Chicago's water meters read accurately about 85% of the time, the water commissioner tells the Council

About 15% of Chicago's metered water accounts aren't reading accurately, Water Management Commissioner Randy Conner told the City Council's budget committee Thursday night. He said the meters themselves work, but their batteries and transmitters have reached the end of their useful life. A contract to replace the meters and the system that reads them is in procurement.

Why it matters: when a meter can't send a reading, the bill is estimated. Members said their offices are hearing from residents whose bills suddenly jumped, sometimes by thousands of dollars.

What was said

Oversized bills. Ald. Michelle Harris (8th) said her office is seeing more complaints about oversized bills, such as a bill that goes from $500 to $5,000 (watch at 10:09:54). Conner said an audit by the Inspector General found meters reading correctly about 85% of the time, mainly because batteries are failing. He said the problem is citywide, not limited to one area (watch at 10:10:45).

What 85% means. Ald. Gregory Mitchell (7th) asked whether the figure meant 85% of readings or 85% of meters (watch at 10:13:03). The answer was that 85% of the City's meters are reading accurately. For the rest, the department said, bills are estimated until a true reading comes in. Crews then inspect or swap the meter, and the department works with the Department of Finance on any bill adjustment.

Lead service lines. Ald. Raymond Lopez (15th) said the department had promised 10,000 lead service line replacements this year and asked why it was at about 8,000 (watch at 10:19:43). Department officials blamed winter weather and the pace of bringing on contractors. They said they were still on track for 10,000 by year's end and planned at least 12,000 next year. Conner's opening statement said lead levels citywide have dropped an average of 40% since the department raised its corrosion-control dosage in April 2025 (watch at 10:03:27).

The DuPage contract. Ald. Scott Waguespack (32nd) warned that losing the City's water contract with DuPage County could cost Chicago $130 million or more a year in revenue within 10 years (watch at 10:55:19). The commissioner said the Water Management and Law departments, the Mayor's Office and DuPage officials are still talking, and acknowledged "bumps in the road."

Lead line fears and flooding. Ald. Jeylú Gutiérrez (14th) asked what to tell residents who are afraid to let crews replace their lead lines. She also asked about sewer cleaning, given frequent flooding complaints to 311 (watch at 11:13:07). Ald. Ruth Cruz (30th) asked why lead line replacement costs so much and whether in-house crews would be cheaper (watch at 10:59:26).

What our records add

The department's size. Water Management's proposed 2027 budget is about $783 million, according to the Council Office of Financial Analysis presentation that opened its hearing (watch at 9:59:54). The department said it delivers about 750 million gallons a day to 5.1 million people.

Who to call. For a disputed bill, the department said it works with the Department of Finance, which handles utility billing. Residents can also contact their alderperson's office; find yours on our ward lookup.

More from the hearing. The same marathon session covered Streets and Sanitation, CDOT and the Department of Technology and Innovation. Our meeting page has notes on every member who spoke, with timestamps.

What's next

• Soon: the request for proposals for new meters and a new reading system, which the commissioner said would be issued "relatively soon."
• By Dec. 31: the City's lead line target of 10,000 replacements for 2026.
• Nov. 4 to 10: budget hearings resume. The Council must pass the 2027 budget by Dec. 31.

Sources: Chicago Politics: Oct. 29 budget hearing transcript (automatic captions); Chicago Politics: Committee on Budget and Government Operations.