ALLENTOWN, Pa. — Residents in the city and its suburbs can expect increases in water and sewer rates in 2025, according to the Lehigh County Authority’s 2025 budget approved Monday.
Facing revenues of about $121 million against a combined $148 million in expenditures – including $56 million in operating expenses, $69 million in capital improvements and $23 million in debt service – the LCA will take on $40 million in new and previous borrowing to back a slew of strategic initiatives.
Ultimately, customers in Allentown will see quarterly rates for water and sewer service increase 5.5% on average. Suburban customers can expect a 6 to 7.5% increase on average for water service only.
All told, the average city customer will pay around $13.52 extra per quarter, or $54.08 annually; suburban customers will pay around $6.50 more per quarter, or $26 more per year.
Suburban wastewater rates will remain stable, and wastewater signatories and Boston Beer rates will be calculated by formulas included in their respective agreements.
LCA Chief Executive Officer Liesel Gross said 2025 includes a number of strategic initiatives, including the lead abatement program.
“Those include our regional sewer program and requirements the DEP has set for us on removing inflow and infiltration from the system. Our lead program is another new regulatory requirement and the need for additional support for that program is really critical,” Gross said.
“Our asset management program is one of those strategies that we've been working on for a number of years, and really getting into the need of it now, trying to develop asset management plans for all of our systems, and it requires additional support.”
Additional line items for consultations in various projects, including the regional sewer program, the lead program, employee engagement, and various other initiatives will amount to about $1,688,000.
The LCA will have to hire for six-and-a-half positions, Gross said, including two canvassers for the lead program; a part-time call center support for the lead program; a regional inflow and infiltration program manager; an asset management engineer technician; a suburban plants operations and management technician; and a field services PA One Call technician.
“We offer payment plans, and we hope that our customer service customer education efforts are also helpful in helping customers manage their bills and their usage."Liesel Gross, Lehigh County Authority CEO
The LCA will see its workforce expand to 190 in 2025, with about 10 vacant or open positions at the moment, along with an eliminated solicitor position and the six-and-a-half new roles.
Board member Amir Famili, of Upper Macungie Township, questioned whether there might be another way to tackle the lead canvassing project instead of hiring two full-time staff members, particularly if those roles were focused on non-transferable skills.
Gross said those roles would be customer-facing, “so those skills, in and of themselves, are very transferable to other positions,” in addition to training on plumbing and meter evaluations.
LCA Chief Financial Officer Edward Klein provided the board with a quick breakdown of the budget summary, which included a total revenue of $121,254,034, capital expenses of $69,092,500, and an ending cash-on-hand balance of $63,833,741.
The board ultimately approved the budget as proposed, with the intent to cover a rate review and adoption at its Nov. 11 meeting. Once approved, the new rates would start in the new year.
Gross said that it is understood that increased water and sewer fees may be difficult to pay, “so we try to share information about assistance programs that are available, either through the state fund or through our own hardship program that we have.
“We offer payment plans, and we hope that our customer service customer education efforts are also helpful in helping customers manage their bills and their usage,” Gross said.
