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Monarch Utilities files motions with SOAH
By Emily Hill, ehill@starlocalnews.com
As of two weeks ago, Monarch Utilities is filing a motion with the State Office of Administrative Hearings to request permission to amend its current rate application. Monarch also filed a motion to withdraw its Sale, Transfer or Merger (STM) application and the City of Pflugerville rate appeal.
The Oak Point City Council unanimously denied the water and sewer rate increase application by Monarch Utilities, which is a subsidiary company of SouthWest Water Company, at a public hearing in November 2011. The council had originally suspended action on the application in August 2011 for 90 days to allow the city to analyze and investigate the request and provide public comment.
According to a release, Monarch had filed an application to consolidate "other utility assets in Texas from an affiliated company, SWWC Utilities, Inc., doing business as Diamond Water Company; Hornsby Bend Utility Company; Huntington Utility Company; Mid-Tex Utilities, Inc.; SW Utility Company; Water Services, Inc.; and Windermere Utility Company, Inc."
Monarch filed for a water rate increase of 62.3 percent and a sewer rate increase of 33.6 percent for the consolidated utilities in May 2011. In November, those proceedings were stopped and interim rates were set to the previous rates before the increase as SOAH judges focused on the STM application.
With the new request, Monarch wishes to amend the rate application to apply for a 14.3 percent water revenue increase and no sewer revenue increase without the consolidated utilities. According to the release, Monarch is "voluntarily reducing its requested water revenue by $6.5 million per year and sewer revenue by $1.9 million per year."
"Over the past months, we listened to our customers' concerns about rates," Profilet said in the release. "While the proposed amended rates will not recover our costs of doing business, we have elected to voluntarily make adjustments because we understand how customers have been affected by the difficult economic climate."
Oak Point City Manager Doug Mousel is erring on the side of caution until the amended rate application is approved by SOAH and new rates are released.
"At this point and time, I'm still waiting for specifics associated with that," Mousel said.
Mousel said the water company references new percentages, but he is not sure how that will affect the rates.
"I'm not sure what type of impact those percentages will have," Mousel said.
Until more information becomes available, Mousel said he will closely monitor the situation until more develops and the amended rate application is filed.
"I'm going to reserve judgment until we see the amended application," Mousel said.
According to the release, Monarch and SouthWest Water Company have invested almost $70 million to tap into new water sources, replace meters and wastewater treatment plants.
"I commend SouthWest Water Company for listening to its customers and taking this important step," said Texas Senator Kirk Watson in the release. "Texans need a stable source of water at the best possible rates, and I look forward to working with SouthWest and other water providers to develop long-term solutions to water issues during the upcoming legislative session."
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