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Scotts Valley Water Rate Increase Hits Those Who Use the Most
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Scotts Valley Water Rate Increase Hits Those Who Use the Most
Scotts Valley Water District customers who use more than 24,000 gallons of water every two months will see their bills go up immediately under a new rate schedule approved Feb. 11 and which took effect Feb. 15.
The largest users will also find that they hit higher price levels sooner.
The new three-year rate schedule holds prices steady for customers using less than 14,000 gallons bimonthly through 2012. The typical Scotts Valley household comes in at about 16,000 gallons for each billing period.
The top four rate tiers above 14,000 gallons bimonthly will all see increases again on Dec. 15, 2010, and again on Dec. 15, 2011.
The new schedule changed not only the rates, but the levels at which they increase. The biggest jump is for water use between 36,000 and 49,999 gallons bimonthly, which went up nearly $2 a gallon by placing customers in a higher rate tier.
Customers also reach the top rate twice as quickly; it was 100,000 gallons bimonthly and is now 50,000. Those in that range face a 65-cent-a-gallon increase, which means businesses that don't have means to decrease use will be paying much larger bills.
The new rates are intended to encourage water conservation, district officials said when they were proposed last fall. Service and hook-up fees remained the same.
Multi-housing units and businesses that have implemented water conservation can request a flat rate schedule instead of the standard tiered charges. Directors set that rate at $7.69 per 1,000 gallons through 2012, a change from the initial proposal that called for increases. This concession to commercial customers was a nod to protests over the first plan.
The plan was also expanded from only commercial enterprises in response to customer concerns.
Eligibility for the flat rate will be determined on a case-by-case basis, according to district general manager Charles McNiesh, and will realize savings for only about 20 to 25 customers. The district will want to confirm that low-flow toilets and fixtures have been installed and will require that any landscaping use be put on a separate meter charged by tiered rates. Other conservation efforts will depend on the type of use for the property.
The water district is already working with a commercial laundromat to determine its eligibility, McNiesh added.
The district reported that water use was down 11.4 percent for the water year 2009, which runs from October 2008 through September 2009.
Only 11 of the district's roughly 3,600 customers formally opposed the new rate structure.
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