Water Ain't Cheap Anymore

For the nerds who want articles on, ugh, utilities! (That's more or less what my blog promises, but it doesn't get you any plusses at parties.)


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PUCO ruling for OHIO AMERICAN
Water customers facing rate gusher
Thursday, November 13, 2008 3:32 AM
By Martin Rozenman
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
Ohio American Water customers in Franklin County will see a big jump in their water bills soon.
Yesterday, the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio approved an average rate increase of 30 percent for water and almost 37 percent for sewer service for customers in Franklin and Portage counties.
Ohio American's customers in the Ashtabula, Lawrence County, Marion and Tiffin service areas will see an average increase of 11.18 percent for water service, the PUCO said in a news release.
The increase, originally requested a year ago, will become effective today and be reflected on the next bill, said Mary Beth Johnson, a spokeswoman for Marion-based Ohio American. The company will average old and new rates into the number of days in the next billing cycle, she said.
The typical water and sewer bill for Lake Darby neighborhood residents will jump more than $30 to more than $105 per month, [$315 per quarter]Prairie Township trustees wrote in a September letter to PUCO Chairman Alan Schriber.
They called the increase a "budget buster" and said customers of the Franklin County water system pay $56.16 a month for comparable service.
Ohio American Water has about 8,000 customers in Franklin County. Areas affected are: the Blacklick neighborhood in Madison Township, Huber Ridge in Blendon Township, Lake Darby and Westpoint in Prairie Township, the Franklin County portion of Worthington Hills, the Timberbrook neighborhood in Norwich Township and a small portion of Truro Township.
The company has about 52,000 water customers in Ohio, Johnson said.
The PUCO looked at the company's expenses between January 2006 and June 2007, Johnson said. During that time, the company invested almost $9 million in its system and was trying to recover its costs.
Blendon and Prairie township trustees and the Huber Ridge Area Association in Blendon Township told the PUCO that the higher bills will drive residents away and send their communities into a downward spiral toward becoming rental neighborhoods.
Prairie Township Trustee Steve Kennedy said the PUCO commissioners ignored protests from 450 people who attended meetings and 255 written complaints.
"For this case to get rubber-stamped after all that is totally ridiculous," Kennedy said. "It sent a message to the public that those hearings don't mean anything."
As part of the ruling, the next rate increase Ohio American seeks must be a step-increase, in which the amount is divided over several years. During that period, however long it is, the utility cannot seek another increase.
mrozenman@dispatch.com