Hamilton residents who have water bill payments automatically withdrawn from their bank accounts each month need to submit a new authorization form, says the city.

That’s because Alectra Utilities is discontinuing its water, wastewater and storm billing for Hamilton. It will continue to bill for electricity.

Hamilton Utilities Billing (HUB) will take over that service instead, it said in a news release last week.

“This change reflects the city’s ongoing commitment to improve efficiency, make services more transparent and easier to access, while allowing Alectra to focus on electricity delivery,” the city said.

Residents who have pre-authorized payments set up are required to fill out and submit a new form to HUB before March 20, says the city.

The payment form was mailed out to residents, but can also be accessed online.

Residents can mail the completed form to PO Box 7703 Stn. Adelaide, Toronto, ON, M5C 0C6.

They can also drop off completed forms at city hall or Hamilton Water at 220 Wentworth St. N.

If residents don’t re-enrol in pre-authorized payments, they’ll be responsible for paying all water bills starting April 2026.

The first bill from the city will have an account number, which residents can use to pay in other ways including:

• Online, telephone or in-person banking
• Credit card
• Cheque payable to “Hamilton Utilities Billing”

If residents want to switch to paperless billing they can sign up now through Alectra, or after April with HUB at my.hamilton.ca.

If residents are already receiving their water bills through email, they’ll continue to do so in April, but through HUB.