Water Bill Surcharge Weighed
BOSTON (CBS) - Will Massachusetts residents see an increase in their water bills?
A proposal has been floated that would allow the state to charge $0.01 for every 10 gallons of water a person or business uses.
The surcharge would spell an average increase of about $50 a year for every customer.
It would bring in around $230 million a year, money that could be used to fix a crumbling infrastructure.
"We are talking $10 billion in water infrastructure," said State Senator James Eldridge, who is on a committee exploring ways to raise money to close the funding gap for necessary repairs and maintenance.
"We are approaching a crisis."
The money would also go toward helping communities pay for water infrastructure projects.