The Tellico Village Property Owners Association sends a Tellico Village homeowner two monthly bills. One is the amenity assessment, which most buyers check early. For 2026 it is $186.98 a month, up 3% from $181.53 in 2025. The other is water and sewer, because the POA runs its own utility. That second bill has changed more in the past two years than almost any other cost of owning here. The minimum residential bill went from about $160 a month in 2025 to $66.52 in Loudon County and $66.59 in Monroe County under the rate sheet that took effect January 1, 2026.
That lower number arrives just as the system behind it changes. Starting January 1, 2027, the POA's water and wastewater operation will be regulated by the Tennessee Board of Utility Regulation as a utility district. In September 2026 the board voted to form a team that will rebuild water and sewer rates as two separate calculations. If you're buying in Tellico Village this fall, you're seeing the utility bill at an unusual moment. It's low, the board just reset it, and nobody yet knows what it will settle at.
What the Same Bill Cost a Year Apart
The 2025 rate sheet was entered into the record of a state utility complaint against the POA, so both years can be compared line by line.
| Residential charge |
Effective January 1, 2025 |
Effective January 1, 2026 |
| Water, first 2,000 gallons |
$38.00 |
$28.00 |
| Water, next tier per 1,000 gallons |
$13.00 |
$5.00 |
| Water, over 30,000 gallons per 1,000 |
$20.00 |
$8.00 |
| Sewer, first 2,000 gallons |
$32.00 |
$30.00 |
| Sewer, next 3,000 gallons per 1,000 |
$9.00 |
$5.00 |
| Sewer monthly maximum |
$59.00 |
$45.00 |
| Sewer maintenance fee cap |
$11.80 |
$9.00 |
| Infrastructure fee |
$80.00 |
None |
Here is how that plays out for a household using 5,000 gallons a month, before county water tax. Under the 2025 schedule the bill comes to $227.80: $77 water, $59 sewer, $11.80 maintenance, and the $80 fee. Under the 2026 schedule the same usage costs $97: $43 water, $45 sewer, and $9 maintenance. At the minimum tier the drop is about $93 a month. Most of that is the $80 fee going away, and the rest comes from lower base charges.
The complaint exhibit prints a Loudon County minimum total of $169.82. Its listed parts add up to $159.82, so the comparison above uses the parts.
How an $80 Fee Arrived, Disappeared, and Started Coming Back as Refunds
The biggest line in that table has a short and contested history. The order of events also explains why state oversight is coming.
- July 17, 2024. The POA board approved an $80 monthly Water and Sewer Infrastructure Asset Fee, effective October 1, 2024, for a planned 60-month term. The money was dedicated to five water and sewer projects then estimated at about $36 million, aimed at infrastructure about 35 years old. Owners of vacant lots would start owing it when they pulled a building permit, with retroactive monthly charges.
- March 21, 2024. Before the vote, the POA's legal counsel had concluded that the board had authority to charge a reasonable capital-improvement fee and that no state body directly regulated its rates.
- July 1, 2025. The board suspended the fee.
- July 2025. Residents had filed complaints with the Tennessee Public Utilities Commission. WVLT reported that the Attorney General's office considered the POA an HOA that did not need a certificate to operate as a utility, and the complainants disputed that. The state's Consumer Advocate filed a complaint in Docket 25-00048. It alleged the POA was charging rates without commission approval and had not filed a tariff.
- February 27, 2026. The commission put the docket on hold while the parties waited on pending legislation.
- May 2026. The board voted to refund $4.3 million in fee collections. That works out to $720 per household that paid the $80 monthly charge. The POA's second-quarter newsletter says the board permanently eliminated the fee.
- September 22, 2026. An administrative judge closed the docket after the POA filed county resolutions naming it a utility district. The Consumer Advocate did not object. The closure was administrative. It was not a ruling on the merits of the complaint.
The refunds are being handled automatically, about 7,000 of them. Current utility customers get a credit on their account. Former customers who still owe a balance have the refund applied to it first, and any overpayment comes back as a check. Former customers with no active account get a check at the most recent address on file. Address changes go to [email protected].
