Hillsborough County Water & Wastewater Impact Fees (2026)

In unincorporated Hillsborough County, water and sewer come from the county’s Water Resources Department (formerly Public Utilities), and what you pay depends on which of its two service areas your lot is in. For a new single-family home with the standard 5/8-inch meter, the county’s one-time charges in force since March 23, 2026 are $3,449 (water impact fee) + $4,884.75 (wastewater impact fee) + $833 + $989 (accrued guaranteed revenue fees) + $350 (meter installation) + $25 (account set-up) = $10,530.75 in the South/Central Service Area. The same house in the Northwest Service Area pays $7,503.25. The main caveat is timing: the impact fees step up every March 23 through 2029, when the South/Central total reaches $15,467.

Hillsborough County tap and connection charges at a glance

The impact fees come from Resolution R25-111 (adopted 7–0 on December 17, 2025) and are shown at the step collected from March 23, 2026, one row per service area. The accrued guaranteed revenue fees (AGRF), meter charges, set-up fee and deposit come from the county’s 2026 Schedule of Rates. The AGRF is not an impact fee: it covers the cost of carrying plant capacity built ahead of demand, and both areas pay it on top of the impact fee.

Which service area are you in?

The resolution defines the areas by their position relative to the City of Tampa. The Northwest Service Area is the unincorporated area west and north of Tampa’s city limits. The South/Central Service Area is the unincorporated area east and south of the city. The exact lines follow the Comprehensive Plan and the county’s interlocal agreement with Tampa, so confirm with Service Availability at (813) 307-1000 before you budget.

The resolution ties the gap to cost: South/Central has nearly $2 billion of expansion projects planned, and several of its plants are expected to be at or near capacity by 2028. Once fully phased in, its fees rise about 112% (water) and 135% (wastewater), against 19% and 43% in the Northwest.

Worked example: a new home in Hillsborough County

Assumptions: one detached house with its own meter (one equivalent residential connection, or ERC), a 5/8 x 3/4-inch meter, gravity sewer, the county tapping the main and installing the service line, and fees locked at the step in effect in September 2026.

Hillsborough County one-time charges for one house, by service area (sources: Resolution R25-111; 2026 Schedule of Rates).

South/Central: $3,449 + $4,884.75 + $833 + $989 + $350 + $25 = $10,530.75. Northwest: $2,037.50 + $3,268.75 + $833 + $989 + $350 + $25 = $7,503.25. The impact fees and AGRF alone come to $10,155.75 and $7,128.25, the same totals the county’s single-family calculators show.

Three things change the numbers:

• Pre-tapped lot. If the developer already installed the service line, the county charges $215 for the meter and box instead of $350, so each total drops by $135. If the pre-tap has to be redone, the full $350 applies.
• Low-pressure sewer. Homes on a low-pressure sewer system (LPSS) pay 80% of the wastewater impact fee. In South/Central that is $4,884.75 × 0.80 = $3,907.80, a saving of $976.95. The schedule says the AGRF for LPSS connections uses the same flow factor. See how low-pressure grinder pump connections are priced.
• Larger meter. A 1-inch meter costs $450 to install ($275 pre-tapped). The resolution states that meter sizing does not change the impact fee, so the rest of the total stays the same.

Phase-in: what the same house pays each year

Florida limits how fast impact fees can rise. The Northwest increases fit within those limits; the South/Central increases exceed them and rely on a demonstrated-need study. Either way, the resolution spreads each increase over equal annual steps that start every March 23. Water reaches its final rate in 2027. Wastewater keeps rising through 2029. The “before” column is derived from the equal steps (the resolution prints only the new rates); the same pre-2026 rates are implied by the builder-payment table in the March 2026 schedule. The method is explained in why tap fees are going up.

Single-family impact fees by collection date, water + wastewater, per dwelling unit (source: Resolution R25-111). “All-in” adds the $1,822 AGRF, $350 meter installation and $25 set-up charge from the current schedule.

