Utilities in Jacksonville, Florida

Four Jacksonville utilities guides sit under this hub, one for each bill or service a household deals with: electricity, tap water, sewer and trash.

The JEA power plants guide explains where Jacksonville electricity is generated; JEA itself says it runs four generating plants and eight solar farms (JEA). The water service guide covers where JEA tap water comes from, what it costs, the lawn watering days and how to check a service line for lead. The sewer service guide covers JEA sewer rates, the septic tank conversion work and what to do about a backup. The garbage and recycling guide covers City of Jacksonville pickup days, carts, yard waste and the yearly fee.

The rest of this page answers the questions that cut across those four guides: which government runs each service, what the October 2026 rates are, how the solid waste fee is billed and which number to call. Last verified: October 18, 2026, by re-reading the JEA rate schedule effective October 1, 2026, the JEA About and Contact pages, the City of Jacksonville Solid Waste Division and fee pages, and the city's fiscal 2024 financial report.

JEA, an independent authority of the consolidated City of Jacksonville, provides electricity, water and sewer, while the city's own Solid Waste Division handles garbage, recycling and yard waste.

The city's fiscal 2024 financial report lists JEA, formerly the Jacksonville Electric Authority, among the independent authorities in city government, responsible for electric, water and wastewater utilities (City of Jacksonville ACFR). JEA describes itself as the largest municipal utility in Florida, with a workforce of more than 2,200, and points to Article 21 of the Jacksonville City Charter for its bylaws (JEA). JEA says its posted system statistics are current as of December 31, 2024, so the customer counts below date from then.

JEA's electric service area of 905 square miles is larger than the 840.1 square miles the city's report gives for the consolidated city and county (ACFR). JEA's rate page lists electric fees and taxes for Clay County, Orange Park and St. Johns County alongside Duval County, Atlantic Beach and Baldwin, and says there are no taxes or fees on water, sewer or irrigation outside Duval County (JEA rates). JEA notes that its wastewater comes from a four-county area (JEA).

From October 1, 2026, a Jacksonville home pays JEA a $21.00 basic monthly electric charge plus $0.12141 per kWh for the first 1,000 kWh and $0.14031 per kWh above that (JEA rates).

The electric totals include a fuel rate of $0.04326 per kWh. JEA posts the fuel rate month by month, and its own history shows how much it moves: $43.26 per 1,000 kWh in October 2026 against $58.63 in May 2026 and $59.68 in April 2026 (JEA rates).

Residential water is tiered by thousand gallons (kGal): $1.50 per kGal for the first 4, $3.35 for 5 to 8, $5.75 for 9 to 15 and $7.23 above 15, with sewer at $5.82 per kGal for all usage (JEA rates). The basic monthly charge for the common 5/8 inch meter is $13.77 for water and $17.03 for sewer. For Duval County customers only, JEA adds a 3 percent franchise fee on water, sewer and irrigation and a 10 percent public service tax on water and irrigation.

Jacksonville property owners pay for city garbage, yard waste and recycling collection through a residential solid waste fee of $29.50 a month, or $354 a year, in 2026, collected as a non-ad valorem assessment on the property tax bill (City of Jacksonville).

The City of Jacksonville fee page sets the 2027 rate at $32.00 a month or $384.00 a year, subject to annual approval by the City Council. The fee generally applies to parcels with four or fewer residential structures; parcels with more than four are not eligible for city residential collection. Under the low-income exemption the fee does not disappear but stays at $12.65 a month, or $151.80 a year, per Ordinance 2025-2-E. Owners are charged whether or not a home is occupied, and the city does not grant waivers for single-unit properties (City fee page).

The Solid Waste Division contracts with three private haulers for residential garbage, yard waste and recycling collection across the city, and it oversees landfill operations, the yard waste processing facilities and the household hazardous waste program and handles closures and post-closure maintenance for the East, North and Trail Ridge landfills (City of Jacksonville Solid Waste Division). The garbage and recycling guide has the pickup schedule lookup and cart rules.

Stormwater is a City of Jacksonville utility, not a JEA one: the city's report describes a Stormwater Services Fund for a stormwater utility financed by service charges and used to pay for building and maintaining the stormwater management system (City of Jacksonville ACFR).

The same report lists Solid Waste Disposal and Stormwater Services as major city enterprise funds, with the solid waste fund covering collection, recycling and disposal and three municipally owned landfill sites, two of them closed (ACFR). Money also flows the other way. The report's summary of changes in net position records a JEA contribution of 123,649 thousand dollars to city government revenues in fiscal 2024, up from 122,424 thousand in fiscal 2023, and lists utility and communications service taxes as a separate revenue line of 134,001 thousand dollars.

The JEA contribution sits in the same general revenue list as Jacksonville property taxes, which the report puts at 1,067,703 thousand dollars in fiscal 2024 (ACFR). JEA itself reports partnering with the City of Jacksonville on a $38.6 million program to eliminate residential septic systems (JEA), which the sewer service guide covers street by street.

JEA residential customer care answers at (904) 665-6000 or (800) 683-5542, Monday to Friday from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m., and commercial customers call (904) 665-6250 (JEA contact).

For a severe sewage backup or significant water backflow into a home, JEA lists (904) 665-6000 as a line open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and it directs anyone facing a life-threatening emergency tied to JEA operations to call 911 (JEA).

Missed or problem trash collection goes to the city: requests and reports go to MyJax at (904) 630-CITY (2489) or the MyJax website, and fee disputes go to the Solid Waste Division at 904-255-7500 with an affidavit for waiver (City of Jacksonville). The division's office is at 1031 Superior Street, Jacksonville, FL 32254 (Solid Waste Division). The fee page also warns that placing hazardous waste of any kind in residential collection is unlawful under Municipal Code Section 380.209, and the Solid Waste Division runs a household hazardous waste program (Solid Waste Division).