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Tag: rate increase

  • Proposed water rate increase would affect most Citrus Heights residents

    Updated Oct. 26, 9:19 a.m.–
    A public hearing at the Rusch Park Community Center has been set for Nov. 17, in light of a proposed water rate increase that would affect most Citrus Heights water users.

    In a recent mailer to customers, the Citrus Heights Water District said the rate increase is necessary to replace old water mains, continue development of its groundwater well system, and to begin replacing older water meters with ones able to provide “timely water use data to customers.”

    If approved, water use rates would rise about 10 cents per unit, bringing the base rate up to 87 cents per 748 gallons, the District mailer shows. Service charge rates would also increase, making a typical customer’s bi-monthly bill rise by a total of about $12 under the proposal, according to the CHWD web site.

    A prior three percent rate increase was passed last November, along with approval of a new water shortage pricing structure that allows temporary enactment of higher rates during water crises.  The District’s board later voted to enact a 25 percent temporary rate increase in conjunction with a “Stage 4 Water Warning” declaration that came into effect on July 15 of this year. According to a statement on the District’s web site, the board will consider discontinuing the temporary rate increase, as part of the current proposal.

    [From May: CHWD declares stage 4 water crisis; will hire ‘water police’]

    CHWD Assistant General Manager Hilary Straus said the 30-employee District faces a difficult challenge to show ratepayers the need for capital investment in the District’s water delivery infrastructure, since much of the underground systems can’t be seen by customers. Citing an underground water main break that flooded part of UCLA and spewed millions of gallons of water 30 feet in the air last summer, Straus said the local District seeks to be proactive in repairing and replacing aging water mains to avoid similar “catastrophic failures and disruptions to service.”

    Last December, a water main under Mariposa Avenue near Antelope Road broke overnight, causing the street to be closed down for most of the day while water district crews repaired the break. At least 26 water mains have broken in the District so far in 2015, according the the District’s mailer, but that number is down from a reported 86 breaks in 2001. Straus said the drop is due to recent investment in infrastructure.

    Straus said the District has focused attention on educational outreach, beginning with the initial mailer about the proposal and continuing with question-and-answer Powerpoint presentations at various neighborhood and club meetings. The District is scheduled to make presentations next week at both Neighborhood Area 6 and area 10 meetings.

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    About a third of Citrus Heights residents are served by neighboring water districts and will not face the proposed rate increase, due to water district service areas differing from city boundaries.

    The upcoming hearing is scheduled to take place at 7810 Auburn Blvd. on Tuesday, Nov. 17, at 6:30 p.m. In accordance with Prop 218, written protests can be mailed to the CHWD secretary, at P.O. Box 286, Citrus Heights, CA 95611.

    *Note: This is the first in a series of articles about water use in Citrus Heights and proposed water rate increases.

  • Citrus Heights Water District votes 2-0 to raise rates

    Water_district_meeting_public_comment
    Resident Dan Heideman listens to an answer from water district staff after asking several questions during public comment, Wednesday.

    Updated Nov. 21, 11:55 a.m.–
    Directors for the Citrus Heights Water District voted unanimously in favor of raising rates and approving a new water shortage pricing structure Wednesday night, despite receiving 72 protest letters and hearing from a handful of residents who questioned the increase.

    Under approvals made Wednesday, rates will rise three percent in 2015 and District directors will have discretion to raise rates 10 percent during a Stage 3 Water Warning, and up to 55 percent under the most extreme shortage stage.  Additionally, directors can now increase excess water use rates by 50 percent during a Stage 4 Water Warning, with the option of a 250 percent increase during a situation exceeding Stage 5.

    Ratepayer Dan Heideman acknowledged the need for some rise in rates, calling the three percent increase “no big deal” afterwards, but said he wanted to see some cost-cutting efforts from the District during a time when they’re asking ratepayers to pay more. He cited a current District office expansion and renovation project and the proposed 2015 water district budget increasing the general manager’s $166,964 salary up to $186,132 — although the budget also shows some positions taking double-digit pay cuts.

    In a September mailer, the District said rate increases were needed to offset “financial deficit created by water shortage,” and also “help encourage customers to meet use reduction goals.” It also cited a recommendation from the District’s 2013 Water Rate Study which found a three percent rate increase each year through 2018 would be necessary “to prevent the need to issue debt to cover infrastructure maintenance and replacement.”

    Public comment lasted about 45 minutes, with a sole resident advocating the Board pass the higher rates, while others questioned various aspects of water use and rate proposals.

    “What more can we cut?” ratepayer Pam Pinkston asked District officials, saying she’d have to cut even more than she already has in order to avoid being hit with excess use charges. “I can let my grass die, but I can’t stop watering my fruit trees.”

    <<Want to know what warning stage we’re in now, or how much water CHWD users have been conserving this year? See story: WATER: Citrus Heights usage drops 21% >>

    District staff called the new water shortage rate structure a necessary “tool in the toolbox,” saying it’s a problem if they “don’t have a way to ration at the meter or the pocketbook.” They also clarified to directors that water shortage rates could be set lower, at the discretion of the Board, but not higher.

    Although initially commenting the shortage rates sounded “a bit punitive,” Board President Allen Dains cast his vote in favor of the rate increases. He was joined by his colleague Director Caryl Sheehan, while recently re-elected Joseph Dion was absent from the meeting.

    The three percent rate increase will go into effect January 1, 2015, but water shortage rates will not be implemented unless voted on by the board at a future date during a Stage 3 Water Warning level or higher.

    —
    On the Net:
    Official notice and detailed list of rate increases proposed: http://chwd.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/2015-Prop-218-Notice-web.pdf