Charges Applied to Water and/or Wastewater Bill
Basic Service Charge – Water – The charge is a fixed monthly amount that is associated with providing water service regardless if any water is used. The cost to read meters, send out bills, certain labor costs, office costs, debt payments. These are all costs that are incurred without pumping any water. As such, in order to ensure adequate revenue to cover the non-variable costs, a fixed charge is applied.
Capital Reserve Charge – The Capital Improvement Charge of $7.50 per month is used to place money in an escrow account required by the Texas Water Development Board (TWDB). A loan was obtained from the TWDB to pay for the purchase of the wastewater system and for certain water system improvements. The loan covenants require that the District accumulate one year’s worth of payments for the loan within 5 years of receiving the loan. Every month, $4.50 is applied to the aforementioned escrow account and $3.00 goes to a capital reserve account. The Capital reserve account is available to address unexpected failures of system components. The Capital Reserve is maintained separately.
TCEQ Fee – The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) is funded by applying a charge to the water/wastewater bill of all customers throughout the state. The rate of the charge is ½ of 1% of the bill.
Lost Pines Groundwater District (LPGD) – The Water District obtains water from a groundwater source. Various locations throughout the State of TX are governed by Ground Water Districts which manage the withdrawal of water in an effort to make it sustainable. The entities that withdraw water from the aquifers are required to support the efforts of the “Groundwater District”. The District is charged $1,600 per month by the LPGD and the cost is applied to the monthly bill.
Volumetric Water Usage Charge – This charge covers certain fixed costs such as labor expense, maintaining hydrants, fixing leaks, etc. as well as variable costs associated with providing water service. Charges for electrical and chemical expenses are associated with the variable cost to pump water.
Wastewater Charge – If you are connected to the wastewater collection system, a flat monthly fee is charged. The great majority of the cost associated with the wastewater system is paying for debt to purchase the system from LCRA. The expense is irrespective of the amount of wastewater entering the system. As such, the monthly expenses to run the system are consistent and requires adequate cash flow to fund the payments. How much water you use has no influence on the wastewater charges.
Pump Maintenance Fee – If you are connected to the wastewater system, The District owns the grinder pump that transfers the waste to the collection system. The $.75 per month is set aside to cover the cost of maintaining the pumps when they fail or need service.