Monthly Water Bills to Increase
By: Mitch Carr
Updated: September 10, 2009
Look for your monthly water bill to go up once again.
The Lubbock City Council voted 4-3 this morning to increase fees.
Residential meters will now be charged an extra $3 a month, bringing the total storm water utility fee to $9 per month.
The fee for commercial meters will be increase by $19.92 to a total of $59.74.
The money will be used to pay for street maintenance where storm water collects and erodes the pavement.
Councilman Floyd Price noted that money does not go on trees. He said it's going to be tough for his constituents to pay higher water bills.
"Where's the money going to come from to pay for these fees? We don't have a fee tree in the back that we can go in the back and say, 'Well, I don't have to worry about my taxes. I've got a fee tree in the back I can go back and raise-- go and pluck off these dollars and pay for these fees,'" Price said.
But Councilman John Leonard says the money has to come from somewhere. With a tight budget going into effect on October 1, this fee increase was necessary.
"I find it curious that lots of council members will vote for projects. They'll vote for the street maintenance. Then they won't vote to fund the debt that they're creating through this program," Leonard said.
Leonard also pointed out that the storm water causes the problems with road conditions, so it makes sense to increase the fee on the use of that storm water to pay for road maintenance.
The fees will take effect when the budget takes effect on October 1, 2009.
