The City of San Diego’s Public Utilities Department continues improving its customers' services through new and enhanced technology, hiring more staff and additional online service options.

Over the past five years, Public Utilities has implemented changes to address longstanding systemic problems to improve billing processes and the quality of service for the 283,000 household and business accounts.

This year, Public Utilities has made significant progress in improving online access to water and wastewater services — making it easy for customers to access self-service options — by modernizing our phone system, recruiting additional customer support staff and providing enhanced staff training.

Customer feedback has indicated that San Diegans want to access services online when it’s convenient for them. In response, Public Utilities launched new web forms allowing San Diegans to submit requests and have those issues resolved within one to two business days.

Working closely with the City’s Department of Information Technology, Public Utilities launched a modernized phone system last year. This new system allows for more efficient call resolutions.

Wait times have decreased for people calling the Customer Service Center. In March 2023, callers were on hold for up to two hours. But as of February 2024, call wait times have dropped to an average of 25 minutes. We continue working on reducing wait times to the industry standard of no more than five minutes.

Our Team

Investing in our employees is crucial to improving the overall customer service experience.

Over the past year, the Public Utilities Department has dramatically improved its ability to fill vacant positions and we continue to hire for new positions across the department, including water meter readers and customer service representatives.

Thanks to pay increases, the return of pension benefits and Mayor Todd Gloria's commitment to filling vacancies, we've been able to grow our team and improve our operations.

We continue looking for qualified people to apply for several positions and join a diverse team of professionals working to bring quality services to our customers. Anyone interested can find more information on the Join Our Team webpage.

Technology Improvements

Public Utilities is developing a new online customer self-service portal that integrates with the billing system, allowing customers to complete the most common service requests quickly and conveniently from a computer or mobile device. The first phase of the new self-service portal is expected by spring 2024.

In addition, 40 more technology enhancements are in the works to better serve residents and businesses. These include:

• New contact center software that will route calls more efficiently to help decrease call wait times and track metrics to continually improve service.
• A new software interface for employees with easy-to-follow workflows to make service more efficient, resulting in fewer calls and emails to the contact center – and faster service for customers who do contact us.

Update to Current Billing Practices

We are also making changes to our billing system. Currently, 97-98% of our customer bills are sent on time. However, because we’re committed to accurate bills, we will place a temporary hold on bills if the amount of water used is significantly outside the typical range of a customer’s historic usage. This may be the result of any one of the following: there was a misread of your water meter, your meter registered unusually low or zero usage, or your meter registered unusually high usage.

When accounts require our staff’s review, the bills are temporarily held until the review is complete. During this period, there will be no late charges or penalties for non-payment, and your water service will continue uninterrupted.

Keeping You Informed

Public Utilities is committed to improving service for its customers.

More detailed information about customer accounts is now on the City’s website, including:

• Helpful step-by-step instructions on how to start, stop or transfer water service.
• Assistance in reading your water meter and reporting concerns about accuracy.  
• Information on scheduling a survey for your property to determine how you can save water. 

If you have concerns about your water bill, call the Customer Support Division at 619-515-3500, Monday through Friday, 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Phone wait times are generally the shortest first thing in the morning. You can also make an online request to have a Field Representative come out to your property and investigate your water meter, including getting a current read on the meter.

The Public Utilities Department strives to serve and support San Diegans. As the department continues to improve its processes, you can learn more about its commitment to maintaining water quality, reducing sewer spills, investing in our infrastructure and providing a reliable, sustainable water supply for the future.