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Weatherford utility staff recommends keeping $800,000 annual transfer; reserve target remains $6 million
Summary
City utility staff told the Weatherford Municipal Utility Board that the Lake Benbrook pumping reserve currently holds about $4.6 million after a full $800,000 transfer; staff recommended maintaining the $800,000 annual transfer and the board took no formal action, leaving the $6 million target in place.
The Weatherford Municipal Utility Board on Tuesday received an annual update on the Lake Benbrook pumping reserve fund and staff recommended maintaining the current practice of transferring up to $800,000 per year into a reserve that has a $6,000,000 target balance.
The recommendation came as Rick Schafer, speaking for utility staff, summarized the policy’s purpose: to mitigate the cost of purchasing and pumping water through the city’s Tarrant Regional Water District (TRWD) contracts so the utility can avoid surcharges to customers during drought. Schafer said the reserve currently stands at about $4.6 million after transferring the full $800,000 from fiscal year 25 into the fund.
Why it matters: The reserve and annual transfer are the city’s hedge against expensive emergency pumping during extended drought. Schafer said the board’s model incorporates projected changes in water demand, electricity costs and TRWD’s tiered rates; together the reserve and annual operating funds should allow Weatherford to meet a drought‑of‑record scenario without adding a surcharge to customers’ bills at today’s consumption levels.
Schafer outlined TRWD’s three tiers: Tier 1 (Sunshine Lake pumping, mostly energy cost), Tier 2 (Weatherford’s Benbrook allocation, about 2,700 acre‑feet) and Tier 3 (above the allocation). He said TRWD’s projected Tier 2 rate for FY26 is roughly $0.30 per 1,000 gallons and Tier 3 was projected near $1.43 per 1,000 gallons; TRWD issues final, settled rates the following February.
Board members asked operational and policy questions, including when the city typically initiates Tier 1 pumping (Schafer said pumping normally begins in August and is done with a single pump to reduce energy cost) and whether electricity to run pumps is paid from the reserve or another fund (staff said it can be charged to the reserve or paid from the electrical fund; this year it was paid from the electrical fund).
On the length of time the reserve would cover drought costs, Schafer said the $6 million target, combined with annual operating funds at current consumption and rates, ‘‘gets us through that 7 year drought with essentially the reserve fund balance just getting down to 0.’’ A board member asked staff to prepare historical context on the 1950s drought of record (and 2011) for a future meeting.
There was no formal board action required to adopt a change; staff’s recommendation was to maintain the annual transfer and the $6 million target and to continue annual review of the policy.
Provenance: staff presentation and discussion (topic introduced SEG 166; last related discussion SEG 497).
