20110803Press Release, Customer Notice.pdf

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UNITED WATER IDAHO FILES RATE REQUEST WITH PUC
UNITED WATER IDAHO
8248 West Victory Road
Boise, ID 83709
TEL [phone]
FAX [phone]
WI.UNITEDWATERCOMIIDAHO
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BOISE, 10, August 3, 2011 - United Water Idaho has filed for rate relief with the Idaho Public
Utilities Commission (IPUC). The request is based on a number of factors, including the cost of new
and replacement water system infrastructure, and the impact of declining water consumption over
the past few years.
The company's request is for an overall increase in revenues of $7,616,015, which represents a
19.9 percent increase. The proposed increase for residential customers is 19.9 percent; for
commercial customers it is 19.1 percent; for public authority customers it's 19 percent; and for
private fire service customers the request is for a 29.9 percent increase.
The proposed increase, if approved by the IPUC, would increase the typical residential customets
bill by approximately $5.82 per month or 19 cents per day - making the cost per gallon delivered to
customer taps on a 24-hour, seven days a week basis stil less than a penny. "During these
economic times, it's never easy to ask for a rate increase, D said Greg Wyatt, United Water Idaho
Vice President and General Manager. "However, to maintain our ability to provide safe, clean and
reliable drinking water to our customers, we must continue to invest in our water system."
Serving approximately 240,000 residents of Boise and surrounding areas, United Water is the
largest water provider in Idaho.
Investments Improve Service and Reliabilty for Customers
United Water has invested more than $20 millon in its system since the utility's last rate filing in
2009. Those investments have maintained and improved water quality, reliability, and service for all
of the company's customers. One example is the new water treatment facility at the Hilton Well,
which removes iron and manganese from the water for nearly 4,000 customers on the Bench. The
Hilton Well water treatment facility received a City of Boise EnviroGuard Award from Mayor David
Bieter for removing thousands of pounds of phosphate annually from the city's wastewater treatment
system. Another critical project was the new 600,000-gallon water storage facility serving the Warm
Springs Mesa area, which wil help provide more stable pressure and firefighting capabilities for
residents of this community.
United Water is also currently working to install 1.7 miles of new 24-inch water main along Hil Road
to improve pressure and fire protection for thousands of customers in northeast Boise near 36th
Street and continues to replace or upgrade water mains, service lines and meters throughout the
system.
United Water is performing a major upgrade and replacement of its Customer Information System.
The new system wil provide a state-of-the-art tool and support a great experience for customers
contacting the company. "This new system enables us to respond to an entire range of customer
concerns in a more timely, and comprehensive manner," said Wyatt. "These investments directly
benefit our customers and demonstrate our commitment to maintaining and updating our facilities.
We're seeking recovery of these costs to allow us to continue making improvements to our system. D
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Multiple Factors Result in Lower Consumption
Since 2003, the average United Water customer's water usage has fallen nearly 23 percent. "There
are several factors contributing to the reduced consumption," Wyatt said. "They include successful
implementation of a conservation program, as well as weather patterns, plumbing codes and the
economy." He said under United Water's current tariff structure, the lower consumption plays a role
in the company's rate filing. "Almost three-quarters of our revenues are variable based on water
usage, despite the majority of our costs for operating the water system being fixed costs. We have
requested adoption of methods to fairly balance lower usage trends against the realities of the fixed
cost basis of the water industry. The IPUC wil need to consider these alternatives when ruling on a
solution that wil meet Boise's future needs."
United Water is continually looking for ways to reduce the costs of providing service to its
customers and for ways to provide service more efficiently. As part of a national company United
Water has been able to leverage the company's size and purchase volume to negotiate
favorable unit prices (or mitigate the magnitude of price increases) on various products and
services such as chemicals, materials, insurance, health care, fleet leasing, and other products
and services.
United Water is also notifying the IPUC that it wil implement a 30 percent increase in its low..income
assistance program, UW Cares, which helps qualified residential customers experiencing difficulty
paying their water bils. In 2010, the company assisted 460 Boise families in paying their water bils.
The company funds the program, and it is not paid for by ratepayers.
