Why Your Water Bill Is Going Up 3%

The Los Angeles City Council Wednesday approved a 3 percent increase in water rates for residential users and businesses.

The council voted 8-4 in favor of the rate increase proposed by the city-owned Department of Water and Power (DWP), the nation's largest publicly owned utility.

DWP chief Ron Nichols previously told the council the increase was needed to fund nearly $600 million in upgrades to drinking water reservoirs to bring them in compliance with federal guidelines. Newly enacted Environmental Protection Agency guidelines require the DWP to cover its reservoirs or quit using them for drinking water. [Click here for photos of Ivanhoe Reservoir being covered.]

Violations, Nichols said, could cost taxpayers up to $25,000 per each day the city is out of compliance.   The average customer will see their water bill rise by about $1.71 due to the approved rate increase. A dry winter will also increase the cost of importing water to Southern California, bringing the total average water rate increase to about $5.67 per month.

Council members Jan Perry, Mitch Englander, Paul Koretz and Dennis Zine opposed the rate increases.

Englander, who represents District 12 which includes Chatsworth, said the DWP was "fear-mongering" the council into approving the rates, "basically saying the world is going to end if we don't do this."

The department is not going to complete the work on the reservoirs for several years, suggesting a deadline to increase the rates is artificial, Englander said.

Englander sponsored a motion last July, that was approved by the City Council and the mayor, promising not to approve rate adjustments until a ratepayer advocate was approved and given time to review the proposal.

"That hasn't happened yet," Englander said. "I think there was still enough time. It was just yet another threat by DWP which has been done for so many years."

Perry said she could not go along with a rate hike until the City Council moves to support the department in reducing its employees' pension, health care and salary costs.

Koretz also said he was concerned by reports from businesses that they did not receive notice required by law of the proposed rate increase. A department spokesman told the council that every LADWP customer had received notice either as an insert in their bill or as a separate mailing.

Councilman Tony Cardenas complimented the department for doing extensive public outreach to customers, beyond what was required by law.

-- City News Service