Well, the number did not come forward this month, but thankfully, reporter Robert Zullo is following the issue. From the Times Dispatch:
Advocates for lower Richmond water and sewer charges have thus far been stonewalled by the city administration in attempts to obtain a consultant’s study that will be central to the utility rates the mayor will propose this month as part of the city budget.
The city’s Public Utilities Department has denied a Freedom of Information Act request from Charles Pool, an Oregon Hill resident who is among a chorus of city utility customers calling for lower base charges for water and wastewater, for the report by Raftelis Financial Consultants.
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Before drinking a single drop of water or flushing a toilet, Richmond’s water and wastewater customers pay $49.40 a month, the highest base charge in the area and, some argue, higher than most municipalities in the country. The water, wastewater and gas utilities, after covering their own operating expenses, will contribute an estimated $21.5 million this year to the city’s general fund in the form of a payment-in-lieu-of-taxes, a provision of the city charter that critics say subsidizes city government on the backs of utility customers.
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The study’s recommendations will be included in the budget the mayor is scheduled to present to the council March 12. And though the council won’t vote on the final budget until May, Bedell argued that once the rates make it into the mayor’s budget, they’ll be more difficult for council members to alter. The rate discussion, he said, should be conducted with the council and public.
“It’s like all the proposals the city tries to push through,” Bedell said, citing the new city jail and Washington Redskins training camp now under construction. “I think their whole philosophy is … hold back as much as you can and spring it on them on the last minute.”
Oregon Hill resident Charles Pool has been bringing this issue for over five years now. Will 2013 mark a turning point?
I thought the politicians worked FOR us, not against us tax paying citizens.
Yes, thank you for initiating and continuing this fight to get these overcharges of water/utilities rates reduced. Overcharging Richmond citizens for basic water/sewage is ridiculous. Why are the local counties dismissed from paying these fees? They share the same water from the James River, and Richmond purifies the the water and waste products. The citizens having the least are not treated fairlly regarding rates…
What was the reason for denying the FOIA request? If it doesn’t relate to personnel matters or real estate acquisition, and you’re a VA resident, then it’s nearly impossible to completely deny a FOIA request.
The FOIA request should be granted. In fact, if the government was transparent, a FOIA request would be unnecessary.
I do not understand the FOIA refusal. What are they hiding?
Soaking us (pardon the pun) for years with userous fees for water and sewage has created a cash cow that the city thinks it can’t afford to lose. Replacing revenue lost from a reduction in these fees would mean another tax somewhere, which no one wants. Stonewalling the FOIA request is all part of their strategy to hang on to our money for dear life. Better they spend their time and energy implementing improvements for greater efficiency. Nah, that would be the right thing to do.