„Vazrazhdane“ submitted to the National Assembly a package of amendments to the Water Supply and Sewerage Act, adopted on first vote a month ago, with the main goal of ending the mandatory consolidation of the Water Supply and Sewerage System operators into one regional operator and returning the right of municipalities to independently determine who should manage the local water supply system. According to the submitters, this will ensure greater protection of municipal property, more local control and fairer prices for consumers.
In the reasons for the proposed changes before the second reading, the submitters from „Vazrazhdane“ specify that there are municipal companies that, despite the lack of European funds, invest and manage to provide quality services at a socially acceptable price.
„There is no municipal Water Supply and Sewerage Company in the country that has introduced a water supply regime. That is why merging into an inefficient water and sanitation operator with poor financial standing, providing poor services, will only reduce the quality of life in the consolidated municipalities”, the reasons state.
The proposals envisage that several water and sanitation companies can operate within a single territory, with each municipality choosing the operator to which to assign the activity. This creates an opportunity for municipal water and sanitation companies, which according to the proposers have proven their efficiency and sustainability, to continue to function without being forcibly merged into larger and often financially distressed regional operators.
„For several years, various municipalities have literally gone on a rebellion by their local governments and citizens, demanding to leave the water associations, as their municipal water and sanitation companies are going bankrupt, but at the same time they are subjected to unprecedented pressure to consolidate and are forcibly kept in a common water operator, and the consequences are many times higher water prices without investments in the water transmission network. All this is in absolute violation of public interests, claim “Vazrazhdane“.
The changes will expand the powers of municipal councils in the management of water supply systems when they are municipal property. Municipalities will be able to accept the business plans of operators, approve regional master plans and participate directly in determining investments that affect local assets. According to the proponents, this is necessary to end the practice of the Ministry of Regional Development and Public Works single-handedly determining the future of the water supply sector in a given municipality, without taking into account the specifics and needs of the local population.
A significant emphasis is also the change in the pricing model. “Vazrazhdane“ insists on differentiated prices according to the method of water supply - gravity, pumped or combined. According to them, it is unfair for consumers in settlements where water is supplied without additional electricity costs to pay the same price as those where the supply is entirely pumped. The expected effect, according to the patriots, is the introduction of cost-oriented prices that reflect the actual cost of the service.
In this regard, “Vazrazhdane“ points out that in many high-mountainous and small settlements, water is supplied by gravity and without the need for treatment facilities, but despite this, the draft law provides for all settlements in one area to pay the same prices, determined by the new regulator. However, this unification ignores the real costs of water supply and harms consumers in areas with cheaper and easier water supply, say the proponents. “The problem of unfair formation of water supply bills has given reason to hundreds of Bulgarian citizens to unsuccessfully appeal to various institutions. These citizens continue to pay the cost of electricity included in the price of water, which they should not owe at all in the case of gravity water supply or, respectively, owe in an incomplete amount in the case of combined water supply“, the explanatory memorandum states.
The bill obliges water and sewerage operators to make clearer commitments for maintenance, repair and investments in the network, and this should also be included in their contracts with water and sewerage associations.
The amendments also introduce stricter liability for violations - if the quality of drinking water deviates from the regulatory requirements, consumers should not pay for the service for this period. If there is no access to water for more than 24 hours, the operator should owe compensation.
According to “Vazrazhdane“ the proposed changes will lead to more transparency, better protection of municipal property and more efficient management of water and sanitation systems. This would enable local authorities to protect the interests of their residents and avoid the negative effects of the centralized model, which, according to the proponents, has led to inequality, lack of investment and deterioration of service in a number of settlements.
We recall that back in October “Vazrazhdane” submitted a proposal for the abolition of the so-called water meter fee.