Title
Incorporated County of Los alamos Code Ordinance No. 02-294; An Ordinance Amending Chapter 40, Article III, Sections 40-171, 40-173 and 40-175 of the Code of the Incorporated County of Los Alamos Pertaining to Potable and Non-Potable Water Rates and Bulk Delivery Rates
Recommended Action
I move that the Board of Public Utilities approve Incorporated County of Los alamos Code Ordinance No. 02-294; An Ordinance Amending Chapter 40, Article III, Sections 40-171, 40-173 and 40-175 of the Code of the Incorporated County of Los Alamos Pertaining to Potable and Non-Potable Water Rates and Bulk Delivery Rates, and forward to Council for adoption.
Staff Recommendation
Staff recommends approval of the motion as presented.
Body
This proposed water rate adjustment is in accordance with the long-range financial sustainability plan for the water utility that has been under discussion for the past two years and was presented in detail and discussed by the Board at its regular meeting in January 2019. The following staff report is a representation of the details presented at that preliminary discussion. As requested, the attachments have been updated to include affordability assessments for Los Alamos average household income, and New Mexico average household income as well.
The ten-year forecast for the water utility presented with the FY2019/20 budget includes a series of incremental rate increases to generate revenues needed for current operations and to build cash reserves necessary for future infrastructure needs. Over the course of several meetings of the Board of Public Utilities in the fall of 2016 several alternative scenarios were considered. After discussion, “scenario 40” was selected as the most reasonable balance between increased rates and necessary system expenditures, and was the foundation upon which the ten-year budgetary projection was based. A 6.25% increase in both retail and wholesale sales is proposed, plus an increase from $2.50 per ...
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