A report was done by Black & Veatch in 2006 to establish the average cost of water in the state of California. The average cost of 15 units of water is $36.39. In Cambria, under our current rate schedule, we pay $78.42. In the proposed rate increases, we would have paid the completely egregious amount of $232.67, which is more than 6 times the state average.
I am a member of the California Restaurant Association which publishes average revenues plus average food, labor and overhead costs. As a restaurant owner in the small town of Cambria, I am proud to say I stay well within the averages of the state. The CCSD claims their costs to be under the state average. What they fail to state is that their revenue is double the state average. In my business if I were able to double my prices, my costs would be half of the state average. Remember, our water company has a monopoly on the product they sell. They don’t have competition to keep them honest on how they price their product. That is the job of our representatives on our CCSD board. Obviously, we have major over staffing issues that need to be addressed. In my opinion, one of the first places to look for savings is in the amount of administrative overhead that is being taken from the water and wastewater fund to cover general fund costs.
I want to thank all Cambrians for getting involved with the rate protests, but we must stay involved and hold our board members accountable to achieve meaningful change.
