SnoCo PUD proposes 2027 budget with no electric rate increase

Published 7:40 am Sunday, October 11, 2026

EVERETT — The Snohomish County Public Utilities District proposed a 2027 budget for its electric services that would not raise rates for customers across the county.

A number of factors contributed to the proposal to not raise rates, officials said at a utility district commission meeting Tuesday, including better-than-expected finances at the end of 2025 and the chance to defer some lower-priority projects to save costs.

Sarah Bond, the senior manager of the PUD’s budget and financial planning, told the utility district’s board of commissioners Tuesday that staff have been spending hundreds of hours improving the process of prioritizing different capital projects and minimizing costs more effectively.

“All of those things have contributed to some positive changes we’ve made for 2027,” Bond said.

The proposed operating budget for 2027 would total $769 million, along with another $239 million of capital spending planned for system reliability upgrades.

“By finding efficiencies throughout our operations, improvements in project prioritization, and being responsible stewards of our customer-owner’s dollars, we’re looking to avoid an electric rate increase in 2027 while maintaining the reliability and service our customers depend on and expect,” wrote John Harlow, the CEO of the utility district, in a statement Friday.

The last time the PUD proposed a budget without a rate increase was in 2021, according to a district spokesperson. In 2025, the utility district raised rates for 2026 by 2.5%, citing the rapidly rising cost of materials, supplies and equipment.

The budget would include a 6.5% rate increase for the PUD’s water service, which provides water to about 24,000 people across central Snohomish County, partly due higher wholesale water rates charged by the city of Everett.

Public hearings on the budget will continue over the coming weeks, with the next board of commissioners meeting scheduled for Oct. 20. The board is expected to vote on the budget on Dec. 1.

The Public Utility District offers bill assistance programs to those with lower incomes. More info: snopud.com/billhelp.

Will Geschke: 425-339-3443; william.geschke@heraldnet.com; X: @willgeschke.