Government proposes dramatic water bill increase to fund Tasmania’s ageing sewerage system

ABC NEWS (Australia)

TasWater wants to dramatically increase water bills to fund repairs to the state's ageing sewerage infrastructure. It's proposed lifting bills by more than eight per cent each year, which welfare organisations say would have an outsized impact on vulnerable Tasmanians and renters.

Transcript

00:00In a cost of living crisis, many Tasmanians already feel like they're leaking money.

00:08And they're not keen on a proposal to lift their water bills by more than 35% over four years.

00:15That's highway robbery.

00:18Already we're at a place where the cost of living is outrageous.

00:21That's massive.

00:23Despite that, Tas Water wants to increase water bills by 8.8% each year over four years,

00:29starting in July 2026.

00:32We understand these price increases won't be popular,

00:35but they are the right thing to do for Tasmania.

00:38The plan still needs to be approved by the Tasmanian Economic Regulator.

00:44If it goes ahead, the average household would pay an extra $522 on their water bill in 2030,

00:51while businesses would fork out $787 more.

00:56Tas Water says the higher bills would fund upgrades to its sewerage network,

01:01with only 9% of treatment plants currently meeting standards.

01:05It's a long legacy of underinvestment that's led to this point.

01:09We need to invest $1.7 billion over the next four years.

01:14Tas Water Assist would also get extra funding to help people struggling to pay their water bill.

01:20The peak body for social services says those concessions would only help homeowners.

01:26It doesn't apply to the thousands of Tasmanian renters that need to absorb some of these bills.

01:32Tas Water also wants to reduce fixed water charges to ensure billing reflects water usage.

01:39But the tenants' union says this would make renters foot a bigger share of water bills.

01:44The proposal would see tenants slugged, in some cases more than the 40%,

01:49on top of their current water bill.

01:52That's because the existing variable charges are currently quite low.

01:56The union has urged the utility to broaden its concession program.

02:00Tas Water believes its proposal is the best option for the state.

02:04We believe that this is the most responsible plan that we could put forward at this point in time.

02:11Tasmania's economic regulator says it will consult with the public about Tas Water's proposal

02:17before making a final determination by June 30th next year.

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