Los Angeles utility officials have approved new water rates that will penalize residents who don't cut their water use by 15 percent as the region faces a summer water shortage.
The Department of Water and Power's commission unanimously adopted the pricing structure Tuesday.
Homeowners with large lots who don't conserve will have to pay $11 per month more after the new rates go into effect June 1.
Customers who use less water and low-income users won't see a rise in rates. But a second tier of customers will see charges jump by 44 percent.
DWP General Manager H. David Nahai says the utility needs to be prudent and conservative in the face of low reservoir levels and cutbacks in the amount of water shipped south through the environmentally sensitive Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta.
