Beaverton council selects uniform water consumption rate after public hearing, 4-2
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Summary
After a public hearing with dozens of public comments, Beaverton City Council adopted Resolution 4920 to set a uniform water consumption rate rather than a tiered cost-of-service structure. The vote was 4–2; councilors debated trade-offs between conservation incentives and bill impacts for large customers and HOAs.
Beaverton City Council on Monday adopted Resolution 4920, establishing a uniform water consumption rate and retaining fixed monthly meter charges by meter size, rejecting a tiered, cost-of-service approach. The motion carried 4 yes, 2 no, with one member absent.
Staff told the council the two options before them would raise the same total revenue needed to meet the water utility's debt and capital plans: (1) a cost-of-service structure that divides single-family residential consumption into tiers, or (2) a uniform consumption rate for all users. Susan Cole, assistant director of finance, described a 10-year financial plan intended to fund roughly $347 million in water capital projects through fiscal 2030 and said the city has used a Federal Environmental Protection Agency loan program (referred to in the presentation as a WIFIA/WIFI loan) as part of financing for major projects.
The cost-of-service (tiered) option would give lower bills to low-use households and send a stronger conservation price signal, Cole said, but would raise rates for large residential users and for some customer types such as public facilities and irrigation-only accounts. The uniform option would be simpler, keep the same unit rate for all customers and avoid larger increases for public entities and irrigation customers.
Public testimony at the hearing reflected that split. Gary Keck, planning and development manager for the Tualatin Hills Park & Recreation District, said THPRD preferred the uniform consumption rate and asked that irrigation accounts owned by public agencies be classified as public facilities if a cost-of-service model were chosen. David Savage, a Beaverton resident and homeowners association board member, said a shared-irrigation arrangement for his HOA would lead to much higher bills under tiered rates and urged the council to adopt the uniform model. Other residents, including Deborah Gibson and Sandy Smith, described high fixed fees on small households and supported measures that lower bills for low-volume users.
Council debate divided along similar lines. Councilor Hartmeyer Prigg and Councilor Kimmy supported the uniform rate, citing immediate bill impacts on households and public partners; Hartmeyer Prigg said staff and community outreach had been thorough and the uniform option was the more equitable choice at this time. Councilor Duggar and Councilor Teeter voiced support for tiered rates on policy grounds: Duggar called tiering “the right idea” to incentivize conservation and encouraged tweaks to mitigate unintended impacts on groups like HOAs; Teeter said per-person cost differences under tiering reduce his concerns about large households. Councilor Hassan said she remained supportive of tiering in principle but voted for the uniform option because of current household bill impacts. Mayor Lacey Beatty voted in favor of the uniform rate.
Councilor Kimmy moved adoption of Resolution 4920 (the uniform consumption rate); Councilor Hartmeyer Prigg seconded. The roll-call vote was recorded as: Councilor Duggar — no; Councilor Hartmeyer Prigg — yes; Councilor Hassan — yes; Councilor Kimmy — yes; Councilor Teeter — no; Mayor Beatty — yes. One councilor was absent. The motion carried, 4–2. Staff said it will continue outreach after the council decision so customers can estimate bill impacts using the city's online bill calculator.
Why it matters: City staff said the choice was required so the water utility can meet its debt-service obligations while funding major resiliency projects, notably the North Transmission Line intertie and related investments to diversify Beaverton's water sources. Councilors framed the debate as balancing near-term affordability and equity for public partners and some households against the longer-term policy goal of encouraging conservation.
Votes at a glance - Resolution 4920 — Adopt uniform water consumption rate (mover: Councilor Kimmy; second: Councilor Hartmeyer Prigg). Outcome: approved, 4 yes, 2 no, 1 absent. (Referenced in article.) - Resolution 4919 — (presented at hearing as the alternate tiered option). Not adopted.
Next steps: Staff said the city will implement the council's choice and continue customer outreach (bill calculator, notices) so customers can estimate changes under the adopted structure.
