Editorial:

In 2014 the Sweetwater Authority proposed a rate increase. This was of no surprise, they had raised the rates six of the past seven years. But in 2014 there was a twist: they added the stipulation that for the next five years, they would not have to go before the public for approval on any rate increase associated with what they called a “pass along rate.”

A pass along rate was any rate increase that a water provider imposed upon the district. The district would then automatically pass along the rate increase to the consumer without public input.

The rate increase was approved as was the automatic pass along rate increase for five years, ostensibly until 2019. That the Sweetwater Authority is once again asking for a rate increase before the end of the five years can only mean one thing: this is not a pass along rate increase but something way beyond that.

The water authority provided a lot of information to justify their request for a rate increase on top of the automatic pass along rate increase. They explained their Readiness to Serve Charge and the Commodity Charge which are basically operating and construction costs. The public information put out by the authority spent a lot of time discussing Wholesale Water rate increases, but as noted this is a pass along rate and has already been covered by the five year plan. Also included was a discussion of the Proposed Drought Rates.

The bottom line on the Sweetwater Authority rate increase is the simple fact that the water authority is not selling enough water to keep up with their expenses. The residents of the South Bay have done a great job at conserving water, but when we use less water, it means that the authority is selling less water, and less water sold means less income for the district.

This is counter intuitive: they are asking the consumer to conserve water and because they do they are then charged more for doing so. The logic to the rising water rates would be to use more water and then there would be no cause for a rate increase??? Naturally this won’t work because we are in the midst of a drought and water is limited. But the continued rate increases due to effective conservation doesn’t make sense either!

The Sweetwater Authority is also proposing rate increases for, if and when, the Governor’s mandatory water reduction kicks in, which would then mean, once again, less water sold, and to make up the difference even higher rates!

Lastly, the ones who will be asked to pay more are the ones who can least afford any increase and those are the low-income customers of the Sweetwater Authority. Those who use the least amount of water will see their rate jump from $2.80 per hundred cubic feet to $3.86. Adding insult to injury, those who use the most amount of water will actually see their water rates reduced from $8.24 down to $6.90 per hundred cubic feet. This goes back to our counter intuitive logic!

Nowhere in the propaganda sent out by the water authority do they talk about what changes they intend to make in order to reduce costs. In fact, it appears to be full steam ahead! A good place to start to reduce costs would be the elimination of the per diems that water board members receive each month. These are the elected officials who are supposed to be looking out for the best interests of the community. They could demonstrate their commitment to the community and show leadership by eliminating their per diems which range anywhere from $10,000 to $15,000 per year, depending on the board member.

The Sweetwater Authority will conduct a public hearing on the proposed rate increases on August 31, at 6 pm, in the Board Room, located at 505 Garrett Avenue, Chula Vista, CA 91910. If you are unable to attend the meeting and want to express your opinion on the issue, send a letter addressed to the Board Secretary at the aforementioned address. Be sure to include your address, list yourself as either owner or tenant and a signature. You can also visit their website at www.sweetwater.org for more information.