05-08-2013 Council Agenda - Laserfiche WebLink

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Sewer Rates The Utility Billing Clerk took a call from a resident shortly after bills were sent out regarding her water and sewer charges for the first quarter. This resident lives in a townhome and typically had first quarter usage down around the 15,000 gallon threshold that triggers the minimum sewer charge. This past quarter her usage was much higher and that meant her sewer bill was much larger as well. She was concerned that she would be paying the high sewer rate for the rest of the year even if her water usage dropped back down to her normal levels. The sewer rate is set for each residential property based on the first quarter water usage at each property. The theory is that residential properties use the lowest amount of water during first quarter when they aren't watering their yards or other outdoor activities. The sewer charge is based on this usage and increases in usage throughout the rest of the year are considered to be related to irrigation and other outdoor activities where the water doesn't end up in the sewer. The townhome presented a unique situation in that it is unlikely the water usage will increase because their lawn is watered through the association, which has a separate water line and meter for irrigation. Therefore, after researching the issue, staff is recommending changing the utility billing policy to allow the sewer rate to be billed lower if a residential property's water use decreases in subsequent quarters following the first quarter billing. Under the current policy residential properties include single family homes, townhomes, and multi - family homes such as apartment complexes. For example, if a house had a first quarter water reading of 25,000 gallons that resident would be billed for 25,000 gallons of water and would be subject to a sewer charge based on the 25,000 gallons of usage. If the resident's usage dropped to 18,000 gallons during the second quarter the sewer charge would be based on 18,000 gallons of usage rather than 25,000 gallons as is the current policy. If the resident's usage went back up to 38,000 gallons during the third quarter the resident would be billed at the first quarter sewer rate based on 25,000 gallons. The first quarter will set the sewer rate ceiling. A property will not be subject to a higher sewer charge if its water usage goes above the first quarter rate, but its sewer rate can go down if water usage goes down. If the rate does go down it is not reset for future quarters. It can still increase up to the ceiling set after the first quarter if usage goes hack up. Staff recommends the City Council approve the new sewer billing rate method. 5