Why January 1, 2027 Matters More Than the Current Rate Sheet
The legislation the docket was waiting on became Public Chapter 952 of 2026, enacted as HB 1673, with SB 1595 as its Senate companion. It was signed May 7, 2026 and took effect July 1, 2026. Section 21 lets a homeowners association with at least 6,000 lot-owner members, its own water or sewer system, and no local utility district available ask the county mayor to designate it a utility district. The association keeps running the system, and its elected directors become the district's commissioners. Loudon and Monroe counties both passed resolutions designating the POA, and each resolution says state regulation begins January 1, 2027. In its letter to the commission, the POA's counsel called the outcome what Tellico Village residents had asked for.
In practice, a few things change for a homeowner. Under the Board of Utility Regulation's process, a customer can protest rates within 60 days after the utility's fiscal year ends, get a hearing before the district commissioners, and appeal within 30 days. A separate petition straight to the state board needs signatures from at least 10% of the district's customers. The law also requires a utility district to keep its audit results as a permanent public record available to every customer. Before this, the board set rates under the community's governing documents.
The rates themselves are now being reworked. At its September 16, 2026 meeting, the board voted 5–2 to form an ad hoc Water & Sewer Rate Team. Its job is to calculate separate water and sewer rates and keep separate books to meet the regulator's requirements. Its preliminary numbers go back to the board, and it may recommend a later cost-of-service study. A cost-of-service study tests whether each rate covers what it actually costs to provide that service. The 2026 sheet was set to "better align with actual operating costs while maintaining appropriate reserves," in the newsletter's words, but no published source yet says whether the separate calculations will move the bill up, down, or not at all.
The utility's finances give some context without answering that question. As of August 2026, water and sewer reserves stood at $13.2 million, helped by a $1.4 million pump station grant reimbursement. Another $4.3 million sat in a separate account set aside for the refunds. The board also reports cutting the estimated cost of the Kahite pump station project from about $5 million to $500,000.
Questions to Settle Before an Offer
Each of these comes from something that changed in the past two years:
- What do the seller's actual utility bills look like for 2026? The rate sheet tells you the price per gallon. A year of bills tells you how much water this particular house uses at that price.
- Is a WSIAF refund credit sitting on the seller's utility account? Current customers get their refund as an account credit. It's worth confirming how any unused credit is handled on the final bill at closing.
- What has the Water & Sewer Rate Team presented so far? The next scheduled board meeting is October 21, 2026, at 1:30 p.m.
- Where is the 2027 assessment headed? No 2027 figure had been published as of early October. Last year the draft budget was presented November 14 and approved November 19. The 2026 budget set aside $6 million, net of an expected grant, for water and sewer pump stations and freshwater storage.
- Is any buyer-paid fee due at closing? In 2024 the board backed proposed legislation for a buyer-paid reserve fee of $500 or 0.5% of the price, whichever is greater. A January 2025 town hall presented a flat $5,000 version that would need approval from both the Tennessee Legislature and the board. Our research found no record that it was enacted. Confirm the current closing charges in writing for your specific contract.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the 2026 rate sheet apply in both counties?
Yes. The charges are the same in both. The minimum bill differs by a few cents because of county water tax: $66.52 in Loudon County and $66.59 in Monroe County.
If I buy a vacant lot now, will I owe the old infrastructure fee once I build?
Under the original program, lot owners began owing the fee when they got a building permit. The board has since permanently eliminated it. The POA's builder FAQ lists separate review, utility, and completion assurance fees for new construction, but it doesn't publish a current fee schedule.
Does state regulation mean a state agency will set my rates?
According to the Comptroller's rate-review page, the district's commissioners set rates. Customers can protest locally and then appeal, and a petition with signatures from 10% of customers can bring a rate review before the state board.
This post is general information, not legal or financial advice. Before closing, confirm current rates, fees, and assessments directly with the Tellico Village Property Owners Association.
If you're weighing a home in Tellico Village from out of state, Liza Acheson can gather the seller's utility history, follow the Rate Team's numbers as the board releases them, and confirm in writing what's due at closing before you commit. Request your free concierge consultation.
