When I moved to the Town of Davie in 2004, I had no idea I'd be paying the City of Sunrise for water--with no other options--or that 15 years later, despite efforts to the contrary, we'd still be in the same boat. 

In that time, my water bill has increased more than 200% and the City of Sunrise does not provide any added benefit for the markup nor does it include garbage or recycling, yet the rates non-Sunrise residents must pay are nearing extortion because of a 25% surcharge clause.

Using the City of Sunrise’s own numbers, in 2005 the bill for 1 unit of water was $29.95 and in 2019 it is $73.50--a 245% increase. Yet, the water and service provided by Sunrise is no better than that provided by Davie or Plantation.

Current legislation allows the City of Sunrise to run roughshod over non-residents and it must stop somewhere. It's time we had legislation put in place to curb this abuse. As of now, their pricing is woefully out of line with surrounding cities and even the country.

Rather than allowing the City of Sunrise to use other townships to subsidize their city’s expenses at our expense, we need to revamp the law to significantly limit the amount the City of Sunrise can charge to non-residents. These non-residents should also have a vote in whether proposed infrastructure rate increases are approved for their areas.

As of now, the City of Sunrise has a monopoly on the water provided to various parts of Broward County leaving non-residents with no options. In that vein, their rates should not be in line with the City of Sunrise itself, but in line with the respective cities which they service.

In 15 years, no other utility or convenience bill has increased by 245% percent--not electric, cable, cell phone, home phone, or even the gas I put in my car--and it seems that each year the price continues increasing. It needs to stop and the City of Sunrise needs to figure out a way to restructure its pricing to bring it back in line with the market and eliminate or significantly reduce the municipality surcharge to stop gouging non-residents or allow non-residents viable options to leave the monopoly.

If we wanted to be beholden to the City of Sunrise, we would have moved to Sunrise.