#3 Water Usage Report
July 13, 2012
Water Rate Questions
Prepared by Katherine Allison, Intern
Committee Member Berry requested additional information regarding golf course water
usage rates.
From a conversation with Dave Godek, Deputy Clerk-Treasurer with the City of
Janesville, the rates charged for water usage depend on the customers’ classification
and level of usage. There are four classification categories, including residential, public
authority, commercial and industrial. The rate that an individual or business is charged
is based on both usage and in which of these categories they fall into. For example, the
residential water use is under a tiered conservation system, where the first 15 units are
billed at the rate of $0.98 per unit, the next 25 units used are billed at the rate of $1.30
per unit and anything more than 40 units is billed at the rate of $1.70 per unit. A unit
consists of 100 cubic feet of water, approximately 748 gallons. The purpose of the tiered
system is to encourage residents to conserve water.
In regards to the golf courses, the two locations (Riverside and Blackhawk) fall under
the public authority classification of usage. The charges for usage under this
classification are as follows: for the first 1000 units the cost is $1.29 per unit, the next
1900 units are billed at $1.30 per unit, and usage over 2900 units is billed at the rate of
$0.95 per unit. For the billing quarter February 3-May 3, the average water usage was
between 100-350 units for each of the two golf courses. This includes irrigation,
building maintenance, club house and regular water usage, although does not include
wastewater, storm water or other charges billed by the city. In addition, there was
variation between the golf courses, but the amount of usage was similar to the same
quarters in previous years for the respective course.
In addition, there is a quarterly service charge for the usage of the water meter, a flat
rate charged based on the size of the meter. There are 10 meter sizes, ranging from
5/8 inch (more residential) to 10 inches (used for a large facility such as a hospital).
The costs of these meters range from $9.27 for the 5/8 inch to $475.86 for the 10 inch.
Both Riverside and Blackhawk have 6 inch meters installed at the cost of $219.39 per
quarter.
Water bills can be obtained for each quarter of last year and this year through the
reading date of May 5, 2012 for either of the golf courses. The next reading date is
scheduled for August 3, 2012. Although rates have been consistent historically with
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comparable usage periods, the expected usage rates for the upcoming August 3
reading are estimated to spike due to the dry weather that has been experienced in the
area.
Lastly, although the final decision to change a water rate is approved by the Public
Service Commission, all research and recommendations are completed by the city and
forwarded to the Commission for review. No rate can be increased or changed without
approval by the Public Service Commission. Reviews of current rates have been
completed by the city no less than three times since 2008.