Living in Catharine, KS: what to set up and who to call
Catharine has no town government of its own, so Ellis County runs its elections and most services, and its children attend Hays Unified School District 489. Power in Catharine comes from Midwest Energy, a cooperative utility rather than a private company.
I’m new in town
What to set up in Catharine, 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 Catharine.
Power comes from Midwest Energy
Midwest Energy (Midwest Energy Inc - (KS)), a cooperative utility, serves all of Catharine. Its homes paid an average of 12.0¢ per kWh in 2025, about $107 a month (its average across Kansas).
Start or move service: mwenergy.com
Service territory: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map dated Aug 2023). Prices and customers: EIA-861, 2025.
Water comes from Ellis Co RWD 6
Ellis Co RWD 6 supplies almost all of Catharine. It draws ground water (EPA lists Trego Co RWD 2 as seller) and serves 383 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 2023–Dec 2025, was 3.0 ppb, below the 15 ppb action level that applied. That’s higher than 81% 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. KS2005122.
1 home internet providers serve Catharine
100% of 76 addresses can get 100/20 Mbps; 100% can get fiber.
| Provider | Technology | Addresses | Fastest (Mbps) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nex-Tech | Fiber | 100% | 1,000/1,000 |
FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025. Availability as providers report it, not speeds people get.
We don’t have Catharine’s trash rules yet
Pickup rules, the dump and recycling in Catharine.
Where your child goes to school
Public school districts and the school path by grade.
Catharine is in Hays Unified School District 489.
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
Catharine is unincorporated, so Ellis County is the local government.
Election office: FVAP local election office directory, updated Oct 2022; jurisdictions: EAC EAVS 2024. Registration rules and links: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Catharine spans 2 ZIP codes
ZIP codes where Catharine residents live, with the share of the town in each.
| ZIP | Post office name | Share of Catharine | ZIP’s residents in Catharine |
|---|---|---|---|
| 67627 | Catharine, KS | 86% | 100% |
| 67601 | Hays, KS | 14% | 0% |
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 Catharine
Who supplies Catharine’s drinking water, and has it had violations?
Ellis Co RWD 6 (EPA ID KS2005122). 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 3.0 ppb (Jan 2023–Dec 2025), against a 15 ppb action level.
Who provides electricity in Catharine?
Midwest Energy (Midwest Energy Inc - (KS)), a cooperative utility. Its homes paid about 12.0¢ per kWh in 2025 (EIA).
What internet providers serve Catharine?
Nex-Tech (FCC, as of December 2025).
What ZIP codes are in Catharine?
67627 (86%), 67601 (14%), by share of residents. Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas.
What school district is Catharine in?
Hays Unified School District 489.
How do I register to vote in Catharine?
In Kansas you can register online until 21 days before Election Day, in person until 21 days before Election Day, or by mail (postmarked 21 days before). Elections here are run by the Ellis County Clerk. Check your registration at myvoteinfo.voteks.org.
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 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.