As you may be aware, Aqua Texas is proposing an exorbitant rate hike for the water and wastewater services provided to our community. After years of proving themselves as a bad actor, this corporation is seeking to profit even more off our hardworking residents – they have proposed charging as much as $20.81 for water customers and $32.48 for wastewater customers to your base rates, meaning regardless of how much water/wastewater you use each month!
This rate case has been progressing at the State Office of Administrative Hearings (SOAH). On July 11, Watershed Association, Woodcreek Property Owners Association, and TESPA filed joint testimony of expert witness Bill Stannard, PE. Following extensive review of information Aqua has submitted, Stannard found such deficiencies and errors in Aqua’s application for a rate increase that he issued his opinion that the application should be returned. According to his analysis, Aqua has included numerous submissions of expenditures that are not applicable as justification for their proposed rate hike.
The Office of Public Utility Counsel, the agency responsible for representing, protecting, and promoting consumer interests, also filed its expert testimony, which also asserted the application for a rate hike should be rejected in its entirety. Clearly, the experts agree.
Next week, on Wednesday 08/07, at 9:00am Aqua Texas will be going before two SOAH Administrative Law Judges asking to charge you more money for the water you depend on. It’s simply outrageous that Aqua – after years of destroying our water systems, over pumping hundreds of millions of gallons, and refusing to follow state and local laws – is now asking to raise rates on our Wimberley community.
We invite you to watch for yourself and hear what Aqua is trying to do. Our attorneys will be asking our judges that the hearing be hearing live streamed on the SOAH YouTube channel – watch at https://www.youtube.com/c/stateofficeofadministrativehearings will also find updates on our website following the hearing, which you can find at https://ourwaterourtexas.com/rate-case/
When: August 7th-8th
Time: 9:00 am
Where: Online (SOAH YouTube Channel)