Chapter 7.10
WATER RATES AND CHARGES FOR WATER USER AGENCIES
Sections:
7.10.010 Water surcharge – Administrative charge.
7.10.020 Water surcharge – Mills Gravity Line.
7.10.030 Charges for water deliveries.
7.10.040 Metropolitan Water District capacity charge.
7.10.050 Western’s capacity charge rate.
7.10.060 Readiness-to-serve charge.
7.10.070 Mills Gravity Line major maintenance reserve.
7.10.010 Water surcharge – Administrative charge.
Effective July 1, 2025, a charge of $27.08 per acre-foot is hereby added to the cost of water charged by MWD to all of the wholesale agencies to whom water is made available by Western Water. Such charge will be used in the administration of the supply and delivery of water to wholesale agencies. (Res. 3347, 2025)
7.10.020 Water surcharge – Mills Gravity Line.
Effective July 1, 2025, a charge of $18.30 per acre-foot is hereby added to the cost of treated water delivered from the Mills Gravity Line to all wholesale agencies to whom water is made available by Western Water. Such charge will be used to recover the cost of day-to-day maintenance of the Mills Gravity Line. (Res. 3347, 2025)
7.10.030 Charges for water deliveries.
All water delivered from MWD to wholesale agencies of Western Water shall be in accordance with the administrative code and the rules, regulations and policies of MWD and Western Water. The charges for such water deliveries shall be as follows:
A. For all MWD water that is not delivered through the Mills Gravity Line, rates for water deliveries, per acre-foot, effective January 1, 2026, are:
|
MWD Untreated Water Rate |
$984.00 |
|
Western Administrative Charge |
$27.08 |
|
Total for Untreated Water Deliveries |
$1,011.08 |
|
|
|
|
MWD Treated Water Rate |
$1,528.00 |
|
Western Administrative Charge |
$27.08 |
|
Total for Treated Water Deliveries |
$1,555.08 |
B. For all MWD water that is delivered through the Mills Gravity Line, rates for water deliveries, per acre-foot, effective January 1, 2026, are:
|
MWD Untreated Water Rate |
$984.00 |
|
Western Administrative Charge |
$27.08 |
|
Mills Gravity Line Maintenance Charge |
$18.30 |
|
Total for Untreated Water Deliveries |
$1,029.38 |
|
|
|
|
MWD Treated Water Rate |
$1,528.00 |
|
Western Administrative Charge |
$27.08 |
|
Mills Gravity Line Maintenance Charge |
$18.30 |
|
Total for Treated Water Deliveries |
$1,573.38 |
(Res. 3347, 2025)
7.10.040 Metropolitan Water District capacity charge.
Each wholesale agency will pay the MWD capacity charge based on the capacity used on Western Water’s maximum summer day demand placed on the MWD system between May 1st and September 30th for the three-calendar-year period ending December 31, 2024, which was August 9, 2023. The peak demands used for calendar year 2026’s calculations are:
|
Elsinore Valley Municipal Water District |
39.9 cfs |
|
City of Corona |
35.0 cfs |
|
Rancho California Water District |
54.0 cfs |
|
City of Norco |
0.0 cfs |
|
Temescal Valley Water District |
7.0 cfs |
|
City of Riverside |
0.0 cfs |
|
Eagle Valley Mutual Water Company |
0.0 cfs |
|
Metropolitan Water District |
0.0 cfs |
|
Western Water Retail |
45.8 cfs |
|
Total |
181.7 cfs |
(Res. 3347, 2025)
7.10.050 Western’s capacity charge rate.
Effective January 1, 2026, Western Water’s capacity charge rate shall be the MWD rate of $14,500 per cfs. Each wholesale agency will be billed each calendar month an amount equal to the capacity used on the peak demand day multiplied by the Western Water capacity charge rate and divided by 12 as follows:
|
|
Monthly Amount |
|---|---|
|
Elsinore Valley Municipal Water District |
$48,212.50 |
|
City of Corona |
$42,291.67 |
|
Rancho California Water District |
$65,250.00 |
|
City of Norco |
$0.00 |
|
Temescal Valley Water District |
$8,458.33 |
|
City of Riverside |
$0.00 |
|
Eagle Valley Mutual Water Company |
$0.00 |
|
Metropolitan Water District |
$0.00 |
|
Western Water Retail |
$55,341.67 |
|
Total |
$219,554.17 |
(Res. 3347, 2025)
7.10.060 Readiness-to-serve charge.
Effective July 1, 2025, each wholesale agency will be billed each calendar month an amount equal to their share of the MWD readiness-to-serve charge (RTS charge) net of allocated MWD standby charge revenue.
