Lukins seeks 53.9% water rate increase
By Kathryn Reed
Paying for the more than 6,000 feet of lineal water line Lukins Brothers Water Company put in doesn’t stop with the contractor’s last bill.
The South Lake Tahoe company’s liability insurance went up 60 percent because of those lines.
In the last two years Lukins has put in 6,000 lineal feet of 12-inch line, 450 feet of 6-inch line and 16 fire hydrants. This gives 40 percent of the 963 customers adequate fire protection.
Lukins has been upgrading its water line to meet fire suppression standards. Photo/LTN file
Because there was a cost savings of $200,000 the contractor will be back out in the spring to start on phase two. This is enough money for at least another 500 lineal feet of 12-inch line and two more fire hydrants.
This $2 million project is being paid for with a $15 to $25 surcharge that the 963 ratepayers started seeing on their bills this year. The California Public Utility Commission guarantees the loan will be repaid via the 20-year surcharge.
But bills may be even higher if the small private water company gets its way. It has asked the state PUC to raise rates by 53.9 percent, or $283,546.19 a year.
This will increase the average flat rate residential bill by $19.43 per month, so the quarterly bill becomes $167.52.
“It focuses on your operating expenses,” Jen Lukins, who runs the company, said of the rate increase. “No one is paying less for power, gas, fuel or insurance than they did 10 years ago.”
She said the CPUC looks at several years of data to determine what it deems to be reasonable ratepayer costs.
“The cost of producing water is going up; the cost to comply with state regulations is going up,” Lukins said.
She said there are only so many places the company can cut back.
Some of the money raised would go to replacing the 1982 truck that doesn’t have a heater and is barely running.
The last increase of this nature was in 2009. Lukins had asked for a 66.7 percent increase and was granted 36.03 percent. Before that rates went up in 2000.
Lukins said she would prefer more gradual increases, but how the state handles the requests it would be impossible to do so annually or every couple years.
“If we don’t get it, it means budget cuts, operating on a tighter budget, less improvements to the water system, not installing meters, continuing with old equipment and not being able to make upgrades,” Lukins said. “We are not trying to be extravagant.”
—-
Notes:
• There will be a meeting before the CPUC about the rate increase on Oct. 27 at 6pm at Lake Tahoe Airport.
• Protests to the rate increase are due Oct. 23. They must be sent to the CPUC at water_division@cpuc.ca.gov and to Lukins Water Co. at 2031 West Way, South Lake Tahoe, CA 96150.
• A copy of Lukins’ filing with the CPUC is available for review at the company’s office on West Way. The request was filed in June.
Water meters. I recall reading that Tahoe Keys will be exempt from having water meters. Someting to do with the number of customers that are served by their own water facillity. If true that would be a shame because there are so many lawns out there that spill fertillzer from the over watered lawns into the lake coming from the Keys homeowners. OLS
Their system has no value. They depend on STPUD for fire protection and now regular water service to their customers. A free water connection from STPUD, still charging their customer, and what 60% more, and no new wells have been mentioned. Collecting money for no service. NICE
OLS, The PUC has different thresholds for compliance, based on the number of customers. The lower the # of customers the longer you have to comply.
As lukins steals more money from its customers I can for sure see that there wont be alot of conservation happening when your water bill for not using water will be hundereds of dollars. Until my meter is in ill be watering whenever I want seeing that im paying hundereds of dollars for the privledge of getting a bill but not alot of benefit. Their telling us they plan on raising our bill again to pay for the system upgrades and they tell us to stop watering our landscaping. Not likely to happen at the cost they want. They have changed the rates three times in the last two years and now they want to increase it another 54%. There isnt even any real substance in the request except to say thats what they want. Lukins water users need to send in their letters and show up at the meeting.
Lou pierini, Thanks for the clarification as to the water meter compliance. OLS
I don’t think any of our water should be owned by private companies. It should be part of the commons, especially since the upcoming water shortages will make any previous fuel shortages look trivial in comparison. You can live without oil, you’re dead without water.
Its not, they own the pipes. You pay for that.
OK John, They should not own the pipes either. There has probably never been a more important use of eminent domain than this water issue.
Okay…I just pictured 5000 years of human development evaporating and now thinking of the time before Pharaoh…But I will bite Kevin, who pays to put in the pipes?
The pipes already exist. You obviously don’t understand the mechanism of eminent domain. Try to understand the basic concepts of the problem before making inane comments.
If you comdem it, some might think it’s worth something, it’s not.
Some have asked STPUD to take over Lukins. I’m against that. The estimate to bring that private company up to what is required of STPUD is over $18 million. There is no reason that I can see that the STPUD rate payers would want that cost added to their bills. Even though Lukins can get it done with less expense it is still a big bill to handle for that private company’s approximately 900 customers. The water intertie with STPUD was supposed to be for emergencies like pumps going down or maybe fire. No easy answers out there on the Lukins issue.
I agree with Duane, and I’ve heard STPUD has looked into this enough to realize even taking it for free isn’t worth it.
Maybe there’s a way the 900 customers can create their own general improvement district, take over the system and obtain some grant funding to bring it up to standards.
Yes lets get grant funding. Also known as having someone else pay for you to get service. Now that is totally irresponsible.
Hi Dwane, You know this issue as well as anyone, thanks for the response.
Does anybody know how much it might cost to put in a well for someone that owns a house in the Lukins district… ball park?