KCK mayor says BPU costs residents too much. Are bills more than elsewhere in the metro?

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Kansas City, Kansas, Mayor Tyrone Garner has pointed to concern over monthly bills as a reason to take a critical look at the Board of Public Utilities , saying some in the community perceive that the publicly owned asset is more of a “burden” than a “benefit.”

Unlike most in the Kansas City metropolitan area, Kansas City, Kansans, get both electricity and water services through a century-old publicly owned utility founded in 1909. The BPU, a nonprofit governed by a six-member elected board, has shrunk its workforce, by far its largest operating cost, over the past several years.

Elected BPU board members have the authority to set electric and water rates to align with the needs to run the service. The most recent rate increases, scheduled to take effect through 2025, came last year despite some resident concerns raised over the cost of utility bills and criticisms of its service.

Electric and water rates are only one piece of the equation in a monthly bill. One unique complication in the utility’s cost comparison in KCK is the payment in lieu of taxes, or PILOT, fee attached to all utility bills. The monies collected through the fee are supposed to reflect the tax-exempt property managed by the BPU and go toward paying for city operations.

The fee, long criticized by residents and local activists, is supposed to be removed from bills starting Oct. 1 as a direct charge to residents. The PILOT is still expected to generate $37.1 million in revenue next year toward the Unified Government’s $472 million spending plan.

According to figures provided by the BPU, the average monthly residential bill for electric services alone is $141. That figure falls lower than a monthly bill in Independence, also served by a municipal utility, where customers pay $158 on average.

Those relying on electric services provided through Evergy, the metropolitan area’s main investor-owned utility, pay less on both sides of the state line, according to BPU’s data. The average monthly bill is $122 in Kansas versus $132 in Missouri.

Last year, the BPU hired outside consultants to assemble cost-of-service analyses on the provision of water and electric services.

The average household uses roughly 10,000 gallons of water per month, according to the federal Environmental Protection Agency. Based on a usage count of 7,000 gallons, Black & Veatch found in a study completed in 2023 that the average BPU customer would pay $57.79 per month.

Other area averages in the monthly water service cost analysis included Bonner Springs, $81.49; Kansas City, Missouri, $69.65; Lawrence, $63.59; Water One in Johnson County, $51.95; Olathe, $41.30; and Independence, $35.96.

Nick Moreno, a BPU spokesman, said in an email to The Star the rate comparisons to other utilities regularly fluctuate.

He added the current rates “have been competitive with the national average and the rates of surrounding utilities,” noting the rate increase on electricity in 2023 was its first in five years. Before the BPU’s increases last year, water rates had stayed flat since 2013.

“The utility has also taken concerted steps to control costs and streamline operations over time, without threatening service interruptions or future needs,” Moreno wrote.