The District’s user charge consists of two components – a volume charge based on water consumption and a monthly service fee. Effective April 13, 2008, the volume charge is $1.65 per 1000 gallons of water consumption ($1.2375 per 100 cubic feet) and the monthly fee is $8.50 per account.

Commercial and industrial users may also be subject to a surcharge and a sampling and monitoring fee.

Our billing system automatically reviews residential meter readings, comparing winter and summer water usage. We will automatically limit your summer usage amount to 150% of your winter usage, and assume the metered water above that rate is being used for landscaping and not entering the sanitary sewer. If your summer meter readings are below 150% of your winter usage, you are billed for the amount of your actual summer usage.

The summer adjustment is applied during billing periods where the majority of the billing period is between April 15 and October 15.

Bills may be paid by an automatic debiting of your checking account, by mail, or in person at the following locations:

• The District Office, 2710 Curtiss Street
• The Chase Bank Facility (Formerly Bank One) at Saratoga and Ogden
• Payment collection boxes, marked for Sanitary District bills only, available at:
  • The Village of Downers Grove Civic Center
  • The Downers Grove Main Street train station
  • The Westmont train station

Please do not place cash payments in any of the collection boxes.

The bottom portion of the user bill must be returned with your payment to allow for proper credit.

Be sure to make your check payable to the Downers Grove Sanitary District.

If you usually pay your bill by mail, and would like a supply of return envelopes, please contact the office.

Should you plan to move, be sure to contact the office to arrange for final billing.

We have a convenient automatic payment program for customers who would rather not write a check to pay each bill. Under this program, funds are withdrawn automatically from your checking account some time in the three days before each bill is due. The program can be stopped by the customer at any time by providing us with adequate notice.

Anyone interested in this program can get started by completing and returning our Automatic Bill Payment Authorization Certificate.

Automatic Bill Payment Authorization Certificate

As part of every property transaction for properties where we provide sewer service, we provide a Closing Letter to the buyer’s attorney that allows the transaction to be completed.

The procedure for obtaining a Closing Letter is to complete and submit our Request for Closing Letter Form:

Request for Closing Letter Form

Some of our customers don’t send all of the water they use into the sewer system. We allow customers to install a separate meter dedicated to facilities where water is used but not returned to the sewer.

Customers who use large amounts of water for evaporative cooling, landscaping, or to produce a saleable product may find that it is economical to install a separate meter to measure these flows for credit. With an approved separate meter, we will adjust your bill to reflect only the amount of water that gets into the sewer.

If you are interested in this program, the first step is to complete and submit the form to apply for a separate meter. For residential customers with heavy summer use for landscaping, the summer adjustment program may already be providing a credit.

Separate Meter For Billing Adjustment Form

Certain industrial and commercial customers discharge wastewater that has higher concentrations of pollutants than normal domestic sewage. In order to collect the revenue necessary to treat these higher strength wastes, we have a surcharge program.

We routinely collect samples to characterize the strength of the discharges from such customers, and bill them according to the results of the sampling.

Detailed information is contained in our Surcharge Program Information Sheet.

Surcharge Program Information Sheet

User charges not paid timely are assessed a penalty of 10 percent if not paid by the original due date and 1 percent per month thereafter on any unpaid balance. Accounts more than 60 days past due are subject to a lien filed against the property. Continued nonpayment will result in additional collection action including disconnection of sanitary sewer service or termination of water service. Costs incurred for collection action are added to the account.