City Council to weigh proposed water rate hike

Wednesday, July 2, 2003 | 9:12 a.m.

Henderson residents may find themselves paying more for water this fall, if the Henderson City Council adopts new water rates recommended by its utilities director.

The Henderson City Council Tuesday placed the proposal on its July 15 agenda for public hearing and possible vote.

The rise in water rates is a response to the ongoing drought in Southern Nevada and other parts of the West. The goal is to push residents to save water by charging more for heavier use.

For a typical Henderson family that uses an average 18,000 gallons of water a month, the monthly water bill would increase from $32.29 to either $37.69 or $37.21 under two different alternatives, Kurt Segler, utilities director for Henderson said.

The city is hoping the higher rates will increase conservation by residents from 15 percent to almost 18 percent, Segler said.

The Southern Nevada Water Authority has set a goal for 2010 of 25 percent conservation by residents.

The city's current water rates are based on a three-tier system, which charges more per 1,000 gallons as use increases. One of the proposals would add a fourth tier that would reduce the amount households can use for the lowest fee, Segler said.

The rates, if approved, could be in effect by September, Segler said, and customers could see the difference in October's water bills.

While the fast-growing city has considered higher water rates about every two years, the ongoing drought has brought the issue back to the council in seven months, Segler said. The city instituted a three-tier rate system in January.

Other cities such as Las Vegas and North Las Vegas have already raised rates in response to the drought. Henderson is working with the Southern Nevada Water Authority, the regional water manager, as the drought continues, Segler said.

There are two alternatives the city council is expected to consider.

One would raise the current rate of $1.38 per 1,000 gallons for the first 25,000 gallons by 30 cents, to $1.68.

The other proposal would keep the current rate the same for the first 5,000 gallons of water, then create a new tier that would increase the rate to $1.79 per 1,000 gallons from 5,001 to 25,000 gallons.

The rate for the heaviest users, those using more than 45,000 gallons, would go up under both plans. Under the first proposal, the rate would go from $1.99 per 1,000 gallons to $2.83. The second choice would raise that rate to $3.03 per 1,000 gallons.