Butler County approves 20-year Monroe wholesale water deal

Butler County approves 20-year Monroe wholesale water dealButler County Commissioners have approved a wholesale water supply contract with the City of Monroe following negotiations that officials said had lasted several months, nearly a year. The agreement covers a current supply volume of about 1.25 million gallons per day and introduces an annual index-linked rate escalator.

The contract is structured as an initial 10-year term with two five-year renewals, for a potential 20-year agreement.

Monroe uses about 1.25 million gallons per day from Butler County’s wholesale distribution and sales system, according to the county administrator.

The current wholesale rate is $3.84 per kilogallon; annual escalations will use the BLS water and sewer index on a rolling-year basis.

About 10 unincorporated Lemon Township parcels will fall within Monroe’s wholesale-agreement service area, giving the city the right to serve them.

Butler County Commissioners have approved a wholesale water supply contract with the City of Monroe that establishes a potential 20-year supply relationship and sets out an index-based approach to future price increases. The agreement, approved unanimously on 15 September, is structured as a 10-year term followed by two five-year renewals. County officials said negotiations had taken several months, nearly a year. Monroe currently uses about 1.25 million gallons per day from Butler County’s wholesale distribution and sales system, the county administrator told commissioners. The current sale rate is $3.84 per kilogallon, following an increase on 1 August. Under the agreement, annual rate escalations will be tied to the Bureau of Labor Statistics water and sewer index, calculated on a rolling-year basis. The county will use an 1 August to 30 July period when reviewing the escalator, rather than a calendar-year period. Officials also said they had negotiated terms for Monroe to repay amounts covering the period from 1 August 2025 to 1 August 2026, including retroactive application of the new rate to 1 August 2026. A territorial provision brings the remaining properties in the Lemon Township area into the city’s wholesale water agreement. Monroe will have the right to serve roughly 10 parcels in the unincorporated part of the township. Commission President T.C. Rogers thanked county staff, the county administrator and the City of Monroe for concluding the negotiations. “It wasn’t a one-day deal in negotiations,” Rogers said, adding that he believed the arrangement “best serves the constituents in all the communities in that area.” The contract was approved alongside the county’s receipt of bids and bid bonds for the Beckett Ridge Pump Station Improvements Project. Staff described that work as an ancillary project needed as the county begins its 42-inch water-main rehabilitation project. The bids will now be reviewed by the Butler County Water and Sewer Department for recommendation.