San Diego County water rates look poised to go up — but not as steeply as feared. That could create its own problems.
Local water bills might not be going up quite as sharply next year as expected. The [San Diego] County Water Authority’s board tentatively shrank a proposed rate hike for wholesale water from 18 percent to 14 percent on Thursday — despite concerns the move could hurt the water authority’s credit rating. An increase in wholesale rates will force nearly every local water agency to pass on the extra costs to its customers, but just how much gets passed on could vary widely. Some agencies buy less wholesale water than others, especially those with groundwater basin storage or other local water supplies. The board delayed a final vote on the proposed 2025 increase to its July 25 meeting, but a coalition led by the city of San Diego had enough support Thursday to reduce the increase to 14 percent. It would be part of a three-year set of rate hikes that would cumulatively raise rates by more than 40 percent when compounded — if the board also follows through on a 16.4 percent increase in 2026 and a 5.7 percent increase in 2027.
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