Flooding on a HCM City street. A new service charge on water bills for water drainage and wastewater treatment will be used to operate, maintain and develop water drainage systems in the city. — VNA/VNS Photo

HCM CITY — The HCM City People’s Committee will add a service charge to domestic water bills for water drainage and wastewater treatment, effective from January 1 next year.

Currently, water bills include a charge for water consumption based on the amount of water used, a 10 per cent value-added tax (VAT) on water usage, and a 10 per cent charge for environmental protection.

Next year, the charge for environmental protection will be replaced by the service charge for water drainage and wastewater treatment.

The service charge for water drainage and wastewater treatment will start at 15 per cent next year and increase by five per cent each year between 2022 and 2025.

One per cent of the money collected through the charge will be used to cover collection encashment services and taxes, and the remaining 99 per cent will go to the State budget to operate, maintain and develop water drainage systems in the city. — VNS