From The Pueblo Chieftain (Chris Woodka):
The board sat down with staff Tuesday to look at specifics in the proposed budget, and will consider approval of the budget following a public hearing at 2 p.m. Tuesday. The water board is looking at a $30.2 million budget in 2001 that is actually less than the previous two years. However, there were extraordinary expenses and revenues in 2009 and 2010…
A 5 percent increase means the average residential water bill will increase $1.45-$1.58 per month, based on 11,000 gallons used per month, depending on tap size. In summer, it would be less than $5 per month, based on higher usage for lawn watering of about 30,000 gallons in a month. Since the drought of 2002, residential use has decreased, and the budget is built on projections of 123,000 gallons annually per residential account, said Seth Clayton, manager of the financial division. In 2009, one of the wettest years on record, single-family households averaged 118,000 gallons. In 2010, use is projected to be 128,000 gallons per household. Similar patterns have been seen in multifamily and commercial accounts. “October and November have been drier and warmer than usual, and that’s really boosted revenues,” Clayton said, in estimating revenues from metered water sales that will come close to projected $20 million this year, about 70 percent of total revenues…
Pueblo water rates increased dramatically during the early 1980s, then hardly at all until the mid-1990s. Since then, they have increased by 1.5 to 5 percent annually.
More Pueblo Board of Water Works coverage here.