KPUB residential bills to rise about $10 a month starting Nov. 1

A typical Kerrville Public Utility Board residential customer will pay about $10.41 more a month starting Nov. 1. KPUB is putting in place rate changes it had postponed after the July 4, 2025, flood.

The KPUB Board of Trustees approved the utility’s fiscal 2027 budget last week, which includes the rate changes.

For a household using 1,000 kilowatt-hours a month, the increase would take a bill from about $110, based on KPUB’s August rate, to about $120.41. That’s an increase of about 9.5%. Actual bills will vary with energy use and power costs.

The changes come from KPUB’s cost-of-service study. The utility had deferred them last year to give the community some relief during flood recovery.

Starting Nov. 1:

• The monthly customer charge rises from $15.25 to $16.75.
• The distribution charge rises from 1.680 cents to 2.088 cents per kilowatt-hour.
• The fixed portion of the power supply charge rises from 4.060 cents to 4.543 cents per kilowatt-hour.
• The variable part of the power supply charge, called the power cost adjustment factor, will keep changing month to month with KPUB’s actual power costs.

Even after the increase, KPUB said, its residential rate of about 12.04 cents per kilowatt-hour would be about 24% below the Texas average of 15.94 cents, based on June 2026 federal data. The utility said it ranked third lowest among 29 Central and South Texas utilities in an August survey.

Budget and projects

The fiscal 2027 budget projects $60.7 million in operating revenue and $60.5 million in operating expenses. It includes $7.4 million in capital projects paid for with cash, about $1.8 million of which KPUB expects to offset with grants.

Planned projects include:

• Hunt Substation: Raising critical equipment above flood levels.
• River crossings: Making crossings and distribution lines more flood-resistant.
• Fiber for flood warnings: About 11 miles of new fiber to support the Guadalupe River flood warning system, funded through the state’s Middle Mile grant program.
• SmartHub: New tools to help customers track their energy use and bills.

KPUB is also building a 122-megawatt natural gas power plant in Colorado County, its first venture into owning power generation. The plant is targeted to begin operating in early September 2027. KPUB says owning generation will give it more control over its power supply and help keep rates stable over the long term

“Our strong financial position allows us to continue making essential investments while providing exceptional value to our customers,” said Mike Wittler, KPUB’s general manager and CEO.