Clean Water Services weighs billing independence and new administrative fees to partner cities

Clean Water Services weighs billing independence and new administrative fees to partner citiesOregon's regional wastewater and stormwater utility is overhauling its billing agreements, preparing to pay up to $4.4 million annually to partner cities for revenue collection while exploring a long-term shift to direct billing.

CWS currently relies on seven partner cities and the Tualatin Valley Water District to bill 92% of its 165,000 customers.

The utility plans to establish a new administrative fee—estimated between 1% and 4% of regional rates—to reimburse cities for billing costs, which will impact future rate adjustments.

Joint billing costs with the Tualatin Valley Water District have doubled since 2020 to $2.6 million, prompting CWS to evaluate full billing independence ahead of a 2030 contract expiration.

The board directed staff to fund a $241,000 regional emergency customer assistance program modeled on existing local initiatives.

Clean Water Services (CWS) in Washington County, Oregon, is navigating a major transition in its revenue collection strategy, moving to reimburse partner cities for billing services while weighing the long-term feasibility of bringing its 165,000 customer accounts in-house. During an August 11, 2026, work session, the CWS Board of Directors reviewed a utility billing feasibility study conducted by consulting firm EMA. Currently, CWS directly bills only 8% of its customers. The vast majority are billed through complex intergovernmental agreements: 98,000 by seven partner cities and 54,000 via a joint billing system with the Tualatin Valley Water District (TVWD). Historically, partner cities—including Beaverton, Tigard, and Tualatin—have absorbed the cost of billing and remitting approximately $110 million annually in CWS regional rates, including merchant and credit card fees. Hillsboro is currently the only city that levies a 2% administrative fee to cover these costs. CWS Chief Financial Officer Kathy Lee outlined plans to establish a standardized memorandum of understanding to pay the remaining cities an administrative fee for their services. Consultants modeled potential billing fees ranging from 1% ($1.1 million annually) to 4% ($4.4 million annually) of regional rates. Staff noted that assuming these costs will ultimately put upward pressure on CWS’s regional sanitary and stormwater rates. "The cities have been covering the costs of billing on our behalf. I just think we need to own that," a staff member noted, adding that CWS hopes to offset some rate impacts by adjusting its capital delivery program and cost of service studies annually. The agency is also grappling with rising costs in its joint billing partnership with TVWD. CWS's share of the billing service costs reached $2.6 million in fiscal year 2026, nearly doubling since 2020 following the implementation of an OpenSmartFlex software-as-a-service platform and new indirect overhead rates. While CWS recently extended its TVWD agreement through 2030, the utility will use the next five years to evaluate the cost-benefit of developing its own independent billing system versus maintaining the status quo. In tandem with the billing overhaul, the board directed staff to implement a regional emergency customer assistance program. Rather than designing a bespoke CWS program, the utility will match the existing emergency assistance frameworks of its billing partners. The initiative is estimated to cost CWS $241,000 annually—roughly 0.13% of its revenue—avoiding the administrative burden of standardizing disparate local programs. EMA will deliver a final feasibility report in October detailing the cost, risk, and resource requirements of various billing models, ranging from outsourcing to a service bureau to full in-house billing. The board expects to finalize the agreements for city billing fees and the emergency assistance program by December 2026.