ST. LOUIS — St. Louis aldermen voted 12-to-2 Thursday in favor of a roughly 40% water rate increase, one of the largest increases ever.
City leaders said water main breaks are getting out of hand, affecting every part of our city. And many say taxpayers need to up the amount they pay to fix the problem. But there’s pushback.
For hours inside City Hall on Thursday afternoon, leaders debated how to protect one of our most valuable resources: our water. Ward 1 Alderwoman Anne Schweitzer proposed a 40% water rate spike for St. Louis taxpayers.
“We are in a situation where we haven't had a rate increase for over a decade. Our water division desperately needs the funds to maintain services that it's providing so we can have safe, reliable drinking water in the city of St. Louis," Schweitzer said.
And she wants taxpayers to up how much they pay for water as early as July. City leaders pushed back on her proposed legislation, saying it’s too much too soon. Many voiced a need for a slower pay increase and more transparency.
“This is an incredibly tough conversation. Nobody's saying that this is an easy bill or something that people were really looking forward to passing," she said. “But talking about a rate increase is never going to be anyone's favorite topic.”
Research shows this isn’t just a St. Louis City problem. Water costs are up across the United States. A study from Bluefield Research, which looks at the rising costs of water, shows the culprits are the same everywhere: aging infrastructure, higher operating expenses, inflation and supply chain problems.
No one at the meeting today denied the city needs help funding its water supply. But city leaders decided residents need more time and more of a voice before they’re caught off guard with a bill they didn’t see coming.
“I understand, wanting more input from the community. I want more input from the community, too," Schweitzer said.
Schweitzer’s bill, Board Bill Number 49, still needs one more vote before it goes to the mayor's desk.