Everything’s going up
June 24, 2008
By Emily Keller
Water, sewer rates both set to rise
Sammamish residents may have to pay more for water and sewer service by 2009.
The Sammamish Plateau Water and Sewer Authority, which provides sewer and water service to more than 50,000 people in parts of Sammamish, Issaquah and unincorporated King County, is proposing to increase base charges and usage charges by 9 percent. Additionally, the Metropolitan King County Council has voted to increase its portion of the bill.
An increase from the local authority would take effect two months after being approved by the Board of Commissioners, said Angel Barton, the authority’s finance manager. It would apply to the base charge of $21.39 to $288.39 that customers pay every two months for water, plus the $8.63 fee that single-family residential customers pay to tap into King County’s sewer system. The increase would also apply to incremental charges for water use above the amount covered by the base rate.
The board could also amend the proposal or vote against it.
The authority provides water to 15,700 customers and sewer service to 9,300 customers. In Sammamish, those customers are generally south of Sahalee Drive.
Barton said the authority is proposing the increase to save money for future repairs and replacements of asbestos cement sewer mains and other infrastructure. The decision takes into account results of a capital reinvestment study by the Financial Consulting Solutions Group.
That study, completed in March 2006, projects annual rate increases through 2015, saying that the authority has time to plan for future improvements because it is a relatively new utility and that doing so will encourage rate stability over time.
“The District’s duty to serve will outlive the life of its infrastructure and a plan for reinvestment in its infrastructure will give assurance to its customers that a consistent level of service can be maintained without unduly burdening any one generation of ratepayers,” the report says.
The authority has nearly $70 million in capital projects identified for construction in the next 10 years and will not be able to fund these projects from 2006-2015 without a double-digit rate increase, the report says. The authority has more than $500 million in assets, which could grow to $20 billion in the next 75 years.
The proposed rate increase will enable the authority to move away from debt funding for most projects after 2016, the report says. The proposal also has a small inflationary component, Barton said.
The authority currently charges customers a base rate of between $21.39 and $288.39 every two months for basic water service, depending on the size of their meter. Residents in single-family homes also pay from $.0162 to $.0409 per additional cubic foot of water used, depending on the amount. There are approximately 7.48 gallons of water in a cubic foot.
The local authority also charges single-family homeowners $8.63 per billing period for up to 400 cubic feet of water to hook residents up to the county sewer system.
The Metropolitan King County Council approved a 7 percent annual sewer rate hike in its 2009-2010 budget, increasing the current base charge of $55.90 for use of up to 1,500 cubic feet of water every two months, to $63.80. That rate applies to 34 cities and sewer districts where the county provides wastewater conveyance and treatment and which set their own rates for customers. Properties other than single family residential pay a consumption charge of $.03727 per additional cubic foot of water used.
The additional revenue will be used to pay for increases in maintenance and operation costs of the wastewater system that serves King County, south Snohomish County and a small portion of Pierce County, and will help fund construction of a new wastewater treatment facility called Brightwater, the council said in a press release.
The county’s increase takes effect January 1, 2009 and will be passed on to customers through local authorities.
Sammamish’s other sewer authority, the Northeast Sammamish Sewer and Water District, plans to evaluate its rates, which take effect January 1 each year, but has not yet begun its 2009 budget process, said General Manager Laura Szentes.
That district provides water service to more than 3,000 customer accounts and sewer service to about 4,500 customer accounts north of Sahalee Drive.
The Sammamish Plateau Water and Sewer Authority will hold a public hearing on its proposed increase at 4 p.m. July 21 at 1510 228th Avenue Southeast.
Reporter Emily Keller can be reached at 392-6434, ext. 242, or ekeller@isspress.com.
Comments
Got something to say?
Before you comment, please note:
- These comments are moderated.
- Comments should be relevant to the topic at hand and contribute to its discussion.
- Personal attacks and/or excessive profanity will not be tolerated and such comments will not be approved.
- This is not your personal chat room or forum, so please stay on topic.
