How are Water Budgets Determined?

El Toro Water District's Water Budget-Based Tiered Conservation Rate Structure is comprised of four tiers of water use.

Tier 1: Indoor Use (Efficient)
This tier covers indoor water use and is based on the number of residents in the household (each using 60 gallons of water per day), days in the billing cycle and the indoor drought factor. The indoor drought factor is set by the Board of Directors based on the drought stage. It is currently set at 1.

It is very important that you verify the occupancy number that is listed in the top right hand corner of your monthly water bill. If your occupancy number is incorrect, it is likely that your water budget will also be incorrect.

If the District does not receive verification of your occupancy, the following defaults are used:
• Attached home:
           • Unrestricted community (i.e. condominium or townhouse): 3 people
           • Age restricted community (i.e. condominium or townhouse): 2 people
• Apartment: 2 people
• Detached home (single family home): 4 people

Tier 2: Outdoor Use (Efficient)
Outdoor water budgets are calculated using a variety of factors, including real time weather data, landscape area, outdoor drought factor and Evapotranspiration (ET) Adjustment Factor (AF).

Multi-family customers, including apartments, condominiums and mobile homes are provided 25 square feet of landscape per dwelling unit. The landscape area for single-family detached homes is calculated by taking the building area and dividing it by the number of floors and subtracting that from the parcel area. The result is then multiplied by 70 percent to obtain the landscape area.

The outdoor drought factor is currently set at 1. ET is the amount of water that is lost by plants through evaporation and transpiration, and needs to be replaced for the plants to remain healthy. ETAF is a coefficient that adjusts the ET value based on the type of plants and irrigation efficiency. As developed by the California Department of Water Resources, landscape installed prior to January 2010 has an ETAF of 0.8 and new landscape has an ETAF of 0.7.

Tier 3: Inefficient Use
Water use in excess of Tier I and II water budget allocations are deemed inefficient and/or excessive. Tier III water use applies when usage is between 100% and 130% of the Tier I and II water budget allocation.

Tier 4: Excessive Use
Tier 4 usage applies when consumption is over 130% of total water budget.