Compton Official Warns Water Usage Penalties Could Sink Lower-Income Families
COMPTON (CBSLA.com) — Amid a wave of new mandatory water restrictions to help Southern California weather a four-year drought, some lower-income cities are warning that residents may be unable to bear any additional financial burden.
Chad Blaze, the Deputy Director of Compton's Public Works Department, told KNX 1070 NEWSRADIO Compton's economy is so depressed, people aren't conserving out of a sense of public duty, but rather economic necessity.
"They simply can't afford the water bill, they're in tears, they have kids at home, they have elderly," said Blaze. "They simply can't afford it."
Many families in Compton survive on one check a month to cover all their expenses and oftentimes are forced to choose between paying for water and paying for necessities like rent and food, according to Blaze.
The estimated median household income in Compton was just over $41,000 in 2012, compared with roughly $58,000 across the rest of California during the same year, according to U.S. Census data.
City officials have warned that if Compton were to be fined $10,000 per day for exceeding its water usage quota, it would have to raise rates that most people currently can't afford to pay.
Earlier this month, California Gov. Jerry Brown announced statewide mandatory water reductions for the first time ever as the state saw the lowest snowpack levels ever recorded.
In an effort to help those in need, Blaze says he's asked the State Water Resources Control Board to reconsider it's across the board approach and take the basic human needs of the poor into account.
"It'll be the toughest thing for our City Council to decide what type of restrictions and penalties are we gonna try to put in place that might achieve what the state is looking for and how it's gonna impact our community and whether they're even gonna be able to do it," he said.
"We don't wanna set ourselves up for failure," Blaze added.
