Stockton Approves Water Rate Increase

UPDATE June 28, 9:11 p.m.: The City of Stockton approved water rate hikes for the next five years Tuesday. 

This means a rate hike of 18.5 percent starting Aug. 1, 2016, 11 percent the next year and 3 percent for the three remaining years.

Original Post: The cost of water could be going up soon in the City of Stockton. It’s partly because people conserved so much water during the drought.

Water conservation brought less money to the city, so the city council must consider raising the rates to cover the shortfall.
Stockton Municipal Utilities Acting Director Bob Granberg says higher rates would be phased in over five years.

“It’s 18.5 percent this year, 11 percent the second year, and three years of 3 percent thereafter,” says Granberg.

Granberg says the average bill would go up the first year from $54.29 to $58.

He is also seeking a surcharge for heavier water users.

“That would be a surcharge to a customer’s bill for usage that exceeds what that required reduction would be for that period.”

Granberg says more revenue is needed to meet the bond obligations that funded the city’s new water treatment plant.