The San Diego County Water Authority proposed a 3% water rate increase for 2027 on Monday, with similar adjustments tentatively planned through 2032.
SDCWA leaders said while the rate hike was painful, it was actually below the national rate of inflation and a significant decrease from earlier projections — at least partly due to two water-sharing agreements with other agencies signed this spring.
“We’re keeping our promise to working families across the region by using new revenues to minimize water rate impacts,” SDCWA General Manager Dan Denham said.
“At a time when costs are rising across the board, the water authority is focused on making a real difference for San Diegans.”
The water authority inked a deal in April to supply an annual quantity of 10,000 acre-feet to the Eastern Municipal Water District of Southern California for 21 years at a rate in year one of around $1,350 per acre-foot.
Additionally, Eastern will pre-purchase an additional 30,000 acre-feet for $19 million. All told, in the first five years of the agreement, the water authority would generate $74 million in new revenue.
The deal would begin with Eastern purchasing 6,240 acre-feet (a unit of measurement describing the amount of water to cover an acre of land in one foot of water) this year, then will add around 950 acre-feet per year until the full annual quantity is reached in 2030.
In March, the water authority and the Western Municipal Water District signed a similar long-term water supply agreement. Western will also receive a minimum of 10,000 acre-feet of water annually over the next 21 years, enough to supply around 30,000 Southern California households each year.
According to that deal, the partnership will generate $13.5 million annually in revenue for the San Diego County Water Authority, with the agreement expected to deliver around $100 million over the first five years after accounting for the upfront payments.
Water purchased as part of the deals will be delivered through existing connections within the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California’s system, meaning no new infrastructure is needed.
Additionally, the water authority is working on an interstate water transfer partnership program with the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, and agencies in Arizona and Nevada. The plan would create a legal and regulatory framework that would allow the SDCWA to “move” water from the Claude “Bud” Lewis Carlsbad Desalination Plant to areas in the Colorado River Basin that need more water.
The rate hikes announced Monday will be discussed in a public hearing before the water authority Board of Directors at 9 a.m. on Thursday.
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