Meters getting little credit for less water consumption
By Ed Fletcher, Sacramento Bee
As communities around the Sacramento region continue to install water meters, a number of local officials say the devices are not saving as much water as expected.
Water usage is definitely declining, but other factors – including a poor economy and years of conservation education efforts – are having as much or more effect than meters, they say.
“People are more aware of being green and using water efficiently,” said Shauna Lorance, general manager of the San Juan Water District. Water savings are less dramatic when people are already in conservation mode, she said.
Over the last decade, water usage by area households has dropped from about 290 gallons to 240 gallons per person per day, about 17 percent, according to the Sacramento Regional Water Authority, an umbrella agency of water districts from West Sacramento to El Dorado and Placer counties.
In Roseville – which just this week completed a 10-year, $12 million project to retrofit 16,000 homes with meters – usage has dropped steadily since 2006, according to city data.
well let see if the city of SLT can figure out the implications of this information?
just got my meter bill (water) on top of the $66, an extra 399.75 for water usage was added! Total bill 538.31 this is unacceptable. My neighbors and i started with contaminated bare soil after the fire. trees, landscaping and turf are necessary to avoid flooding. Strange to see people hosing down their driveways that still pay a flat rate for years to come- this is an insensitive injustice, and i encourage anyone with a meter “spinning” to help us fight this mandate. We informed the stupid board that this would happen- only a few of us saw the big picture?
The STPUD Boards past policies coupled with the State law have created an inequitable situation that puts ratepayers at risk during a severe economic recession in our area. This is helping to cause more families to leave the area putting more of the burden upon upon fewer and fewer residents. Perhaps an appeal to Governor Brown for an exempmtion on economic grounds or for those in the Angora Fire area as disaster
relief.
As it stands the situation is unfair and inequitable.
Let’s face it, we have a unique situation here relative to the rest of the state of California. We have a large aquifer, it’s called Lake Tahoe, and it recharges quickly. The California mandate is well intentioned but paying out millions for meter installations is just not a good use of our money.
Anybody running for the open STPUD seat want to talk about this? Can we not talk about common sense ideas anymore?
When we’re finished with that let’s start talking about the insane Fire regulations like tempered glass and sprinklers in every new home. Talk about bureaucratic job killing overload. What’s next, do the police get to tell me what kind of locks I can use or fine me for not locking my windows?
Meters make sense for many communities, we’re not one of them-
Water use can be measured via sewer flow in the winter when the is no outside use. If you measured that you would not need water meters.
John, how much available water is in STPUD’s aquifer? How much of this water is used? If my info is correct, this district has over three times, possibly four times, as much water as is used by the population. This water can’t be used anywhere else in CA, unless a pipeline over the mountains is built (no chance).
What say you Mr. Runnels or any other candidate for STPUD’s board?
Watching America self-destruct everywhere I look doesn’t make it any easier to watch my home town follow suit.
The men and women who make our laws if not suicidal are certainly in the final stages of dementia. Excuse me for the editorial, but I hate to see America going straight to hell. The great experiment called America has failed.
Such a shame.
The metering is not going to change. The rate charged is a choice of STPUD and not a single is addressing this. The consultants hired by STPUD stated that the current rate is necessary to ensure grants are awarded. But if that is correct then we are one of two communities that are eligible for grants. STPUD has the second highest per gallon rate in the State of California.
By the way, John Runnels stated that he would follow the consultants report without critically reading it first.
Lets hope that the “meter” installation fund stays dry. Sorry for those that have them because its BS.
I have been using less water during this summer, and my bill is higher. I knew it would be. My lawn is dry, and STPUD says my bill will be lower in the winter when we aren’t watering our lawns. I won’t hold my breath.
My STPUD bill has gone from $153 last quarter to almost $500!! this quarter. There are only 2 of us living in the home and all of our irrigation is on a minimal drip system. This is ridiculous!!
One of my neighbors lives by herself and she just received a $750 STPUD bill! I do not see how a family can any longer afford to live in SLT anymore. It is just one more reason we are considering leaving California.
Also, what has STPUD done to try to downsize their bloated infrastructure and employee base?? They should get rid of half the admin and employees.
