This article appeared in the 8/14 issue of the Palo Alto Daily Post. To stay up to date with local news, pick up a copy each day.

BY AMELIA BISCARDI
Editor of the Daily Post

For some Mid-Peninsula residents, their water bills will rise by $200 to $300 this summer due to a new pricing tier implemented by Cal Water.

People who used more than 9,724 gallons or 13 cubic feet with this new system had their bills double.

Last year, 13 cubic feet cost $13.42, but this year the price has risen to $25.72.

Cal Water has stated that residents can expect an average increase of 1.8%, but that figure is based on average water usage in 2021, when the new tier did not yet exist. This rate change affects San Carlos, San Mateo and South San Francisco, all of which are part of Cal Water’s Bayshore District.

Ken Castle, 75, of San Carlos, was expecting a $200 surprise when he opened his July water bill.

Castle’s bill has doubled from last year, from about $200 in July 2023 to about $400 this year.

“It’s beyond the electric bills,” Castle said in an interview. “Who would have thought this would happen?”

The rate increases requested by Cal Water in July 2021, effective in 2023, were approved by the California Public Utilities Commission in the spring and took effect on June 1, according to Cal Water spokesman Kevin McCusker.

Another reason for the higher bills is a so-called “pancake effect,” McCusker said: The 2023 and 2024 rate increases were both factored into the June 2024 bill. In an ideal world, McCusker said, the Public Utilities Commission would have approved the increase earlier so the rates would not have been added together at once.

McCusker explained that rates were adjusted to make them more affordable for those who use less water, but as the lower rates were adjusted, other rates were increased, in some cases doubled, to balance the situation.

When residents received the July bill, many of them were shocked. San Carlos residents took to social media to complain about the high bills. A handful of residents showed up at the San Carlos City Council meeting on Monday to complain about the price increases.

After Castle received the high bill, he called three times CalWaterhad his property inspected by a plumber, his gardener, and a Cal Water representative.

When Castle, his plumber and the Cal Water representative lifted the meter cover and dusted off the reader, they found no leak.

Joanne Trefcer, 73, a San Carlos resident for 47 years, got a surprise with her bills for June and July. Trefcer’s bills rose from about $100 in April to about $600 in July.

“I had a heart attack,” Trefcer told the Post. “I immediately called and said something was wrong.”

When they were on the phone, the customer service representative told her that he had been taking calls like hers all day.

When Trefcer asked around and found Castle and others, she wondered why no one saw this surge coming.

McCusker said Cal Water alerts residents of upcoming law changes by sending them notices when they submit their bills to the Public Utilities Commission, as well as when the public comment period for the law change begins. Before the change takes effect, McCusker said, there was information about the rate increase on a previous bill.

McCusker said starting any rate change in January allows residents to get used to the change and offsets the high water usage of the summer months.

“It’s better for customers to get small, incremental changes,” McCusker said.

The San Carlos City Council heard from four residents, including Castle and Trefcer, about the rate changes on Monday (August 12). Vice Mayor Sara McDowell had put the item on the agenda after receiving many emails from angry residents about the rate change.

The Council voted unanimously to place this issue on the agenda for the future and to ask Cal Water and the Public Utilities Commission to participate.

Mayor John Dugan added that he also wants to expand the discussion to find out what role the city plays with utilities.

“I think the city should work to ensure that Cal Water pays reasonable rates,” said San Carlos resident Justin Grant. “Consider connecting with the Mid-Peninsula Water District, which seems to offer a much cheaper water service and is obviously available in the neighboring city of Belmont.”

Local resident Stephen Wexler added that he believes the new tiered system will put a strain on the wallets of larger families.

“When I opened our water bill for June, my jaw dropped,” Wexler said. “Our bill was almost double what it was the previous month. I initially assumed there must have been a meter error, which has happened before, but no, it turns out Cal Water had initiated the largest rate increase in history. They had implemented a ridiculous new tiered system for their Bayshore district that unfairly penalizes those with larger households or higher water usage.”