Changes in Water Utility Bill

A resident recently contacted the city to inquire about the changes in the water utility bill. I thought the response by the city's Finance Director, Kennie Hobbs, needed to be shared. His responds was as follows (deleting the resident's name):


Hello Mr. XXXXXXX. My name is Kennie Hobbs and I am the Finance Director for the City of Lauderhill and I will attempt to address your issue relating to your recent utility bill. You are correct; your new monthly bill reflects a slight increase from your previous bi-monthly utility bill. On September 11th and 25th 2006, the City held public hearings to discuss the restructuring of our utility billing system. At the conclusion of the meetings, it was determined that we would adopt a new billing structure that would adjust both fixed and variable costs. Below, I have included a table reflecting the net changes to your utility bill reflecting both a monthly bill and the new fee structure.


Fees------------ 2006 Rates---- 2007 Rates---- Dollar Increase
Garbage Fee---- $ 19.37 -------- $ 20.41 --------- $ 1.04
Availability Fee- $ 0.00 -------- $ 15.00 --------- $ 5.00
Availability Tax- $ 1.00 -------- $ 1.50 ----------- $ 0.50
Stormwater Fee-$ 8.00 -------- $ 10.00 --------- $ 2.00
Consumption----$ 36.00 --------$ 31.50 ---------$(4.50)
Consumption Tax$ 3.60 -------- $ 3.15 ---------- $(0.45)
Total Change----$ 77.97 -------- $ 81.56 --------- $ 3.59
Based on a one month bill using your actual consumption


In summary, your overall increase is $3.59 or 4.6 percent. Of the overall increase, $1.04 is a pass through from the garbage provider which the City has no control over. Therefore, your overall increase as a result of the new fee structure is $2.55. As you will notice even thought we increased our fixed charges, you benefited from the reduction in our consumption charges and utility tax.