So let’s get this straight, STPUD is charging the second highest rate in Ca IN ORDER to qualify for grants so that they can then install all these meters that we don’t really need? Understood that it’s a state mandate, but insanity seems to breed more insanity.
I understand there are production costs, but who exactly are we saving all this water for? We’re all shoveling it all winter long, now we’re paying extra high rates so that we can qualify for grants so we can……come on guys. And let me guess, the rates don’t go down once we HAVE the grant money.
Everybody is complaining about the STPUD rate structure. I have a water meter and my bill is much higher. I also have a rental property with a meter without any yard watering what so ever and it is higher as well.
Who should we blame! Ourselves for electing these same STPUD board members time and time again and then our community just keeps on complaining. Is this pattern working for us???? I think not.
Rate increases are necessary, who else but the captive ratepayers are going to pay for the gourmet coffee delivered to the STPUD offices? I have seen the delivery truck making its delivery of goodies.
COME ON….I do not agree with the mindset that rate increases are necessary. STPUD is a bloated monopoly. Most of us have had to cut back substantially to survive this downturn. WHAT has STPUD done?? Given themselves raises.
I see this water meter mandate as a big mistake. But then again it depends where you live. I read somewhere that the Tahoe Keys won’t be metered, not enough customers and they have their own water company.
Personally I’m very frugal with my water use. Tiny strawberry patch and a few Coloumbines and the beginng of a vegatable garden for next year.
So who gets affected by the meters? The poorer neighborhoods with older homes and people living on fixed incomes, that is if they have any income at all.
What has become of my beloved So. Shore after all these years?
Old Long Skiis
Meters are mandated by the State of California. STPUD does not get its water from Lake Tahoe – it is all groundwater. I haven’t studied the rate structure closely enough, but perhaps you should check out the IVGID (Incline Village) page on their water rates. Besides being charged a base rate equal to almost $90 a quarter, they have a tiered rate system designed to “encourage” conservation. I think Tahoe’s had it pretty good for some time with everyone being charged a flat rate, regarless of what they used. I always tried to conserve water and had a drip system and my neighbor had a ridiculously huge (and I mean huge) lawn that was very lush and green – and we paid the same amount every quarter. Now you have to pay for what you use and you’re crying wolf. You use it, you pay for it.
Just another South Lake Tahoe Gouge!
Ever notice people behinds in South Lake Tahoe are red like a “bamboo’s!”
“Now you know WHY!”
I agree that people trying to recover after the Angora fire need more water to restore their property, but how long should we give them a break? I have one of those beautiful park-like yards that many enjoy and help beautify the neighborhood. With the higher rates our city will become uglier and will attract less tourists. I voted for Mr Runnels, hope he does what he says.
Nobody said we get our water FROM Lake Tahoe. Just because the lake ends at the beach doesn’t mean it stops straight down through the ground.
Our aquifer is connected to Lake Tahoe. I mean, how can you have a 1600 ft deep lake and not have a huge surrounding aquifer-
We don’t have a water problem, we have a bureaucracy problem. Sure, no free lunches, just get the rates right and get off the water meter crap-
mr.right-i may be in the angora zone. but i am speaking for all of the other baseline locals who support this community year round! the metered rate set by stupid (sic) and their overpaid consultants is morally corrupt. Please, no class warfare here- just common sense
Am I the only person with a meter (mine was installed August 2010) who is still not getting a metered bill? When I calculated what my new bill would be with my metered usage (since my bill shows what I use) it actually WENT DOWN by about $60 a quarter. I did the math several times and have been wondering for more than a year why my bill never changes. I’ve been paying over $200 every quarter (this includes sewer)since I moved here in 2005. Is it possible that STPUD is only billing the metered amounts to people who’s bill increases? I do live alone and barely water outside, so I would expect a lower bill. I feel like with all of these comments and my situation, maybe something very fishy is going on? My single (Gardner Mtn) neighbor has also had a meter for ages and sees no change in her bill. Any ideas? Class action suit? What’s going on here?
miss frugal-you have a meter, but most likely are not in the system to moniter it. sounds like you are paying flat rate. a call to stupid (sic) will answer your question- thx, tc
I haven’t seen changes in my bill either, and I have been on a meter for about a year. I think it is time to make a call.
