El Paso WaterThursday, November 5
El Paso Water's board drops two budget options and keeps two on the table
The Daily El Paso team
If you pay an El Paso Water bill, here's where the 2027-28 budget stands. On Wednesday, the Public Service Board voted to drop the high-risk and lean options for water and wastewater. That leaves one option leaning toward higher reliability and one toward "as affordable a rate as we possibly can," said El Paso Water President John Balliew. The board also had staff move forward on the accelerated stormwater proposal.
The lean and high-risk scenarios were the two dropped
| Scenario | What it does |
|---|---|
| Accelerated Reliability | Largest capital investment |
| Strategic | Highest-priority capital projects |
| Lean | Delays 21 projects, cuts about 140 positions |
| High Risk | Lowest investment, cuts 300 positions |
Source: KFOX
El Paso Water said earlier the high-risk scenario would put $31 million in grants at risk, and the lean approach would put $8 million at risk and slow incident response. At the lowest end, the combined budget is 27% lower than the current year's $1.2 billion.
- Final vote: scheduled for the Public Service Board's January meeting
- Takes effect: March 1, if approved
- Before then: three regular board meetings
The board is scheduled to vote on the budget in January
- Sept. 30EPWater presents four budget scenarios to the board.
- Nov. 4Board drops the lean and high-risk water and wastewater options.
- Jan. 2027Board is scheduled to vote on the 2027-28 budget.
- March 1The budget would take effect if approved.