47% Hike in Sewer Fees Favored by Council Committee

A San Diego City Council committee Wednesday referred to the entire council the politically ticklish matter of increasing sewer and water bills to pay for upgrading the sewage system, for cleaning up waste water dumped into the ocean and for water reclamation.

On a split vote, the Rules Committee favored a portion of a plan proposed by City Manager John Lockwood to raise the average family’s sewer bill 47%--from $13.52 to $19.87 monthly--as early as next month, according to city officials.

However, Lockwood’s recommendation for an additional 47% increase the next year was held in abeyance, as the committee peppered the administration with numerous questions it wants answered before going along with further increases.

The committee’s pattern of favoring Lockwood’s first-year increases while deferring the second-step hikes held up throughout the other parts of the sewer- and water-rate proposal.

According to officials for the Water Utilities Department, they will now ask the City Council to approve a new rate structure that includes the following:

- Water. A 25% rate increase--from $16.32 to $20.40 a month--for the average family effective Jan. 1. Water hookup fees for new homes would skyrocket 160%--from $616 to $1,690--effective as soon as next month if the council approves. The hookup charge mainly affects developers, who, in turn, would pass on the costs to home buyers.

- Sewer. Aside from the 47% increase for the average family, the sewer hookup cost for new homes would increase by 95%, from $1,617 to $3,153, effective as early as next month. Lockwood had asked for a 75% increase, to $2,986, starting in July, but the committee favored the higher amount as a way of making new growth pick up more of the costs of extending the system.

The hearing was often confusing, with several committee members making competing motions, and even some of the city officials involved in the meeting said later that the committee avoided definitive action, with some important exceptions.

The committee, for example, clearly only referred the first-year increases, and it asked for additional information on a variety of topics, such as whether the proposed second-year rate hikes could be offset by using a larger portion of the budget reserve recommended by the administration.

Scientists Testified

Several scientists testified that the city’s current discharge of treated sewage into the Pacific Ocean causes no significant problems, and that improving treatment to the level required by the federal government--at a cost that could reach $4.2 billion--would provide only a marginal upgrading.

The scientists, testifying at the urging of Councilman and Rules Committee member Bruce Henderson, a vocal opponent of the federal requirement, have said before that the cost of constructing the improved system is not worth the environmental benefit. The committee voted to require City Atty. John Witt to look into issues raised by the scientists and to report back to the City Council in a closed session.

The council considers such a discussion confidential because it is being sued by both the federal and state governments over how quickly the new system can be installed.

Council members, such as Ron Roberts who is a member of the committee and supports the upgrading, have expressed concern about residents having to absorb the full increases so soon. As late as 1987, sewer rates for San Diegans were $8 a month.

And Roberts said Wednesday he is also concerned that about half of the proposed sewer-rate increases are to pay for operation, maintenance and improvement of the existing sewage system, a fact he contends has not been fully explained by the administration.

The council is expected to discuss the sewer- and water-rate issue sometime in July.