Concerned residents packed the South Los Angeles headquarters of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power Tuesday night as a proposed rate hike was on the table.
"My grass is still dry, and my water bill is still going up!" Brenda Pollard, a resident of South LA said. "I want to know - what's up with that?"
Many more like Harper were upset with the proposed rate hike.
"'Increase' means higher in my mind," Cassandra Harper, resident of South LA, said. "That means I have to pay more?"
In a video released by the LADWP, it explained that for the typical customer, an increase would amount to a $4.75 increase per month each year for five years.
Longtime residents told NBC4 they struggle right now with bills from LADWP.
"I went out of town few months ago for thirty days! I come back home, my bill was the same thing. I got the same bill!" Annie Hervey, a resident of South LA, said.
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DWP leaders said revenue from rate hikes will pay for repairs and prevent costly catastrophes like the 2014 water main break at UCLA’s Pauley Pavilion.
"For LA, just like in all other cities, electric and water infrastructure is aging," David Wright of the LAWDP said. "There are some real problems ahead with reliability if we don't make those investments."
