The Plenary definitively approves the new water rates for EMACSA

The Plenary of the Córdoba City Council definitively approved on October 15, 2026, the modification of the ordinance regulating the non-tax public heritage provision of the integrated water cycle managed by the Municipal Water Company of Córdoba (EMACSA). The agreement, no. 245/26 from the Environment department, is published in full—along with the full text of the regulation and its tariff annex—in the Official Gazette of the Province of Córdoba no. 207, dated October 26, 2026, with official reference BOP-A-2026-3541. The new regulation replaces the ordinance published in BOP no. 100, dated May 26, 2025, which is hereby repealed.

The vote was resolved with 15 votes in favor from the representatives of the Partido Popular and 10 against: 7 from the Socialist Municipal Group and 3 from VOX. The prior report was issued by the Permanent Commission for Urban Development, Sustainability, and Public Services, on October 8, 2026.

In the same agreement, the claims filed against the initial approval by the Socialist Municipal Group, represented by Antonio Hurtado Zurera, and by the Citizen Movement Council, represented by Juan Andrés de Gracia Cobos, were dismissed. The agreement will be notified to EMACSA and both groups.

The economic argument: cost recovery

The statement of reasons links the adjustment to the cost recovery principle of the Water Framework Directive (2000/60/EC) and recent national regulations: Royal Decree 3/2023, of January 10, on the quality of water for human consumption; Royal Decree 665/2023, on sanitation and purification, and Directive (EU) 2024/3019, applicable from January 1, 2025, and pending transposition before July 31, 2027.

The economic report accompanying the file acknowledges that adapting the tariffs to the projected cost of the provision in 2026 entails “a slight increase in the price of water for the fiscal year.” The text also refers to the “long administrative process” of tariff authorization by the Regional Government of Andalusia as the cause of imbalances between expenses and income in previous years.

What changes on the bill

The supply and sanitation tariff maintains a binomial structure (fixed fee for availability and variable fee for consumption), with these values from Annex I:

• Fixed domestic fee for meters up to 2.5 m³/h: 9.20 euros for water supply and 4.92 euros for sanitation per two-month period.
• Block I (0 to 14 m³ per dwelling per two-month period): 0.8850 €/m³ for water supply and 0.4258 €/m³ for sanitation.
• Block II (more than 14 up to 30 m³): 1.1505 and 0.5535 €/m³.
• Block III (more than 30 up to 60 m³): 1.3718 and 0.6600 €/m³.
• Block IV (more than 60 m³): 1.6373 and 0.7877 €/m³.
• Commercial and industrial uses: 1.1771 and 0.5663 €/m³ up to 60 m³ per two-month period, and 1.2948 and 0.6229 €/m³ above that threshold.
• Official bodies: 1.2948 and 0.6229 €/m³; recognized public utility entities: 0.8231 and 0.3960 €/m³.

The payment term for supply and sanitation is set at 15 calendar days from notification. The ordinance also incorporates an exceptional drought tariff, activatable by mayoral decree when the basin authority declares an emergency: increases of 25% in domestic Block III and 50% in domestic Block IV, and 25% for non-domestic uses above 30 m³/two-month period.

Discounts and Aid

Chapter IV expands the catalog of reductions:

• New discount of 10% of the variable fee for official bodies for the first 60 cubic meters of each two-month period.
• New reduction for families with a member with a recognized disability equal to or greater than 50%: 50% discount on the unit fee for Blocks I, II, and III.
• Discount of 75% on the first 60 m³ for properties admitted to the Official Patios Contest, for twelve months starting from May 1st.
• Reduction of 0.50 euros per bill for those using digital billing and direct debit.
• Aid of 500 euros per dwelling to separate community supplies, with an annual limit of 500,000 euros.
• 400,000 euros annually for the conditioning of sewer connections and 250,000 euros for domestic discharge management measures, with 250 euros per supply.
• Reduction of 30% of the variable sanitation fee for those who discharge directly into the treatment plant without using the sewer network.
• Discount of 100% for municipal dependencies and facilities, unless they are leased to third parties.

Entry into Force

The ordinance will not enter into force until fifteen business days have passed from the day following its full publication in the BOP, in accordance with article 65.2 of Law 7/1985 regulating the Bases of the Local Regime. For tariffs considered authorized prices in Andalusia, validity is subject to the day they are authorized by the competent body of the Junta de Andalucía, unless the resolution provides otherwise.

The text is based on article 20.6 of the Revised Text of the Law Regulating Local Treasuries and on Decree 120/1991 and Decree 327/2012 of the Regional Government of Andalusia, which approve the Regulations for the Home Water Supply.

The impact of the regulation reaches all subscribers within the municipal district: households, businesses, industries, and public bodies that receive water from the network managed by EMACSA. The bimonthly bill already incorporates the new prices and the new bonus map, while the effective entry into force remains pending the publication calendar and, where applicable, the regional authorization of the tariffs.

Source: Official Gazette of the Province of Córdoba, no. 207, October 26, 2026, Local Administration (official reference: BOP-A-2026-3541).