I’ve been harping on the high cost of electricity in California, a concern to us all — especially compared to other states — and ESPECIALLY compared to our hated rival Texas. But that’s not the ONLY utility comparison that should concern us.
By chance I came across a residential water rate calculator for San Antonio — the most drought-stricken city in a field of 225. I recently wrote a piece about their remarkable water improvement projects vs. parched Los Angeles, so this all ties together!
I took my current July-August (1914) San Diego city water bill and ran my usage (237 gal/day — 46.9% lower than last year’s usage) and other variables through the San Antonio residential water bill calculator.
https://www.saws.org/Service/rates/ratecalc/
The results (including ALL fees and costs):
San Diego 2 month cost — $197.91
San Antonio 2 month cost — $119.94
BOTTOM LINE: For the same amount of water, San Diego costs residents 65.0% more than San Antonio. Or, to adopt HQ’s clever turn of phrase that can exaggerate the differential, “For the same amount of water, I pay 165% of what I would pay in San Antonio.”
The fun never stops.