments to update infrastructure to ensure there are fewer leaks, reduced water main breaks, and avoid city-wide boil orders.
- Inflation: Inflation continues to have a significant impact on materials needed for major capital projects.
- Growth Demands: New infrastructure to meet increased demand in growing areas and new neighbourhoods across the city.
What Will Change?
If approved, the following changes will take effect with the second quarterly billing in 2026:
- Quarterly service charge increases from $72.30 to $77.50
- Commodity charge per cubic meter rises from $1.02 to $1.04.
- Bulk water rate increases from $2.51 to $2.55.
- Private hydrant fee increases from $310.00 + HST to $373.00 + HST.
- Fire protection fee increases from $150.00 + HST to $193.50 + HST.
If approved, Fredericton will continue to have one of the lowest water and sewer rates in New Brunswick. With the increase, a typical household will pay approximately $2.80 per day for clean, safe, drinking water and environmentally sound wastewater treatment.
Fredericton City Council will vote on the water rate proposal in November with any proposed changes to water and sewer rates coming into effect on April 1st 2026. The meeting is available to view on the City’s website along with additional information about the budget process.