Get ready to get soaked on your water bill.
The San Antonio Water System tomorrow will unveil to City Council a proposal to jack up water bills by more than 10% over the coming two years, a 5.8% increase in 2018, followed by an increase of 4.7% in 2019.
The water rate hikes are not unexpected, and Anne Hayden of SAWS says a big chunk of the 2018 hike is beyond SAWS' control.
"We are under an EPA consent decree, which requires that we put a lot of money into our sewer system."
The local storm sewer system is antiquated and too small for the city, which is why whenever we get a heavy rain, there are reports of large sewer spills throughout the city.
Hayden says there are also technical advances planned.
"We are going to look at automated meter reading, which is going to result in a better accuracy rate for our customers."
And there are water projects, including the massive Vista Ridge pipeline project.
"With Vista Ridge, we will have sixteen water projects from nine different sources," she said. "That is truly important as we look into the long term future."
But don't expect the higher water bills to flow quietly through City Hall. At least one Council member, Greg Brockhouse, says he will bring up the fact that the SAWS board just gave the company CEO Robert Puente, a bonus of $99,000, which is about twice the average annual salary in San Antonio, and is now begging for more cash from the same ratepayers who just lined Puente's pockets.