Guareña approves the new fiscal ordinance for the comprehensive water fee

The Guareña City Council has finalized the fiscal Ordinance regulating the fee for the provision of the integrated water management service, which unifies drinking water supply, sewerage, and wastewater treatment into a single bill. The agreement is published in the Official Gazette of the Province of Badajoz on Thursday, October 8, 2026, in Announcement 3950/2026, and received no claims during the public exhibition period. The regulation will enter into force on the day of its final publication and will begin to be applied on the first day of the following calendar quarter, that is, January 1, 2027.

The text was approved by the Plenary of the Guareña City Council in an ordinary session held on May 28, 2026, and is finalized under article 17.4 of the revised text of the Law Regulating Local Treasuries, approved by Royal Legislative Decree 2/2004, of March 5. The entry into force of the ordinance repeals the two regulations that previously governed the service: the ordinance for the wastewater treatment and purification fee and the one for the water distribution fee, including connection rights and the installation and use of meters.

The new regulation is based on articles 133.2 and 142 of the Constitution and on article 106 of Law 7/1985, of April 2, regulating the Bases of the Local Regime, and adheres in consumption priorities to the provisions of Royal Decree 354/2013, of May 17, of the hydrological Plan of the Guadiana Hydrographic Demarcation. The service may be provided directly by the City Council or through a concessionary company, which will act as the supplying entity and collect the established tariffs.

A single bill with fixed and variable fees

The tax quota consists of a fixed part, for the availability of the supply, treatment, and purification service, and a variable part based on the water supplied, determined by the difference in meter readings over two consecutive periods. Reading, billing, and collection will be quarterly and may be grouped into a single bill that separately includes other fees for the same period, such as the waste collection fee.

The supply tariffs for 2026 are as follows:

• Quarterly fixed fee per user: 5.0034 euros.
• From 0 to 10 m³/quarter: 0.1058 euros per m³.
• From 11 to 25 m³/quarter: 0.6770 euros per m³.
• From 26 to 60 m³/quarter: 0.9837 euros per m³.
• More than 60 m³/quarter: 1.1848 euros per m³.
• Connection rights per unit: 23.9806 euros.
• Sale of drinking water to other municipalities: 0.5818 euros per m³; raw water without passing through the DWTP: 0.10032 euros per m³.

Purification, bonuses, and large consumers

The purification tariffs distinguish between domestic, commercial, and industrial uses:

• Quarterly fixed fee domestic: 6.2517 euros; commercial: 6.6578 euros; industrial: 20.7966 euros.
• Variable fee domestic: 0.1587 euros per m³; commercial: 0.2433 euros; industrial up to 5,000 m³/quarter: 0.4866 euros; above that threshold: 0.6770 euros.
• Connection fees for reconnection after supply cut-off due to non-payment: 47.9612 euros.
• High-level purification for other municipalities: 0.2751 euros per m³.

A large consumer bonus is established for those who exceed 50,000 m³ annually and belong to or reside in the municipality: 0.3173 euros per m³ between 50,000 and 100,000 m³, 0.5818 euros between 100,001 and 180,000 m³, and 0.6241 euros above 180,000 m³. The discount is applied on a cumulative monthly basis and does not apply to raw water that does not pass through the WTP (Water Treatment Plant).

Leaks, fraud, and municipal consumption

The ordinance regulates reductions for leaks in domestic uses. An internal breakdown is considered when the measured consumption is at least 50 m³ per month and exceeds three times that of the same period of the previous year; the interested party must request it with a report from an installation company and an invoice proving the repair, and the rebilling shall cover a maximum of two billing periods.

Regarding fraud, four scenarios are contemplated: absence of a supply contract, manipulation of the meter or elements prior to it, flow diversions before the measuring equipment, and water use different from that contracted. Settlements may extend up to one year and, in the case of manipulation of the installation prior to the meter, are equivalent to the sum of the supply and purification connection fees.

Municipal consumption of the Guareña City Council is exempt from billing, although it must be mandatorily accounted for. The tariffs and the annexed price tables, which include meter setbacks, service connections, unclogging, and irrigation outlets and hydrants, will be reviewed annually according to the variation of the CPI.

Allegations and entry into force

Against the final approval, an optional appeal for reversal may be filed before the Plenary of the City Council within one month from the day following the publication of the announcement, and a contentious-administrative appeal before the Contentious-Administrative Court of Badajoz within two months. The announcement appears signed by the Secretary General, Manuel María Caro Franganillo.

The regulation affects the bills of all residents of Guareña, who will now pay consumption, sanitation, and purification in a single quarterly invoice, with a tiered structure that penalizes high consumption and an annual review linked to the CPI. The unification simplifies management and collection, but concentrates the concepts that were previously settled separately into a single document.

Source: Official Gazette of the Province of Badajoz, no. 193, October 8, 2026, Local Administration, page 1 (official reference: Announcement 3950/2026).