Mesa Consolidated Water District hikes rates

Paul Clinton

Mesa Consolidated Water District board members have approved an

11.2% monthly water rate hike to pay for higher energy and water

costs.

The five board members unanimously approved raising the basic

water rate from $1.41 per unit -- or 748 gallons -- to $1.61 per unit

at a meeting Thursday.

“The last couple of years, our rates have been too low,” said Fred

Bockmiller, the water district’s director. “We haven’t covered the

cost of our operation.”

The district last raised its water rates in 1995.

To cover the district’s expenses, the board had been dipping into

a $1.5-million reserve fund of money set aside to improve the

physical operation of pumping water out of ground water wells and

delivering it to homes and businesses.

The new rates are set to go into effect Oct. 1. At that time, the

average Costa Mesa resident is expected to pay about $3.20 extra per

month, spokeswoman Amanda Gavin said. The average resident’s bill,

which comes every other month, will increase from $45.12 to $51.52.

The district also charges a $12 bi-monthly fixed fee as its “basic

rate.”

Back in 1995, the district locked in the basic water rate at $1.33

per unit. After the state’s 2001 energy crisis caused spikes in

energy costs, the agency added a 10-cent energy surcharge, which was

later lowered to 8 cents. The 8 cents extra has been incorporated

into the new rate as an ongoing cost, Bockmiller said.

“Electricity is still expensive,” Bockmiller said. “We buy it from

[Southern California] Edison. Edison’s prices haven’t dropped.”

When residents receive their new bills for the cycle beginning

Oct. 1, they will see the new rate broken down into five categories

-- water supply, water quality, water system, capital expenses and

energy.

Prior to adopting the new rates, the water district hired a

consultant to review its rates and fiscal policies. The consultant,

Economic and Engineering Services, returned with the recommendation

that the board embraced. The district paid $52,000 for the consultant

work, Gavin said.