That Uplift program fee on your SAWS bill isn’t new. Here’s what to know about it.

A line item that’s recently appeared on San Antonio Water System’s customer bills is stirring up questions and concerns on social media — but it’s not a new fee, SAWS staff says.

Water utility customers have taken to Nextdoor and Facebook over the last few weeks after noticing an “Uplift Assistance Program fee” on their bills. This city-approved fee for SAWS’ Uplift program feeds into 14 subprograms that help fund utility assistance for SAWS customers who are at or below the federal poverty level and pay their SAWS bills based on a discounted rate structure.

And while this item is new for customers reading their bill, the fee is not; SAWS customers have been paying into SAWS’ Uplift programs for more than 20 years, said Anne Hayden, SAWS’ communications manager.

“This has long been part of the rates, and the structure depends on everyone feeding into it,” Hayden said. “This is not an optional charitable fee.”

The reason the fee is now showing up on customers’ bills is that the amount, once lumped into the rate structure, is now a separate line item, Hayden explained. SAWS’ rate advisory committee suggested the change during its latest rate restructuring, she said.

That new rate structure, which officials have said could lower bills for more than 80% of residents, went into effect in January, meaning many customers are just now starting to see their new bills, Hayden said.

The fee regular customers pay into the Uplift fund depends on their water use. The breakdown of the cost is the combination of:

• Water use for the month multiplied by $0.1590 per 1,000 gallons
• Calculated wastewater use multiplied by $0.1610 per 1,000 gallons

For example, a customer who used 5,985 gallons over the past month will be charged $0.95 for their water use. With an estimated 5,237 gallons of wastewater use, based on the customer’s winter water use average, $0.84 is added to the $0.95 for a total of $1.79 going to the Uplift program.

The fee is required by a city ordinance, SAWS’ Vice President of Customer Experience Mary Bailey told the San Antonio Report in January when explaining how to read the updated bill.

“It’s been approved by the City Council,” she said. “You have to take it up with your councilperson.”

City Council approved Uplift’s new discounted rate structure in November. Customers who are concerned these discounted rates might not encourage conservation should know that while water and wastewater rates are cheaper for Uplift customers, those customers are some of SAWS’ lowest water users, Bailey said.

The charge is also not to be confused with SAWS’ charitable giving program, Project Agua, which customers can contribute to willingly if they choose to, Hayden said.

Project Agua, which falls under Uplift’s programs umbrella, is a one-time emergency assistance fee that can help customers pay off a large amount of debt, while Uplift’s other programs offer ongoing assistance, Hayden said.