Winchester Municipal Utilities customers will see an increase coming on the March bills.

WMU General Manager Mike Flynn said the 2.1 percent increase, which was approved unanimously by the WMU Commission Thursday evening, is based on the federal consumer price index.

City ordinance allows a maximum 3 percent increase, and will provide additional revenue for the utility, Flynn said in a memo to the commissioners.

This would be WMU’s first CPI-based increase since 2008, Flynn said.

The increase, he said, will be the first to water rates since 2008. According to Flynn, most city customers use between 600 and 800 cubic feet of water. The new rate would increase bills by $3.21 for 600 cubic feet and $4.05 for 800 cubic feet. The increase includes the 2.1 percent increase for wastewater and sanitary sewer. Those two were last changed in 2014 and 2015, respectively, but did not include a CPI increase.

For county customers, 500 cubic feet of water would increase from $5.93 to $6.05 and wastewater would increase from $11.11 to $11.34, according to WMU.

The new rates take effect March 1.