Water board says
no to rebates

A $142 million budget is OK'd,
with carry-over money earmarked
for system improvements

By Gordon Y.K. Pang
Star-Bulletin

The Honolulu Board of Water Supply has adopted its $142 million operating budget without refunds for customers.

But board members say they are still considering Mayor Jeremy Harris' request that they refund $75 million to 151,000 water users.

The board can always go back and tinker with the budget if it is determined that rebates need to be made, board member Forrest Murphy said.

Harris believes the City Charter bars the board from keeping more than 15 percent of its gross revenues. Current gross revenues are about $100 million.

Murphy says the agency has complied with the charter, and nobody has raised the issue of refunds in the past.

But, Murphy said, the agency needs to meet with attorneys and reach an agreement.

"Whatever it is the Charter says, we need to comply with if indeed we are not in compliance," he said.

Board members and water agency staff have insisted that what Harris describes as a $75 million surplus is a carry-over balance that's needed to pay for improvements to an aging water system.

Water board budget official Keith Shida said the agency's balance is projected to dwindle to $28 million next year as it catches up with improvements.

The board yesterday voted to keep water rates steady for the fourth year in a row. The last time rates were raised was in July 1995.

Part of the reason rates have not risen, and why the board has a large cash balance, is because budget forecasts from six years ago did not take into effect the slowdown in Hawaii's economy.

Water officials also said approved projects have been slow to get off the ground.

Thus, construction costs have been down, officials said.

Automation will wash away our water meter readers Water meter readers will become a thing of the past within three or four years as the Board of Water Supply moves toward an automated system. Water officials are reviewing bids for an automated meter reading project. They hope to get a contractor by late summer. The cost is projected to be about $29 million, with all 151,000 customers online in about four years. Don Schlenger of EMA Services, which was contracted to do a study for the board, said automation will hold down costs and increase operating efficiency. Most obviously, he said, labor costs will be reduced by eliminating the work of meter readers in the field. And because reading can be done more quickly, bills will be mailed monthly rather than once every two months as is now the practice, Schlenger said. More frequent billings mean less in arrears, he said. He estimated savings of up to $60 million over 20 years. About 40 jobs will be affected by the changeover, said Leigh Miyashiro, assistant water agency controller. About 24 of those jobs are meter readers. No layoffs are projected. There is $10 million in the current year's budget for the project. The board yesterday approved an additional $17 million for next year.