A Message Regarding Rates from the Authority Administrator.

Over the next week, our April utility bills will be sent out. These bills are for charges based on the usage from January until March. You will notice on this bill, an increased amount to the capital charge and the service charge, or fixed charge for water and sewer. In December of 2019, the Board undertook an exercise to evaluate the expenses for the Authority. It was determined that an increase in fees for fixed expenses was needed. Fixed expenses are those expenses that do not fluctuate based on water production…items like insurance, employee wages, dues, depreciation. They are expenses that must be paid no matter how much water is produced and consumed. The fixed charge increase for water and sewer is approximately $10.00/quarter, or a little over $3/month. The goal was to increase the charges in a way that would be more sustainable to the customer and not a large burden. We did not increase the rate for the amount of water used by a customer, known as the volumetric charge. Your water usage will be charged at the same rate as for 2019, as will your sewer rate. 

We did increase the capital charge by a $1.05/quarter or approximately $0.33/month. This helps to build up our capital reserves for any upcoming projects that we are anticipating, such as rehabilitation to the wastewater system. 

We understand with the current circumstances that additional costs are not ideal. We could not have foreseen the community’s current situation. We hope our approach of implementing minimum increases, in order to support our operations, is understood by our customers. As we have mentioned, if you are having issues paying your utility bill, please reach out to us at 610-838-8051, so we can work on payment arrangements, and assist you if you are in need.