The monthly amounts for July through December 2025 and January through June 2026 are as follows:
|
|
July – Dec. 2025 |
Jan. – June 2026 |
|---|---|---|
|
City of Corona |
$111,741.33 |
$131,735.33 |
|
City of Norco |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
|
Metropolitan WD |
$1.83 |
$2.17 |
|
Elsinore Valley MWD |
$95,898.00 |
$113,491.50 |
|
Temescal Valley WD |
$21,925.33 |
$26,049.33 |
|
City of Riverside |
$0.00 |
$0.00 |
|
Rancho California WD |
$139,672.17 |
$156,647.83 |
|
Eagle Valley MWC |
$340.17 |
$45.67 |
|
Western Water Retail |
$89,696.67 |
$98,919.67 |
|
Total |
$459,275.50 |
$526,891.50 |
The RTS charge assessed to Western Water by MWD is allocated to each wholesale agency and to Western Water’s retail customers based on the same method MWD uses to assess it, the 10-year rolling average of firm deliveries (e.g., for calendar year 2026’s allocation, the 10 fiscal years are 2014-2015 through 2023-2024). The standby charge placed on the county tax rolls by MWD applicable to the parcels within the boundaries of each agency’s service area (less an MWD administrative charge and estimated delinquencies) is used as an offset to each agency’s share of the RTS charge, resulting in an adjusted RTS charge/credit.
For some agencies, netting their RTS charge with their standby charge revenue results in a credit instead of a charge. The sum of credits from these agencies is then allocated to the remaining agencies that have a charge. The allocation of the credits is based on the proportion of each agency’s adjusted RTS charge to the total adjusted RTS charge. The result is a net RTS charge. (Res. 3347, 2025)
7.10.070 Mills Gravity Line major maintenance reserve.
Effective July 1, 2025, each agency with service rights will be billed annually to fund a Mills Gravity Line fixed major maintenance and repair reserve (maintenance reserve). The total amount to be funded will be allocated to each agency based on their proportion of service rights owned in the Mills Gravity Line as follows:
|
Agency |
Total Service Rights (cfs) |
Percent Ownership |
10 Years Maintenance Reserve |
Maintenance Reserve Annual Funding |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
City of Corona |
61.50 |
10.89% |
$1,046,512 |
$104,651 |
|
Temescal Valley WD |
87.96 |
15.57% |
$1,496,767 |
$149,677 |
|
City of Riverside |
30.00 |
5.31% |
$510,494 |
$51,049 |
|
MWD |
17.50 |
3.10% |
$297,788 |
$29,779 |
|
Elsinore Valley MWD |
126.00 |
22.30% |
$2,144,073 |
$214,407 |
|
Western Water Retail |
241.94 |
42.83% |
$4,116,961 |
$411,696 |
|
Total |
564.90 |
100.00% |
$9,612,595 |
$961,259 |
The maintenance reserve was established to fund inspections of the Mills Gravity Line and to fund major maintenance and repair work necessary to keep the pipeline in good working condition. The maintenance reserve budget amount was established based on a condition assessment of the Mills Gravity Line. Western plans to annually fund the maintenance reserve based on one-tenth of the 10-year budget which totals $9,612,595. (Res. 3347, 2025)
7.10.080 Interest charges.
Invoices for rates and charges shall be issued by the fifteenth of the month following the month for which service was provided, and invoices which are not paid before the next billing cycle (30 days) shall be subject to interest charges.
Interest will be calculated at a rate of one percent per month on all amounts that remain unpaid at each billing cycle. The minimum amount of an invoice will be $25.00 per water connection, with the minimum amount charged even if there are no water deliveries. (Res. 3347, 2025)