2026 Valley Water Rate Increase

Valley Water (VW), the wholesale water provider for Santa Clara County, is increasing its water rates effective July 1, 2026. These changes will affect all water retailers in the county, including San Jose Water (SJW).

SJW is entirely separate from VW and purchases water from them in two ways:

• Imported water treated at one of the three VW water treatment plants
• Groundwater pump taxes for water taken from our wells

Effective July 1, 2026, due to the increase in wholesale water rates from VW, the average residential customer with ¾ inch meter using 10 CCF (centrum cubic feet) per month will see an increase of approximately $4.95 per month.

All monies collected for this rate increase go directly to VW and are known as a “pass through.” SJW does not markup or benefit from these charges. For more information, please visit valleywater.org.
VW and SJW play different roles in your water service:

• VW manages the county’s water supply and sets wholesale charges
• SJW delivers water directly to homes and businesses
• When VW increases its rates, we are required to pass those costs through to customers without any markup.

Separately, SJW is also recovering costs related to the deployment of our Smart Meters which includes an increase of $1.84 per month in addition to an M-WRAM surcharge of $3.02. Beginning July 1, 2026, through June 30, 2027, customers with ¾ inch meter using 10 CCF/month will see an additional $4.86 increase on their monthly bill.

Smart Meter benefits for you:

•    Access your water usage anytime with easy-to-use digital tools
•    Monitor usage and better manage monthly costs
•    Receive alerts for unusual usage or potential leaks
•    Catch leaks earlier and avoid costly damage

SJW continues to focus on making thoughtful, long-term decisions that support affordability, reliability and sustainability for our customers. This includes evaluating new water supply options and infrastructure investments that can help manage costs over time.