New Braunfels City Council greenlit the plan, which will go into effect on Nov. 1 and will increase water rates, wastewater rates and electricity rates each year through fiscal year 2022-23.
City Council previously held a workshop with NBU on Oct. 5 to discuss the plan in detail before the first reading of the plan Oct. 12, recordings of which can be viewed on the city website.
Water rates will increase by 7% in FY 2020-21, by 8% in FY 2021-22 and by 8% in FY 2022-23, according to information from NBU, and wastewater rates will increase by 16.5% in FY 2020-21, by 13% in FY 2021-22 and by 13% in FY 2022-23.
Electricity rates for delivery and customer charges will increase by 5% in FY 2021-22 and by 10% in FY 2022-23. Customers can expect overall 1.3% and 2.6% increases in their electric bills for FY 2021-22 and FY 2022-23, respectively.
In addition to increased rates, the water supply fee charged by 1,000 gallons of usage will increase by $1.05 in FY 2020-21, by $2.49 in FY 2021-22 and by $2.79 in FY 2022-23. In an effort to mitigate costs for customers, those who use 7,500 gallons or less of water each month will not have to pay a water supply fee, NBU CEO Ian Taylor said.
Over the next five years, NBU plans to invest $587 million into over 70 capital improvement projects, including expanding wastewater treatment plants, installing new water storage tanks and repairing aging electric infrastructure.
Information from NBU states in March 2021 the company will deploy a communication plan with targeted customer interaction for utility bill management tools. The company also plans to introduce a low-income rate program to assist residents with setting up utilities payments.
Rates for FY 2021-22 will kick in Aug. 1, 2021, and for FY 2022-23 that date will be Aug. 1, 2022, according to NBU.