The proposed increase in rates is subject to review and a decision by the IPUC, which may accept,
modify or reject in whole or in part the proposed increase. This process could take up to seven
months to complete. A copy of the filng wil be available for public review at United Water's office
located at 8248 West Victory Road in Boise, on the company's website at
ww.unitedwater.com/idaho and the IPUC website at ww.puc.state.id.us.
About UNITEO WATER
United Water Idaho provides water service to approximately 240,000 people throughout the Boise
area. It is a subsidiary of United Water, Inc., one of the nation's leading environmental companies,
providing water and wastewater services to approximately 7 milion people in the United States. In
addition to owning and operating 20 water and wastewater utilities, the company operates more than
200 municipal and industrial water and wastewater systems through innovative public-private
partnerships and contract agreements. Founded in 1869, United Water is a subsidiary of SUEZ
ENVIRONNEMENT.
About SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT
Natural resources are not infinite. Each day, SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT (Paris: SEV, Brussels:
SEVB) and its subsidiaries deal with the challenge to protect resources by providing innovative
solutions to industries and to millions of people. SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT supplies drinking water to
91 milion people, provides wastewater treatment services for 61 millon people and collects the
waste produced by 50 millon people. SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT has nearly 80,000 employees and,
with its presence on a global scale, is the world's leader exclusively dedicated to environmental
services. SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT, a 35.4% GDF SUEZ affiliate, reported sales turnover of 13.9
bilion Euros ($18.5 billon USD) at the end of financial year 2010.
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Press Contact:
Mark Snider 208-362-7328
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2011 AUG -3 PM 2: 36
Re: Notice of Application to Increas~,~e¡tes
U T ¡ L ¡ ~i ,¡,,~~,;"'"Dear Customer:
On August 3, 2011, United Water Idaho filed for rate relief with the Idaho
Public Utilities Commission (IPUC) requesting a $5.82 per month or 19 cents
per day increase in rates for a typical residential customer. The proposed
increase, if approved by the IPUC, would raise the average residential
customer's annual bill from approximately $351 to $421. United Water was
last granted a two-phase rate increase in March 2010.
United Water Idaho has invested more than $20 million in its system since
the utility's last rate filing. Those investments have improved water quality,
reliability, and service for all of United Water Idaho's customers. Projects
include a new well supply treatment facility at the Hilton Well, which
removes iron and manganese from the water for nearly 4,000 customers on
the Bench; a new 600,000-galIon water storage facilty serving the Warm
Springs Mesa area; current work to install 1.7 miles of new 24-inch water
main along Hill Road to improve pressure and fire protection for thousands
of customers in northeast Boise near 36th Street; and replacing water mains,
service lines and meters throughout the system. Additionally, the company
is undertaking a replacement and upgrade of its customer information
system, which will improve transactions with customers and service calls.
The average water consumption per metered customer has continued to
. decline significantly over the past several years resulting in significantly
lower annual revenues to the Company. This reduction in annual revenue
makes up roughly 38 percent of the overall rate request. Under the
Company's current tariff structure, nearly 71 percent of revenues are based
on volume, which is variable, while at the same time the majority of the
company's costs are fixed.
In its Application United Water is proposing a revenue increase of
$7,616,015, which represents an overall increase in rates of 19.9°/0. The
proposed increase for residential customers is 19.9°/0; for commercial
customers it is 19.1 °/0; for public authority customers it's 19°/0; and for
private fire service customers the request is for a 29.9°/0 increase.
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The proposed increase in rates is subject to review and a decision by the
IPUC, which may accept, modify or reject in whole or in part the proposed
increase. A complete copy of the proposal is available at the Company's
office at 8248 W. Victory Road, Boise, Idaho and at the Commission's office
at 472 W. Washington, Boise, Idaho. It is also available on-line at the IPUC
website: http://www.puc.idaho.gov, by following the links for "Water" and
"Open Water Cases," and at United Water Idaho's website:
http://www.unitedwater.com/idaho.
You can also file a comment on the Application via the IPUC website or mail
comments to:
Idaho Public Utilities Commission
P.O. Box 83720
Boise, Idaho 83720-0074
Sincerely,
Greg Wyatt
Vice President and General Manager
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