Overview
- TasWater says it has frozen contested fixed sewerage fees for heavily affected non‑residential customers and will backdate refunds for sporting clubs while it develops a longer‑term fix.
- The meter‑size charging model took effect on July 1 and set fixed sewerage fees by water connection size rather than actual sewage discharge, which pushed some bills up by hundreds of percent.
- TasWater and the Tasmanian Economic Regulator are at odds over responsibility: TasWater blamed the regulator's pricing determination, while the regulator says it only set maximum prices and that TasWater could apply discounts.
- The regulator rejected TasWater’s proposal for an 8.8% average annual rise and tariff shift and instead allowed about a 5.7% average annual increase while cutting roughly $500 million from TasWater’s four‑year capital program.
- Community groups, clubs and some businesses reported severe harm including costly infrastructure changes, with TasWater saying it will deliver an agreed solution within about a month and working with customers who acted on earlier advice.