Frequently Asked Questions

Yes, you are welcome to join our regular open Board meetings in person or via Zoom. These meetings are held at 2:00 pm on the 2nd and 4th Wednesday of each month, at our headquarters building (6801 132nd Place SE in Newcastle). If a regular meeting falls on a legal holiday, it will be held on the next business day at the same time. Agendas can be found on our website under the 'Agenda' tab at www.ccud.org To attend by phone, call (253) 215-8782, using Meeting ID: 210 020 5821, and Passcode: 6801. Those attending by phone will be able to hear everyone who speaks. Should you wish to make a comment during a meeting, please contact us in advance—before 10:00 am on the day of the meeting at the very latest—by email at: customerservice@ccud.org or by phone at (425) 235-9200.

Yes. Water quality testing results indicate the concentration of fluoride in our water averages 0.7 parts per million (ppm), ranging from 0.5 to 0.8 ppm. The EPA’s maximum allowable limit is 4.0 ppm.

Your drinking water remains safe and protected from PFAS. PFAS – short for perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances – are a large group of man-made/synthetic chemicals that do not break down naturally. PFAS began appearing in everyday products in the 1950s—from non-stick cookware and stain-resistant carpets, to firefighting foam—and have been building up in our environment ever since. Today PFAS are found in the bloodstreams of people and animals, in a variety of food products, and in the environment. In 2021, the Washington State Department of Health (DOH) enacted legislation that requires Washington's more than 2,430 public water systems to test for PFAS in drinking water by December 2025. In 2024, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a final federal rule to regulate six PFAS in drinking water. Even though PFAS were not previously regulated, Seattle Public Utilities/SPU (our source of water) tested for PFAS in 2015, 2018, and again in June, July, October, and December 2023. All samples continued to show no detections for 29 PFAS compounds. In January 2024, Coal Creek Utility District began quarterly testing at the point where SPU's source water enters our distribution system, and like SPU, there have been no PFAS detections in our system. To learn more about PFAS testing and drinking water regulations, as well as the measures that Washington state is taking to restrict PFAS in products, visit the DOH website: https://doh.wa.gov/community-and-environment/contaminants/pfas You can also learn more about PFAS from the EPA's website: https://www.epa.gov/pfas/pfas-explained

In 2023, mandates from the Environmental Protection Agency and Washington State Department of Health tasked all public drinking water systems (including Coal Creek Utility District) with developing an inventory of all water service lines within their service areas— including both utility-owned and customer-owned sides of the meter—in order to identify and remove lead risks. Much of CCUD's service area was constructed after regulations banned the installation of lead pipes, solder, and fittings, however investigation was still needed on older service lines. Using our Geographical Information System (GIS), we compiled a complete inventory of all services, investigated those with unknown materials, and submitted our report to the EPA and Department of Health in October 2024. We are pleased to report that Coal Creek Utility District found no lead service lines in any of our investigations.

Coal Creek Utility District purchases the water we provide from Seattle Public Utilities (SPU), which sources its water primarily from the publicly-owned Cedar River watershed, and on rare occasions the Tolt River watershed. The source of this water comes from rain and melted snow in forested and protected mountain watersheds, resulting in one of the purest water supplies in the nation. These watersheds are vigorously protected by SPU through a comprehensive program that prohibits agricultural, industrial, and recreational activities in the watersheds, and no one is allowed to live within the watersheds.

All homes should have a shut-off valve located at the residence. These valves are usually round or shaped like a lever, and are typically located in your basement, crawlspace, garage, or outdoor foundation, usually near the front faucet. Feel free to call us if you need help: (425) 235-9200. However if your home does not have one, you may (in an emergency) turn the water off at your water meter. Meters are generally located at the front of the property, near the road. The recommended tools to have on hand is either a crescent wrench or a meter wrench (shown below) which can be purchased at your local hardware store (approximately $20.00). To turn off the water at the meter, locate the valve, place the wrench over it and turn it to the right (clockwise).

