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PUAB: Water rate study under way; customer charge to be implemented Jan. 1
Summary
Members were told Black & Veatch is conducting a water rate study with results expected late spring or early summer; the board approved a customer-charge change to be implemented Jan. 1, phased into bills early in the year, and staff will run outreach so customers are not caught off guard.
Speaker 1, a board member, opened the meeting by flagging a citywide water-rate study and a target schedule for implementation. "We decided January 1 would be a really good date to do that," Speaker 1 said, noting staff need time for testing before holiday billing cycles.
The consultant Black & Veatch is conducting the study; Speaker 1 said the firm is expected to complete its analysis in late spring or early summer and that any recommended changes would return to the board and then to the City Council for consideration. "The water rate study, there may or may not be an increase," Speaker 1 said, but added that rising costs make some upward recommendation likely.
Speaker 5, discussing electric utility billing, confirmed a related billing change: "That's gonna be implemented January 1 as well," he said of an increase to the customer charge, cautioning that customers will likely see the effect on their February bills after routing and billing cycles are applied.
Interim city manager Grama Publoff (Speaker 7) said staff and the city attorney are preparing ordinance and ballot language tied to governance changes but emphasized that rate-study work and customer-billing changes follow regular administrative and legal review.
The board also discussed outreach: Speaker 1 said utility billing will run a short public messaging campaign over the next months to notify residents of upcoming billing changes so "we won't be catching everyone off guard, hopefully."
The board did not record a formal vote on the rate study in the transcript; the customer-charge implementation was presented as an administrative step with phased billing timing and planned public notice. The next board meeting is scheduled for Nov. 20.
