COUNTY News:

The Los Alamos County Department of Public Utilities (DPU) is proposing sewer rate increases spanning the next four years. 

Two public hearings for the rate changes are planned. The first public hearing is Jan. 19 at the Board of Public Utilities (BPU) meeting. If the BPU approves the rate ordinance, a second hearing will be held Feb. 8, 2022, at the Los Alamos County Council meeting.

The rates must be adopted by the County Council before they can be put in place.

The proposed increases are 2 percent per year for four years, with the first increase taking effect on Oct. 1, 2022. If approved, the increases would follow three annual increases that were previously approved by the County Council. The last of those three increases took effect in October 2021.

The White Rock wastewater treatment plant replacement was originally funded through the previous increases, however rising construction costs have significantly impacted the cost of the project. The proposed increases would cover $13 million in additional principal and interest on the loan for the plant replacement.

The proposed increases affect sewer charges across the board—monthly service fees, flat rates for residential customers and variable rates for commercial and non-residential customers. For residential customers, the increases equate to $1.14 per month the first year, plus $1.16 per month the second year, plus $1.19 per month the third year, and an additional $1.21 per month the fourth year.

The public hearings will be conducted at 5:30 p.m. Jan. 19 via Zoom and, if approved by BPU, at 6 p.m. Feb. 8. The Zoom links will be available at https://lacnm.com/council about a week before each meeting. 

More information about the proposed rates can be found online at: https://ladpu.com/rates.