JEFFERSONVILLE — As of Thursday morning — one week after the city of Jeffersonville adopted a new summer billing program for its sewer customers — 52 people had signed up to receive relief on their summer sewer bills.

But a lot more people have called or stopped by the city’s sewer department to ask questions about the new program, uncertain of how they may qualify or what exactly the new policy is.

“People have had questions,” Mayor Mike Moore said. “They’ve heard something about it but they’re not exactly sure what’s going on ... They want to know what it is. ”



WHAT IT IS

The new summer relief program was adopted by the city’s sewer board on July 5 and replaces a previous summer relief policy that had been in place since 1991 and was eliminated by the city council and the sewer board at the first of the year.

Under the new program residents can apply for relief on their summer sewer bills two ways:

First, residents can purchase a  meter for their outdoor spigots to measure outdoor water use. The amount of water recorded by the meter will be deducted from a resident’s bill before their sewer bill is calculated. 

Second, residents can go to the city’s sewer department and fill out a summer sewer agreement form — or waiver, as it’s being called — stating their extra water usage is due to the use of outside faucets for watering lawns and gardens, for filling swimming pools and for other outdoor activities and that it is not going into the city’s sewer system. By filling out the waiver, residents qualify for a flat rate sewer bill of $61.04 per month for their summer month sewer bills.



WHY IT GETS CONFUSING

According to the actual wording of the Wastewater Adjustment Billing Policy adopted last week by the sewer board, to receive a discount the city will sell residents water meters for exterior irrigation or if “an exterior irrigation cannot be served through a separate water meter as a result of the internal plumbing of the residence, then the customer can enter into the Summer Sewer Rate Agreement.” [Which would qualify them for the $61.04 rate].

That wording is what has left some people confused over who can actually apply for the flat $61.04 rate. But some city officials say the policy speaks for itself and there’s no interpretation required.

“To me there should not be any confusion,” said Sewer Board Attorney Scott Lewis, who also serves as counsel for the city council.

“It’s right there in black and white. Not everyone is eligible. It’s for people that cannot be served by an external water meter,” he said of the flat rate.

Jeffersonville Utility Director Len Ashack agreed.

“It’s for folks that have irrigation systems or systems not conducive to putting on a water meter,” he said.

City Council President Ed Zastawny said the waiver granting the $61.04 will likely apply only to a small number of people — 5 to 10 percent of the city’s residents — who have what he called an integrated water system.

Zastawny said those affected residents who then choose to apply for the waiver will have their spigots inspected to make sure their water system isn’t able to be fit with a meter.

“If you have an outdoor water spigot you still need a water meter,” Zastawny said. “Most people will still be in the same situation. It’s going to be a pretty rare exception,” he said, referring to the waiver. “The only [other] way to get summer relief is through a meter.”



ON THE OTHER HAND

But Moore said the city is unlikely to inspect the outdoor plumbing on homes of people who fill out the summer relief form.

“We don’t have the manpower to go out and do a home inspection to find out if everybody that comes in and makes a request ... couldn’t get a meter,” he said. “We’re taking people’s word on it. If they come in and sign this waiver, and they say that water is going on their grass and is not going into the sewer, I’m going to trust them. We are not going to go out and inspect people’s property ... unless we know there is a gross abuse.”

“I’m taking people at their word,” Moore said. “If they sign that waiver that’s good enough for me.”



SEEING IT IS BELIEVING IT

The summer sewer rate — for those who choose to particpate either through the meter or by filling out a waiver for the $61.04 flat rate — will be applied to the sewer bills residents receive in August and will continue for the bills they receive in September and October.

If a resident has not purchased a meter or signed a waiver, their sewer bill will not reflect any discounts — not even the one they’ve been receiving since 1991. Moore said that is when the majority of residents will realize something is going on.

“A lot of people don’t react to things until it affects their wallet,” Moore said. “I think the biggest push [for relief] will be when next month’s sewer bills come out ... Instead of getting the typical $45 bill, they’re going to get, maybe, an $85 bill. That’s when the phone calls are going to start coming in.”



MORE RELIEF ...

Residents can purchase water meters for their outdoor spigots from the city at a bulk rate.

Ashack said a full kit, which includes the water meter, will cost about $75. He said the cost is about $50 less than if people bought them themselves and if well-maintained the meters can last up to 20 years.

Ashack said if residents want to run multiple spigots at the same time, and still want to receive the discount, they will need to purchase a meter for each spigot.

Credits can be applied from the water meters each month or as little as once-a-year, according to the wastewater billing policy.

“However often they bring that meter in to the water billing office, we’ll give them a credit,” Ashack said. “We’re trying to give people the best break we can.”



THE ROAD TO RELIEF

Moore and the council had been at odds over a summer relief program for a couple of months.

The council and the sewer board were initially in favor of eliminating summer relief from sewer bills altogether unless residents purchased meters for their outdoor spigots.

Moore pushed the council for compromise on the matter without success, and told the council he would not enforce the ordinance requiring meters for relief. That led the council to agree to seek legal action against Moore if he did, in fact, not implement the ordinance as it was passed earlier this year.

However, the council agreed at its meeting on July 2 to wait and see if the sewer board adopted a new policy at its July 5 meeting before pursuing legal action against the mayor. It was during that meeting the sewer board approved the new summer relief policy.



So you know

According to a city of Jeffersonville press release, sewer customers are encouraged to contact the Jeffersonville Sewer Billing office at 812-285-6418 to purchase a water meter or to apply for the waiver program before the sewer bills are mailed on June 25th.