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Rates & Fees
Property Taxes (separate page)
Bimonthly Municipal Services Bill
Water
Sewer
Garbage
Administration
Equipment Rates
Miscellaneous Labour Rates for Bylaw Infraction Remediation
Campgrounds
Gravel
Bills may be paid by Cash, Cheque, Debit, Credit Card, or Interac e-Transfer.
See our Bill Payments webpage.
Bimonthly Municipal Services Bill
The municipal services covered by the bi-monthly (once every two months), bill, are Water, Sewer, and Garbage.
The current regular bimonthly rates for residences are:
| Water | $80.00 2.05 per cu m |
| Sewer | $50.00 |
| Garbage | $50.00 |
That means that your bill will have a total base charge of $180.00, plus an additional $2.05 per cubic metre of water usage, plus GST.
The details for Water, Sewer, and Garbage are in the sections below.
Here is a comparison of water, sewer, and garbage utility rates for Empress and several other areas. As you will see when you study it, our rates are really good in comparison to those others.
<img “alignright” src=”https://villageofempress.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/October-2021-water-rate-comparrison_Page_1-150×150.jpg” width=”150″ height=”150″>
Water
As per Bylaw # 2025-09 (effective June 25, 2025):
Class “A”: Rates for Metered Services (Other Than Water Tower) (add GST)
| Base Charge per 2 month billing period | $80.00 |
| Per cubic metre | $2.05 |
| Unmetered | $200.00 |
| Water Meter and back plate | At cost |
Class “B”: Temporary Use Rate (add GST)
| Deposit | $300.00 |
| Per month | $150.00 |
Class “C”: Installation and Removal Charge for Seasonal Meter Installation (add GST)
| 15mm (5/8”) Service | $100.00 |
| 20mm (3/4”) Service | $100.00 |
| 25mm (1”) Service | $100.00 |
| 32mm (1 1/4”) Service | $125.00 |
| 38mm (1 ½”) Service | $125.00 |
Class “D”: Service To Property for Garden or Lawn Sprinklers (add GST)
| Seasonal disconnect or reconnect fee | $50.00 |
Class “E”: Water Reservoir Rate (add GST)
| Per cubic metre | $5.60 |
Miscellaneous Fees, Rates and Charges (add GST)
| Bylaw Section | Description | Price |
|---|---|---|
| 10(b)(i) | Deposit for use of hydrant | $455.00 |
| 10(b)(v) | Minimum charge for use of hydrant | $200.00 |
| 16 | Disconnection of service* | At cost |
| 20 | Service Line Repair/Replacement | At cost |
| 21 & 22 | Thawing frozen service & Service Callout (per hour) | $75.00 |
| 23(a) | Meter repair or replacement | Cost of labour and materials |
| 23(d)(iii) | 15mm, 20mm & 25mm water meter initial installation | $75.00 |
| 23(d)(iii) | 15mm, 20mm & 25mm water meter replacement | $150.00 |
| 23(d)(iii) | 32mm & 38mm water meter initial installation | $100.00 |
| 23(d)(iii) | 32mm & 38mm water meter replacement | $160.00 |
| 23(d)(iii) | Over 38mm water meter initial installation | $125.00 |
| 23(d)(iii) | Over 38mm water meter replacement | $200.00 |
| 34 | Dispute Meter Test Commercial** | At cost |
| 38(b) | Disconnection of Service*** | $75.00 |
| 38(b) | Reconnection of Service*** | $75.00 |
| 38(c) | Disconnection of Service*** | $75.00 |
| 38(c) | Reconnection of Service*** | $75.00 |
| 39 | Application Fee | $30.00 |
| 42 | Penalty | 7% bimonthly |
| 43(b)(1) | Disconnection of Service*** | $75.00 |
| 43(b)(2) | Reconnection of Service*** | $75.00 |
| 44 | Non attendance after appointment has been scheduled | $75.00 |
* Total cost of digging up any service to disconnect will be charged to homeowner.
** Meters are tested by a third party, and the fee shall be the cost of the third party test plus shipping, if applicable.
*** Emergency after hours, holidays, weekends and evenings shall be 1 ½ times the rates listed.
Note: wherever applicable, the goods and services tax shall be added to the fees, rates, charges or other amounts payable to the Village.
Sewer
As per Bylaw # 2025-10 (effective June 25, 2026):
Billing period is bimonthly, GST is added.
| Monthly interest rate on overdue accounts, pursuant to subsection 20(2) | 7% bimonthly |
| Residential/Small Commercial | $50.00 |
| Large Commercial | $196.00 |
| Billing Period | bi-monthly |
| Service Calls, Monday to Friday 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. | $75.00 / hour, minimum 1 hour |
Garbage
As per Bylaw # 2025-11 (effective June 25, 2025):
Garbage curbside pickup is on Wednesdays. Billing period is bimonthly, GST is added.
| Residential/Small commercial, 4 or less bags/week | $50.00 |
| Commercial, 5-9 bags/week | $57.00 |
| Large Commercial, 10-15 bags/week | $73.00 |
Penalty: A penalty of four percent (7%) will be added to the arrears balance of all accounts bimonthly.
Administration
As per Bylaw 2025-02, rates updated 2025-Apr-16:
| Tax Certificate | $45.00 |
| Land Title or Search | $25.00 |
| Administration Fees | $40.00/hour + GST |
| Development Permits | $250.00 |
| Land Use Bylaw copied | $25.00 + GST Or download for free |
| Photocopying 8.5″ x 11″ or 8.5″ x 14″ black & white 8.5″ x 11″ or 8.5″ x 14″ colour 11″ x 17″ |
GST included 30¢ per copy 60¢ per copy 60¢ per copy |
| N.S.F. Cheques | $55.00 |
| Penalty on Accounts Receivable | 7% every 30 days, from date of invoice |
Equipment Rates
As per Bylaw 2019-04, rates updated 2023-Apr-19:
| Add GST | |
|---|---|
| Heavy Equipment; Grader w/operator, backhoe w/operator, Loader w/operator | $150.00 per hour, minimum ½ hour |
| Gravel Truck w/operator, Bob Cat w/operator | $150.00 / hour, minimum ½ hour |
| Truck ½ ton w/operator | $75.00 / hour, minimum ½ hour |
Miscellaneous Labour Rates for Bylaw Infraction Remediation
As per Bylaw 2025-02, rates updated 2025-Apr-16:
| Add GST | |
|---|---|
| Grass Cutting | $70.00 / 25′ frontage lot |
| Snow Removal, property cleanup, etc. | $70.00 / hour, minimum ½ hour charge |
These rates are for labour only. Should equipment be required for the remediation, the equipment rates would also apply.
Campgrounds
As per Bylaw 2025-02, rates updated 2025-Apr-16:
| Peter Fidler Campground and Uptown Campground sites. GST is included. |
|
|---|---|
| Serviced R.V. sites | $45.00 / day |
| Monthly rate | $825.00 / month |
| Non Serviced sites | $35.00 / day |
Note: Serviced sites have power, sewer, and water from approximately the end of April to the end of October.
Gravel
As per Bylaw 2019-04, rates updated 2023-Apr-19:
| Prices per cubic metre, add GST | |
|---|---|
| Drain Rock | $22.50 |
| Road Crush – resident | $21.00 |
| Road Crush – industrial | $21.50 |
| Reject Crush | $18.00 |
| Pit Run | $7.25 |
| Sand | $6.50 |
| Dirt Fill | $6.50 |
| Top Soil | Not available |
| Gravel Delivery Rates (within Village of Empress only) | |
|---|---|
| per loader bucket trip | $75.00 |
| per truck trip | $100.00 |
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