Austin News

AUSTIN – The Austin City Council recently voted unanimously to approve emergency utility relief for local residents in the midst of the ongoing COVID-19 crisis.

The emergency relief will reduce utility bills for both residential and commercial customers in the city, according to reporting by CBS Austin.

"We understand that it's difficult for people to pay their bills and so Austin Water had excess funds in its reserves so we could provide this assistance to our customers during this time of hardship," said Dave Anders with Austin Water.

Water customers are expected to see a 10% reduction for both water and wastewater bills through the relief program. For many residential power customers, the reduction is expected to be 4%, or more for those on the utility’s assistance program.

The Council cited in its reasoning the expectation that people spending more time at home during the current crisis will likely cause a spike in residential bills at a time when many are trying to live on reduced incomes.