Murrieta water and sewer rates

Who supplies water to Murrieta houses, what it costs, and how the sewer charge works.

Eastern Municipal Water District

EMWD serves portions of Murrieta (Murrieta Hot Springs and French Valley). It bills a daily service charge and a daily supply and reliability capital projects charge, plus four budget-based tiers per billing unit (748 gallons): Tier 1 for the first 20 percent of your monthly water budget, Tier 2 for the rest of the budget, and Tiers 3 and 4 for use over the budget.

Use a month	Price per unit (CCF, 748 gallons)
Fixed charge	$26.46 a month
0 to 3.6 units	$1.55
3.6 to 18 units	$4.51
18 to 27 units	$7.68
27 to more	$14.85

Source: Murrieta is in EMWD's Skinner service area: the Robert A. Skinner Filtration Plant, owned and operated by the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, treats water from the Colorado River and the State Water Project.
Hardness: Water from the Skinner Filtration Plant averaged 13.4 grains per gallon of hardness (range 13.3 to 13.6) in the 2025 water quality report.

Rancho California Water District

Rancho Water bills a monthly service charge by meter size, water rates per HCF (748 gallons) in four budget-based tiers, and an energy rate per HCF that depends on your pressure zone. Rates differ between its Rancho and Santa Rosa Divisions.

Use a month	Price per unit (CCF, 748 gallons)
Fixed charge	$60.70 a month
0 to 8 units	$2.01
8 to 14 units	$3.20
14 to 21 units	$6.07
21 to more	$7.11

Source: About two-thirds of Rancho Water's supply is treated water imported through MWD from the Colorado River Aqueduct and the State Water Project; local Temecula-area aquifers supply about one-third.
Hardness: Hardness averaged 230 mg/L in imported water and 151 mg/L in well water (range 5 to 340) in the 2025 report.
PFAS: PFAS tested at distribution entry points in 2025: PFOS averaged 3.6 ng/L (range 2.7 to 4.5) and PFOA 2.4 ng/L (range ND to 3.0).

Elsinore Valley Municipal Water District

EVMWD bills a monthly fixed meter charge and a monthly capital replacement charge by meter size, water rates per CCF (748 gallons) on a water budget (Tier 1 for the indoor budget, Tier 2 for the outdoor budget, Tier 3 above the total budget), and a power zone charge per CCF.

Use a month	Price per unit (CCF, 748 gallons)
Fixed charge	$45.49 a month
0 to 7.645 units	$3.32
7.645 to 20 units	$5.27
20 to more	$5.90

Source: EVMWD's water is about 85% imported and 15% local groundwater, blended to meet demand across its service area.
Hardness: Hardness in the distribution system averaged 162.4 mg/L (range 76 to 240) in 2025.
Lead: Lead at household taps: the 90th percentile of 54 samples was 1.3 ppb, and no sites exceeded the 15 ppb action level.
PFAS: PFOS, PFOA and PFHxS were detected in raw water at several wells (including Canyon Lake) above state notification or response levels; when these wells were used, the water was blended or filtered, and all treated water met state standards.

Western Municipal Water District (Murrieta)

Western Water bills a monthly system charge by meter size plus water rates per HCF (748 gallons) in four budget-based tiers: Tier 1 for the indoor budget, Tier 2 for the outdoor budget, and Tiers 3 and 4 for use above the budget. Homes in Power Zone 108 (Grizzly Ridge) also pay a pumping charge per HCF.

Use a month	Price per unit (CCF, 748 gallons)
Fixed charge	$43.24 a month
0 to 8.946 units	$2.61
8.946 to 18.9 units	$5.62
18.9 to 24.275 units	$6.77
24.275 to more	$6.93

Source: Murrieta customers receive a blend of imported water and groundwater from two wells, New Clay Well and North Well 2.
Hardness: In the Murrieta service area, hardness averaged 166 mg/L in groundwater (range 50 to 300) and 150 mg/L in surface water (range 67 to 281) in the 2025 report.
PFAS: An early 2025 sample from North Well 2 had PFHxS and PFOA slightly above the state Notification Level but below the Response Level; the well is offline for rehabilitation and investigation.

Sewer

EMWD's rate S401 (Temecula, Murrieta area) applies to sewage service through the facilities of EMWD Improvement Districts C (22) and U-8, including Rancho California Water District accounts billed on EMWD's behalf that lie within I.D. U-8: $1.303 a day per EDU in 2026, plus the $0.156 daily sewer system capital projects charge. Customers on water budget-based tiered rates who are billed directly by EMWD for sewer are assigned a sewer block by household size: 3-4 people pay 100% of the current sewer rate, 1-2 people pay 65%.

Ways to pay less

Check your water budget. Your EMWD water budget uses 47 gallons per person per day indoors plus your irrigated area, which is listed on your bill; use over the budget is charged at higher rates. Irrigated areas may be customized through EMWD's variance process. How: Check the estimated irrigated area listed on your EMWD bill; it can be customized through EMWD's variance process.
Western Water past-due help. Western Water customers in a CARE program from their natural gas or electric company can apply for payment assistance of the past-due amount on the bill, up to $150, once per 12-month period. Assistance is subject to funding availability. How: Provide a recent gas or electric bill showing CARE participation and complete the Low-Income Bill Payment Assistance Form, email Western Water's Customer Service team, or call 951.571.7104.
Free landscape survey (Western Water). Western Water offers free landscape efficiency surveys to help find leaks and ways to reduce outdoor water use. How: Call 951.571.7104 or visit WesternWaterCA.gov/SaveWater to schedule.

Dates

When	What
Jan 1, 2027	EMWD's 2027 water rates start for bills dated on or after January 1 (Tier 2 rises from $4.51 to $4.88 per billing unit).
Jan 1, 2027	Rancho Water's next scheduled rate adjustment: in the Santa Rosa Division the 3/4-inch monthly service charge rises from $60.70 to $65.54 and Tier 1 from $1.84 to $2.05 per HCF.

Pay or manage it

Sources

Checked October 22, 2026. Every number here comes from the public sources listed, matched by our checker.

Rates change every year; this page shows when it was last checked. Nothing here is legal, tax or insurance advice.