Utility Rate Increases - June 4, 2019

On the heels of the budget resolution, Council took up the question of increasing utility rates and passed the following rate increases:

Electric: 3.67% across all rate classes

Water: 4% (typical monthly rate goes from $59.36 to $61.68)

Wastewater (sewer): 4% (typical monthly rate goes from $42.38 to $44.02)

Storm Drainage: 1.9% (typical monthly rate goes from $4.90 - $4.99)

Transportation: 2.5% (typical monthly rate goes from $8.83 – $9.14)

I voted for the rate increases, not because I want Ashland residents to have to pay more for utilities, but because I believe the numbers brought forward by staff in consultation with professionals who calculate rates for a living are an accurate reflection of what it costs to maintain these infrastructure systems in our community.

It is easy enough to defer maintenance of infrastructure in the short run as it is not likely that problems coming from that lack of investment will be felt in the near term. However, not paying those expenses does not mean that those expenses simply disappear. Quite the opposite, actually. Deferred maintenance often creates greater expense because what starts out as a minor repair, when neglected, can easily turn in to a major rebuild. And, those rebuilds need to be paid for at the same time as other regular maintenance needs to take place. These together cause future generations to have to significantly increase investment in infrastructure systems just to get back to a functional system.

The environmental and climate policy decisions made by the previous generation of leaders has created serious global challenges for future generations. To refuse to pay our bills in real time simply adds to those challenges. So, while I am never happy to vote for rate increases, and while we should always be looking for efficiencies in our infrastructure program, we also need to be responsible to both current Ashland residents in decisions about utility rate increases needed to maintain our infrastructure systems.