Dear [Your Elected Official],

<p>I need your help with MLGW’s proposed water rate increases.</p> <p>We understand that MLGW needs money to maintain pipes, repair infrastructure, and keep water flowing. But we don’t believe families should be locked into three years of rate increases before MLGW has fully looked at a fairer way to charge for water.</p> <p>The regressive rate structure for commercial and industrial users hides costs and ignores the long-term impacts of aquifer drawdown.</p> <p>We’re asking you to take three specific actions:</p> <ol> <li>Only approve a one-year increase—not three years of increases at once. This gives MLGW the money it needs for the coming year while leaving time to work on a better rate structure and approving the next increase in a year. </li> <li>Ask MLGW to reduce the steep discounts given to the biggest water users. Right now, the more water large commercial and industrial customers use, the less they pay per gallon. We want MLGW to look at our surrounding neighbors and how other local utilities charge large users. </li> <li>Ask MLGW to work with the community throughout 2027 to reform water rates. That means showing how much residential, commercial, and industrial customers would pay under different options, protecting low-income households, and deciding how to fairly cover the system’s long-term costs.</li> </ol> <p>Why does this matter? Memphis has an extraordinary drinking water supply, but protecting it takes more than maintaining pipes. We need ongoing research, responsible groundwater management, and planning for potential contamination and treatment costs. <strong>Those costs should not simply be passed on to families without first examining whether the largest water users are paying their fair share.</strong></p> <p>We are not asking MLGW to stop investing in infrastructure. We’re asking them not to try to collect all the money over three years before giving the community a meaningful opportunity to help shape a fairer system.</p> <p>We need Memphis City Council to:</p> <ol> <li>Limit the current rate increase to one year.</li> <li>Revisit the discounts for the largest commercial and industrial water users.</li> <li>Commit to a public rate-reform process throughout 2027, with clear comparisons and meaningful community input.</li> </ol> <p>Thank you for standing up for Memphis families and helping protect our drinking water for future generations.</p>