EXPLANATION: CAPITALS INDICATE MAT TER ADDED TO EXISTING LAW .
[Brackets] indicate matter deleted from existing law.
Underlining indicates amendments to bill.
Strike out indicates matter stricken from the bill by amendment or deleted from the law by
amendment.
*hb1168*
HOUSE BILL 1168
L5 5lr1067
HB 409/18 – ENV
By: Montgomery County Delegation and Prince George’s County Delegation
Introduced and read first time: February 6, 2025
Assigned to: Environment and Transportation
Committee Report: Favorable with amendments
House action: Adopted
Read second time: March 2, 2025
CHAPTER ______
AN ACT concerning 1
Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission – Service Charges 2
MC/PG 112–25 3
FOR the purpose of authorizing the Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission to 4
establish certain customer classes for certain service rates or charges; requiring that 5
service rates for each customer class shall be chargeable against certain properties 6
and shall be uniform for a given class throughout the Washington Suburban 7
Sanitary District; authorizing the minimum or ready to serve charge assessed by the 8
Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission to include a certain component; 9
altering the criteria on which the minimum or ready to serve charge may be based 10
authorizing the Commission to create certain customer classes for minimum or ready 11
to serve charges; and generally relating to the service rates of the Washington 12
Suburban Sanitary Commission. 13
BY repealing and reenacting, with amendments, 14
Article – Public Utilities 15
Section 25–501 and 25–502(a) 16
Annotated Code of Maryland 17
(2020 Replacement Volume and 2024 Supplement) 18
Preamble 19
2 HOUSE BILL 1168
WHEREAS, The Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission service rate for water 1
is required to have a minimum or a ready to serve charge under § 25–502(a) of the Public 2
Utilities Article; and 3
WHEREAS, The ready to serve charge consists of two components: an account 4
maintenance fee and an infrastructure investment fee; and 5
WHEREAS, The Attorney General stated in 2008 that the Washington Suburban 6
Sanitary Commission has the authority to adopt an infrastructure investment fee in 7
addition to an account maintenance fee; and 8
WHEREAS, The Washington Suburban Sanitary Com mission adopted an 9
infrastructure investment fee effective July 1, 2015; and 10
WHEREAS, Due to fire code requirements enacted by Montgomery County and 11
Prince George’s County for sprinkler systems in certain homes, a small number of 12
residential homes in the sanitary district are required to receive 1.5–inch meters to 13
accommodate the water flow of the required sprinkler systems; and 14
WHEREAS, Current law requires the Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission 15
to set the ready to serve charge based on meter size and not by customer class such as 16
residential, commercial, or industrial; and 17
WHEREAS, As a result, residential customers with 1.5–inch meters pay almost 18
seven times the amount of the ready to serve charge paid by other residential customers 19
because of the statutory requirement that this charge be based on meter size; and 20
WHEREAS, The Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission desires to correct this 21
inequity by seeking the authority to create customer classes within any given meter size 22
for the ready to serve charge; now, therefore, 23
WHEREAS, Under current law, the Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission 24
must establish rates and charges that are uniform throughout the sanitary district; and 25
WHEREAS, Other Maryland water and sewer providers, such as the providers in 26
Baltimore City, Howard County, and the City of Rockville, have the authority to establish 27
rates and charges by customer classes; and 28
WHEREAS, The Commission has been reviewing and considering alternative rate 29
structures over the last several years; and 30
WHEREAS, During the review of other alternative rate structures, the Commission 31
has noted that the vast majority of public water and sewer providers across the country 32
similar in size and structure to the Commission have the authority to establish rates and 33
charges by customer classes; and 34
HOUSE BILL 1168 3
WHEREAS, Establishing rates and charges by class allows for a more equitable 1
recovery of costs from customers, based on the demands that they place on the water and 2
sewer systems; and 3
WHEREAS, The au thority of the Commission to establish rates or charges by 4
customer classes includes establishing classes by meter size and also the ability to establish 5
a surcharge on residential customers in the summer to encourage water conservation; and 6
WHEREAS, The American Water Works Association’s Manual of Practice M–1 7
“Principles of Water Rates, Fees and Charges, Seventh Edition” and the Water 8
Environment Federation’s Manual of Practice No. 27 “Financing and Charges for 9
Wastewater Systems”, the industry’s best practices manuals, include multiple examples of 10
class–based rates, fees, and charges; now, therefore, 11
SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF MARYLAND, 12
That the Laws of Maryland read as follows: 13
Article – Public Utilities 14
25–501. 15
(a) IN THIS SECTION, “CLASS” INCLUDES A CLASS BAS ED ON THE SIZE OF 16
THE METER ON THE WAT ER CONNECTION LEADIN G TO A PROPERTY . 17
(B) The Commission shall set [a service rate] ONE OR MORE SERVICE RATES 18
that the Commission considers necessary to provide funds for: 19
(1) maintaining, repairing, and operating its water supply and sewer 20
systems, including the overhead expense and depreciation allowance; and 21
(2) making any payments to the District of Columbia, as specified in this 22
title. 23
[(b)] (C) [The] EACH service rate: 24
(1) shall be chargeable against all properties IN A CLASS for a connection 25
with any line owned by the Commission; 26
(2) shall be uniform FOR THE CLASS throughout the sanitary district; and 27
(3) may be changed as necessary. 28
(D) THE COMMISSION MAY ESTABLI SH ONE OR MORE CUSTO MER CLASSES 29
FOR ANY SERVICE RATE OR CHARGE ESTABLISHE D UNDER THIS TITLE . 30
25–502. 31 4 HOUSE BILL 1168
(a) (1) Except as provided in this subtitle, [the] EACH service rate for water 1
shall consist of: 2
(i) a minimum or a ready to serve charge, WHICH MAY INCLUDE 3
AN INFRASTRUCTURE IN VESTMENT COMPONENT ; and 4
(ii) a charge for water used. 5
(2) (I) The minimum or ready to serve charge [shall] MAY be based on 6
the size of the meter on the water connection leading to [the] A property OR ON OTHER 7
CRITERIA DETERMINED IN ACCORD ANCE WITH REGULATION S THE COMMISSION 8
ADOPTS. 9
(II) THE COMMISSION MAY CREATE CUSTOMER CLASSES 10
WITHIN ANY METER SIZ E FOR THE MINIMUM OR READY TO SERVE CHARG E. 11
(3) The charge for water used shall be based on the amount of water 12
passing the meter during the period between the last two readings. 13
(4) The meter shall be placed on each water connection by and at the 14
expense of the Commission. 15
SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That this Act shall take effec t July 16
1, 2025. 17
Approved:
________________________________________________________________________________
Governor.
________________________________________________________________________________
Speaker of the House of Delegates.
________________________________________________________________________________
President of the Senate.