ESCANABA — Living in Escanaba could become more expensive, following a series of rate increases discussed Thursday.

In addition to increases to both wastewater and electric rates, residents can expect to see an increase to their property tax bill. While the ordinance levying the 17.442 mils ($17.44 per $1,000 of taxable property value) won’t be approved until May 26, the city’s budget requiring the rate was approved Thursday.

The new millage rate is a 2.6% increase over the current 17 mil tax rate. In practice, because assessed values are typically around half of sale value, a $100,000 home with a $50,000 taxable value would see a $1,300 increase in property taxes after July 1.

Like the property tax increase, utility increases were not technically approved Thursday, but the underlying budget they support was, making any adjustments at this point highly unlikely.

The most drastic of the two utility rate increases is a 25% increase to wastewater rates and service charges. The 2022-23 fiscal year marks the last year for a series of substantial rate hikes to wastewater rates planned to support upgrades at the city’s wastewater plant. In 2020 and 2021, wastewater rates increased by 20% and 30%, respectfully.

For 2022-23, residents will pay $8.65 per 1,000 gallons of wastewater, up from $6.92 in the 2021-22 fiscal year. While there are no rate increases planned for water itself, wastewater use is considered equal to metered water consumption for billing purposes.

Because billing is based on the idea that the amount of water leaving a home as waste is roughly the same as the amount of fresh water entering it, changes in water meter size affect the monthly available debt service charge for wastewater. The charge, which is assessed to customers regardless of how much water or wastewater they actually use or produce, will also see a 25% increase across the board.

For a resident with a a 5/8-inch or 3/4-inch meter, the change means a jump from $16.39 per month to $20.49 per month. On the top end of the spectrum, a 12-inch meter — which is typically only used by businesses with high water consumption — would be charged $1,022.55 per month, up from $818.04.

Regardless of the type of electric used, customers will see a roughly 1.75% increase in both their per kilowatt hour usage and their availability of service charge. For an Escanaba resident, that means they will be charged slightly more than 10 cents per kilowatt hour and $15.79 per meter per month. Commercial customers in the city will be charged roughly 9.5 cents per kilowatt hour and $16.33 per meter per month for a single phase meter or $38.98 per meter per month for a three-phase service.