Cape Council members vote to place water-rate increase on November ballot

Cape Girardeau City Council members at their Monday, Aug. 5, meeting approved the first reading of a proposal to increase water rates on the ballot for the Tuesday, Nov. 5, general election.

After years of water system deterioration, the city is facing $120 million in needed upgrades. Alliance Water Resources, which manages the municipal water system, has identified limitations to available gallons per day because of the deteriorating system and source water issues. Municipal officials are considering water rate increases and a 10-year system rehabilitation program.

President of gettinggreatrates.com Carl Brown completed a survey of the city’s water rates and sent it to Mayor Stacy Kinder on June 28. In the executive summary of his report, he recommended a “partial restructure scenario” for the city’s water rates.

Brown referred to the city’s current rates as “modest”, citing their affordability index standing at 0.71%, while the national average is “thought” to be 1%.

“That means, the 'average' household using 5,000 gallons of water per month pays 1.0 percent of its income to pay the water bill,” Brown stated in the survey.

He said with rates to fully fund the improvements for the water system and the reserves, the city’s affordability index would rise to “1.04%”. Brown stated the 5% water-rate-increase restriction in the city's charter would “leave over $24 million” of unfunded improvements.

Under Brown’s recommended “partial restructure scenario”, the monthly minimum charge for a residential 5/8-inch meter, for example, would be $17.45. The city is following this suggested increase with its proposal, going from its current residential 5/8-inch meter at $10.37 monthly minimum charge to $17.45.

The cubic-feet usage rate of water also would change. Currently, customers pay $3.151 per hundred cubic feet of water up to 6,000 cubic feet of water, and then $2.428 per hundred cubic feet of water above that amount. Under the proposal, the price would change to $3.96 per hundred cubic feet of water up to 7,000 cubic feet of water, and $3.05 per hundred cubic feet of water above that amount.

City finance director Lisa Mills said the rate increase is the same “across the board” for the city, commercial and residential customers.

“Everybody gets the same rate, 89% of all customers in the city will see an increase in their monthly bills ranging between $8.19 and $13.89 per month,” Mills said.

Per the agenda report, "the City shall not increase water fees by more than (5%) in any given year unless authorized by simple majority voter approval." Mills also clarified that when people vote for the increase, the city could increase beyond the charter’s 5% only that year and if another increase is needed, there would need to be another vote.

Ward 3 Councilman Nate Thomas said while “it’s not fun” to increase costs, he's glad the city staff kept in mind to keep costs relatively low even with an increase.

“I think historically, the council has prided itself in keeping the rates so low being a conservative community, and so their citizens don't have to pay as much,” Thomas said. “And nobody wants a catastrophe like Flint, Michigan, to happen, and then we have to pump a bunch of, I mean, an overload of tax dollars in to remediate the damage that's caused.”

The council approved placing the measure on the ballot with a vote of 6 to 0, with Mayor Stacy Kinder absent.