On November 16, the Chicago City Council unanimously approved a City of Chicago budget that will increase water rates charged to suburbs receiving City water by 70% over the next four years. Rates are set to increase 25 percent on January 1, 2012, and an additional 15 percent each of the next three years.
Of the $823 million to be collected by the City next year, approximately $569 million is for the City Water Fund and $254 million is for the City Sewer Fund. It is well settled law that the City may not charge suburban users for costs related to the City sewer system, nor for costs not reasonably related to the water system.
According to a recent analysis by the Chicago Reader, the Chicago budget appears to violate that principle. The Reader states that “Of the $823 million the city plans to collect in water and sewer fees next year, about $220 million will be set aside for other purposes.” Under the City’s plan, suburban users will pay for approximately half of the water rate increase.
If the Reader’s analysis is correct, the City’s water rate increase must be challenged. The West Central Municipal Conference met recently to discuss this matter and is considering an appropriate response. In my opinion, the City should provide a clear and specific accounting, before the increase is imposed, of where and how money collected from the suburbs will be spent. Once the City collects this revenue it will be extremely difficult and costly, in both time and money, for suburbs to try to audit how this revenue is spent.
As of now, all we have from the City are general assurances that the water rate increase will not be used for non-water related costs. I don't think general assurances are good enough when the suburbs pay approximately one-half of the City's water revenue.
If necessary, Riverside should oppose the water rate increase to the extent it includes non-water related costs and ask neighboring communities to do the same.
Municipalities like Riverside are already struggling under unfunded mandates from the State and cannot afford to underwrite the City's financial problems. It is bad enough that Riverside is not taking care of its own infrastructure; we cannot be expected to pay for the City's. I fear this is what happens when budgets are manipulated to appear to make good on campaign promises.
If the City's assurances are well founded, it can easily show that to be the case before the water rate increase is imposed. If the suburbs are going to pay half the cost, the City can afford to meet us halfway and provide details on how our money is going to be spent.
I encourage residents to familiarize themselves with this issue.
Here is a link for the Chicago Reader article analyzing the water rate increase:
Here is a link for a Landmark story on the City's water rate increase:
http://rblandmark.com/main.asp?Search=1&ArticleID=8193&SectionID=1&SubSectionID=1&S=1
Here is a link for the City Budget. Water Fund detail starts on page 231.