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Board of County Commissioners Meeting Minutes - Final September 9, 2025 L. Utilities Services 13.L.1. 25-0807 Modification of Descriptions and Footnotes to Indian River County Department of Utility Services (IRCDUS) Rate Schedule Recommended Action: Staff recommends that the Board of County Commissioners (BCC) approve the resolution to modify the descriptions and foot. notes of the Indian River County Department of Utility Services - Rates, Fees, and Charges Schedule as presented in Exhibit A for fiscal year 2025/2026, effective October 1, 2025. Attachments: Resolution to Modify the IRCDUS Rate Schedule Exh A Rate Schedule Exh B Red Line Edits To Rate Schedule Utility Services Finance Manager Brian Beavers presented a Resolution to modify the rate structure scheduled for October 21, 2025. The adjustments involved some changes to footnotes and line descriptions. He provided a brief history stating that a rate increase for utilities had been approved by the Board approximately a year ago. He noted that from 1999 to 2019, utility rates remained unchanged, resulting in the lowest rates on the Treasure Coast. Minor adjustments were made between 2020 and 2024, resulting in a cumulative increase of 12% over the 5 -year period. In contrast, the national average for water and wastewater utility rates rose by 210% during the same period. The Board implemented the rate increase in two steps: Step 1, effective January 1, 2025, raised the average bill from $50.67 to $60.44, a $9.77 increase. Step 2, scheduled for October 1, 2025, would raise the average bill from $60.44 to $67.70, a $7.26 increase. Mr. Beavers noted that this served as a reminder that the rate increase would take effect on October 1, 2025. Following the second increase, the utility continued to offered the lowest rates. This rate adjustment was a significant step toward addressing the previous lag and making the rates more competitive. He described the requested changes. First, the descriptions for the water and sewer volumetric charges needed to be modified to explain better that the highest tier charge applied to consumption greater than 12,000 gallons per month. Second, a footnote would be added to the deposit section to clarify the timing related to the refunding of deposits. Next, the descriptions for the service connection charges needed to be modified to differentiate between force main and gravity main sewer connections. Additionally, a footnote would be added to the sewer service connection section to clarify the cost obligations of the property owner versus those of Indian River County Utilities regarding gravity main sewer service Indian River County, Florida Page 33