OJAI : Water Rate Increase Proposal Criticized

A top Ojai official criticized Wednesday a request to increase area residents’ water rates, saying the plan would punish the elderly, those on fixed incomes and those who use less water at a time of deepening drought.

Ojai City Manager Andy Belknap said the structure of the rate increase requested by the Southern California Water Co. also would raise the average customer’s rates by more than the 25% estimated by the water company.

The private utility has asked the California Public Utilities Commission to approve a 24.9% rate increase next year to finance capital improvements. The company said the increase would add $6.15 to the average residential water bill, now $31.86 for 2,500 cubic feet of water per month.

Further proposed increases would amount to $3.71 more on the average bill in 1992 and an additional $2.79 in 1993.

Ojai residents are already paying more for their water than people in other areas of western Ventura County, said Belknap, citing a recent telephone survey.

A major concern, he said, is that almost all of the rate increase would be added onto a fixed component of customer bills, regardless of how much water is used. The $5.75 per month service charge would more than double to $11.80 per month in 1992.

As a result, the increase for people using a lower than average amount of water is in effect greater than the 24.9% increase the company quotes.

Belknap said other water companies are adopting tiered rate structures that impose higher charges as consumption increases.

Belknap’s comments came after a public hearing earlier this week on the proposed rate increase.