DWP rate hike decision put off

The City Council postponed a decision Tuesday on a plan to raise water and electrical rates despite a warning by the Department of Water and Power that a delay would increase the chances of hot-weather power outages.

DWP General Manager H. David Nahai voiced dismay about the one-week delay, saying that the higher rates were needed to fix aging water systems and electrical lines.

“We’re going to get pushed back again, and it’s not right,” Nahai said moments before the vote. “We’ve got urgent needs in this city.”

The DWP has been trying for nearly six months to win the council’s approval of the phased-in rate hikes -- a combined 8.5% for electricity and 6.2% for water, both by July 2009.