Today, Tuesday, Sept. 19, the San Diego City Council is scheduled to consider a nearly 20 percent rate-increase for water bills of local customers.
By David Garrick / San Diego Union-Tribune / Sept. 16, 2023
The increase, which city officials began studying last fall, would be the first comprehensive rate hike approved by the council in nearly eight years. It would include a 10.2 increase this December and an 8.75 percent jump in January 2025. City officials say they need additional revenue increases to cover rising costs for imported water, upgrades to thousands of aging pipes and a long list of short-term and long-term capital projects.
The capital projects include the Pure Water sewage-recycling system, which has been under construction since last year, and assessments needed to study upgrades needed to several aging city dams that state officials have deemed in poor condition. Money from the higher rates will also pay for recently approved salary increases for 950 city water workers and upgrades to the city’s customer service system, which has been harshly criticized.
The goal of the increases is raising the annual revenue generated by the city’s water system from $566 million to just over $600 million, city officials said. The City Council could approve the rate increases as proposed by city staff. But the last time comprehensive increases were approved, in 2015, the council shrunk them slightly and delayed when some of the increases would kick in.
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Has anyone looked into the actions on the Lake Hodges water releases because the dam needs replacing for forever now? And the city just let the water go?
CBS 8 has learned over the past year that San Diego had to release 11 billion gallons of water from Lake Hodges to keep the water level low in Lake Hodges. “Eleven billion gallons represents two full years of water use for the Santa Fe Irrigation District and the San Dieguito Water District combined.Aug 31, 2023
Where does the money go? According to the city, 59% is expected to go toward the purchase of imported water and 41% will pay for maintenance, upgrades and debt services for the city’s water system.
Why was there not an attempt into saving and or diverting any of the 11 billion gallons of water released at Hodges knowing dam replacement was going to need to happen one day?
Two water districts in Southern California want to switch water suppliers and leave the San Diego County Water Authority, the long-time primary provider for the region. The county’s Local Agency Formation Commission said yes, including an exit fee intended to address impacts to the SDCWA budget. Voters in these districts are set to decide in a Nov. 7 special election.
How does this development factor into the rate increases?
Pure Water, aka recycling sewage into tap water is going to cost $1.2 billion, for the first phase. The 2nd phase will not be cheap either.
“Construction crews are simultaneously working on 10 different projects that make up Pure Water phase one, which will cost nearly $1.2 billion total.”
https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/politics/story/2023-05-01/how-much-sewage-can-san-diego-recycle-pure-water-capacity-lake-murray