California Water Service Lowers Water-Use Reduction Requirements, Implements Surcharge Courtesy Tier for Customer Water Budgets

SAN JOSE, CA--(Marketwired - Apr 5, 2016) - To recognize efforts made by California Water Service (Cal Water) customers working diligently to reduce water use, Cal Water has lowered its drought requirements for customers in many of the communities it serves. The move comes in response to modifications recently made by the State Water Resources Control Board (State) for some communities' water-use reduction requirements.

Effective with customers' bill cycles beginning in April, Cal Water customers in districts whose conservation targets were lowered by the State will receive individualized water budgets that reflect the new reduction requirement. The State reduced the requirement for 16 of Cal Water's 24 service areas by 1% to 4%, based on factors such as climate or population growth.

Cal Water is also implementing a surcharge courtesy tier in each of its districts to eliminate surcharges for customers who are almost meeting their targets. The intent of the courtesy tier is to provide surcharge forgiveness to customers who are making an effort to conserve and getting close to their targets, while continuing surcharges to encourage reductions by customers who are significantly over their reduction targets. Information on each district's courtesy tier may be found at www.calwater.com/drought.

"As part of our customer-first approach to the drought, we implemented this surcharge courtesy tier to recognize the efforts of customers who are working hard to conserve water," said Ken Jenkins, Director of Drought Management and Conservation. "We want to reduce surcharges for those who are trying and may fall just shy of their target."

As before, customers will be able to bank unused units of water from their monthly water budgets. And, customers participating in Cal Water's Low-Income Rate Assistance program incur half of the regular surcharge rate if they exceed their water budgets. Customers can view their water budgets and consumption history online at usage.calwater.com.

Based on its assessment of the snowpack and reservoir conditions in April, the State will determine whether to further modify drought regulations in May.

"We are carefully monitoring water conditions in California and steps taken by the State, and we will notify customers of any additional changes that will affect them," Jenkins said. "We sincerely appreciate the work our customers have done to reduce their water use since June of last year, as their actions will go a long way to help ensure we have a reliable water supply for generations to come."

Cal Water continues to offer educational materials, numerous conservation rebates and programs, and other tools to help reduce customers' water use. Customers may visit www.calwater.com/conservation or contact their local Customer Center for more information on programs and assistance available in their service area.

Cal Water serves about 2 million people through 478,000 service connections in California. The company has provided water service in the state since 1926. Additional information may be obtained online at www.calwater.com. 

1720 North First St., San Jose, CA 95112