Photo: Joe Mabel · CC BY-SA 3.0Living in White Center, WA: what to set up and who to call
White Center has no town government of its own, so King County runs its elections and most services, and its children attend Highline School District. Power in White Center comes from City of Seattle, a municipal utility rather than a private company.
I’m new in town
What to set up in White Center, 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 White Center.
Power comes from City of Seattle
City of Seattle (City of Seattle - (WA)), a municipal utility, serves all of White Center. Its homes paid an average of 14.7¢ per kWh in 2025, about $87 a month (its average across Washington).
Start or move service: seattle.gov · (800) 862-1181
Service territory: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map dated Aug 2023). Prices and customers: EIA-861, 2025.
Water comes from Seattle Public Utilities
Seattle Public Utilities supplies White Center: about 84% of residents live in its service area. King County Water District #20 serves another 16%. About 4% of homes are outside any mapped community water system, most likely on private wells, which EPA doesn’t regulate. It draws surface water (EPA lists City of Renton as seller) and serves 1,161,961 people in all.
No health-based violations reported to EPA in the five years to October 2026, like 82% of the 27 systems serving more than 1,000,000 people.
The latest lead result on file, the 90th percentile of homes sampled in Jan–Dec 2025, was 1.6 ppb, below the 15 ppb action level that applied. The highest in five years was 3.5 ppb. That’s lower than 52% 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. WA5377050.
6 home internet providers serve White Center
100% of 4,296 addresses can get 100/20 Mbps; 75% can get fiber.
| Provider | Technology | Addresses | Fastest (Mbps) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Xfinity | Cable | 100% | 2,000/250 |
| Quantum Fiber | Fiber | 82% | 2,000/1,000 |
| CenturyLink | Fiber, DSL | 18% | 940/940 |
| T-Mobile | Fixed wireless | 75% | 100/20 |
| Verizon | Fixed wireless | 55% | 300/20 |
| AT&T | Fixed wireless | 51% | 100/20 |
FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025. Availability as providers report it, not speeds people get.
The nearest public drop-off is 2 miles away
Pickup rules, the dump and recycling in White Center.
South Seattle Household Hazardous Waste Collection Facility
8105 5th Avenue South, Seattle, WA, 98108 · run by King County
This isn’t White Center’s own facility. Whether White Center residents may use it is the town’s rule: check the town’s office.
OpenStreetMap, as of Oct 9, 2026. © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Where your child goes to school
Public school districts and the school path by grade.
White Center is in Highline School District.
C−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
White Center is unincorporated, so King County is the local government.
Election office: FVAP local election office directory, updated Sep 2021; jurisdictions: EAC EAVS 2024. Registration rules and links: vote.gov, updated Sep 30, 2026.
White Center spans 4 ZIP codes
ZIP codes where White Center residents live, with the share of the town in each.
| ZIP | Post office name | Share of White Center | ZIP’s residents in White Center |
|---|---|---|---|
| 98146 | Seattle, WA | 68% | 39% |
| 98106 | Seattle, WA | 15% | 10% |
| 98168 | Seattle, WA | 14% | 7% |
| 98126 | Seattle, WA | 2% | 1% |
A few homes fall in 98108.
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 White Center
Who supplies White Center’s drinking water, and has it had violations?
Seattle Public Utilities (EPA ID WA5377050). It reported no health-based violations to EPA in the five years to October 2026; 82% of systems its size had none. Its latest lead 90th percentile was 1.6 ppb (Jan–Dec 2025), against a 15 ppb action level.
Who provides electricity in White Center?
City of Seattle (City of Seattle - (WA)), a municipal utility. Its homes paid about 14.7¢ per kWh in 2025 (EIA).
What internet providers serve White Center?
Xfinity, Quantum Fiber, CenturyLink, T-Mobile, Verizon, AT&T (FCC, as of December 2025).
What ZIP codes are in White Center?
98146 (68%), 98106 (15%), 98168 (14%), 98126 (2%), by share of residents. Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas.
What school district is White Center in?
Highline School District.
How do I register to vote in White Center?
In Washington you can register online until 8 days before Election Day, in person up to and including Election Day, or by mail (received 8 days before). Elections here are run by the King County Elections. Check your registration at voter.votewa.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.