The San Diego County Water Authority board approved a 9.5% increase in wholesale water rates for its member agencies in 2024, citing the need to fund critical water supply projects.
The authority’s $1.85 billion budget for the next two years includes capital projects considered “critical for maintaining safe and reliable water supplies” in the event California returns to drought.
The impact of the wholesale rate increase on residential rates will vary based on the amount of water used by each of the 24 member agencies in the county, as well as individual usage by customers.
“The board and staff have worked tirelessly for months to minimize rate increases while supporting the reliability of our water supply,” said Board Chair Mel Katz. “Despite cost increases created by extraordinary inflation and depressed water sales, we have a budget that allows the water authority to do what it does best — provide the water that sustains our economy and quality of life.”
Officials blamed the lower water sales on an exceptionally wet and cool winter following years of drought.
The authority has invested billions of dollars in projects like the Carlsbad desalination plant, upgrading the All American Canal and raising the height of the San Vincente Dam to ensure water reliability. During the recent record drought, the San Diego region was not required to cut water use.
To soften the blow of the new rate increase, the authority’s board will draw down $30 million from its Rate Stabilization Fund, which was created in 1990 to help avoid rate spikes.
Approximately 90% of the authority’s budget is for buying, treating and delivering water and debt service on infrastructure projects designed to ensure water is available during droughts.
