Photo: Rudi Weikard · CC BY-SA 3.0Living in Bessemer, AL: what to set up and who to call
Bessemer runs its own electric utility, City of Bessemer Utilities; its homes paid 13.3¢ per kWh in 2025. Bessemer City School District runs the public schools in Bessemer.
I’m new in town
What to set up in Bessemer, 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 Bessemer.
Power comes from City of Bessemer Utilities
City of Bessemer Utilities (City of Bessemer Utilities), a municipal utility, serves 80.3% of Bessemer residents. Its homes paid an average of 13.3¢ per kWh in 2025, about $137 a month (its average across Alabama).
Service territory: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map dated Aug 2023). Prices and customers: EIA-861, 2025.
Water comes from Bessemer Water Service
Bessemer Water Service supplies almost all of Bessemer. It buys treated surface water (EPA lists Central Alabama Water System and City of Bessemer,gusc of the as sellers) and serves 86,091 people in all.
No health-based violations reported to EPA in the five years to October 2026, like 90% of the 597 systems serving 50,001–100,000 people.
The latest lead result on file, the 90th percentile of homes sampled in Jan 2025–Dec 2027, was 1.0 ppb, below the 15 ppb action level that applied. The highest in five years was 1.5 ppb. That’s lower than 57% 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. AL0000737.
4 home internet providers serve Bessemer
97% of 10,647 addresses can get 100/20 Mbps; 41% can get fiber.
| Provider | Technology | Addresses | Fastest (Mbps) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spectrum | Cable, Fiber | 95% | 1,000/35 |
| AT&T | DSL, Fiber, Fixed wireless | 80% | 5,000/5,000 |
| Verizon | Fixed wireless | 52% | 300/20 |
| T-Mobile | Fixed wireless | 43% | 100/20 |
FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025. Availability as providers report it, not speeds people get.
Trash day in Bessemer is Monday, Tuesday, Thursday or Friday, depending on your street
Pickup days, the drop-off and recycling in Bessemer, from the town’s own site.
Your pickup week
- TrashEvery week, on your street’s day (Mon, Tue, Thu or Fri)
Bessemer Recycling Center
1601 First Avenue North, Bessemer, AL
- Mon7 am–3 pm
- Tue7 am–3 pm
- Wed7 am–3 pm
- Thu7 am–3 pm
- Fri7 am–3 pm
Accepted at the curb
- Cardboard
- Plastics
- Newspaper
From bessemeral.org, the town’s official site, checked Oct 21, 2026. Rules change: the town’s page is the last word. .
Where your child goes to school
Public school districts and the school path by grade.
Bessemer is in Bessemer City School District.
D−School gradeSee Schools →U.S. Department of Education, NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25. Enrollment rules and registration are the district’s.
Town hall and registering to vote
Who to call, and how to register.
Election office: FVAP local election office directory, updated Jul 2019; jurisdictions: EAC EAVS 2024. Registration rules and links: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Bessemer spans 2 ZIP codes
ZIP codes where Bessemer residents live, with the share of the town in each.
| ZIP | Post office name | Share of Bessemer | ZIP’s residents in Bessemer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 35020 | Bessemer, AL | 66% | 71% |
| 35022 | Bessemer, AL | 33% | 37% |
A few homes fall in 35111, 35244, 35023. 35021 is P.O. box or single-organization ZIP with no homes.
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 Bessemer
Who supplies Bessemer’s drinking water, and has it had violations?
Bessemer Water Service (EPA ID AL0000737). It reported no health-based violations to EPA in the five years to October 2026; 90% of systems its size had none. Its latest lead 90th percentile was 1.0 ppb (Jan 2025–Dec 2027), against a 15 ppb action level.
Who provides electricity in Bessemer?
City of Bessemer Utilities (City of Bessemer Utilities), a municipal utility. Its homes paid about 13.3¢ per kWh in 2025 (EIA).
What internet providers serve Bessemer?
Spectrum, AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile (FCC, as of December 2025).
What ZIP codes are in Bessemer?
35020 (66%), 35022 (33%), by share of residents. Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas.
What school district is Bessemer in?
Bessemer City School District.
How do I register to vote in Bessemer?
In Alabama you can register online until 15 days before Election Day, in person until 15 days before Election Day, or by mail (received 15 days before). Elections here are run by the Jefferson - Bessemer County Circuit Clerk. Check your registration at myinfo.alabamavotes.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: Bessemer’s own website (bessemeral.org), read Oct 21, 2026, pickup and drop-off facts extracted and checked against the page they came from.
- 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 Nov 18, 2024 (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.