The all-in columns hold the AGRF, meter and set-up charges at 2026 amounts. In South/Central, a permit that slips from early March 2027 to after March 23 adds $2,468.75 in impact fees.

Costs outside the Hillsborough County fee schedule

County charges cover capacity, the tap and the meter. The pipe on your side of the meter is yours:

• Water service line from meter to house: $30 to $150 per foot, about $50 typical (national estimate).
• Sewer lateral: $50 to $250 per foot, about $100 typical (national estimate).
• Trenching: $4 to $15 per foot in normal soil (national estimate).
• Plumbing permit: $100 to $1,300, about $300 typical (national estimate).

At 40 feet from the street that is roughly 40 × $50 = $2,000 for water and 40 × $100 = $4,000 for sewer, installed with the trench (national benchmarks, not county figures). If the water main does not reach your lot, the county can build the line extension at your expense (actual cost plus overhead); it charges $300 for an estimate, credited if the extension is built. Reclaimed water, where available, is a separate connection $350 for a new 5/8 x 3/4-inch connection ($215 pre-tapped) under the same schedule. Add your own figures in the calculator:

Paying Hillsborough County fees: timing and process

• Impact fees become fixed (firm) and payable under Division 7 of the county’s Public Utility Connections Regulations (the AGRF under Divisions 3 and 7). The county’s calculators note that actual fees are recalculated from project review and permit dates, so ask which date locks your step.
• The county’s single-family calculators show one-sixth of the AGRF ($303.66) due before construction site plan release. The balance is due before the certificate of occupancy, six months after permitting, or September 30, whichever comes first.
• For a well conversion, all connection fees are due before the meter goes in, and installation typically takes 10 to 14 business days. Our guide to switching from a well to city water compares these fees with other utilities.
• In older Impact Fee Assessment Units the builder pays part of the fee and the homeowner pays the rest on the tax bill. The builder-payment figures in the March 2026 schedule (10% of the impact fee plus the AGRF) work back to the pre-2026 impact fees; ask which applies.

How this differs from the City of Tampa

Inside Tampa city limits, the City of Tampa charges a water connection fee by meter size, a water capacity fee, meter charges and a $1,237 wastewater capacity fee: about $6,465 for a 3/4-inch meter outside its CIAC areas, from a water schedule labeled March 2021 that needs confirmation. Tampa’s water schedule also lists higher connection fees for service outside city limits, so some parcels outside the city line are on Tampa water, and a “Tampa” mailing address does not tell you who serves the lot. See Tampa tap fees.

Hillsborough County fee changes to watch

• Every March 23 through 2029: the impact-fee steps in the phase-in table above. Water is final in 2027; wastewater in 2029.
• October 1, 2026: monthly bills rise (the base charge goes from $13.58 to $14.67, per the county’s new rates page). Under the schedule, automatic indexing applies only to monthly user rates, not to connection charges, but the county’s rates page lists the current schedule as “effective through September 30, 2026,” so check for a reissued version.

Common questions about Hillsborough County fees

Related guides for Hillsborough County

Florida utility connection costs · Tampa tap fees · Orlando and Orange County fees · Why tap fees are going up · Tap fee vs. impact fee · Utility connection cost calculator

Official documents behind the Hillsborough County figures

• Resolution R25-111, water and wastewater impact fees (adopted December 17, 2025; collected from March 23, 2026), Hillsborough County Board of County Commissioners. Checked Sep 24, 2026.
• 2026 Schedule of Rates for Water Resources Department Utility System Services (March 23, 2026), Hillsborough County Water Resources. Checked Sep 24, 2026.
• Water Rates & Fees, with single-family impact fee calculators for each service area, Hillsborough County. Checked Sep 24, 2026.
• Apply to Convert My Well to County Water, Hillsborough County. Checked Sep 24, 2026.
• New Water & Wastewater Rates (FY2027), Hillsborough County. Checked Sep 24, 2026.
• National cost estimates: Utility Cost Guide benchmark methodology.