Don’t tell them, Miss Frugal! Maybe they didn’t notice you!
We’re metered because we built our house in ’02 and had to purchase one then. We paid a flat rate till recently, two cycles ago maybe. Initially our bill was WAY lower, but then they raised the rates TWICE so now we pay much more. And I’m not happy about it either.
My water bill was $202.07 for 1st quarter 2011, $302.60 for 2nd quarter 2011 and is $865.15 for 3rd quarter 2011. At this rate, my water bill will be higher than my property taxes for this year.
I do not have grass (I have a drip system for my front yard only), I have a high efficiency washer, and 3 people in my family. I plan on having their water auditor come over and see if they find an underground leak.
I just cannot grasp why it is okay for newer homes to pay metered water while older homes continue to pay a flat rate and many will for years to come. In addition, I have co-workers who already have water meters but they are still not hooked up and running.
I called STPUD and they explained that the State mandated this change. Does anyone know the state agency contact information?
I did suggest to STPUD that they might want to revise the article they posted last year stating that the average resident will experience a decrease to something like “If you have grass, a drip system, or any other water using device – you are screwed”.
see ya
Mr. Right, Runnels said that he would follow the recommendations of the consultant hired by STPUD. That consultant told STPUD that the way to get the most grant money was to have one of the lowest monthly base rates in the state and the second highest per cubic foot rates in the entire country. There is no tier system. Why would you vote for him. The answer is not efficiency, this is basic math, the price of a gallon of water out of your faucet is one of the highest in the entire United States.
The basic monthly rate does not even come close to covering the basic fixed expenses of maintaining a system. That means locals who use water daily are subsidizing second homeowners. And you support that?
Julie, there MUST be a problem with your system. Our bill for summer was still only a bit under $300 and we do water on the allowed days. We try to be frugal, but it sounds like you are more so. You definitely need an audit.
The meter issue did not start with STPUD and it did not start recently. The state of California passed (another) unfunded mandate leaving the local districts to figure out how to pay for the changes directed in AB 2572.
Since 1992, State law has required water meter installation as part of all new construction. In 2004, the Legislature passed AB 2572, requiring all water suppliers to install water meters on all customer connections by January 1, 2025.
The law requires all metered services billed at a metered rate, so that water bills reflect water consumption.
Julie, everything you said is correct, but ignores that the STPUD has independently and without any legal requirement chosen to have the second highest rate in the State of California. Every water company charges a connection fee and then a fee for consumption. State law does not set those rates. STPUD chose the rate.
John, evidently prefers the current situation at STPUD which is his right.
I for one would like to see:
#1 The number of STPUD employees that live in the District.
#2 The number of STPUD employees that have water meters and are paying the metered rate.
I would also, if elected to the Board, put forth a motion that all STPUD Board members and all STPUD employees have water meters installed and read for billing, before anyother water meters were installed on other ratepayers properties.
How can a Board member act on, enforce, or encourage, a practice or policy such as water meters in good conscience without being bound by it as well as ratepayers!
Ooooohh, I LIKE that idea. See how the management and employees feel about the rates if THEY’RE having to pay the metered rate. I really like that idea.
Let’s face it, there is nothing public about this utility. It is a for profit company, funded by the citizens of this community, so that the CEO and all his club members (employees) can enrich themselves and subsidize there own lifestyles and there brand new 12 million dollar building. I have lived here too long and known many stpud employees. we all know what is going on. We all need to band together and put a stop to this greedy, corrupt agency. I was in the office to pay my bill a few years ago and actually heard the people in the office brag about how they had just implemented a rate increase and no one complained. They were soooo proud of themselves. That is what we are dealing with.
John,
I’ve had a meter for over 19 years, I was one of the first. They just started reading it and my last bill was up $100 over the flat rate. We shall see if my bill will be much lower over the winter to balance it out as they claim.
For those of you who don’t know my position on meters you can find it right here at:
https://www.laketahoenews.net/2011/09/vogelgesang-the-key-word-in-stpud-is-public/
Randy
John, come on man. This is simple. There are fixed costs, and those are high in Tahoe because STPUD inherited garbage water systems that have to be upgraded. Then there are variable costs. Those are the costs associated with delivering another gallon of water. The current monthly connection fee does not cover the fixed costs allocable to a property. The rate charged for a cubic foot of water makes up for that.
