BOISE, Idaho — People across the Treasure Valley have noticed increases in their water bills from Suez but are still unsure why.
Mark Johnson says he was expecting to save money on his last bill.
"I open up the bill and there's not a 50% drop, there's a 30% increase," he said.
Treasure Valley resident Camille Oldenburg has her frustrations as well.
"There can't be a 70% increase when I used the long sprinkler system less than I did last year," she said. "Is it a billing issue? Is it a computer glitch? I have no idea."
Suez spokesperson Jane Kreller said the only thing that can change your water bill is usage.
"Generally, usage goes up in the summer," Kreller said. "We went from pretty mild [temperatures], to all the sudden, it's summer and it's hot."
According to Kreller, 25 million gallons a day are used in the Treasure Valley during the winter months, but that shoots up to 85 million a day in the summer.
The water has to go somewhere but many residents said despite having bills showing their water usage has increased, they haven't been doing anything differently in their homes or detected any leaks.
The Idaho Public Utilities commission regulates Suez.
"Anytime a customer files a complaint, the PUC does investigate," Stephen Goodwin, a spokesperson for PUC said.
The PUC has only received eight customer complaints for high water bills in 2019. Goodwin said there are people there to listen but the calls have not come in.
"We have a consumer relations division that contacts the customer individually and then works with the company," he added.
According to SUEZ, water usage in the Treasure Valley has gone up from previous summers, but there has only been one Suez cost increase approved by the PUC since they began serving the Treasure Valley.
"The last rate increase was in 2015 and it was a 6% increase," Goodwin said.
Suez said they have not done the best in community outreach in years past.
"It makes sense that they don't trust us," said Kreller. "So we're trying to build that trust with our customers."
Oldenburg has lived in Boise for 19 years. She said she has seen an increase in her usage every single summer, except once.
"I would like Suez to be more proactive in addressing internally what the issues could possibly be," she said.
"We care, we're there, we're working on it, we hear you," Kreller said. "Reach out to us and let us know so we can figure out whether this is on the mechanical side, a plumbing side, or if it's something that's happening on our side."
If you have a problem with your bill, call Suez customer service at 208-362-7304. But if you already tried working it out with Suez, call the Idaho PUC at 208-334-0300 to express your concerns.