It was wrong for CVWD to increase residential rates without having conducted a proper rate study. If CVWD refuses to reverse the rate increases, I plan to pursue a referendum on the ballot to have the increases repealed.
In truth, CVWD sells water to commercial developments, like golf courses, at absurdly low rates. Low rates mean high profits for developers, so they over-develop and over-consume, imposing unsustainable burdens upon our water system. These burdens deplete our aquifers, and now CVWD has made us dependent upon expensive water imports. The real problem is that commercial rates and fees are much too low, and CVWD continues to raise commercial rates only by tiny increments and at a snail's pace. Meanwhile, residential rates have doubled in the last four years! CVWD just raised your water rates last month, with another increase set for next summer, for a total of $118 per acre foot- CVWD increased commercial rates by only $7! Failure to properly manage our water resources in a sustainable manner has brought us to our knees, and we are now at the mercy of high-priced imported water.
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