That rate is not set by the state.
I could not care one bit where a person lives. Thats just a red herring. The entire issue is how the high fixed costs are allocated to a finite number of customers.
Us locals who are on meters are paying the connection costs of second homeowners because they don’t use water. So they are paying $20 a month roughly. That is half of what it costs to have the capability of delivering water.
Randy, you get it, there is a very different rate for locals and second homeowners who are both on meters because locals use water. But, the districts costs are not very different for each group.
I do see the three acre irrigated yards, so maybe a tiered system would be most equitable.
I will say this, ask a firefighter how they feel about 30 feet of grass surrounding a home. We should not penalize that.
I have just received my latest bill and although all of my neighbors have been getting billed on a metered rate for months, i was told i had a glitch in my meter and it could not be read because of the deep snow. Funny, there hasn’t been snow on the ground near my meter for 6 months. Why did they neglect to tell me this until i called? Maybe because my bill would actually have gone down. They also told me that i had the option of staying on the fixed rate until next Jan, 2013 so they could continue charging me more money. Sounds a little fishy wouldn’t you say?
First, I am perplexed by John Runnels’ comment about wanting to know where STPUD employees live. If he’s elected to the Board is he going to tell employees where they can live? If he does get elected, I guess we’ll have to start calling him Dictator Runnels instead of Director Runnels. Secondly, the simple reason that meters were installed for new construction, including the burn area’s new construction, is because it makes economic sense to do so. If STPUD worked 365 days a year to install meters (which you are aware they can’t do due to TRPA regulations), they still wouldn’t be able to install all the meters during one building season – it would be simply physically impossible. Additionally, the STATE OF CALIFORNIA LAW requiring meter installation costs money and which do you think is better – to charge you smaller rate increases or to charge you a huge one so that they can get all the meters in at once so you can all stop whining about you having a meter and your neighbors not having one? It is my understaning that their Information Officer was able to get an exemption to the mandatory water metering for YEARS through a lot of effort on his part and unfortunately was able to this last session. Your conspiracy theories are really unbelievable – and you guys can vote too! I think an IQ test should be required before most of you starting typing here.
I have no interest in requiring STPUD employees to live within the District.My question was towards determining how many were affected by District policies.
I know that at least one of the employees who was asking pointed questions of the Candidates at the STPUD Candidates Forum neither lives nor votes in the State.
To clarify John’s response that the fixed costs are so high because STPUD “inherited garbage water systems” is untrue. The District acquired these water systems by the wish of previous boards, just as they are trying to acquire Lukins Water System. I believe that the current move to acquire Lukins is to justify their large number of employees in the Engineering and other departments which if they do not continue to acquire systems and push for more capital improvement projects are unjustifiable. I believe that the acquistion of Lukins is a bad move for the District. I also believe that the current ten year capital improvement plan should be spread out over a longer period of time. This would decrease the need for rate increases during this time of economic hardships on our community.
I further agree with STPUD CFO Paul Hughes that incurring more indebtedness is unwise and unsupportable in terms of the Districts falling revenues from property taxes received, capacity charges, and State and Federal grant funding. We can not simply put our head in the sand and pretend that the adverse economic conditions do not exist or will evaporate tomorrow.
I have educated myself to the inner workings of the District over the past six plus years. I have attended scores of STPUD Board and Committee meetings, field trips, consultants presentations, and Public meetings. I believe that the District and it’s previous Boards have failed to react and respond to economic conditions and State mandates through anything other than raising rates.
I am a member of this Community who has lead groups and fought to improve this Community over the past 4 decades. I haven’t just decided to get involved since the August filing date.
Stop the apathy and complaining, I believe you have an IQ and can use it. Break the ongoing cycle of the same thing over and over again and vote to send a message.
Thank you for your comment, Ferdinand, as I think we are in the same boat. I will be curious to hear what STPUD will say when I call and ask about why I have not been getting metered bills. The idea that they gave you a CHOICE of whether or not to receive a metered bill and gave you until January 2013 to make that choice seems entirely unethical when most of the town would choose not to have the metered bill. Hmmm… I wish we could all get together and compare bills and see what is really going on.