(7/20) Earlier this year, the Town Council extended the semi-annual water assessment fee of $100 - two payments of $50 - until a long-term plan is established. At the July meeting, the Council discussed raising the water rates for the first time since 2016, on top of the special fee.
Burgess Chad Weddle laid out the history of the Town’s water rates beginning in 1995 when the base rate was $10. In 1998, the base rate was increased to $35 and the Town had an additional three, 15% raises over 18 months. The next increase was in 2006 when the base fee was raised to $40. In 2015, it was increased to $60 plus an additional 10% to each tier. A year later in 2016, the base fee was increased to $72 and that was the last time the rates were raised.
Weddle took full accountability for delaying a rate increase during his 17 years on the Council, citing "the hunt for saving dollars" as the reason why. He encouraged the Council to adopt a 20% increase with an additional 3% each year for the next four years to account for the deficit in the Water Fund. He shared his own water bill as an example of how a 20% increase would look. "I pay $126.03 for six months of water usage. A 20% increase on my bill would be $15 spread out over six months, which would increase it by $2.57 a month."
At prior meetings, Town Manager Sean Williams stressed the implications of not ensuring the water rates cover actual costs. He referenced the recent public uproar in Emmitsburg when the Town was forced to implement a series of yearly 36% rate increases after failing to ensure that water rates cover the actual costs of water for years. Thurmont has also recently raised their water rates by 15%.
Commissioner Tom Gilbert has been an avid supporter of increasing the water rates and supported Weddle's suggestion of 20% plus 3% a year for four years. "The projected income with the 20% increase and the assessment fee increases from $1.547 million to $1.752 million, a little over $200,000," said Gilbert. "The adopted budget shows a negative $228,000 deficit, so by increasing the water rates by 20% that deficient is decreased."
He also suggested changing the amount of interest the Town is charging itself for the loan from the General Fund to the Water Fund from 5% to 1%. When it was first established a few years ago, the interest rate was set to adjust according to inflation. However, to aid in the Town’s deficit, fixing this interest rate at 1% would decrease the cost to the Town from $123,000 to $74,000. "By doing those two things, we are able to come up with a $26,000 positive for the budget," he said. He also pointed out that increased salaries, fees paid for wastewater disposal to Frederick County, maintenance and repairs impact the water rates too.
Commissioner Betsey Brannon questioned where an increase of 20% would place Walkersville in comparison to neighboring municipalities. Weddle assured her that with the increase, the Town still has one of the lowest water rates in the area.
Residents present at July’s public workshop were vocally against the increase in rates. Homeowners in Discovery were especially concerned about the increase, stating that those on fixed incomes would be struggling with an almost $50 increase twice a year. Although not the driving force behind the rate increases, the nine-million-dollar price tag of the Discovery water main replacement will also need funding. With this in mind, any efforts to increase the Water Fund will be considered according to the Council.
Weddle confirmed the new rates would go into effect in October 2024, meaning the first payments wouldn't be due until June of 2025.
Other options the Council will be discussing include ideas such as revoking the assessment fee entirely and rolling it into general fees and changing billing from semi-annual to quarterly billing to lessen the financial impact on residents. The Council did, however, approve the increase of 20% with an additional 3% each year for the next four years.
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