California City to See Water Bills Spike

Healdsburg, California, residents can expect their water and sewer bills to go up by 21 percent beginning in August after a rate hike was approved this week by the Healdsburg City Council.

According to the city's Water and Wastewater Cost of Service and Rate Design Study, this could amount to as much as $34 per month for some residents in the Northern California community.

The water rate hike includes a 20 percent increase the second year, then the hike drops to 13 percent in year three. Wastewater rates will increase 18 percent in the first two years and 15 percent by year three.

According to reporting by the Press Democrat in Santa Rosa, California, revenue generated from the three-year rate hike is projected to generate $13.9 million. The city said the revenue will help improve and maintain its water system, including fixing bursting pipes.

Monthly average bills for single-family homes in Healdsburg are $61.01 for water and $92.55 for wastewater services, according to the Water and Wastewater Cost of Service and Rate Design Study. When the rate hikes take effect in August, average rates will jump to $73.73 for water and $110.18 for sewer.

The Press Democrat reported that Tallia Hart, CEO of the Healdsburg Chamber of Commerce, told the City Council on May 20 that a local hotel could spend an additional $10,000 and a coffee shop could spend $3,000 more, per year, due to the new water rates.

Newsweek reached out to Healdsburg City Council on Monday afternoon for additional comments. This article will be updated with provided statements.

Healdsburg Utilities Director Terry Crowley told the Press Democrat that the increased costs will help secure new water supplies. The city currently gets about 80 percent of its water from the Russian River. Officials are concerned about the looming elimination of the Potter Valley Project's dams, which would impact flow along the Russian River, the second-largest river in the nine-county Greater San Francisco Bay Area.

"We would see more often the curtailment of our water rights along the Russian River," Crowley said to the City Council during a meeting on March 28, as reported by the Press Democrat.

With the increased revenue, the city will also aim to fix existing wells and increase the amount of water it can secure via purchase from the Sonoma Water transmission system.

In addition, Crowley told the Press Democrat that the rate hikes and subsequent actions will make the city's residents more stable and secure during drought years.

The news in California comes as municipalities across the nation have recently considered an increase in water bills for a variety of reasons, ranging from new nanofiltration systems to reduce the levels of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, known as PFAS, to less water storage in reservoirs because of damaged dams.

Albuquerque, New Mexico, is considering raising water and sewer bills to cover an increase in fuel, power and chemical costs, and Broward County, Florida, is considering a water bill increase to pay for a new $300 million water treatment plant.