CANTON, Miss. (WJTV) – Canton residents said their water bills have increased significantly, with some up by $200 to $300 or more.

Canton Municipal Utilities (CMU) issued a water and sewer rate update to citizens in June 2025 stating that rates for the past decade were too low to meet the true costs of providing service. CMU said factors like labor, energy, material and other costs have continued to increase. Therefore, customers were guaranteed to see an increase with their utility bill.

Rasheid Davis, who lives in Canton and is a business owner, said he never received the notice and was unaware of the changes.

“Why was the bill so high? If they were saying that they was raising it, 25% on the bill, it’s understandable. But some of these bills are well over 25% of what the bills supposed to be,” he said.

Residents said the new changes feel like a form of price gouging due to most not being able to afford the cost of demand.

Davis said he and other residents plan to host a town hall meeting to get answers and solutions on the matter.

A CMU representative told WJTV 12 News that the Board will meet on Tuesday, August 12 to discuss ways to help residents with their utility bills.