Fountain Valley water, sewer and trash rates creeping up

Fountain Valley residents will be paying more for their water, sewer and trash collection services.

The City Council unanimously approved two packages of rate increases Tuesday that will raise the typical water and sewer bill by $7.31 per household and the trash bill by 54 to 62 cents.

Increases to the water meter flat rate, sewer flat rate and variable water use fees, all of which are charged every other month, will bring the average total bill for a single-family household from $109.55 to $116.86 starting in July. That assumes 25 units of water use per billing cycle (a unit equals 748 gallons).

Other increases would follow for the next four years, with the average bill reaching about $145 bimonthly for water and sewer in 2022.

The proposed water and sewer increases are intended to cover the cost of water, operations, maintenance, infrastructure and equipment repair and replacement, and compliance with regulations, according to the city.

“Nobody likes to sit up here and raise rates, but we also don’t want you to be compromised on your drinking water,” Councilwoman Cheryl Brothers said.

Currently, the bimonthly charge for a typical household water connection is $14.56, the sewer flat rate is $12.74 and the water use fee is $3.29 per unit. The new structure bumps that to $15.62 for the water connection, $13.24 for sewer and $3.52 per unit of water.

The city last increased the rates in 2013.

The council also unanimously approved an immediate increase in the trash and recycling fee to be charged by city contractor Republic Services, based on the Consumer Price Index. That means a 62-cent increase on a regular bimonthly bill, from $38.22 to $38.84. The rate under the senior citizen discount increases by 54 cents per bill, from $33.76 to $34.30.

Rate adjustments through 2022 also are subject to the CPI.

hillary.davis@latimes.com

Twitter: @Daily_PilotHD