2 weeks Ago By by Damian Phillips STAFF WRITER
BRIDGEPORT, W.Va. (WV News) — Members of Bridgeport City Council held a public hearing Monday evening on a proposed four-step increase in water rates.
Several members of the public came out to voice their concerns, as well as suggestions on how the city might deal with increased costs in the future. The hearing — "a friendly question and answer" — was run informally, with only Mayor Andy Lang sitting at the dais, while other council members and members of the Bridgeport Utility Board sat among the crowd, along with staff with knowledge of the issue at hand. Tom Kopp asked several questions relating to past increases in Bridgeport's water rates, including why, after a roughly 9% increase last year, when there was a surplus of funds, there is need to have a 22% increase this year.
City Engineer Beth Fox explained the increase last year was only a pass-through: It was implemented to cover additional costs the city incurred from its water supplier, the Clarksburg Water Board. In regards to the Bridgeport water utility's budget deficit, Lang explained that not raising rates for years caused the utility to dip into budget reserves to pay for past projects and just to stay afloat. "For several years, we have not raised rates at all.
And years ago we had saved money up. So every year when it came to our water budget, there was a time when to fund every thing completely, we had to dip into our reserves a little bit," Lang said. "That's partly what brought this on, and we can't continue to do that.
" Revenue generated in excess of the Bridgeport water utility's operating costs has been used for projects, including an additional water tank at Crystal Ridge, a new water line under the interstate and upgrades on Wallman Avenue and Pennsylvania Avenue, he said. Fox said it might be beneficial to conduct step increases every year so large increases don't hit all at once. But, Lang said, public hearings would still be required to change the rates, per state law.
Additionally, the Legislature passed Senate Bill 234, which requires all public utilities to keep one-eighth of their annual operating costs in a reserve fund to cover emergency expenditures. That requirement also ate into the surplus of funds the city's water utility once had, Fox said, as it now is required to set aside $350,000 for emergencies. Although the proposed rate increases will generate about $1.
7 million over the next four years, the city will only have about $96,000, Fox said, due to several capital projects to update the water system that are already planned. Although rate increases are proposed over the next four years, council members can choose not to implement all of them if they find that earlier increases are enough to cover costs, Fox said. But, she said, passing the first two increases, at 22% and 6%, will likely be needed before serious consideration can be given to canceling the third or fourth increases, based on the projects planned for the next five years.
George Seyfert suggested the city begin construction of its own water collection and treatment plant to cut down on costs incurred from the Clarksburg Water Board, calling it unfair. Fox explained that construction of a water plant would cost $35 million, not to mention the cost of hiring additional employees, building a lab, paying for water treatment and other expenses. Seyfert argued that the project would save money in the long term.
Clarksburg Water Board General Manager Jason Myers, who serves on the Bridgeport Utility Board, responded. "I have to disagree," Myers said. "That's why everyone buys from us.
" Fox did not rule out the possibility of such a project in the future, but said it is something "on the horizon," not something that's going to happen soon. "In the long run, I think it would be beneficial," Seyfert said..
