DC WASA Board Chairman William M. Walker today announced that the board of directors adopted water and sewer rate increases at the September 3, 2009 board meeting, at a rate slightly lower than that proposed in January 2009. “The biggest drivers of DC WASA’s rate increases are the multi-billion dollar capital projects, many mandated by the U.S. EPA , said Chairman Walker. “Third-party analysis demonstrates that DC WASA is a very efficient utility. The average water bill for DC WASA customers is exactly in the middle of 20 other major US cities with which WASA benchmarks itself. But any rate increase, particularly one in the midst of these troubled economic times, is taken very seriously by the DC WASA board and only in consideration of the long-term financial health of the Authority.

Beginning October 2009, the new combined water and sewer rates will increase from $5.61 per hundred cubic feet (Ccf) to $6.12 per Ccf. The combined costs of water and sewer charges remain less than $.01 per gallon of metered water.

The Impervious Area Surface charge (IAC) will be increased from $1.24 to $2.20 and the District’s PILOT / ROW (payment in lieu of taxes and right-of-way) will increase from a combined rate of $.52 per Ccf to $.57 per Ccf. The ROW/PILOT fees are charged by the District of Columbia government to DC WASA, and are passed through as a separate line item on the customer’s bill. For the typical residential customer, this will result in a bill increase of about $5.63 per month, based on an average monthly usage of 6,231 gallons of water, or 8.33 Ccf.

Added Walker, “These rate increases are also necessary to continue investing in our aging infrastructure. Valves, pumps, water mains and sewer lines are reaching or exceeding the end of their useful life, and funding their replacement is a challenge. While we aim to keep the ratepayer burden low, every year we must balance our obligations to provide safe and reliable services, to protect environmental health and to keep our rate increases predictable and gradual for our customers.”

The proposed rate increases were communicated through various media and discussed with residents at a public hearing and community meetings since first announced in January 2009.

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About The District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority
The District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority (WASA) is an industry-leading authority of District government that provides drinking water and wastewater collection and treatment for a population of more than 500,000 in the District of Columbia. DC WASA also treats wastewater for a population of 1.6 million in Montgomery and Prince Georges counties in Maryland, and Fairfax and Loudoun counties in Virginia. The Authority operates the world’s largest advanced wastewater treatment plant, with a capacity of 370 million gallons per day and a peak daily capacity of more than a billion gallons. DC WASA’s service area covers approximately 725 square miles.