The Times West Virginian

Local News

March 4, 2009

PSC to hear appeal of Fairmont water-rate increase

Hearing date not yet scheduled; no decision on allowing city an interim rate

By Paul Fallon

FAIRMONT — The West Virginia Public Service Commission has agreed to hear an appeal in the Fairmont water-rate increase case.

A municipal appeal case was opened because the Valley Falls Public Service District and the City of Mannington protested the water rate increase, said Sarah Robertson, a spokesperson for the PSC.

The issue as to whether or not Fairmont will be able to raise the water-rate portion of the utility bill by 49 percent will now go before an administrative law judge, she said.

A hearing date has not yet been scheduled, she added. The administrative law judge will make a recommendation to the commissioners, who will then rule on the rate increase, Robertson said.

“The commissioners have 20 days after the administrative law judge makes the recommendation to rule on the increase,” she said.

Robertson also said the commissioners at the state agency are debating whether to allow Fairmont officials to begin charging an interim rate for water until the appeal case has been heard.

Fairmont officials have requested that an interim rate be established because the city has experienced such dire financial difficulties because of the problems at the water plant.

“The PSC staff is looking at what the city needs right now while the appeal process plays out,” Robertson said.

Fairmont officials have requested permission to begin charging the additional 49 percent immediately. Robertson said the commission can decide to allow Fairmont officials to charge the 49 percent immediately, or it can set the rate at a lower amount.

“We’ll have to let the process work,” said Jim Snider, Fairmont city manager.

In the past, Snider has said the city will experience financial difficulties if the rate does not go into effect immediately. On Monday, he said city officials would deal with the issue as best they could if the PSC does not allow the increase to go into effect immediately.

Amy Swann, the director of the water and wastewater division of the PSC, said earlier the commissioners at the PSC could rule to waive the waiting period, allowing city officials to implement the increase on a temporary basis.

She said if the commissioners decide that the 49 percent increase is too high after the city has already begun charging that amount, then the Fairmont water department would have to refund all or part of that increase.

For example, if Fairmont officials began charging 49 percent more on their water bills and the commissioners decided that was too high and set the increase at a lower amount, then the city water department would have to refund the difference to its customers.

The PSC has not only received letters from Valley Falls PSD and the City of Mannington protesting the rate hike, but some area citizens have also sent petitions to the state agency expressing their opposition to the increase. One petition opposing the increase contained 1,660 signatures. Fairmont has 13,138 water customers.

The rate increase is to pay for a $9.6 million corrective action at Fairmont’s 5-year-old water plant. Snider said some of the funds generated by the increase will be used to bring the city’s water fund out of debt. He added the water-rate increase will bring the city’s water fund out of debt. Money was taken from other city funds and was placed in the water fund in order to pay for emergency action when the water plant began malfunctioning during the winter of 2007.

According to the rate increase ordinance, the minimum bill for a residential water customer using a 5/8-inch line will increase by $7.11 per month. This will bring the minimum bill for a residential water customer to $21.65 per month.

The average bill for a Fairmont water customer will increase by $12.82 per month, Snider said. This figure is based on a 4,500-gallon benchmark, which was created by the American Water Works Association.

Fairmont is also increasing the rate to the city’s resale customers as well. The rate for the resale accounts will increase from $1.93 per thousand gallons per month to $2.88, according to the rate increase ordinance.

E-mail Paul Fallon at pfallon@timeswv.com.

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