Septic tank haulers may have to increase their prices to keep up with the Kingsland Municipal Utility District's more than 300 percent increase in wastewater discharge rates. The utility district board voted in October 2024 to increase the wastewater disposal rate from 8.25 cents per gallon to 25 cents per gallon. The new tariff came into force on January 1st.
“We don't know exactly what impact it will have on us,” Gary Kinard, owner of Kindard's Plumbing and Septic in Kingsland, told DailyTrib.com. “What do we do? How are we going to overcome this?”
The utility district is building a new $14.8 million wastewater treatment plant to replace its aging system. The new facility is scheduled to go into operation at the end of 2026 or beginning of 2027.
The KMUD facility is the primary disposal site for Highland Lakes' septic tanks and is heavily used by local septic tank haulers serving homes and businesses not connected to a sewer system. Recreational vehicles and property owners with the ability to pump and transport their own sewage waste use the facility to a lesser extent.
“No one likes a rate increase, but we had to do this to justify the new facility,” KMUD Executive Director J. Horry told DailyTrib.com after the rate increase.
Most KMUD customers use the county's sewer system and not the septic tank, Horry said.
“In order to justify building and operating (the new wastewater treatment plant), we had to increase the rate,” Horry said. “It’s not fair to taxpayers to increase tax rates if they don’t use the service.”
The septic waste rate at the KMUD plant has been 8.25 cents since 2008. The rate increase was overdue, Horry said, and was recommended by engineers working on the design for the new facility.
Cody Young, owner of Septic and Maintenance by Cody Young in Kingsland, said his company is probably the largest user of KMUD's septic tank suction services, with 35 employees doing hauling throughout the Highland Lakes region. He estimates that his current $375 fee for pumping out a standard home's septic system (a 750-gallon tank) will need to rise to about $550.
“We all need to move up,” Young said. “The sad thing is that the only person who will really be affected by this is the customer.”
KMUD is the primary provider of wastewater disposal services in the region. The city of Marble Falls takes in a small amount, 10,000 to 15,000 gallons per day, at a cost of 10 cents per gallon. The other option is to ship trash to Austin.
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