NTUA rate hike plan draws sharp pushback in Crownpoint
CROWNPOINT
NTUA is proposing phased rate increases over the next three years that would raise residential water rates by about 53% to 57% and wastewater rates by about 219% to 243%, depending on which pricing scenario is adopted, according to a presentation delivered Tuesday night at a public hearing here.
The proposal, presented in two scenarios at the Crownpoint Chapter House, would push water charges from the current $4.59 per 1,000 gallons to as high as $7.22 by 2029, while wastewater charges would rise from $1.75 to as high as $6. The increases would also drive up monthly service charges, which NTUA officials said are needed to keep an aging system operating as construction costs, treatment costs and daily expenses continue to outpace revenue.
NTUA Customer Service Supervisor Shelly Biakaiddy, who led the presentation, told customers the proposal was tied to keeping the system running, not profit.
“This is not about raising rates, just to raise them. This is about making sure NTUA can keep giving safe, reliable water (and) wastewater service today, next year, and for our children and grandchildren,” Biakaiddy said.
The Crownpoint hearing was one of several public meetings NTUA has held ahead of a final public hearing scheduled for May 21 at the Navajo Nation Museum in Window Rock.
Officials used the session to lay out a widening gap between what the utility collects from customers and what it spends to operate and maintain water and wastewater systems spread over roughly 27,000 square miles.
To read the full article, please see the April 2, 2026, edition of the Navajo Times.
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Highway 264,
I-40, WB @ Winslow