Living in Deer Creek, AZ: what to set up and who to call
Deer Creek has no town government of its own, so Gila County runs its elections and most services, and its children attend Payson Unified District. Tap water in Deer Creek comes from Payson Water - Deer Creek, which has a clean five-year EPA record (about 23% of systems its size had a health-based violation) and a latest lead result below detection.
I’m new in town
What to set up in Deer Creek, 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 Deer Creek.
Power comes from APS
APS (Arizona Public Service Co.), an investor-owned utility, serves all of Deer Creek. Its homes paid an average of 17.0¢ per kWh in 2025, about $165 a month (its average across Arizona).
Start or move service: aps.com
Service territory: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map dated Aug 2023). Prices and customers: EIA-861, 2025.
Water comes from Payson Water - Deer Creek
Payson Water - Deer Creek supplies almost all of Deer Creek. It draws ground water and serves 308 people in all.
No health-based violations reported to EPA in the five years to October 2026, like 77% of the 15,074 systems serving 101–500 people.
The latest lead result on file, the 90th percentile of homes sampled in Jan 2021–Dec 2023, was 0.0 ppb, below the 15 ppb action level that applied. Results below detection are reported as 0, so 0 doesn’t mean no lead at any tap.
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. AZ0404064.
Which providers serve Deer Creek
This card will list the home internet providers the FCC’s National Broadband Map shows in Deer Creek, the share of addresses that can get 100/20 Mbps and the share with fiber, with the map’s “as of” date.
Source to come: FCC Broadband Data Collection.
We don’t have Deer Creek’s trash rules yet
Pickup rules, the dump and recycling in Deer Creek.
Where your child goes to school
Public school districts and the school path by grade.
Deer Creek is in Payson Unified District.
Test scores and every school: see 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
Deer Creek is unincorporated, so Gila County is the local government.
Election office: FVAP local election office directory, updated Sep 2025; jurisdictions: EAC EAVS 2024. Registration rules and links: vote.gov, updated Sep 12, 2025.
Deer Creek is in ZIP code 85541
ZIP codes where Deer Creek residents live, with the share of the town in each.
| ZIP | Post office name | Share of Deer Creek | ZIP’s residents in Deer Creek |
|---|---|---|---|
| 85541 | Payson, AZ | 100% | 1% |
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 Deer Creek
Who supplies Deer Creek’s drinking water, and has it had violations?
Payson Water - Deer Creek (EPA ID AZ0404064). It reported no health-based violations to EPA in the five years to October 2026; 77% of systems its size had none. Its latest lead 90th percentile was 0.0 ppb (Jan 2021–Dec 2023), against a 15 ppb action level.
Who provides electricity in Deer Creek?
APS (Arizona Public Service Co.), an investor-owned utility. Its homes paid about 17.0¢ per kWh in 2025 (EIA).
What ZIP codes are in Deer Creek?
85541. Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas.
What school district is Deer Creek in?
Payson Unified District.
How do I register to vote in Deer Creek?
In Arizona you can register online until 29 days before Election Day, in person until 29 days before Election Day, or by mail (postmarked 29 days before). Elections here are run by the Gila County Recorder. Check your registration at my.arizona.vote.
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 12, 2025 (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): pending.