Water Rates Definitions

Ever wonder what those charges on your bill mean? Here's a glossary of terms which are referenced on your bill for you to better understand your water and sewer charges.

• kGal - kilo gallon - 1,000 gallons of water.
• CCF - 100 cf - 100 cubic feet of water (1 cubic foot of water is equal to 7.48 gallons).
• Billing Period - Time period of a utility bill generally 1 month. Period can be longer or shorter. This is generally caused by either stopping or starting service.
• Residential Service - Single family homes and individually metered apartments.
• Commercial Service - All business uses of the water and sewer system.
• Multi-Family Service - Residential apartment type complexes that are serviced by 1 water meter to multiple residences.
• Sprinkler Service - Water service that is connected directly to a buildings fire suppression system.
• Irrigation Service - Potable water that is separately metered and connected directly to a lawn sprinkler system.
• Reclaimed Water Service - Reclaimed or recycled water, is former wastewater that is treated to remove solids and certain impurities, and used in sustainable landscaping irrigation.
• Service Availability Charge - Monthly charge designed to recover costs associated with meters, meter reading, billing, customer service, and a portion of the costs associated with operating and maintaining the water or sewer system.
• Consumption Charge - Charge for water used during a billing period. Residential and Irrigation usage is broken into conservation tiers as consumption increases. Commercial consumption is a levelized charge for all consumption.
• Usage Charge - Charge for usage of the sewer system during a billing period. Residential usage is broken into tiers as water use increases. Residential sewer usage is based on 100% of water used up to 20 kGal. Commercial sewer usage is based on 100% of water used.
• Environmental Charge - The environmental charge recovers costs related to current and future environmental projects.
• Franchise Fee - Fee levied on JEA by a municipality to provide service to the residents of that municipality (Levied by and remitted to the municipality levying the fee).
• Public Service Tax - Tax charged by a municipality on the customers of JEA.