00:00In a cost of living crisis, many Tasmanians already feel like they're leaking money.
00:08And they're not keen on a proposal to lift their water bills by more than 35% over four years.
00:15That's highway robbery.
00:18Already we're at a place where the cost of living is outrageous.
00:21That's massive.
00:23Despite that, Tas Water wants to increase water bills by 8.8% each year over four years,
00:29starting in July 2026.
00:32We understand these price increases won't be popular,
00:35but they are the right thing to do for Tasmania.
00:38The plan still needs to be approved by the Tasmanian Economic Regulator.
00:44If it goes ahead, the average household would pay an extra $522 on their water bill in 2030,
00:51while businesses would fork out $787 more.
00:56Tas Water says the higher bills would fund upgrades to its sewerage network,
01:01with only 9% of treatment plants currently meeting standards.
01:05It's a long legacy of underinvestment that's led to this point.
01:09We need to invest $1.7 billion over the next four years.
01:14Tas Water Assist would also get extra funding to help people struggling to pay their water bill.
01:20The peak body for social services says those concessions would only help homeowners.
01:26It doesn't apply to the thousands of Tasmanian renters that need to absorb some of these bills.
01:32Tas Water also wants to reduce fixed water charges to ensure billing reflects water usage.
01:39But the tenants' union says this would make renters foot a bigger share of water bills.
01:44The proposal would see tenants slugged, in some cases more than the 40%,
01:49on top of their current water bill.
01:52That's because the existing variable charges are currently quite low.
01:56The union has urged the utility to broaden its concession program.
02:00Tas Water believes its proposal is the best option for the state.
02:04We believe that this is the most responsible plan that we could put forward at this point in time.
02:11Tasmania's economic regulator says it will consult with the public about Tas Water's proposal
02:17before making a final determination by June 30th next year.
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