The San Juan Bautista city council voted unanimously Tuesday
night to increase water rates for the first time in eight years,
nearly doubling the average residential bill.
”
I think the entire council understands that we had to take
action,
”
said Charles Geiger, San Juan’s Vice-Mayor.
San Juan Bautista – The San Juan Bautista city council voted unanimously Tuesday night to increase water rates for the first time in eight years, nearly doubling the average residential bill.
“I think the entire council understands that we had to take action,” said Charles Geiger, San Juan’s Vice-Mayor. “This dates back to the 2002 election. We’ve been pushing, but until now, the response has always been to do a rate study and wait.”
Geiger blamed the need for the rate hike, in part, on the town’s slow-growth policies.
“When you live in a small community, and its citizens choose to support slow growth, then costs… must be absorbed by those in the community,” he said. “This is one of the trade-offs expected in a community that is limiting growth.”
Geiger was also quick to point out that the ordinance only applies to units currently online and receiving service. Despite the fact that approximately 50 units are scheduled to come online, including a new apartment complex, these were not figured into the new cost, to prevent the rates from jumping even higher, initially.
City residents currently pay $8 for the first 4,000 gallons of water used and $1 for every 1,000 gallons thereafter. The new rates will impose a fee of $16 for the first 1,000 gallons of water, $2 for every 1,000 gallons between 3,001 and 8,000 gallons, and $3 for every 1,000 gallons exceeding the 8,000 mark.
Originally, the ordinance was to take effect after 30 days, but the council out off the effective date until September. “We know that people use more water in July and August, and this period will allow everyone to get through that,” said Geiger. “We don’t want anyone to have to face a huge bill at the end of the summer.”
The rate hike will help fund an $8 million dollar infrastructure overhaul. The city of San Juan received $3.8 million from a federal grant and another $3.1 million from the San Benito County Water District, leaving a $1.1 million gap that needs to be picked up by city residents.
“We started using audited accounts to prove that the rates were too low,” Geiger explained. “These rates should have been increased 10-15% over the past five years. How do you expect a grant if you can’t afford the current rates?”
San Juan’s current rates are so low that the system has been losing $250,000 a year, with the city’s general fund making up the difference, according to Geiger. In effect, this has taken money away from other services, such as street repair. By law, water and sewer systems are supposed to be self-sufficient. The new rate increases will not only sustain the system, but will also allow the city to pay back money it owes the general fund over a ten-year span.
