The Board of Water Supply postponed Monday a decision on a proposal to raise water rates, following a little more than an hour of testimony from the public.

Most of the fewer than 20 people who testified Monday spoke against the proposal to increase water rates by 70 percent over the next five years. Much of the opposition came from homeowners associations.

Emory Bush, chairman of the Hawaiiana Management Co., asked what happened to the money from the previous rate increases that began in 2006 and ended in June.

"Why wasn’t some of that money put in reserves to pay for capital improvement the way associations do for years?" Bush said. Hawaiiana manages about 600 residential associations with a total of more than 90,000 units.

BWS acting Manager Dean Nakano has said the increase, which would begin in January if approved as proposed, would bring in an additional $203 million over five years to help pay for about $345 million in capital improvement projects.

A former employee of the water agency, Milton Imada, asked board Chairman Randall Chung to step down, saying Chung and the board "must share blame for the lack of financial responsibility for its customers."

Imada, who said he worked at the agency for 34 years, questioned why the agency has a human resources office and legal counsel when it could use city resources.

The agency wants to increase water rates by 9.65 percent each year for the next five fiscal years, for a total increase of 70 percent from today’s rates.

This January the rate would go from $2.79 for every 1,000 gallons of water used to $3.06 per thousand gallons. The average single-family household would pay an additional $3.50 per month for water during the first year of the proposed increase. (Oahu residents get a water bill every two months.)

Bush said water and sewer fees have become the largest expenditure for associations’ operating budgets. A consent decree last year from the federal government prompted the city to raise sewer fees to pay for renovations to its aging sewer system.

"The water and sewer rates for the month of June at a 400-unit building I manage costs each apartment owner $76," Bush said. "Compare this to a single-family average of $58 a month for water and sewer in New York City, which is supposed to be one of the highest rates in the nation."

However, the consent decree for city sewer improvements should be a warning to the water board for what could happen to its system if the agency does not raise fees to fund needed repairs, said state Department of Land and Natural Resources Deputy Director William Tam.

"We don’t think you should put yourselves in that situation," said Tam, who said the state Commission on Water Resources Management supports the rate increase. He added that the rate increase is relatively small.

"We pay much more than that for a cup of Starbucks latte, a movie ticket or half a gallon of gas," said Tam, one of two people who testified in support of the increase. Some in the audience shook their head in disagreement.

Jane Sugimura, president of the Hawaii Council of Community Associations, said many residents in the townhouse project she lives in have been delinquent in maintenance fee payments. She said a water rate hike would shift the burden of paying maintenance fees to other unit owners and shareholders.

"Our members understand and appreciate that water rate increases are required to fix and replace the infrastructure," Sugimura said. "However, the issue is why the 70 percent increase must be implemented now when the local economy is so bad."

The board decided not to vote on the matter during the hearing and did not set a date for when it will decide.

VIDEO: Water board delays vote on rate increases