Here (Spokane county, Washington state), certain towns use the water bill as a tax. I don't know GP's exact situation, but that's a possibility. A water bill in the city of Spokane, WA is often around $150/mo in the summer where outside the city it's around that much per year.
In California, where GGP lives, Proposition 218 (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California_Proposition_218_(19...) requires voter approval for taxes on water, which effectively means that taxes on water don't exist, and Californians pay less for water than pretty much everybody else in the country.
