BY THE NUMBERS• $20.72: Current average Hixson homeowner water bill*• $23.98: Average Hixson homeowner water bill, effective Nov. 1• $25.61: Average Hixson homeowner water bill in 2016• $27.24: Average Hixson homeowner water bill in 2017Source: Hixson Utility District bi-monthly water bill for average 9,500 gallon monthly usage, excluding taxes and sewer fees.
Hixson homeowners who enjoy some of the cheapest water in Tennessee will have to pay higher water rates in November for the first time in nearly three decades.
The Hixson Utility District will raise the average household water bill this fall by nearly 16 percent in the first of three planned increases in the minimum water charge designed to help cover higher expenses since the last time the utility raised rates in 1985. Combined with additional annual increases planned in 2016 and 2017, Hixson residential water rates will rise by more than 30 percent over the next three years.
“Our revenues have been flat for a number of years, but our costs of electricity, chemicals, labor and other expenses keep going up,” said Ken Rich, one of the three commissioners on the Hixson Utility District who recently voted to raise the minimum water charge. “In recent years, our operational expenses have increased at a faster rate than the growth in our revenues so we recognized we needed to adjust our rates to keep our revenues in line with our expenses.”
For the typical residential customer of the Hixson water utility who uses 9,500 gallons of water a month, the bimonthly water bill will go up by $3.26 in November and by additional increments of $1.66 per bimonthly billing in each of the next two years. Over the next three years, the changes will add about 11 cents a day to the price of water in Hixson.