Leesburg Utility Committee Gives Update - Leesburg Today : Leesburg

The Town of Leesburg's Utility Rate Advisory Committee continues to chip away at its workload, now concentrating on developing a set of policy guidelines in advance of a planned rate study.

URAC member Dan Connolly presented a status report to the Town Council last week. He noted that committee members working to develop policy guidelines that will aid a consultant in developing new utility rate recommendations for the town in line with the council's wishes.

Connolly said the committee sent out a questionnaire during the summer and the responses expressed some of the same concerns that have been shared in the past: a perception of fairness in how rates are set; displeasure over the high-use threshold; and an understanding that the town must generate a certain amount of revenue to keep the utility system sustainable.

Connolly said there appears to be some support for an increased fixed rate charge for utility customers and "a lot of support" for a tiered rate structure that could encourage conservation. He also said some respondents supported a flat rate for sewer usage or a winter quarter-plus calculation similar to the one used by Loudoun Water.

Once the guiding principles are established by URAC and supported by the council, Connolly said committee members would like to work with the outside consultant as they comb through the town's utility operations and crunch numbers.

In other utility news, the Town Council last week initiated changes to the utilities fee schedule of the Town Code. If approved by the council following a future public hearing, the changes would establish new or increase several utility-related fees. These include: upping the service charge for a new utility account from $20 to $30; increasing the resumption of water service fee to $30; establishing a fee for meter testing and leak checks; establishing an unauthorized use of service fee; and establishing a fee service fee for multiple field visits to the same address and same activity. Acting Utilities Director Aref Etemadi estimated that the changes could bring the town $40,000 to $60,000 in additional annual revenue.

Source: http://www.leesburg2day.com