Kitsap commissioners approve $10-a-year stormwater fee increases for 2027 and 2028

PORT ORCHARD — Most Kitsap County property owners will pay $10 more a year in stormwater fees starting in January, and another $10 in 2028, after county commissioners unanimously approved new rates Oct. 26.

The annual rate for single-family homes and other developed property will rise from $136 per equivalent service unit, or ESU, this year to $146 in 2027 and $156 in 2028. Undeveloped property still pays nothing. The fees appear on annual property tax statements and pay for the county’s stormwater management program.

The same resolution cuts the rate the county charges its own roads division, from $139 per ESU this year to $126 in 2027 and $129 in 2028. A county staff report said that saves the road fund about $430,000 a year, with the higher rates for other property making up part of the lost revenue, about $280,000 in 2027 and $240,000 in 2028. The rate for state roads goes from $42 to $46 in 2027 and $47 in 2028.

The resolution also fixes a clerical error. Fees for 2026 were billed at the 2025 rate, so the 2026 rate was set at $136, $3 less than previously scheduled, to match what appeared on tax statements.

Interim Public Works Director Chris Piercy told commissioners that stormwater revenue from the roads division will drop by about $400,000 next year. Expenses will outpace revenue for the next two years, he said, so the division will need to draw on reserves or trim capital projects. Staff expect to propose rates that cover costs in the next rate study.

Commissioner Christine Rolfes noted that Public Works is losing almost two dozen positions this year and that fees were held flat from 2025 to 2026. She called the increase “a necessary modest increase.”

Commissioner Katie Walters said the county’s geography makes stormwater central to protecting drinking water.

“It’s really important for us to invest in these stormwater systems to protect our aquifer and the water that we drink,” Walters said.

Commission Chair Oran Root said he is “always hesitant to raise fees or raise taxes,” but that stormwater work protects aquifers and county roads.

Piercy said the county received two written comments during the hearing period. One supported easing the burden on the road fund; the other opposed higher fees in general.