Rate Increase - A rate increase has been approved to take effect with the July 2024 water bill, for more information please see our 2024 Winter WaterWords. Additionally, a copy of the FY 2025 budget which was approved by voters at the Annual District Meeting held on March 20, 2024 can be found here.
Water bills are issued the first week in January, April, July and October. If you have not received your bill by the 10th day of the month, please contact us immediately.
How often will I receive a water bill and how is it calculated?
The water meters throughout the system are billed four(4) times a year. The bills are issued the first week of January, April, July and October. They are calculated and billed on the following basis:
| Inclining Block Rates in cubic feet | January and April Bills Winter Rate |
July and October Bills Summer Rate |
| Between 0 and 300 | 0.000 | 0.000 |
| If usage is greater than 300 | ||
| Between 0 and 1,500 | 0.062 | 0.074 |
| Between 1,501 and 3,000 | 0.080 | 0.093 |
| Between 3,001 and 4,500 | 0.098 | 0.110 |
| Between 4,501 and 6,000 | 0.116 | 0.128 |
| Greater than 6,000 | 0.134 | 0.146 |
| Municipal Rate | 0.080 | 0.080 |
| Service charge per Unit | $15.00 | $15.00 |
|---|---|---|
| Debt Fee Charge per Unit | $66.00 | $66.00 |
How much will my water bill be for 3 months?
What makes up the debt fee?
Debt Fee — As of the July 2024 bill, the debt fee includes the following charges per unit:
| Description | Total Cost | Debt Fee |
| North Acton Water Treatment Plant | $6.0 Million | $10.25 |
| South Acton Water Treatment Plant | $13.47 Million | $24.00 |
| Center Acton Water Treatment Plant | $11.796 Million | $19.75 |
| NAWTP PFAS | $0.684 Million | $2.00 |
| Short-term debt: Interest and Fees only | $7.1 Million | $10.00 |
When is my water bill due?
Your water bill payment is due in our office within 30 days of the bill date. The Water District accepts online payments for credit cards and ACH payments. Bills may be paid by mail and sent to P.O. Box 953, Acton, MA 01720 or paid at our office, Monday–Friday, 7:30 AM until 4:00 PM (excluding holidays) at 693 Massachusetts Avenue, Acton. After hours, payments can be dropped in the mailbox next to the front door at 693 Massachusetts Avenue, Acton. If for any reason you are unable to make full payment of your water bill, payment plans can be arranged by calling our office. Interest in the amount of 14% per annum is charged monthly to account balances not paid within 30 days of the bill date.
ELECTRONIC Read vs. VISUAL READ?
The Water District employees obtain readings for billing purposes from an electronic transponder, as we drive by your property. We would only read the actual meter inside your home when requested for the sale of your property or when a meter upgrade is conducted. Periodically, you should compare your reading with your billed reading. While there may be small differences, the 2 readings should be very close. If you notice a large discrepancy, please call the office for an appointment.
I'm selling my home. What do I need to do?
When you know the closing date, you should call the office at 978-263-9107 during our business hours and tell the office personnel that you are selling your home. The office personnel will set up a date and time for us to meet someone at the property to read the inside meter. This is usually done a couple of days before the closing. The paperwork will be returned to the office by our crew and the office staff will complete it for you to pick up later that day. The current owner should supply the Water District with the new owner's name. A $50.00 fee for this service, the current usage amount, and any outstanding amounts will be payable to the Water District at the time of pick up. The paperwork that you receive will show and calculate the water used since the last regular bill.
I just bought a home in Acton. How do I set up an account or make a name or address correction?
Previous to the purchase of your new home, the then current owner would follow the procedures of selling the home and they would supply us with your name at that time. We do not turn the water off between owners, so there is no disruption of service. If you would like to check if the procedure for selling the home was set up or executed and if information they gave us is correct, you can call the office at 978-263-9107. If you would like to have the bills sent to an address other than the street address of the home you are purchasing, or if you have a P.O. box, please call the office to inform us.
Why is my water bill so high this time?
First, check the reading on your meter and compare it to the reading that we used for billing seen on your bill. If the readings are drastically different then it is possible that we obtained an incorrect reading. Call the office to set up a re-read.
If, in the three-month billing period, you have not changed any watering habits or the number of people living in your home has not increased then it is time to be a leak seeker.
- The toilet is one of the most common places to find a leak. Although water may not be seen or heard running, your toilet may have a silent leak. To test for a silent leak, drop a little food coloring in the toilet tank. DO NOT FLUSH. Wait for about 10 minutes. If the food coloring appears in the toilet bowl, your toilet has a silent leak.
- Faucet leaks are more easily detected. Be sure to check seldom-used faucets that may be in the basement or in storage rooms. Worn washers or "O" rings usually cause faucet leaks.
- Check the outside taps for leaking water, particularly during the summer sprinkling season. A hose mistakenly left dribbling away in the grass or garden can waste thousands of gallons of water over the summer. Remember to close outside faucets tightly every time you shut off the water.
How can a small leak cause my water bill to increase so much?
1 cubic foot is equal to 7.48 gallons of water. If your use is approximately 2,500 cubic feet for a summer bill and suddenly the next summer jumps to 5,500 cubic feet due to a leak, that leak equaled 22,440 gallons! A silent leak in a toilet could easily use this much water. Another example is a one-drop per second leak in a faucet uses about 600 gallons of water in a 3-month period. If a hose is left barely running (1/16th inch stream), in 3 months you will have used about 75,000 gallons. Even small leaks add up to costing you a lot of money. Check for leaks often.
