Taylor, TX Environmental Rules: Stormwater Management (2026)
Key Facts
- Billing unit
- 1 ERU equals about 2,500 sq ft impervious area
- ERU rate
- $1.00 per ERU
- Residential billing
- Flat 1 ERU per house
- Nonresidential billing
- Impervious area divided by 2,500 sq ft, rounded
- Finished floor minimum
- 18 inches above top-of-curb elevation
Summary
Every parcel in Taylor's drainage service area pays a monthly drainage utility fee based on impervious surface. One ERU, one billing unit, equals about 2,500 square feet of impervious area and costs $1.00; a typical house is billed one ERU flat, while commercial and industrial parcels pay by the number of ERUs their paved and roofed area adds up to.
(a)The city council hereby establishes the drainage utility fees as set forth herein. Drainage utility fees shall be levied against all real property in the established service areas except real property that is exempted in the drainage utility ordinance.(1)For the purposes of calculating the drainage utility fee, an ERU shall be the established standard billing unit. One ERU shall be billed at $1.00. Each benefited property shall be categorized as one of the following:a.Residential property. Residential property shall be determined based on the most recent county appraisal district property data. The median single family residential parcel in the city has been determined to have approximately 2,500 square feet of impervious area (surface) or one ERU.b.Nonresidential property. Fees for nonresidential benefited properties shall be based on the total estimated impervious area on each parcel divided by 2,500 square feet to determine the number of ERU's or billing units.
Full Breakdown
Sec. 7-2 sets up the city's drainage utility fee structure using an equivalent residential unit, or ERU, as its billing measure. 00. Every residential property is charged a flat one ERU regardless of its actual footprint, while nonresidential property is billed on its estimated total impervious area divided by 2,500 square feet, rounded to the nearest whole ERU. The fee applies to all real property in the established service areas except property the drainage utility ordinance specifically exempts. Sec. 7-2(b) makes clear the fee funds future drainage construction but doesn't promise the city will solve every drainage problem, and it doesn't excuse private landowners or developers from separately providing drainage improvements required under other city development rules or state law.
City council can revisit and adjust the ERU rate by ordinance whenever it finds an increase or decrease is warranted. That fee sits alongside the flood-related site review in Sec. 7-1, which requires the building official to check that new construction and substantial improvements keep the finished floor at least 18 inches above the top-of-curb elevation and are designed, anchored, and built to resist flotation and flood damage in areas with a special flood hazard.
Violations & Fines
Sec. 7-2 doesn't set a criminal penalty of its own; it's a utility fee ordinance, so nonpayment is enforced like any other city utility charge rather than through a fine. Separately, Sec. 7-1's building-site flood safety review is folded into the building permit process, so noncompliant site work can hold up or void a building permit before construction even starts.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is Taylor's drainage utility fee calculated?
Does paying the drainage fee mean my property won't flood?
How high must a new building's floor be above the street?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Taylor
Texas rules heatmap·Compare Taylor to another location·View the Texas environmental rules overview
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Stormwater Management in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Williamson County handle stormwater management.