Living in Sterling, AK: what to set up and who to call
Sterling has no town government of its own, so Kenai Peninsula Borough runs its elections and most services, and its children attend Kenai Peninsula Borough School District. Power in Sterling comes from Chugach Electric Assn, a cooperative utility rather than a private company.
I’m new in town
What to set up in Sterling, and who provides it. Tap an answer for the details and where they come from.
Power, water and internet
Who to call to start service at a new address in Sterling.
Power comes from Chugach Electric Assn
Chugach Electric Assn (Chugach Electric Assn Inc), a cooperative utility, serves all of Sterling. Its homes paid an average of 23.0¢ per kWh in 2025, about $113 a month (its average across Alaska).
Service territory: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map dated Aug 2023). Prices and customers: EIA-861, 2025.
Water comes from Soldotna water system
The Soldotna water system supplies Sterling: about 15% of residents live in its service area. About 84% of homes are outside any mapped community water system, most likely on private wells, which EPA doesn’t regulate. It draws ground water and serves 4,807 people in all.
No health-based violations reported to EPA in the five years to October 2026, like 80% of the 5,012 systems serving 3,301–10,000 people.
The latest lead result on file, the 90th percentile of homes sampled in Jan 2022–Dec 2024, was 4.5 ppb, below the 15 ppb action level that applied. That’s higher than 90% of similar systems’ latest results.
The system’s full record: EPA ECHO report
EPA SDWIS via Envirofacts (violations pulled Oct 9, 2026) and ECHO (lead samples, 2026Q3); service area: EPA Community Water System Service Area Boundaries v3.0. Violations are counted by the start of their compliance period. AK2241054.
2 home internet providers serve Sterling
99% of 3,845 addresses can get 100/20 Mbps; 0% can get fiber.
| Provider | Technology | Addresses | Fastest (Mbps) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alaska Communications | Fixed wireless, DSL, Fiber | 86% | 300/100 |
| SPITwSPOTS | Fixed wireless | 97% | 300/75 |
FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025. Availability as providers report it, not speeds people get.
We don’t have Sterling’s trash rules yet
Pickup rules, the dump and recycling in Sterling.
Where your child goes to school
Public school districts and the school path by grade.
Sterling is in Kenai Peninsula Borough School District.
B+School gradeSee Schools →U.S. Department of Education, NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25. Enrollment rules and registration are the district’s.
No town hall: the county runs things
Sterling is unincorporated, so Kenai Peninsula Borough is the local government.
Election office: FVAP local election office directory, updated Jun 2025; jurisdictions: EAC EAVS 2024. Registration rules and links: vote.gov, updated Sep 30, 2026.
Sterling spans 2 ZIP codes
ZIP codes where Sterling residents live, with the share of the town in each.
| ZIP | Post office name | Share of Sterling | ZIP’s residents in Sterling |
|---|---|---|---|
| 99672 | Sterling, AK | 59% | 100% |
| 99669 | Soldotna, AK | 41% | 16% |
Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas, by census block; post office names: GeoNames (CC BY 4.0). ZIPs created since 2020 are missing.
Getting around, the ER and the library
One line each; the subject pages have the rest.
ER: CMS hospital data. Library: IMLS Public Libraries Survey, FY2024.
Questions about living in Sterling
Who supplies Sterling’s drinking water, and has it had violations?
The Soldotna water system (EPA ID AK2241054). It reported no health-based violations to EPA in the five years to October 2026; 80% of systems its size had none. Its latest lead 90th percentile was 4.5 ppb (Jan 2022–Dec 2024), against a 15 ppb action level.
Who provides electricity in Sterling?
Chugach Electric Assn (Chugach Electric Assn Inc), a cooperative utility. Its homes paid about 23.0¢ per kWh in 2025 (EIA).
What internet providers serve Sterling?
Alaska Communications, SPITwSPOTS (FCC, as of December 2025).
What ZIP codes are in Sterling?
99672 (59%), 99669 (41%), by share of residents. Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas.
What school district is Sterling in?
Kenai Peninsula Borough School District.
How do I register to vote in Sterling?
In Alaska you can register online until 30 days before Election Day, in person until 30 days before Election Day, or by mail (received 30 days before). Elections here are run by the Absentee and Petition Office. Check your registration at myvoterportal.alaska.gov.
Sources & dates
Every answer above names its source. Here they are with their dates.
- Water: EPA SDWIS (Envirofacts, pulled Oct 9, 2026), ECHO SDWA 2026Q3, EPA CWS Service Area Boundaries v3.0.
- Power: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map Aug 2023); EIA-861 final 2025.
- Trash: OpenStreetMap, Geofabrik extract of Oct 9, 2026. © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).
- ZIP codes: Census 2020 ZCTA relationship files; GeoNames postal codes (CC BY 4.0).
- Schools: NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25.
- Registration: vote.gov, updated Sep 30, 2026 (read Oct 10, 2026). Official sites and area codes: Wikidata.
- Election office: FVAP local election office directory (fetched Oct 10, 2026; each record dated), EAC EAVS 2024 jurisdictions; registration and lookup links from vote.gov’s state data, checked Oct 10, 2026.
- Internet: FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025.