Coal Creek Utility District invoices customers on a bi-monthly basis (every other month) for water and sewer service provided during the preceding two calendar months (unless the initial or final bill to any customer covers a shorter period of time). The invoice clearly states the Bill Date, and can be paid online, by phone, by mail, or in person at our main office, located at 6801 132nd Place SE in Newcastle, Washington. Get all those details on the Bill Pay page of this website. If the invoice is not paid in full by the end of the 30 day payment period, the account will be considered delinquent, and will incur a one-time Late Penalty of 10 percent of the amount due on the 34th day from the Bill Date. We will also mail a letter to the customer advising of the delinquent sum (including the 10 percent penalty) and requesting payment of such sums within thirty (30) days. If any delinquent sums remain due 62 days after the Delinquent Billing Date, the District will mail the customer a notice advising that the water and sewer service to the customer's property may be shut off if payment in full of all delinquent sums (including the 10 percent penalty) are not paid to the District by the 72nd day after the Bill Date for the delinquent billing. If any delinquent sums remain due 65 days after the Bill Date for the delinquent billing, a door hanger shall be placed on the front door of the premises/property to advise that water and sewer service to the property may be shut off if payment in full of all delinquent sums (including the 10 percent penalty) are not paid to the District in full by the 72nd day after the Bill Date for the delinquent billing. For more information, visit the Bill Pay page of this website.

If you overpaid your utility bill, refunds are processed on the 20th of each month, or the closest weekday to the 20th. Please be sure we have your correct forwarding address to send the refund to!

Yes. In the event that there is a planned shut down, affected customers will be notified ahead of time, typically in the form of a door tag with the date and estimated down time of service. During a shut down, please do not operate dishwashers, washing machines and showers. However if an emergency or unexpected break in a water main occurs, these circumstances could cause an unplanned shut down, with no prior notification to our customers. If your water is not working, give us a call immediately at (425) 235-9200 — our phones are answered 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. No matter what the cause, Coal Creek's goal will always be to repair and/or restore your water service as quickly as possible with minimal disruption.

Unlike other utilities, water charges are associated with the physical property, not with the individual or family who incurred the charges. This means that along with the transfer of the property, any unpaid balance left on that property is transferred to the new owner. As soon as the District is notified of a change in property ownership, we prepare a final invoice. But if the previous owner and/or tenant does not pay the final invoice, the responsibility lies with the new property owner.

Our water district was formed before the City of Newcastle was incorporated, so when streetlights were first installed, we were the most effective solution to manage their charges. Since that time, the City of Newcastle has taken over all streetlights within the city limits, leaving Coal Creek with a very limited number of streetlights in unincorporated areas that we must still include on these customers' invoices. Please note: Coal Creek Utility District does NOT maintain street lights, even those that we invoice for. If you have an outage or want to report a problem, visit the City of Newcastle's website or call them at (425)-659-4444.

Contact us to schedule an in-person meeting. This gives us time to prepare the necessary documents that require signatures, to discuss the project plans, walk through the steps, and answer any questions. You can reach us by phone at (425) 235-9200.

The general process of development involves the following steps: Perform a Water/Sewer Availability analysis. Purchase the Developer Extension Agreement Books (2) and pay a deposit for installment fees. Have the Developer Extension books approved by Coal Creek Utility District's Board of Commissioners. Obtain design approval from our Board of Commissioners and PACE Engineers. Pay the initial invoice (as per the PACE Developer Extension checklist), and provide a Certificate of Insurance and a Performance Bond. Attend a Pre-Construction Meeting. Construct necessary water/sewer mains, including ongoing inspection reports and engineering invoices (to be billed prior to final invoice). Perform final inspection and obtain inspector sign off. Provide the following to obtain final acceptance by the Board of Commissioners: Bills of Sale and Easements Paid invoices Cash Maintenance Bond Agreement This process concludes with a two year Cash Maintenance period. Find more information and forms on this page of our website.

As of February 1, 1990, King County implemented an additional charge to connect new development to sewer service; this charge is in addition to a sewer utility bill. The purpose of this charge is to make "growth pay for growth" by distributing the cost of expanding sewer infrastructure among new sewer connections. The cost depends on whether the new development is residential or not, and are calculated based on net square footage (residential), or plumbing fixtures and/or wastewater flow projections (non-residential), and is assessed every three months for a total of 15 years, or until the balance of the property's account is paid. Learn more and view the current charges in this document: