By Dave Fidlin
Correspondent
Whitewater residents could experience a 3-percent water rate increase early next year as part of a plan floated recently by city officials.
Finance Director Doug Saubert came before the Common Council on Dec. 1 with details of the water utility’s so-called simplified rate case, or SRC, adjustment plan. While elected officials discussed the proposal, definitive action was delayed to the next meeting this coming Tuesday, Dec. 15.
If the utility’s proposal moves forward, the rate increase will take effect Jan. 27 — about a month later than city officials had initially anticipated when the adjustment plan was first announced.
While the groundwork for the water rate increase has been set, the council opted to hold off on acting on the revised operations plan until this coming week’s meeting because of a separate, but related, issue: revising rates for the city’s wastewater treatment plant.
City Manager Cameron Clapper said he anticipates giving the council a thorough review of the revised wastewater rate structure at the upcoming meeting. The city is on the cusp of a costly upgrade endeavor at the treatment plant, which has aging infrastructure.
All told, upgrades to the treatment plant are expected to clock in at nearly $21 million, and a rate increase will be needed to accommodate the project.
As for the water utility, the average customer, consuming 4,000 gallons of per month, will experience an additional 46 cents on their water bill each month. Additionally, Saubert said a related fire protection fee is set to increase 22 cents per month. Combined, the average customer will pay an additional $8.16 to the utility in the year ahead.
Increased operational costs are the impetus behind the water rate hike, Saubert said. The utility’s budget includes an additional $64,305 in revenues in 2016 to accommodate rising costs.
However, Saubert said only $59,160 of that earmarked money would be realized since the rate increase was taking place in late January — rather than late December, as initially proposed.
In keeping with the premise of the SRC, none of the water utility’s rate structure will change. The 3-percent increase is an across-the-board adjustment that applies to all customers.
Historically, the utility has risen rates twice since 2011 to keep pace with rising costs. In November 2011, the utility proceeded with a full rate case increase, and in June 2014, a 3-percent SRC was implemented.
“The SRC is an effective tool to help the water utility keep up with inflation in operating costs,” Saubert said. “The SRC cannot be contested by an water utility customer.”
By law, municipalities across Wisconsin need to go through the time-intensive, costly process of going before the state Public Service Commission, or PSC, when large-scale rate increases take place. This is not necessary, however, for SRC filings.
While water rate increases, outside of SRCs, go under the microscope of the PSC, the same is not said of wastewater rates. Under state law, no increases for that utility are not subject to review and approval by the PSC.
