Kempner residents are upset after water bills show $70 base fee

KEMPNER, Texas (KWTX) - The average cost for a water bill in the state of Texas is $37, according to personal finance company Sofi. But some Central Texas residents are paying almost double that in base rate fees alone.

Kempner resident Dave Herod’s most recent water bill was $101.35 and $70 of that was a base rate fee.

“Wow look we only used $28 usage in water, but our bill is bill is $101,” he said.

KWTX News 10 looked into where these costs are going. A post on the Kempner Water Supply Corporation, the company that manages the city’s water, website gives a better picture of the breakdown.

Forty-five percent goes towards debt collections, 26% pays the salaries of the employees, 10% goes towards administrative and engineering expenses, 9% goes to utilities and the rest towards miscellaneous expenses.

As far as nearby cities, the same fee for the West Bell County Water Supply Corporation, which serves Killeen, is just $30. While the City of Lampasas Public Utilities charges $25.

“As far as I know Kempner is the highest water in Texas,” Herod said.

The Kempner Water Supply Corporation raised the base rate fee from $70 to $75 for most customers in October. The water supply company released the following statement to KWTX News 10:

“Kempner must be responsible in charging a rate that will allow us to produce high quality water that our members require, and to meet our obligations. Kempner WSC Is committed to finding ways to reduce costs to our members while continuing to upgrade our system to be able to provide superior service.”

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