If you own a car, you will have incurred fixed prices just to have it, even if you let it sit in your garage and don't use it. You can think of your fixed charges as:
- Price you paid for the car
- Insurance
- License and registration
With regard to utilities, the fixed charge recognizes that much of the cost of operating and maintaining the utility infrastructure isn’t dependent on how much of the commodity is used. The fixed charge considers the potential demand that a customer places on the system, so large customers typically pay a higher fixed charge than small customers do which is why there are seven different classes in fixed charges. For simplicity, this page references the residential utility class.
The terms on your bill related to fixed charges are:
- Service Charge (electricity, gas, water, sewer, solid waste)
- Administration Charge (electricity, gas)
- Municipal Consent and Access Fee (electricity, gas)
- Waste Diversion Charge (solid waste)
- Residential Recycling (solid waste)
The following table outlines the fixed portion of an average residential monthly bill in January 2025, assuming 31 days, 667 kWh/month (electricity), 18 GJ/month (natural gas), and 14 m3/month (water).
Fixed Utility Charge
Type of Charge | 2025 Daily Rate | 2025 Monthly Bill (January) |
Electric | ||
Service Charge | $0.5073 | $15.73 |
Administration Charge | $0.0958 | $2.97 |
Municipal Consent and Access Fee | $0.08243 | $2.56 |
Total | $21.26 | |
Natural Gas | ||
Service Charge | $0.8260 | $25.61 |
Administration Charge | $0.0900 | $2.79 |
Municipal Consent and Access Fee | $0.16726 | $5.19 |
Total | $33.59 | |
Water | ||
Service Charge (based on 15mm meter size) | $1.0250 | $31.78 |
Sewer | ||
Service Charge | $1.8587 | $57.62 |
Solid Waste | ||
Service Charge | $0.5796 | $17.97 |
Waste Diversion Charge | $0.0847 | $2.63 |
Residential Recycling (this fee will be removed April 1, 2025) |
$0.2775 | $8.60 |
Total | $29.20 | |
Total Fixed Charges | $173.45 |