How To Read Your New Water Bill

You will notice that the appearance of your bill has changed. Our new bills have been designed to give you more information and to help you understand your usage/consumption and the charges on your bill. Following is the detail explanation of your bill by section:

Section: Account Number, Square/Suffix/Lot and Impervious Surface Square Footage
Account Number box The account number is how DC Water keeps records of customers.  Please have this number when you contact us.


The lot number is from the Office of Tax and Revenue.  It describes the property being billed.
Impervious Surface Square Footage is the amount of surface area measured in Equivalent Residential Units Or ERU.  An ERU is 1,000 square feet.

 
Section: Bill Summary
Bill Summary

This is an overall summary of your monthly bill.  You can see details for your charges in the lower part of the bill. Please pay your full bill before your due date to avoid late fees.

 

We offer a wide range of choices for paying your bill. You can pay your bill in the following ways:

Pay by website: You can pay your bill through our My DC Water service with a credit card or checking account.  There are many other features of this service that make it useful to our customers.

Pay by automatic bank account withdrawal: You can pay by automatic bank account withdrawal by calling a customer care associate or through My DC Water.  You can contact a customer care associate at 202-787-2000.

Pay by phone: You can pay by phone at 202-787-2000 using a credit card or checking account.

Pay by mail: You can pay by mail with the envelope enclosed with your monthly bill.

Pay in person: Pay in person by visiting 810 First Street, NE, Lobby Level Washington, DC 20002
 
Section: Graph of Bill History
Usage History This is a graphical display of the amount of water you have used in each of the past 12 months.  Daily information is available through our My DC Water service.
 
Section: Quantities Box
Quantities Box

Number of Days is the number of days in this billing period.  Charges are prorated for bills greater than 35 days. 

Usage(CCF) is measured in CCF which means one hundred cubic feet.  One hundred cubic feet is 748 gallons.  An average home uses 8.33 CCF per month.

Reading Type: ACT indicates an actual meter reading.  EST is an estimated meter reading.
 
Section: Current Water and Sewer Charges
Current Water and Sewer Charges

Metering fee is for the use and maintenance of the meter serving your account.

Water Services is the cost of delivering water to you.

Sewer Services is the cost of sewer systems and wastewater treatment facilities.

Clean Rivers Impervious Area Charges collects the construction and operating costs of a project to reduce sewer overflows into local waterways.  When completed, the project will store stormwater and wastewater to reduce pollution in the Anacostia and Potomac rivers and in Rock Creek. Click here for more information on Impervious Aera Charge.

DC Govt Pilot Fee is a Payment In Lieu Of Taxes fee.  DC Water pays this fee to the District of Columbia for services such as fire and police protection. DC Water passes this fee directly to customers.

DC Govt Right of way fee is a fee the District of Columbia charges most companies who have infrastructure in the streets. DC Water passes this fee directly to customers.

DC Govt Stormwater Fee is established by the District Department of the Environment.  It funds their storm water management program. Go to their website for more information: www. ddoe.dc.gov.

An Equivalent Residential Unit, or ERU, is one thousand square feet of impervious surface area.  Single family residential accounts are billed one ERU.  All other accounts are billed for their actual impervious area.

SPLASH Donations help needy customers pay water bills.  To contribute to the fund, add your donation amount to your payment, or sign up for our automatic donation program.

The Customer Assistance Program provides water bill discounts to qualified customers.  Contact the District Department of the Environment Energy Office at (202) 673-6750 for information. You can also click here to learn more about CAP from the DC Energy Office.