It looks like city of Columbia water and sewer customers could soon be paying more for services.

Columbia City Council is in the midst of putting together its budget for the 2022 fiscal year, and as currently proposed it would include a 5.2% increase on sewer and water rates. The city has to pass its spending plan for the 2022 budget year by June 30.

The city did not approve a water and sewer rate increase in the current 2021 budget, passed last June in the throes of the coronavirus pandemic. The last rate hike came in the previous budget year, when the price of water and sewer services went up 7%. City paperwork indicates water and sewer rates in Columbia have gone up an average of 4.3% per year since 2008.