AGENCY TESTIMONY
Impact of rental payments on water rates
2:21:53
·
73 sec
The testimony explains how rental payments affect water rates for New York City residents and property owners, and the uncertainty this creates in the rate-setting process.
- The Water Board must assess rates to cover both water system costs and the rental payment
- Of the 8.5% total rate increase in 2025, 3.1 percentage points are attributable to the rental payment
- Rate increases directly affect property owners and indirectly affect apartment residents
- The uncertainty of whether the city will request a rental payment creates challenges in the Water Board's annual rate-setting process
- With the retirement of the water system's general obligation debt in 2005, the rationale for continuing the rental payment is unclear
Jordan Paige
2:21:53
Under the same justification, The CD plans to charge the maximum annual rental payment from 2025 through 2028 had around $300,000,000 each year.
2:22:03
Whatever amount of the rental payment the CD request, the water board has to assess rates to not only cover the cost of water system maintenance and operations, but also the cost of the rental payment.
2:22:15
Of the 8.5% total rate increase in 2025, 3.1 percentage points are attributable to the rental payment.
2:22:22
These rate increases are seen directly by property owners because they receive the water bills.
2:22:28
Rate increases also indirectly affects residents of rental, condo, and co op apartment buildings because economic theory suggests that some, if not all, of water bill costs for apartment buildings, are ultimately borne by the residents.
2:22:42
However, renters rarely see water bills directly and are likely to miss public notices included therein.
2:22:49
Whether or not the city will request the rental payment creates uncertainty in the waterboard's rate setting process each year and has physical implications for city residents.
2:22:58
With the retirement of the water systems general obligation debt in 2005, The rationale for the rental payment continuing is not clear.
