H.B. moves to increase water rates

Huntington Beach has taken its first step toward increasing water rates to ensure the city can pay for its water.

Council members unanimously approved on Monday the first reading of an ordinance that is aimed at increasing water meter rates for residents by 1.1% and water commodity rates by about 4.4%.

That translates into about a $1.04 increase overall each month on single-family home water bills.

The increase is expected to bring in an additional $1.1 million during the 2015-16 fiscal year.

Should the ordinance be approved at its second reading, the hike in water rates would go into effect Dec. 1. Huntington Beach last adjusted its water rate in 2011.

Councilmen Billy O’Connell and Erik Peterson initially were opposed to the increase, saying the city’s rates should be declining after years of educating the public to conserve water.

However, city Finance Director Lori Ann Farrell Harrison told the dais that the city would have to take out about $940,000 from its water enterprise fund each year to cover for rising water costs.

Harrison said there is about $24 million currently in the fund and removing that amount of money each year would negatively affect the city’s credit rating. Additionally, money removed from the reserves would impact the city’s ability to make emergency water infrastructure expenditures, such as replacing a broken water main.

“When you’re dipping into your reserves at almost $1 million a year for an operating budget, that’s very significant and eventually will limit the city’s ability to make infrastructure repairs and maintain this really important system,” she said.

Mayor Jill Hardy concurred with Harrison, adding that some parts of the city’s water infrastructure are 20, 50 or 100 years old and that the increase was necessary to ensure that the city has extra money for any emergency expenditure.