Slowly but surely the San Diego County Water Authority has scaled back on next year’s proposed water rate increase. Officials initially proposed an 18 percent increase, then lowered their proposal to 12 percent. On Tuesday, they came down on the rate hike again, suggesting to the San Diego City Council an increase of 10.4 percent.
That wasn’t good enough for several councilmembers.
Councilmember Sean Elo-Rivera was adamant the Water Authority could find ways to reduce the rate increase even more.
“Part of my criticism from the last month and a half or so, is I don’t think CWA feels the pressure that we feel from having to talk to people who are barely getting by,” he said. “The complete disregard for the impact of the costs on the people that we serve is unacceptable.”
Councilmember Marni von Wilpert suggested the Water Authority might look at freezing vacant positions or reducing capital projects as ways to reduce costs.
“I just need you to keep doubling down on this,” she said.
The council’s beef with the Water Authority has been ongoing.
Back in January, von Wilpert expressed deep frustration with the Water Authority’s proposed hike as well as its existing contracts, requiring it to buy large amounts of water regardless of demand. Von Wilpert was so frustrated she suggested the city simply not pay its water bills.
Elo-Rivera then ramped up the tension in April. He wrote a letter to Dan Denham, general manager of the Water Authority, warning that if the authority couldn’t produce lower rates, the city might leave the authority or take steps to dissolve it entirely.
The Water Authority delivers water to multiple cities and water districts throughout the county, but the city of San Diego exerts more control over the agency than others. It controls ten seats on the agency’s 34-person Board of Directors.
At Tuesday’s council meeting, part of the discussion centered on reducing the Water Authority’s budget for communications and paid sponsorships.
Elo-Rivera, for instance, questioned why he sees advertisements for the Water Authority on Voice of San Diego’s website. (Voice accepts paid sponsorships from many organizations.) Elo-Rivera suggested the sponsorships were really about influencing decision makers, not engaging with the public.
“A communications budget that helps folks understand how to engage with you, that’s one thing,’ Elo-Rivera said. “A communications budget that seems aimed at influencing decision makers feels very different.”
An analyst from the Independent Budget Analyst’s office agreed that more could be shaved off the Water Authority’s communications and paid sponsorships budget.
Part of the update touched on a recent announcement that the Water Authority reached a settlement with Metropolitan Water District. After a 15-year legal dispute costing an estimated $20 million, Denham said, the door has finally been opened for the authority to sell water to regional partners and explore out-of-state sales in the future.
That has the potential to bring rates down for San Diegans.
Denham said that a large part of rate increases has to do with rising labor costs.
He also said some of the upcoming rate hike is collateral damage from Fallbrook Public Utility District and Rainbow Municipal Water District exiting the Water Authority in late 2023.
Nick Serrano is the deputy chief of staff for Mayor Todd Gloria. He is also chair of the Water Authority’s Board of Directors. He called the council’s feedback instructive and said there’s time to incorporate ideas to cut costs.
A similar showdown between the City Council and the Water Authority took place over last year’s proposed rate hikes. The Water Authority initially proposed a 24 percent hike, which eventually came down to 14 percent.
But this time around von Wilpert said she thinks the city and the Water Authority are both genuinely working to reduce costs.
“I think this is the first time the city and the Water Authority are really thinking about what to do to reduce rates,” von Wilpert said.
Elo-Rivera was less congratulatory.
“What I’ve heard — to be totally blunt — is a lot of ego and a lot of pride about previous decisions instead of a direct response to the very real needs of the people in our community.”
I don’t think CWA feels the pressure that we feel from having to talk to people who are barely getting by
says the guy who jacked up trash fees and parking rates. the guy talks out both ends.
Exactly!
Thats all they can do – open their holes.
The ten City delegate’s votes are counted as a single vote of greater than 42% weight. The majority of City delegates determines how the single vote is cast.
The City determined to fight the Fallbrook and Rainbow detachments arguing they were not willing to pay their “fair share” of SDCWA fixed costs incurred to improve, repair, and replace infrastructure scaled to produce far more water than currently required. There is no way to “right size” this infrastructure. Now the City is unwilling to pay its “fair share” and insists that users pay for this excessively large infrastructure in proportion to use rather than in proportion to the emergency and/or future use benefits provided.
The SDCWA business model is determined by the City for the political advantage of the Mayor.
Elo-Rivera’s comments describe how he treats his D9 constituents.
The San Diego City Council Monday unanimously approved the Residential Tenant Utility Charges Ordinance in a move aimed at protecting renters from unfair utility billing practices.
The new measure prohibits landlords from overcharging tenants for essential city-provided utilities including water, wastewater and waste management services.
The ordinance was introduced and championed by Councilmember Sean Elo-Rivera, who has emphasized tenant protections as part of a broader push for economic justice and housing equity.
Apparently housing equity doesn’t include homeowners who get overcharged for trash fees. Ego-Rivera at his finest.
“This is about more than bills, it’s about respect and transparency,” Elo-Rivera said. “No San Diegan should be kept in the dark about what they’re paying for, especially when it comes to necessities. We are fighting against predatory practices and fighting to build a city that puts people before profit.”
Says the bait and switch trash man.