LIHU‘E — Water rates increased slightly Thursday, but the new fees include a variable lifeline water-usage, depending on the meter size. Monthly basic rates for customers using a 5/8” meter, for example, increased to $13.20 from $10 per month. The
LIHU‘E — Water rates increased slightly Thursday, but the new fees include a variable lifeline water-usage, depending on the meter size.
Monthly basic rates for customers using a 5/8” meter, for example, increased to $13.20 from $10 per month. The new fee for the 5/8” meter, however, includes 1,000 gallons of free water monthly.
Customers are billed every two months. If a customer uses less than 2,000 gallons of water each billing period, then the increase will be more noticeable.
David Craddick, manager and chief engineer at the county Department of Water, said the lifeline addition will likely encourage those who don’t use water to free up the meter.
The DOW separates the price of water in usage blocks. Despite that the water rates will remain basically the same, the block-usage limits have been dropped, which could potentially mean a roughly 6-percent increase depending on water usage.
If a customer uses up to 7,000 gallons of water per month, the rates will remain the same.
Because the limit on the block-usage has been dropped, customers who use about 10,000 gallons per month, which was the previous cut-off for usage for block I, will end up paying block I and block II fees, whereas up until June they were paying only block I fees (cheaper than block II).
Block I fee per 1,000 gallons is $3.20; and block II fee per 1,000 gallons is $4.
Prices will vary according to four different rates of block-usage, plus the size of the meter.
Go to www.kauaiwater.org for more information.
